NEW YORK— Looking for a place to celebrate a special birthday or anniversary, host your next corporate event or just to gather family and friends while escaping the summer heat? Let Aroma Kitchen & Winebar hand-tailor your next dinner party held in the comfort of its cool subterranean Farmhouse Room: a private escape perfect for summer entertaining. Anchored by a communal wood table of dark mahogany made from Douglas Fir trees, the Farmhouse Room comfortably seats 20 guests for a menu with dinner courses and wine pairings designed to perfectly suit your occasion. If a cocktail party with passed hors d’oeuvres, buffet and open bar is more your style, the room transforms into an open setting and bar for up to 40 guests.

With windows looking out into Aroma’s enchanting back garden, the Farmhouse Room is an ideal location to enjoy the summer breeze or keep the humidity at bay in air-conditioned comfort. Whisk your guests off on a Tuscan country escape with the Farmhouse Room’s captivating ambiance, Aroma’s authentic Italian cooking and wide variety of wines to please all palates. Winner of the 2006 Citysearch Audience Awards for “Best Wine List” and “Best Group Dining,” Aroma’s talent lies in crafting impeccable food and wine arrangements to fit the vision of any host. For room availability, sample set menus and reservations please call 212.375.0100. For more information or to interview owners Alexandra Degiorgio & Vito Polosa interested media please contact Workhouse Publicity, publicist Lauren Gould directly by telephone 212. 645. 8006 or via email lauren@workhousepr.com

AROMA KITCHEN & WINEBAR
Relaxed. Intense. Italian. Aroma Kitchen & Wine bar is an Italian restaurant intent on taking guests to refreshingly new levels of Italian food and wine enjoyment. Located next to the Bowery Bar in the East Village at 36 E. 4th Street between Bowery and Lafayette, Aroma feels like a secret wine bar in Rome. From the moment Alexandra Degiorgio greets you at the door, to the first scent of wine selected by Vito Polosa visitors to Aroma experience a casual, honest environment and dishes that capture the flavor and soul of Italy. It's a cozy space, yet it feels expansive. The wine list includes over 150 Italian wines, divided by region, including an extensive “by the glass” program. With seats comfortable enough for dining at the bar, a dining booth in the back and a sidewalk veranda, the restaurant seats 30. Additionally, Aroma’s Farmhouse Room, a private, subterranean escape, is accessed through a narrow staircase and winding catacombs and comfortably seats 20 guests.

MENU AND VENUE INSPIRATION
Alexandra Degiorgio and Vito Polosa’s childhood in the Mediterranean was founded in a culture with a strong, stable culinary tradition where great pleasure is derived from food and where dining is an experience to be savored. Great meals lasted for hours, bringing family and friends together. These meals were always prepared with local and fresh ingredients and with love, care and attention.

Since moving to New York, Alexandra and Vito have seen the same passion for food and drink but found the experience is rarely savored or remembered here. This passion is also often hindered by a fear that delicious food cannot be healthy for you. After they met in November 2002, they created an escape in their home by hosting frequent dinners to celebrate friendships and family, food and wine. They dreamed of creating a restaurant that would bring back the values of fresh, local food that is carefully prepared coupled with wonderful wines and genuine service. Alexandra Degiorgio and Vito Polosa opened Aroma Kitchen & Winebar in March 2005 with a vision to take guests to new levels of Italian food and wine enjoyment, making every meal a memorable experience.

ATMOSPHERE
Aroma is a study in contrasts: The urban/rustic interior features exposed brick, a dark wood bar with natural edges juxtaposed with mirrors framed with brushed steel. The room is softly lit by both contemporary chandeliers and flickering candles. Brought together by their shared passion for food, wine and entertaining, owners Degiorgio and Polosa are both as active behind the scenes as they are in front of the house. Alexandra, a native of Malta, was formerly a consultant for American Management Systems (AMS), an international information technology firm. Vito, from Potenza, Italy (just South of Naples) has extensive experience in service as waiter, head waiter or manager at such NYC restaurants as Fiamma, Da Silvano, Bice and Il Gattopardo. Most recently, he was a wine salesman for Winebow, one of New York's largest wine and liquor distributors. The team brings passionate, focused intensity to the art of relaxing hospitality. They plan to share their enthusiasm with wine tastings, directed pairings and other educational programs.

WEEKLY EVENTS
Monday – Friday: Aperitivo: three wines and open antipasti bar for $15. Those looking for an inexpensive weekly destination to gather with friends after work over great food and refreshing wine need look no further. Aroma Kitchen & Winebar’s infamous ‘aperitivo’ is being extended during the summer to 8:00PM on Friday nights, allowing food and wine enthusiasts to enjoy an additional hour as they unwind after work and prepare for the weekend with a tasting of three wines alongside Aroma’s freshly-prepared antipasti for only $15 per person. During new Friday aperitivo hours from 4:00PM-8:00PM, Aroma will also be offering glasses of Gragnano, Vito Polosa’s choice for the perfect summer sparkling red wine, for half price at $4.50 per glass. A limited vintage wine that everyone must experience, Gragano is vivacious and refreshing, with an intoxicating berry aroma and a great thirst-quenching sour morello cherry finish accompanied by a great bubble fizz. This summer, cool off after work, try a glass of Gragnano, and help yourself to appetizing traditional plates that range from sicilian tuna salad and marinated calamari to assorted bruschetta and vegetables—all without burning a whole in your pocket. Experience “aperitivo,” the Italian after-work ritual of savory bites and light drinks, every Monday-Thursday from 4:00PM-7:00PM, and now on Fridays from 4:00PM-8:00PM, all for an affordable $15.  

Mondays: Chef tasting menu: five course tasting menu for $30 accompanied by flamenco guitar
Aroma breathes life into the most dreaded day of the week with an ever-changing, weekly 5-course menu showcasing the restaurant’s regional Italian favorites for $30 per person with a $20 wine pairing with each course. Now is the time to experiment with new flavors and food combinations.

Sundays: Prix fixe menu: three courses for $25 accompanied classical guitar
Adhering to Italian tradition, owners Alexandra Degiorgio and Vito Polosa invite you into their “home-away-from-home” to celebrate Sundays with family, friends and neighbors over rustic Italian dishes and table wine that charm the palate and ease the mind and spirit. Guests are invited to choose dishes from a three-course prix fixe menu available for $25, while glasses of house wine are $7.

HOURS
Aroma is open Monday – Friday 12PM – 12AM, Saturday - Sunday 6PM – 12PM. Lunch is served Monday to Friday 12PM – 3PM. Dinner is served Daily 6PM – 11PM. Aroma is open for "aperitivo" Monday – Friday, 4PM – 7PM.  

Aroma is located at 36 E. 4th Street between Bowery and Lafayette. For more information call 212-375-0100 or visit aromanyc.com.