Cork Market & Tasting Room

Expired products! I was at Cork Market the other day and bought a sandwich and some other items which I later realized were expired! The sandwich was soggy and awful, it didn’t taste fresh at all. I later heard that they rewrite the expiration dates of the food they prepare in-​house, if it doesn’t sell, and that they re use every meat and cheese in sandwiches if they don’t sell either– hence why the prosciutto looked so old. The biggest shock is that they will even sell expired cheese to catering — delivery and special events.
Beside from the expired products, the employees seem like they don’t like your existence there. They would give you a rude and ugly stare like you’re not from earth or a stare that like you’re about to rob the place.
I got food poisoning from the place. I didn’t die but barfed a lot. I will not be coming here ever again.
And just an advice, If you’re gonna eat the cheese there, I’d highly advise you to get a good health insurance, because you’ll be spending a few hours of your life in an emergency room getting treated for diarrhea and food poisoning.

Cork Market is my go-​to for wine when I am planning a special meal. A young gentleman who works there provides excellent pairing advice. Last winter I was planning a dinner of cornish game hens stuffed with pork and port-​soaked prunes and seasoned with fresh rosemary. He recommended a red under $ 25 that was absolutely amazing and made the meal «pop.» I’ve been hooked ever since. If you enjoy listening to Lynne Rossetto Kasper’s The Splendid Table on NPR Saturday afternoons, and you do not have a personal sommelier, you may enjoy visiting Cork Market to stump the staff about wine pairings.

Let me begin by saying do not give 1-​star reviews lightly. But the unprofessionalism and lack of neighborliness exhibited by this shop’s owner compel me to share with my fellow Unilocalers.
In short, I received a paper gift card for Cork Market last year, and stuck it in my wallet and forgot about it (totally my bad). When I pulled it out last month, it had expired in August. Ugh! I figured, hey Cork is a neighborhood spot, I’ve been to the restaurant more times than I can count, I’m sure they’ll honor it. Arriving at Cork Market shortly before closing hours, I experienced the same weird vibe described in many reviews below. Generally awkward and unhelpful. I picked out my wine and went to the counter and immediately explained to the owner about my gift card (I recognized her, and also see from reviews of their other establishments that she rubs people the wrong way often.)
Here’s where it gets weird. Besides the expiration date having passed (my fault!), there were 3 additional problems related to my card. 1) They coulnd’t find the paper record in their files (NOT MY FAULT), 2) the associate that filled it out failed to initial it on the back (ALSO NOT MY FAULT) and 3) the record on their computers showed the card expired in March (NOT MY FAULT EITHER.) If you have a business that sells gift cards, get your s**t together. Period.
Had the owner told me ‘I’m sorry we cant except this because its expired,” fine, annoying and not very neighborly, but I would have understood. But she refused to say that. She said they couldn’t honor it that day because of all these other anomalies. We argued back and forth a bit, I explained that she already had the money my friend paid to buy the gift card, why cant i buy some wine with it? And she said she couldn’t be sure the card wasn’t already used, blah blah blah. (if it was used, why would i still be in possession of it?) Long story short, the goodwill that woman could have gained by just selling me the wine would have trumped the anger and bad taste I have for all of the Cork establishments now and forever.
In the end, she took my name and phone number (and the gift card) and said she’d research it and get back to me. Well, friends, can anyone guess if she ever got back to me?! Ding ding you’re all the winners because NOPE, she couldn’t even be courteous enough to call me and officially tell me her final judgment. As I said to her in the store that day, I know there are tons of new big-​spending millennials moving into luxury apartments on 14^th street, but if you can’t treat your OG customers with some respect, you don’t deserve my business. The end.

Their selection is phenomenal, but as soon as I walked in I immediately felt unwelcome with extremely uncomfortable vibes.
The staff immediately began guffawing when we walked in. Next, when I asked for a cheese suggestion for a burger (yes, a burger), one of the gentlemen refused to talk, shoved a cheese name in my hands, and immediately began shaving it. Upon giving us the cheese sample, he still refused to talk or smile.
I immediately wanted to leave, but the cheese was so good (dat cheese tho) and I needed to purchase it… While still refusing to speak, he wrapped the cheese beautifully, but it was extremely painful, as he took his time while we breathed the awkward air.
I’ll take my business elsewhere.

