Little Wine Counter

Such a cool spot. Our waitress was so sweet and funny. My mom and I were in the are for some quite unpleasant reasons and this place really put us in a much better mindset. (not just because of the wine!)

At the end of the day teachers be like, «I NEEEEEED A DRINK.»
Hence, why not have our End-​of-​the-​Year Celebration at Little Wine Counter?!? I’ve never been there before. When I mentioned it to my colleagues they said, «Oh it’s such a cute place,» or «Oooh… I love that place,» or «That’s a great idea, Jen!» So I made it happen.
I would like to thank Dante, the co-​owner, for helping me with our event. It was nice of him to open the bar one hour before their official opening time. It was really cool how we had the place to ourselves for two hours. Our staff enjoyed the assorted cheese platter, which included mixed nuts, fresh fruit, and assorted crackers. One of my co-​workers mentioned that there should have been more of a variety, and I didn’t notice the fruit jams and ground mustard that the owner said would be included. No biggie. The white wine flight was alright but their most exciting drink was the wine with a Popsicle.
LWC would’ve been the perfect venue to celebrate the end of the year BUT:
1. What was up with the AC??? Many people asked the owner, «Is the AC on?» And he replied, «Yes,» as sweat trickled down his forehead and his damp shirt clung to his body. There was a fan going, but the place was scorching hot like a Bikram yoga studio. If the AC was on, why the heck did it feel like 110 degrees!!! Someone felt the cool air around 5PM, when most people had already ran out the door.
2. Why was there only ONE person working the bar??? About thirty-​five school staff came to this event, and ALL of them were thirsty. Dante was the only one pouring drinks AND tending the cash register for two hours. I helped him out by handing out menus and suggesting drinks to order, I was tempted to grab wine bottles to help him pour.
3. Who was that woman hanging around and why didn’t she help the owner!!! A few of my coworkers wondered the same thing. Dante obviously needed assistance, many of us hovered anxiously over the bar while waiting for our drinks. For the two hours I was there, this mystery woman was either standing behind the bar, hiding in the kitchen, or going outside, coming inside… did she work there? She could’ve at least helped out with the register, greeted people, taken orders, or handed out menus.
4. The menu was not compelling, I don’t think anyone ordered any other food. Maybe they have a better menu in the evening?!? Where is that guy from Little Chef Counter? Where are his creative dishes??? He used to make excellent dishes, like the chicken & waffle I used to post on FB and Unilocal a billion times.
Oh well, my coworkers are fun and I had fun. And since LWC is in the Pruneyard, there’s other places you can go if their ventilation sucks. For more fascinating food and drinks, I’d go to OCK. Little Wine Counter is cute and maybe I’ll check it out again… but until then please do something about your freakin’ AC!

This place is just WOW! Super cute little restaurant/​bar/​wine counter/​whatever you want to call it. Came here on a Sunday for girls brunch/​lunch. I actually made reservations, but when we got there at around 12:45pm is was empty. So reservations aren’t really necessary. The main reason I wanted to come here was for their wine popsicles! They have a choice of red or white wine, I went with the white wine. MMM! We also ordered all the bruschettas they had on their menu, my favorite was the one with bacon jam DELICIOUS! I would definitely come back and try their dinner menu as well.

Only a two because the place is well decorated and the poor little waitress forced to serve sub-​par wines at a glass price double what the bottle price at BevMo, smiled and tried. Maybe it’s a San Jose thing? But why call this a wine bar if you only offer 3 choices of cheap, flat, nothing special wines. I’m not coming back here nor will I recommend it if you really are a wine drinker. Go across the parking lot and get a better wine for $ 15 and enjoy it at home with cool music and some candles. I’m just bummed I paid for a sitter tonight to not have this experience work out at all.

