Sip & Chill at Baruccio

Baruccio is running Sip & Chill on Wednesday 4 November, from 19:30 to 22:30. It's the venue's signature evening, and this particular date is part of a series that runs across five Wednesdays until 11 November, with each one starting at 19:30.

The format is straightforward: you get a welcome drink, a liqueur shot, and a selection of small bites. The food is a changing mix of snacks and small plates, so what's on the table shifts from one night to the next. It's designed as a pairing of drinks and food rather than a full meal, the kind of thing that works as a mid-week catch-up or a low-key night out when you don't want to commit to a proper dinner.

To get a feel for the place, Baruccio is an independent Italian café and wine bar on Holywell Hill in St Albans. By day it's speciality coffee, pastries, and focaccia; by night it's cocktails and wines from independent Italian producers. They also run guided wine tastings and the occasional food pop-up, so the wine and the Italian food are the constants here. Sip & Chill is the evening version of that, bringing the drinks and the small plates together.

It's at 12 Holywell Hill, AL1 1BZ, and costs £39.50. If Wednesday 4 November doesn't suit, the series continues through to 11 November, all starting at 19:30.