“Here is the Eater Wine Bar Heatmap, the 19 hottest wine bars to have opened across the US (and one in Montreal) in the past year or so. Entries are in alphabetical order...

19. Winebelly
A combination wine and tapas bar in the former Green Muse space, Winebelly offers a geographically diverse selection of bottles at accessible prices.”

“Where to Eat in Austin Right Now, January ‘14

The Tran family, who own the popular Hai Ky restaurants, has branched out into Spanish cuisine with their new South Austin tapas and wine bar. Bar snacks and larger tapas plates round out the menu. ”

“As is the tradition at Eater, our closeout of the year is a survey of friends, industry types, bloggers, and readers. Here’s last year’s run-down for the nostalgic...

Q: What was the biggest dining surprise of 2013?

Megan Giller, editor of Zagat Austin: Winebelly. I love the casual atmosphere and the impeccable food.”

“The 9 best new Austin restaurants of 2013... Winebelly — This new South Austin wine and tapas bar was a pleasant find from the same family who owns Vietnamese restaurants, Hai Ky. I originally happened in with a friend to check out the wine list, but was pleasantly surprised by the food menu as well. In addition to tapas such as roasted cauliflower with raisins and anchovy-soaked bread crumbs to tasty grilled lamb ribs with herbed yogurt and vegetables, you’ll find an assortment of cheese, charcuterie and savory bar snacks including shishito peppers with fresh ricotta and piquant French fries with pimenton and chili pepper. The wine list is wonderfully diverse and value driven, with a fair selection of wines by the glass.”

“A tapas dinner can often leave you feeling hungry and broke. Not so at new South Austin spot Winebelly, unassumingly tucked between two check-cashing businesses. “It seems like everywhere you go tapas are the same prices as meals,” says co-owner Robert Tran. “We want to be affordable and have bang for your buck.” ... The unpretentious food and design has already made it a regular spot for 78704-ers. “We don’t want to be the place you come to for special occasions,” Tran says. “We want to be your Tuesday place.” ”

“What does it mean to be a “neighborhood” restaurant, as compared to just a restaurant? I would say it means it isn’t expensive, there is plenty of free parking, and you can usually just walk in and get a table. These are the very things that set Winebelly apart from the other tapas bars that have opened recently in Austin; it truly is a neighborhood wine bar. It isn’t pricey, with most of the bar snacks costing around $5 each, and the tapas hovering around $10. Every time I have gone in I have been seated immediately, and whether driving or walking, there is none of the hassle that heading Downtown invariably entails. Unsurprisingly, Winebelly has been warmly embraced by area residents...”

“South Austin is already abuzz about the new restaurant from the owners of Hai Ky. The restaurant brings new life to the old Green Muse space on Oltorf, and the classy interior, with a copper bar and vintage picture frames and mirrors, sets the mood. The menu is divided into bar snacks, charcuterie and cheese, and tapas. Be sure to delve into the excellent wine list as well.”

“The new tapas and wine bar from the owners of Hai Ky launched just a few weeks ago on Oltorf in the old Green Muse space. The menu, headed up by chef Buulinh Liu from New York City, is divided into bar snacks, charcuterie and cheese, and tapas: think shishito peppers, crispy pig ears, roasted octopus and sweet paprika lamb ribs. The classy interior with a copper bar and vintage picture frames and mirrors on the wall sets the mood.”

“Tapas and wine bar Winebelly opened softly last week and will have its grand opening Thursday. The restaurant, helmed by chef Buulinh Liu, is located at 519 W. Oltorf St. in the space once occupied by coffee house The Green Muse. In addition to their wine selection, the restaurant, which is owned by the Tran family that owns Vietnamese restaurant Hai Ky, offers a menu of bar snacks (cured white anchovies and crispy pig ears), charcuterie (chicken liver mousse and pork rillettes), and a host of tapas (charred summer vegetables, roasted octopus, brick chicken, lamb ribs and more). Winebelly is open from 3 p.m. to midnight. In related news, the 2000 Guadalupe St. location of Hai Ky has closed. The Oltorf, Bee Cave and Spicewood Springs locations remain open.”

“Tipsters, readers, friends and family of Eater Austin always want to know: Where should I eat right now? What are the buzziest new restaurants? What haven’t I heard of? What’s everyone talking about?

To answer those questions, we present our 27th edition of the Eater Austin Heatmap. On the list are four hot new restuarants: Brad Sorenson’s NO VA, Edgar and Christina Torres’s School House Pub, microbrewery-gone-pub The ABGB, and South Austin tapas and wine bar Winebelly.”

“A stretch of West Oltorf has emerged as a busy wine and beer thoroughfare over the past week with the opening of the new tapas and wine bar, Winebelly (519 W. Oltorf, in the former Green Muse Cafe space), and the debut of the long-awaited Austin Beer Garden Brewing Co. (1305 W. Oltorf) in an old rental warehouse by the railroad tracks. Both spots are offering limited menus – Spanish-influenced tapas at Winebelly and pizza and sandwiches at ABGB – and early reports from our contributors are positive.”