This review is for their Trivia Night (Tuesdays)
When I lived in Chicago, my friends and I would try to partake in trivia nights as often as we could. I mean, who doesn’t like discounted liquor/​food and a chance to win prizes?! Naturally, I was stoked when I found out that LWC does trivia nights on Tuesdays.
When my friend and I went, it was pretty empty (including our table, there were only 3 teams total playing). I talked to the host who ran the trivia night, and he said that it’s usually more crowded than that, stating that the week before they had 8 teams, and 6 teams 2 weeks before. Also, the Warriors were playing the night we went so I’m sure that contributed to the smaller than normal teams.
Anyway, Trivia Night here is pretty awesome, because:
–20% off your bill
-$ 40 off your bill if you win 1^st place and $ 20 off if you come in 2^nd (coupled with the point above, nothing makes me happier than cheap libations!)
–There’s a wide variety of topics and the questions aren’t super ridiculous or hard (I’ve been to some trivia nights where it was impossible to get 1 question correct)
–The host/​bartenders/​waitresses are super cool
Food and drink selection here are solid. Bruschettas are on point, and like everyone says, get the steak tartare. They had a nice beer selection, which is what we stuck to (I know I know, I felt a little blasphemous for not even getting 1 glass of wine at little WINE counter). Would definitely come back

Food and drink: surprisingly small wine list for a shop with ‘wine’ in its name. My friend’s red wine had a thick sludge of sediment and cork in the bottom of the glass. Most of the small plates of food were under seasoned.
Service: friendly young man running the sparsely populated trivia. Incredibly surly waitress who unapologetically forgot our orders. She rarely checked on our table, one of only 3 that was occupied, despite the empty wine glasses. We ordered significantly fewer drinks than usual for this reason alone.
Atmosphere: rather nicely designed space, quite classy in appearance, which was easy to discern given the emptiness of the place

Fans of Little Chef Counter that used to be at San Pedro Square Market (RIP lil chef) will be a little surprised to find that its successor, Little Wine Counter, isn’t the exact same eatery. There isn’t as much emphasis on the fine dining aspect that was LCC’s signature charm, but rest assured that the same quality (and tastiness!) is still here.
I came for brunch with my fiancé and we were the only ones here. Which is a terrible shame because the brunch was DELICIOUS. I have to admit, the selection wasn’t super huge; the brunch menu is mostly small bites and not so much giant scrambles or omlettes. However, what we did order was truly delicious and my mouth salivates for a return visit.
We ordered Croque Madame, Salmon and Avocado toast, a charcuterie platter, and the fruit bowl. The bread on the croque and the toast was DELICIOUS — rich buttery flavor, crunchy crust, and super soft and chewiness on the insides. And that was just the bread. The Croque Madame is made with ham and a poached egg and when you bite into this fabulous lady, that yolk streams out, coats the ham, and your second bite is HEAVEN.
The Salmon and Avocado toast was equally delicious! Definitely on the lighter side, the flavors are not overwhelming and the saltiness of the salmon is really balanced by the avocado and bread.
The fruit bowl was mostly ordered to help balance our greed for savory foods. Toss in mint and honey with a small dab of crème fraîche, it was a bit pricey for just fruit, but it really helped round out the meal.
Our server informed us that they are scouting locations for the return of Little Chef Counter in Downtown SJ, but in the meantime, if you want to try a slightly different brunch with a more gourmet touch, this place is a must!

Cute little place in pruneyard shopping center. They have board games available to play. Great place to hang out. We came for brunch but turned out they don’t have many foods item. Everything we ordered are good though! Tried their moscato and it’s also really good!

We originally looking for sunday brunch restaurant. When we came in we didn’t know this place sell mostly wine… out of the very few option for brunch we ordered the croque madam and the bunrcheta wirh bacon and egg and rhe moscato… It was surprisingly good and the server is very welcoming. They also have some board game available to use.

This place is GREAT and this review is long overdue. My boyfriend and I went here for a double date during their brunch. Granted that it seemed like a slow morning, the waitresses were very attentive and even brought us extra chef specials for us to sample. The food was delicious and we couldn’t get enough of the meat and cheese sampler we ordered, which included duck prosciutto, duck liver pâté, brie and their beehive teehive cheddar.
Perfect spot to catch up with your friends or for a date. Laid-​back atmosphere with a dope selection of R&B and classic hip-​hop. Someone was definitely slayin’ that aux cord.

