Sunnyside wine bar Mriga opens with sourdough bread and tapas

Mriga opened in Sunnyside with sourdough bread and tapas, and that menu choice says as much about the city’s dining mood as the wine list does. At 46-10 Skillman Ave., the new bakery and bar is making fermented bread part of the pitch from day one, not an afterthought on the side.

The place opened on Friday, May 1, 2026, in a neighborhood that already knows how to eat well and eat wide. Sunnyside and nearby Woodside have long been known for some of New York City’s best Thai, Nepali and Salvadoran restaurants, and Sunnyside Restaurant Week ran from April 20 through May 4, 2026, so Mriga arrived right as the area was already being sold as a dining destination. In that setting, sourdough reads less like a bakery flourish and more like a signal: this is a place where the bread is meant to matter.

Mriga is described as a bakery and bar specializing in sourdough and natural wine, which makes it a sharper commercial statement than a restaurant that simply serves bread baskets. The official concept centers on “good bread good wine good bites and good friends,” and that framing fits the way more urban restaurants are repositioning bread. It is no longer just a free side before the meal starts. Here, it helps define the room, the pace and the level of care a guest can expect from the kitchen.

The name itself comes from the Sanskrit word for deer, and the people behind it give the project a personal backstory that feels sturdier than trend-chasing. The founders, Dawa and Yuki, said they have each spent more than a decade in the food industry. A soft-opening invitation said the space was meant to reflect their friendship, hardships and accomplishments, which helps explain why sourdough sits so centrally in the concept. It is not being used as a garnish for branding; it is part of the identity.

That is the larger point in openings like this. Sourdough is now showing up in wine bars, not just bakeries, because it communicates house-made credibility fast. It can stand alongside tapas, natural wine and a low-key room without feeling out of place. In a crowded city market, that kind of clarity is valuable, and Mriga has made bread one of its first and loudest messages.