One of my favorite spots on 14^th Street. Most staff are incredibly helpful, there’s a great selection and everything from cheese to the chicken liver to the brussels sprouts are amazing. You can tell there’s a lot of passion for good food and good wine.

Another reviewer mentioned this, so it’s not just me. I’ve been to the store twice, once in 2012 and once this year. On both occasions, it was a strange unwelcoming atmosphere at the store; I don’t remember the last time I’ve been made to feel this unwelcome at any store.
The one star is not a reflection of the selection of wines or the prices; it’s a response to the people there (presumable the owner as well) making me feel like I should be thankful to them for the opportunity to shop at their store. In the end, I did make a purchase, but be a little polite, please.

Cork Market has a really great selection of cheeses, charcuterie, and wine. As someone who really LOVES cheese, it is quite hard to stop me from wandering in here if I happen to be strolling down 14^th Street. The staff are always knowledgeable, and are happy to point me in the right direction, whether I am looking for a specific wine, or just any cheese that tickles my current fancy.
I really appreciate that when I am trying to decide which wine to purchase, I have never been pressured to pick the more expensive selection. More often than not, the sales associate will give me 3 – 4 wines that match what I am looking for, ranging from $ 10-​$ 30. And usually, I am so impressed with this, that I end up buying the more expensive one! So clearly they are doing something right.
I have yet to buy any prepared food, but I anticipate in the near future I just may have to try out that fabulous looking fried chicken.

This is not a Review about the quality of their chicken, nor charcuterie nor if it is expensive or cheap, since I did not get anything.
I am reviewing how i felt… I got in bc I was intrigue but I did not feel welcome at all…
Odd since i am always welcome… I had to justify my presence in the store and felt observed. Maybe I was interrupting something, don’t think I was paranoid… in any case i felt Very odd…
They definitely need to work on their welcoming skills …

A picnic basket is a picnic basket is a picnic basket… right? What could go wrong with fried chicken?
Well, if you happen to think that Cork market knows fried chicken, you are mistaken. To the tune of roughly $ 50.
Hands down, the worst meal-​to-​go I have ever had the displeasure of eating. Dry chicken, soggy asparagus and mushy corn.
People, avoid this place at all costs. I should have walked straight on to Popeye’s a few blocks away.
Whatever their website says about their «fried chicken» or their ready to go picnic lunches, simply keep on scrolling.
Instead, here’s a great tip for excellent food… Taylor’s Deli. One block up from Pulp.
Cork? Please…

I just got back from Cork Market and purchasing some wine. I really like the restaurant, but the Market just rubs me the wrong way.
The good: they have a pretty eclectic selection of wines, some of which are hard to find elsewhere in the DC area. This is the reason I keep coming back. I’ve also enjoyed the cheeses and charcuterie that I’ve purchased– all pretty good.
The bad: While I haven’t had any problems with the staff, they’ve always been less than friendly. My biggest gripe, however, are their prices. Now, I realize Cork Market is an independent specialty shop. I’m not looking for a deal or a discounted price, but their prices on wines tend to be about $ 5-​$ 10 more than other high end wine shops. When you’re talking about a $ 15 bottle of wine at other stores, paying $ 22 for it is a crazy markup.
In sum, don’t go for wines unless you need to.

The name’s pretty self-​explanatory. This somewhat shmancy spot is modern and clean-​lined, with plenty of wines, tastings if your timing’s good, and gourmet market materials like fancy cheeses and various charcuterie (the section in fact being labeled «charcuterie») including some pre-​packaged and some sliced to order, gift-​appropriate snacky and desserty things, fancy oil and vinegars, pastas, etc. You’re not going to stock your whole kitchen here, but you could get some nice additions if you’re willing to spend a little more cash than you would at Trader Joe’s. I, for one, am not, but more power to you if you are. Good for gifts, though! Small gifts, if you’re looking in my price range. Like a fancy candy bar.

