After Flooding, Cornerstone Is Holding a Flash Sale on Wine

Photo courtesy of Cornerstone

Flash floods caused by heavy rains in the Philly area on August 13th did a lot of damage, closing off highways, stranding motorists, and even setting vehicles afloat. But two weeks after the waters subsided, Christine and Nick Kondra — owners of Cornerstone, the restaurant and artisanal market in Wayne — are still reeling from the damage done to their space and stock.

Six feet of water flooded through the 48-seat restaurant’s downstairs prep kitchen and storage room that day, soaking and toppling stacked cases of wine and setting boxes afloat.

“It took seven minutes to cause $250,000 of damage, with losses close to $500,000,” Christine wrote in an email. “It is unbelievable.”

Stills from surveillance video of the storage room and photos from after the waters subsided show the extent of the damage.

Before the flood | Screenshot courtesy of Cornerstone

During the flood | Screenshot courtesy of Cornerstone

After the flood | Photo courtesy of Cornerstone

Cornerstone has been closed since the flooding, but the Kondras are hoping to reopen on Friday, September 7th.

To help offset the costs of repairing and replacing what was damaged, they’re holding a flash sale on some very special bottles from their cellar this Tuesday, August 28th and Wednesday, August 29th from 3 p.m. until 8 p.m. The sale will go through Thursday, August 30th if they’ve still got enough stock left.

The Kondras are putting up nearly 1,200 bottles for retail sale, with sought-after bottles like Kistler Vineyards’ Trenton Roadhouse vineyard Chardonnay, Cain Vineyards’ Cain Five, and a variety of boutique Old World wines. The income from the sale will help them get the restaurant back open. The flash sale is check or credit card only, and space is limited — to shop, you’ll need to RSVP online and specify which day you plan to attend. You can do that here.