By Jennifer Glickel
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
LINCOLN CENTER — Nothing brings fashionistas together like complimentary wine.
The Kim Crawford wine bar has become the social center of the Lincoln Center tents during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week by serving up free glasses of wine to bloggers, magazine editors, photographers and anyone else with good enough connections to get in the front door.
"This is a bar like no other, since anyone who could get beyond the front doors and into the tent must have connections in one way or another," said fashion photographer Stephen Ciulloi.
"So the bar is the place where we have a convergence of people in all different fields with their own connections," he added.
Others use the wine bar as a spot to meet industry insiders.
"It really is a meeting of the minds amongst some of the most important people in fashion," said Brigitte Segura of Fashion Daily Mag. "I can't tell you how many people I’ve met here. Everyone is here."
Some show-goers see the wine bar as the place where stereotypes about fashion insiders are broken down.
"I will say that I've studied fashion for years and I'm always surprised at how open and conversational people are here," said personal trainer Alex Chen.
"People think that Fashion Week types are snotty and obnoxious, but they're not and you see that when talking to people at the bar. There’s a great common interest among everyone here and it makes for good conversation," Chen added.
Most Fashion Week patrons pop in for a drink on the way to the runway because the bar is positioned between the front doors and the entrance to the show spaces.
"There's a social atmosphere here at the bar and it’s an oasis in a sea of people," said Lucy Owen, an actress from Brooklyn.
"And there's great people-watching from the bar, too."