I popped in on a whim to do a little browsing for some gourmet items for a food basket I was assembling for my foodie boss.
It’s a pretty modern, open space that shows off wood floors and exposed brick walls. Towards the front are your gourmet foods– oils, vinegar, crackers, dried pastas, jams, etc. In the back are prepared foods, cheese, charcuterie and of course, wine.
While I perused their wines, I was greeted by a gentleman who offered assistance but I politely declined.
Ultimately, I settled on some pasta ($ 9). It’s a tad pricey as I feel like I could have gotten just as good pasta cheaper at say, Vace (where I may be buying the rest of the items for the basket)…but in any case, I hope my boss likes it.

This review is for the Cork Market & Tasting Room classes. I was so annoyed with their handling of it that I don’t ever plan to patronize it or the Wine Bar again.
My friend and I decided to do the 2^nd Annual Cork Market Gingerbread House Decorating Class on Saturday, December 10^th. I emailed to make a reservation, and was sent a form to fill out (where I gave my credit card info) and was asked to select which class we wanted to attend. I returned the completed confirmation form within an hour, but heard nothing in response. A day later, I emailed to ask if we were in, at which point they did confirm my reservation. In other words, the registration process was disorganized.
The day of the class, I arrived and wasn’t quite sure where to go. There were two doors – one into the Market, and one for the Tasting Room, but the latter was locked. I went inside the Market, where other people were milling around, and waited to ask a salesperson where I should go. He was kind-​of gruff about it and explained that it was going to be upstairs and the door would be open soon. Considering that I arrived about 5 minutes early (and by the time he answered me, it was on time), it seemed nuts that they made us wait around downstairs with no one telling us what was going on. It was bitterly cold that day, so we could not wait outside.
The class was largely families with small children, which we anticipated. We were seated at a table with 6 people. They had lots of cute candy and toppings to go on the houses, but 2 bags of icing for 6 people. Huh? Everyone should have had their own, really. With a three year old across the table hogging a bag for ages, it meant that there was a ton of downtime where you couldn’t do anything. It was a $ 30 class. I could buy an identical kit for less than $ 10. It was stingy. We ran out of one bag of icing before the class was half over. But whatever, eventually we were able to borrow some from a neighboring table to finish our houses, and they were cute, and I was fairly satisfied.
About a week later, I checked my credit card statement and realized that I had been charged $ 66, rather than $ 60. I thought this was a mistake, so I emailed and asked why I was charged more. I got a curt response a day and a half later–
«The additional $ 6 was DC tax (10%) that we are required to charge for all events. Sorry for any miscommunication, I will send a receipt if you would like. Hope you enjoyed the event!»
I responded within an hour:
«That should be made clear on the registration form, especially since you’re required to prepay. My friend already paid me back for her half – which I told her was $ 30, since that was what was on the form. So essentially I’ve now paid $ 36 for my class that was advertised publicly as $ 30 and listed as $ 30 on the registration form. There is no mention of a 10% tax anywhere on the form, in my email exchange, or on the website… Being charged an extra $ 6 was unexpected, and annoying. Especially at this time of year, a few dollars here and there is frustrating and you should have been upfront about it. That’s just bad form. I honestly don’t feel inclined to return right now. I’m more inclined to write a mediocre review on Unilocal.»
I received no response whatsoever. On March 23, I forwarded that message along with a note saying «I realized that I never received a response to this email sent several months ago. I intend to post a review on Unilocal soon. I would appreciate your consideration of my original email.» A full week later, I got a message saying «Hi Meredith — Thank you for your email. We have forwarded it on to our manager and owner for a response and someone will be in touch shortly. We appreciate hearing from you and look forward to addressing your concerns.»
And then crickets. I never heard another word from them. I realize that $ 6 is not a huge amount in the grand scheme of things, but I addressed multiple problems with the scheduling process, the actual event, and the lack of response. I told them that I was planning to write a less-​than-​stellar review. Apparently, they don’t give a shit. Which is why I will not be returning.

