• 5 artisan cheeses $12 (shared)
• Pot stickers with crimini mushrooms, cashews, black bean sauce $19
• Molten chocolate baby cake $6

This was one of those rare times where we did not pick on Thursday and waited until Saturday to decide to go out. So since there were three places in Stillwater that were in our basket we decided to go that way and shoot for Cesare's Wine Bar, but if that was busy go to Marx and if that was busy go to Chives. As we pulled up to Cesare's it was obvious there was a wait as people were milling out side so, we parked and went down to Marx which had an 1 1/2 hour wait and then we went to Chives which had a private wine tasting dinner, so we arrived back to Cesare's where we were told we had a 1/2 hour wait to sit at the bar, but once we were at the bar we could eat dinner there and they offered to get us a glass of wine while we waited so we decided that was as good as we were going to get.

The wait was pleasant enough and sitting at the bar which I normally am not fond of was actually kinda fun, in part because I already had a whole glass of wine drank before I got there and because the bartender was super cool. We started with the Cheese plate which was amazing it had five different kinds of cheese and they were all spectacular. I then had the potstickers which were not that great, it really had a strong soy sauce taste which didn't really work. The Chocolate molten cake was fantastic. Both glasses of wine that I had were also great.

I would probably not go back to Cesare's simply because it is a long haul from my house to Stillwater and there are many cool wine bars much closer, but if you live in or near Stillwater, I think this is a good option if you are looking for a wine bar.

• Calamari carbonara (linguine) $16
• Panna cotta w/ raspberry $6

So we went to Stillwater on a Saturday night without reservations. Gone are the days of short waits at good restaurants. Sure we probably could get right in at one of the other yucky restaurants, but we were not about to settle. The other three restaurants in our basket were either closed for a private party or had an hour and a half wait. So we enjoyed a glass of wine at Cesare’s while we waited one half hour to eat dinner at the bar.

We had a good time at Cesare’s. It is a charming wine bar inside despite its unassuming exterior. The inside is quite noisy, but it’s the energy of good wine and a vibrant wait staff. That energy is contagious. I recommend sitting at the bar for that reason: you can watch and listen to people while feeling part of the crowd.

I liked the five artisan cheese plate. It was an awesome array of goat, bleu, cheddar, soft, wondrousness that was sprinkled with almonds and walnuts, perfect with wine (We need to order more cheese plates). The best part is that Cesare’s plate can be shared by two or four without feeling stuffed or cheap.

Ok, so Renee’s pot stickers were awful. Don’t order them. But my calamari carbonara was a delectable triumph. The linguine was spectacular and the dynamic, unique (to me) combination of calamari and carbonara was a surprising treat. This is a dish with a limited audience, to be sure, but don’t be shocked if you see it on a few menus across town. If you can get past eating squid, this is a good combination.

The desserts were just ok. I wasn’t highly impressed. The restaurant does a reasonable job preparing standards at a decent price. Given the right circumstances, I would be tempted to go with the cheese plate for dessert. Given another set of circumstances, like being in Stillwater again on a Saturday night without reservations, I would like to go back to try their pizza.