My friend, sister, and I originally wanted tk get crème brûlée at Orchard City Kitchen. However, they no longer serve that so after a quick Unilocal searching we foud out that the Little Wine Counter had some. Sadly, because my sister isn’t 21 yet we couldn’t dine in or in their cute patio area. The waiter (or owner?) was ridiculously nice and told us we could order any of their other desserts to-​go as long as my sister didn’t stand in the restaurant or patio area. He was really apologetic about the whole situation.
We couldnt get the crème brûlée to-​go even though I practically begged for it (I am very passionate about my food hahaha), because it cant be torched in the to-​go box.
The waiter (or owner?) tried really hard to convince the chef to let us take it to-​go, but the chef was adamant. I guess crème brûlée just wasn’t meant to be for us tonight.
I went inside to order while my sister and friend waited outside. Its very nice inside with a really clean bar and a few small tables. Everyone who was there seemed very friendly. While I was waiting, I was able to have a pretty cool conversation with the waiter/​owner (why didnt i get his name?!) about their dishes and about OCK. The service here is awesome! I can’t wait to come back here on a trivia night or something. I feel like I wouldnt be judged here for my complete lack of wine knowledge (I only drink trader joes rieslings) like I would at some other wine bars I’ve been too.
Anyhow, we ended up getting two orders of apple bread pudding and one order of peppercorn cheesecake, which we ate in the parking lot like a bunch of creeps. The cheesecake was so fluffy and creamy. The peppercorn is a surprise at first, but a genius addition. The bread puddong was perfect, not too sweet or rich. It wouldve been great with some ice cream.
Will definitely be back soon!

I Love this place and can’t wait to go back! My bestie and I have made our way out to many different wine bars around the South Bay. And this is our favorite to date. We got a red and white flight, accordingly. The server apologized as he had to switch out the abarino for the rose, but little did he know that I love rose so it was a great switch for me! The rose turned out to be my favorite of the flight; the Chardonnay was good as well but I could have passed on the sav blanc.
We ordered the truffle Mac n cheese, which was so yum! As well as the sweet bruschetta and mushroom bruschetta. Both were great as well. I do wish there were more choices in wine but since I love wine flights all worked out well.
This place seems to be a locals hang out which is also nice. Trivia nights on Tuesdays and board game nights Wednesdays. Our server was nice and the atmosphere is relaxed yet trendy. What a Great new spot for me!

The staff was so attentive. The drink selections are frigging great, and also there food

We came for brunch yesterday. It was nice. We did not try the wine so can’t comment on that. The brunch food was delicious and healthy. They took a while making it but in my book, that’s usually a good thing and the food reflected that. The french toast is excellent — sweet yet crunchy. The place is not too busy for brunch so its a great alternative to standard brunch places in Campbell and surrounding areas. We plan to come back for wine!

Crème bruleé is delicious and their stout on tap from Camino Brew Co. is so good! Staff are friendly and fun, atmosphere is intimate and cozy. Will definitely be going back!

This is a really cute little place, but…
They do not have a large wine selection, and the night I was there they were out of two of the six red wines on the menu.
The staff is more focused on talking amongst themselves or with friends at the bar than providing service to the tables.
The biggest problem is the food. Yes, it is tasty, but WAAAAaaaaayyyyyy overpriced. And that is even with the Happy Hour discount.
Bottom line… cute place, but the unpredictable wine menu and overpriced food will have me going somewhere else. Anywhere else.

I just have to give LWC another shout out. I love all of the community events they are planning. Mondays are still awesome by default, Tuesdays are trivia nights with 20% off drinks, Wednesdays are for board games also with 20% off drinks.
The best part about all of this is the Chef bites, which are $ 4 for the greatest chef surprise ever. You could order 2 – 3 for 2 people and have the perfect wine snack.
Also, for you non wine drinkers, there’s great local beers on tap and bottled in the fridge.