If you haven’t gotten your condescending store clerk fix for the week, swing by Cork Market and Tasting Room. They’ll be sure to sneer at you if you ask a question or, if you’re really lucky, just flat out ignore you.
This place has a nice selection of olive oils, cheeses and overpriced wines. Their coffee options are decent too– Stumptown anyone?– as is their very limited assortment of artisan chocolates. Their prepared foods look damn tasty too.
But it’s hard to want to drop $ 30 on a bottle of olive oil when Cork’s employees are so snotty. I recently asked if I could buy my coffee beans pre-​grinded, and the guy behind the counter looked horrified that I’d dare to ask such a thing. Today when I inquired about their homemade donuts, the woman acted very put off to be talking to a customer (which makes sense given that she’d been staring off into space before I arrived).
I’ll pay the high prices if I’m treated decently, but for the time being, I’ll stick to corporate Whole Foods and their friendly employees.

The GF and I were enjoying a beautiful Saturday afternoon making our way down 14^th St from U. We’d stop along the way if we saw something that caught our eye. Cork Market & Tasting Room was one of those stops. CM&TR has a modern, yet basic, look with nice wood floors and wood wine racks showing off their wares along the walls. In the front of the store, they have gourmet oils, vinegars, and specialty foods. In the back, they have their cheese and charcuterie selection. We arrived too early to partake, but they have wine tastings starting at 3PM (at least on this particular Sat).
The wine selection is eclectic with prices that would appeal to most wine drinkers. Don’t expect to find your average grocery store selection of wines, though, which is 100 percent okay with me! It seemed to me they carried more imported wines than domestic. Once again, that’s okay with me. While the prices seemed competitive, I would still shop around to see if other wine retailers like Total Wines carry the same wines and compare prices. Still Cork Market & Tasting Room is definitely a place I’d come back… of course, after 3PM so I could also taste some of their wines.

I have mixed reviews for Cork Market. The food is great particularly the fried chicken and couscous. My boyfriend LOVES the donuts. However, I tried to order from Cork Market for a bridal shower I hosted at my home. On Cork’s website, it indicates that it offers this service. However, it was impossible to get ANYONE to call me back and I finally had to go to Cork to speak with someone. Even after speaking to the chef, it was impossible to get pricing or an indication of what was available.
That said, on the day of the shower, all of the food was ready and wonderful. In the future, I would stick to picking up food from Cork on a whim rather than trying to use them for a larger event. The food is always great but it wasn’t worth the stress.

I will let my email to Cork serve as my review. I’m very disappointed how they handled this. They have lost me as a customer.
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I am a nine-​year resident of the U Street area and been a customer and fan of both the Cork wine bar and Cork Market since they each opened.
I have been to Cork Market numerous times and have always been very happy with the service and the wines I’ve had. On May 28^th I stopped in when I was in need of a nice bottle to bring to an engagement party. A very nice young woman asked me a few questions about what I like and I explained that while it was to be a gift I’m sure if it’s in the ballpark of what I like they’ll like it, too (I like different reds but have a particular preference for medium-​to-​full-​bodied Cabernets). She recommended the 2008 Azienda Agricola Cos Cerasuolo di Vittoria Classico. Her description sounded so good that I bought a bottle for myself ($ 33).
For a special occasion I opened my bottle the other night and found it utterly undrinkable — as if something was wrong with it. I asked my friend to taste it to make sure I wasn’t imagining it and she agreed. We set it aside and opened a different bottle.
I was certain that if I brought it back you would credit me for it. I went in yesterday and spoke with a very nice guy who — after consultation with owner or manager in the back — explained to me that nothing was wrong with it and the best Cork Market could do for me was to offer me 10% off a different bottle. I was stunned. I may not have the most sophisticated wine palette in the world but I know when there is something off with a wine. I’ve certainly drank many different kinds of wines that were not ideal to my taste but this was, again, undrinkable. It’s been probably 15 years since I last sent a bottle back in a restaurant. I’m really not that picky. Your employee suggested that it probably should not have been recommended to me.
Anyway, this is not the end of the world to me but it does mean that I will no longer patronize Cork Market, nor recommend it as I have done enthusiastically to many friends and neighbors. Even if you feel certain that I am wrong it seems rather shortsighted that you wouldn’t take a customer-​is-​always-​right position on this. Very disappointing. And the time I’ve taken to come back in with that bottle and write this email should prove that this is not about the money. My time is worth much more than $ 33.
I just thought you should know.
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I’ll also point out that no one at Cork ever even acknowledged receipt of my email. Crap customer service.
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EDIT: To be fair I should point out that several days later a cork manager did get back in touch with me and apologized for the problem. It might be coincidental, but it was several hours after this critical review went live. They did offer to replace the bottle. It’s appreciated, I guess, but a bottle of wine is only worth so much of my time.

