First Look: Cellar House in South County

South County cocktailians and oenophiles have a new date-night spot close to home. Cellar House, a new companion restaurant connected to Bottle Cellars wine shop at 6039 Telegraph Road in Oakville, quietly opened doors at the end of May.

Owner Patrick Ahearn, who opened Bottle Cellars five years ago, is a trained architect who designed the space himself. The 40-seat eatery sports dark wood, a black bar and pressed tin ceiling for an intimate feel. A small patio out front offers 16 additional seats.

Cellar House boasts an expansive bar program, thanks to the work of bar manager Shawn Sullivan, whose resume includes stints managing the bar at Vin de Set. Cellar House boasts 240 bottles of wine and 20 by-the-glass options, and beer fans can select from roughly 25 craft brews, including many local options in bottles or cans with another five rotating draft options. A full bar features 45 whiskey options and a menu of classic and original cocktails, many made with house-infused syrups and liqueurs.

Chef Scott Monteith’s menu is designed for sharing, with a selection of snacks, cheese and charcuterie boards, flatbreads and larger plates. Monteith sources much of his produce and meats locally, and pastry chef Jami Gerbert creates the prominently featured ricotta and mozzarella in-house. Gerbert also crafts the majority of desserts, including a rotating seasonal bread pudding and creme brulee, dark chocolate raspberry truffles and tiramisu.

Cellar House is open 4 p.m. to midnight Tuesday through Thursday, 4 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. Friday and 2 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. Saturday. Here’s a first look at what you’ll find at this new South County nightspot.

-photos by Michelle Volansky 

This article appears in June 2015.