If you enjoy tired, worn out, discontented servers, this is the the place for you. Not only did they all seem bored, overworked, underpaid, they also went above and beyond to be extra rude and yell at people after they were out of ear shot. This place would have been nice if it weren’t for the uninspired staff. They were not cut out for serving humans. Take a nap.

This restaurant is quite the place to be The service is top-​notch the food is delicious and fresh.
The booze:
La Storia Merlot was perfectly paired with our streak tartar.
The food:
We had a party of over 10 people and it was a food extravaganza. The steak tartar was fantastic and the steak salad always also fresh and flavorful.
The duck liver was also flavorful.
The mac & cheese had a very delicious white cheddar with panko.
The digs:
Very awesome open air restaurant very modern feel
The final thoughts:
I would definitely recommend this place if you want to have a nice sitdown dinner hang out with friends and talk over wine or have a great time with family and friends highly recommend going back.

Nice selection of meats and cheeses.
I came here with my best friend and we were seated immediately. The service is very friendly and our waiter apparently remembered my friend from her previous visit. There is bar seating, a couple of tables inside the restaurant, and a couple of tables outside. We ordered drinks and I tried the «Not Your Father’s Root Beer.» It was a tasty alcoholic root beer and it was so good, I bought myself a six pack from Trader Joes on the way home.
The charcuterie plate was delicious, I enjoyed the sopressata and the duck prosciutto. The bucheret and the brie were great along with the pieces of toast, jams, and nuts. The baked truffle Mac n Cheese with white cheddar and the bread crumbs was creamy and the bread crumbs added some texture. I really enjoyed the toasted almonds along with the cheeses. The crustini trio was pretty with its smoked salmon, baked salami, and seared foie gras. For dessert, we shared the chai tea crème brûlée, which was my favorite part of the meal. The chai flavor came through and the bruleed sugar was crisp and caramelized.
Overall, Little Wine Counter is a nice spot to relax and have a nice dinner. The meats and cheeses are really superb along with the fig jam. The servings are not huge, it’s more of a small plates kind of place, but it’s nice if you want to a light meal. I would want to come back and try the brunch another day.

Great place to stop for happy hour after work. They have a good selection of wine, and surprisingly, a good selection of beer both in bottles and on tap. The staff is friendly and very knowledgable with their recommendations and have never steered me wrong. (ok, except for that one time with the BROsé).
We usually get a selection of cheese and charcuterie which rotates regularly. We also get the steak tartare that is excellently prepared with the beef diced perfectly and finished with a quail egg, confit garlic and cornichons. They also do fantastic things with duck when in season. Doesn’t matter if it’s confit, pan roasted, sous vide, prosciutto’ed, or whatever. It’s always good. Although it does make me miss their duck fries from their San Pedro squared days.

Love this place! The steak tartare is my fave. I usually share food with my husband, but for this dish I make him get his own.
The duck rillette is also delicious, and don’t forget to look out for some great specials!

Been hearing great things about this place so I suggested it to some friends when a get together at someone’s house fell through. I arrived first while waiting for friends, so I decided to take a seat at the bar and wait. I was greeted promptly (granted I was the only one there) and glanced over the menu while waiting. The inside and outside area have a rustic décor going on. Once everyone arrived, we decided to sit outside since the weather nice enough to do so.
We ordered the following items:
Cheese Plates to share:
Point Reyes Original Blue: served with seasonal fruit, toasted almonds, honey, and toast points
Beehive Teehive Cheddar: served with seasonal fruit, toasted almonds, honey, and toast points
Peach Salad
Lightly candied walnuts, prosciutto, arugula, goat cheese, honey balsamic vinaigrette
Everything was so delicious. The salad was much bigger than I expected, but I’m not complaining. If you love a sweet wine, order the Moscato d’asti. I’m not a big fan of red wine, but by friend tried the Merlot and cab and said both were very good. I’m a huge fan of this place and will definitely be returning and recommending to others. Great place to chill and have some drinks and yummy appetizers.