Delectable cheeses, mouthwatering meats, and wine.
I’m already a fan of Cork’s charcuterie, so being able to mix and match meats from Cork Market — and in mass quantities — is undeniably fun. Their selection of meat is as premium as their wines, so be prepared to spend some coin. (Be sure to score samples if you see any.)
Haven’t tried their ready-​to-​eat offerings yet, but I’ll be back.

The selection of wines isn’t enormous, but you can tell they really put a lot of thought into their selections. There’s helpful descriptions written for each wine – they have a good range of sparkling wines and champagnes, as well as some wonderful sounding roses (not that bug juice white zin) and dessert wines.
The lady behind the cheese and charcuterie counter was wonderful and oooh so helpful. I’d already had my heart set on the speck, delicious smoked prosciutto hmm, and at $ 22/​lb, it’s the least expensive fresh sliced speck I’ve seen in DC/​VA. My speck was sliced perfectly thin, and packaged with care two slices at a time in paper to retain their shape and freshness. On the charcuterie lady’s recommendation, I also got some of the duck liver pâté – delicate yet rich, and the pork pâté with pistachios – amazing. I wound up hoarding a small portion instead of serving it all to my guests the next day.
The cheese section is extremely impressive. From intimidating black wheels of some crazy moldy cheese to creamy gooey bries, they seem to have something for everyone. I sampled several before making my selection. The cheese lady was great about taking my likes and dislikes and recommending a nice variety to try. She seemed like she’d definitely tasted every one of the cheeses on display.
Besides cheese, wine, and charcuterie, they also have a selection of sandwiches and other ready to eat foods, specialty honeys, preserves, crackers, and other gourmet food items. Prices seemed on par with other gourmet wine and foods stores or slightly lower for some things like the speck and the fig preserves.

Cork Market just opened, and I am in trouble. This is a place in which I will not be able to control myself.
When you walk in, you are greeted by the warm, nostalgic smell of ceder wood planks that are the primary material in the wine racks that line the walls. To your immediate left you see pasta and foodstuffs, to your right, a check out counter behind which are baked goods such as muffins, croissants, scones, quiche, and cupcakes, and to the back are rows of wine, cheese and sandwiches.
I have been looking forward to this place opening for awhile, but it is, as expected, the go to location in MidCity for all the accoutremon that you need for your next gathering. I was having some friends over later and was chomping at the bit to see the location. I left after picking up some delicious wild boar pâté, a great Chianti, a baguette, and some cheese. The staff was both nice and helpful in pairing their various goods. When people arrived at my place, a friend (who visited CM earlier) brought over two of their dried sausages: one duck and one wild boar. If you have the choice, that duck sausage was… how you say… off the chain?
Soon, CM will be having wine classes upstairs in the unfinished second floor tasting room. Already they were having wine tastings in the front all day long with 10% off any wine you tried in the store, but I am really looking forward to their real classes upstairs.
Between Cork, Cork Market, the upcoming Cork & Fork, Marvin’s, the upcoming Marvin’s Wine Bar, the Gibson, ChurchKey and Birch and Barley, 14^th Street is becoming the go-​to location for high class beverages in this city.
Raise a glass for more to come!