Aperitiv is a new kind of food business for Nice.
It is the…read morecoolest little shop carrying items for the perfect picnic, soiree, gourmet snack, drinks with friends, etc events.
I stumbled upon Aperitiv while walking through the neighborhood after being in the old Port of Nice.
When I walked in, I was excited. There were shelves and shelves of wine, spirits. Barrels of different kinds of olives which you could scoop up and self serve or pick up already prepared packages. There was a display case with different types of cheese and charcuterie. There were eating accessories that you might need like plates, napkins, bottle opener.
I chatted with the man behind the counter and I found out he was the co-owner of the shop (and a former management consultant who had worked in Paris but had returned after several years to his home region of Nice). He and a management consultant colleague had decided to open this venture and had only been in business for a short time. They had taken over a year to choose all the items they wanted to stock in the shop.What a delight.
I asked him if he had a sweet wine in a small bottle. Unfortunately, he only had sweet wines in regular sized bottles which are a little too much for me to drink. After a bit of nosing around though, he recalled that he had an opened bottle of ice wine available for sampling. He whipped out a small glass and gave me a taste for free. It was delicious!!!
I ended up buying some lovely goat cheese and some delicious charcuterie which he sliced on the machine and packaged himself. Really hands on service here.
Also to note: his shop supplies or advises on the wine for the little restaurant opposite the entrance of the store across the street. So if you want to try some wine that they sell, you just have to pop over to the restaurant and check out the selection there.
What a great find: a food entrepreneur who wants to evolve the food scene in Nice. At the same time I also support the traditional way of going to a particular shop focused on particular products (say all cheese, all bread, whatever). I think both can co-exist happily.
However people can deliver food to consumers to make it less intimidating and more available, I totally like that. And you'll love Apertiiv once you experience it yourself.