I came with my mom tonight, and we had an amazing time!
It’s a bit quiet on a Wednesday night, averaging four occupied tables between indoor and outdoor seating. We were seated right away, and our server (Aiko) immediately offered recommendations. I got the «Not Your Father’s Root Beer”-alcoholic root beer, awesome. She continued to give great recommendations the rest of our meal, continuing to inform us about some of the local beers available at the restaurant!
In regards to food, we split the truffle Mac & cheese, charcuterie plate (duck prosciutto), and cheese plate (Delice de Bourgogne), with the Chai Tea Crème Brûlée for dessert. The food was delicious, with my only possible critique being the thickness of the brûléed sugar.
Overall, an amazing dinner with amazing service and ambience!

The first time I came here I wanted to give it five stars. So when we came back a second time, I was surprisingly disappointed.
First thing the good. The duck rillete is to die for. I might come back just for that dish. So much duck I couldn’t believe it. And very tasty. Also the wine list is very good.
However, the second time we went, we ordered the bone marrow that seemed froze and barely had any marrow in it. I’m talking about less than a spoonful.
I’ll try it a third time. Hopefully they step up their game.

This is my new favorite spot. Everything about this small, intimate, yet relaxing place does it for me.
Met here after work with an old friend, and had a few other co-​workers join afterwards for a small group dinner. They have a small selection of each wine, but they have a range from Pinots to Cabs or Zins. They also have some beers and this delicious «Not your Mother’s» Root Beer (alcoholic)! Our awesome server Kat got us some tasters for free. YOU ROCK Kat.
I got to say that I was kind of put-​off by the small number of occupant/​seating spaces (only space by the wine bar and a few two tops, but a handful of four-​top tables). However, I think that’s what makes Little Wine Counter special. Sure they don’t have legit «dinner» or «full portion’d out» meals, but it’s great for date night, catching up with the girls, or even a nice intimate birthday treat to yourself. I had 1.5 glasses of yummy wine that night. I also tasted their chocolate ganache (looked like a bar of chocolate plated beautifully with caramel and raspberry sauce), and my friends really liked their bone marrow dish. They have cheese plates and charcuterie, as well as mac & cheese craft-​made. This place is sexy, cute, and classy at the same time.
I was here on a tame Monday night, and Little Wine Counter wasn’t full at any point in the night. We stayed until closing at 10PM ( Unilocal IS WRONG!) and enjoyed the service, quality foods and ambiance. NO ONE UNDER 21 IS ALLOWED, so families with kids aren’t allowed. They have a one-​person restroom as well for your convenience. Can’t wait to come back.

I had my baby sprinkle/​baby shower brunch here back in feb and it was a great experience. I had about 25 – 30 guests and we were very well accommodated and everyone enjoyed the food that chef Robert Dasala prepared for brunch. They worked w/​me and was able to offer small plates of 5 different brunch options, coffee/​tea/​water/​juice and everything was deeeeelicious. We had some things from their regular brunch menu and he also surprised me with some specials, which was really nice.
They were also really flexible on how I wanted things to be set up and let me decorate the place a bit to fit my theme. I was even able to use one of their walls to set up a photo back drop for my event.
I would definitely recommend this place as a venue for small events, it was a nice casual intimate setting and all my girls loved it.
I can’t wait until I can drink wine again so I can come here and try some!

Came here for the happy hour on the weekday. Happy hour ends at 6. Food is 20% off and only a few select wines are Happy hour ($ 5). Menu changes around. Cute little place. You can sit outside if there is open table and chairs.
Delicious sparkling wine, bone marrow, and steak tartare. The crostinis were ok.

