R Wine Bar & Kitchen

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A Florentine Heart in the Midwest

In the historic Frank Building on the East Bank of downtown Sioux Falls, R Wine Bar & Kitchen brings Italian warmth and serious wine culture to South Dakota. The "R" stands for Riccardo and Revier — the two halves of the Tarabelsi family story. Riccardo was born in Florence, Italy, and later made his way to Boston. Marybeth, a Sioux Falls native, traveled east for nursing school in Somerville, Massachusetts. The two met, fell in love, and got engaged on Martha's Vineyard before returning to Sioux Falls in 1999 to build something lasting together.

That something became R Wine Bar & Kitchen — a restaurant rooted in a single conviction: people come first. As Riccardo and Marybeth put it, "people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care." Every member of the team is hand-picked and personally trained to engage with every guest who walks through the door.

Italian Cuisine, Curated Wine, and a Lot of Life

The kitchen leans into Italian cuisine with a menu strategy Riccardo and Marybeth describe as traditional, complemented by local craft beer on tap and a wine list that earned R Wine Bar a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence in 2024. Wine Enthusiast has also recognized it as one of the best wine shops in the country — no small distinction for a restaurant in the heart of the Great Plains.

Master Sommelier Ian Cauble, after visiting, called it "a must-stop for any food and wine lover traveling to the area" — and the depth of the wine program bears that out. Regular wine dinners bring focused four-course pairings to the table: evenings built around Tuscan producers like Volpaia and Val di Suga, Russian River Valley Pinot Noirs from Gary Farrell, Silver Oak Cabernets, and French classics from Sancerre to Sauternes. Riccardo also leads hands-on wine classes that walk guests through blind tasting, Old World versus New World structure, and the fundamentals of what's actually in the glass.

More Than a Meal

Thursday through Saturday evenings, live music fills the room — jazz on Thursdays, the Hegg Brothers on Fridays, and a rotating solo artist on Saturdays. The result is a space that functions equally well as a refined Italian dining destination, a serious wine bar, and a lively neighborhood gathering point.

R Wine Bar & Kitchen is part of a broader hospitality family that includes Maribella Ristorante, Brix Wine Bar, Trio Jazz Club, and Vespa Catering — all grown from the same roots of Italian-influenced hospitality that Riccardo and Marybeth have cultivated since moving back to Sioux Falls together.