Came here for the happy hour on the weekday. Happy hour ends at 6. Food is 20% off and only a few select wines are Happy hour ($ 5). Menu changes around. Cute little place. You can sit outside if there is open table and chairs.
Delicious sparkling wine, bone marrow, cheese and meat plate, and steak tartare. The crostinis were ok.

Was in the area and decided to come check out this spot even though I had just eaten at orchard city kitchen couple of hours before. Was greeted and received recommendations what to order based on my craving. Started off with the honey ale beer to share with my boyfriend and I.
First item ordered was the steak tar tare. I must say this is one of the best or the best steak tar tare I’ve had in a long time. It was full of flavor and my boyfriend couldn’t disagree.
Second item that came out was the bone marrow. If you’re a fan of eating fat, this is for you but it I a small portion. But you can really taste the truffle oil. It was deeeee-​lish!
Third item that came out was the fois gras. I love fois gras and I usually always eat it whenever it’s available. The sauce was amazing and it was paired with cold pears on toasted bread. It was mouth watering and the boss gave us a glass of wine to pair it with. Mmmmm… I still want more.
Last dish was the chai tea crème brûlée and that was a cherry on top of the whole meal. My belly is super happy. I always rate on the food, but mostly the customer service. You feel like you’re welcomed. They check on you, and they make sure you leave happy. Def will be checking out this spot more often. Thanks Dante& staff!

Top notch service! The food is pretty incredible, too.
What more can you want?
Excellent wines
Excellent food (my god, it’s GOOD)
Excellent service
Excellent, fun little place
Excellent décor
Great selections of wine and fun little place. The owner is fantastic. Super friendly, fun, and always there with a smile on his face.
I visited for brunch one Sunday and although the menu is limited, it offers incredibly gourmet/​artisan foods– I had the Corn Beef Hash with potatoes and quail eggs. Quite tasty!
Also, coffee served is Verve and from a french press that you get placed on your table to press to your liking. Love it.
Rumor has it there’s even a happy hour on week nights… must try that!

We celebrated a friend’s bday over here. I am glad we chose the right place! This wine bar is located right next to El Burro, and it is recessed from the road. When you see the tall palm trees, you are there!
The first thing you experience is how intimate it is here. The décor were well chosen. We understood there were a lot of effort put into the design and layout of the bar. Surprisingly they have an amazing chef in their kitchen. The food quality were comparable to higher end restaurants. They don’t only serve cold cuts and cheese like other wine bar, they have a full kitchen able to serve amazing hot dishes. We tried several dishes which you can see in the pictures I uploaded. Personally the pork belly and the duck prosccuitto were my favorite.
Now onto the main even, the wine! Given it is a wine bar of course we want to try as many ones as possible to see what good wines they offer. We started off with a bottle of sparkling because it was our friend’s birthday. I chose a sparkling Moscato, not bad, it was sweet and easy to drink, perfect way to start off an evening.
Next, we all like red wines, so 2 of us chose the heavy red flight, the others also chose the Truchard Cameros Cab, and the Rosso Di Montalcino from Argiano. All their red wines were good, we could feel the owners put a lot of effort into choosing the wine. The wine flights aren’t expensive. $ 24 for 3 glasses of wine. Kudos!
Overall we had a very nice experience, we spent about 3 hours in this bar and the servers were well attentive. I really think they listen to Unilocalers and other people’s comment. I didn’t experience what some of the bad Unilocalers experienced.
Will I go back again? Of course, very very soon!

Cute little wine bar, tucked inside Pruderidge. Designed with indoor, outdoor and counter seating. Not only can you find a wine to sip on, but there’s food, too!
With a selection of sparkling, white and red wines, and even bottled beers, you would think that there’s something for everyone. However, I was disappointed that I could not find a single red wine that I liked. I generally like full bodied reds (ala Bourdeaux and Zins). And even with as many wine options as they had, after 4 tastes, I couldn’t even settle on something that matched my preference.
After a couple of glasses of Chardonnay, we met up with my friend’s boyfriend who had the same feeling about the red wine options. For a wine bar with its potential, it was quite disappointing.