Eight Bar

Great service. Bar has potential. Two giant screens playing sports. Saw fruit flies by the beer taps. Need to add purse hooks and outlets. Feel like it’s an airport essential.

Well, this is what I get for forgetting to check Unilocal before picking a place to eat… We picked this place because it was close to our gate in the airport.
The gal was nice enough, but they were out of the beer my husband wanted and she took like 10 minutes to bring my drink (a non alcoholic cocktail with mint that I really enjoyed) — she apologized for both so that was a plus.
We ordered tacos with BBQed pork sliders. They were sickly sweet and didn’t taste much like pork to us. We also got the beef tacos — not sure they were beef (tasted pretty much just like the sliders). The one redeeming item on the plate was the chips, they were salty and crispy in the best way.
This is definitely a place to skip!

This place is better than the Chilis in the same terminal, but still not great. I came here after a less than great experience at the Chilis, read on more more details…
My real beef here would be with the management who somehow only scheduled one bartender (she was also the server to the tables) when there was about 30 people in the place. I don’t know her name but she was absolutely amazing. Somehow she managed to stay super positive with everyone while she was completely swamped with the amount of people here.
Here’s the thing — this is an airport bar which experiences normal ebbs and flows based on flights. There were no major delays in or out of the airport this day, so why was this poor employee so understaffed? The schedule should’ve accounted for he amount of travelers looking for a drink.
I think everyone should work at a restaurant at least once in their life to have empathy for the people who you probably interact with on a pretty regular basis. As a past server, I would been enraged at my management for putting me in this situation, but this bartender deserves an award for her great attitude and timely service. I wish I knew her name, but if management is really curious I’d be happy to provide more details (including the time this happened) so this great employee gets the praise she deserves!

Probably the best terminal bar found in a airport of this size. Good wine and Beer list. The bartender was absolutely the kindest employee in the history of airport employment. We made the mistake of ordering food across the way, but the bartender still welcomed us to sit down and dine. I had the Altitude Project’s red and it was perfectly aired ready to indulge in. I know where I’ll be having another if I’m back :-)

Rolled into the airport at 9:30pm for a midnight flight. I was worried there would be nowhere open for a beer. I was so happy to find Eight Bar…
We were greeted by the nicest guy in the world Jay who promised us service with a smile! He was fun and was just wonderful. It was a bonus that there was a much better than average beer selection and a nice eclectic array of appetizers… Plenty of vegetarian options too.

I left something there any there is no number to contact this bar directly. Someone help!

Sat down at bar. Noted it was busy. Saw many workers running around but none acknowledged my presence. 20
Minutes later with bartender passing me many times without even a «be right with you» I left.

$ 20 glass of pinot noir for a $ 20 bottle lol but its okay its the airport and it was the only place in my terminal with alcohol… so. i’ll take it
the crab cheese dip thing is tiny but it was OK too
–service was nice.
i would give this place one more star if it had wifi

It’s an airport bar, people. It’s not a freakin cheesecake factory.
It’s closest to the gates and it serves it’s purpose.
Lisa was our bartending. She was friendly, chatty, quick on her feet and made the most amazing bloody mary. She was rocking that place on her own and doing it well.
That’s it. Simple and to the point.
When we find ourselves on the Oakland airport again we’ll definitely be back.

Nice little bar across from Gate 9 at Oakland Airport. I was served quickly (Riesling and Chips with Bacon and Blue Cheese). The server checked in with me often enough to be attentive but not so much that it became boring or interruptive.
The drink menu is pretty nice, plenty to choose from. Limited food items but better options than your typical greasy airport bar fare.

I was greeted promptly served promptly and enjoyed my meal. They even wrapped my fruit and chees to go for the plane ride.

Airport pricing makes it hard for me to rate this spot higher than a 3 but the 2 drinks we had and the service we were given was above average (Chipotle Bloody Mary and a Strawberry Bellini). Just beware you don’t lose track of time while sipping away or you might just lose your flight.

The only reason this place is rated 2 ½ stars is because angry miserable travelers have Unilocaled about this. Kimberely is an awesome bartender and Zach is an awesome manager. When you buy a beer you get ½ price off of any shot. The bar is lively and the staff is friendly. Good atmosphere with loud music. When you consider that it’s a restaurant bar it’s definitely 5 stars. Downside is they are out of fireball. Upside is I still managed to get a nice buzz before a flight.

Came here before my flight. Bartenders and waitress both stood behind the bar looking at me without even bothering to greet me. Finally one came up and asked if I wanted something… terrible quality of food, especially for the money. Save yourself and just go to the Starbucks across the terminal.

People generally go to an airport for a specific purpose: to catch a flight. These flights are on a schedule.
A bar at an airport has a limited customer base: people who are on a schedule due to the fact that they are catching a flight.
Simple, right? Apparently not for the management and staff here. Don’t get me wrong, the staff were very nice, but waiting 15 minutes in a nearly empty bar to place an order (two staff, five customers) = no bueno.
Too slow, no go.

I’ve only been here for the booze. it’s conveniently located right across from the jetblue gates so where else is a thirsty traveler to go? prices are kinda high, but not out of line with what one would expect for an airport. pours are generous, and once when I asked for extra olives, the server brought me a giant cup of them to go, in case I got snackish on the plane.

Talk about upselling. The bartender here tried to not only get me to order the tall beer (I did) but also a shot (I passed). They close around 10pm, so if you’re catching a red-​eye, bottoms up. Unless of course alcohol keeps you awake, which it did in my case. Ugh. Then stay away.

We went here pre-​flight home from the Bay area. It was close to our gate (#15) and that was the reason we chose it over Chili’s. (Typically Chili’s is decent airport food, but we wanted to be able to see the gate.)
LOCATION/​AMBIANCE: In the terminal at Oakland airport, you’d really only end up here while waiting for a flight. Everyone is pretty much waiting for a flight, but no one seemed to stoked on being at this particular location.
SERVICE: Meh. The woman, Ren, would ask us a question and then serve someone else while I was answering. Kind of bizarre. Didn’t smile at us once, but she did get a laugh with another patron about something.
FOOD/​DRINK: We had a roll (New Yorker), which was decent. They had a list of decent beers on tap; the one I ordered wasn’t available, but they had another not on the list that I do like (Hoegarden) and that worked out for me.
Bottom Line — We ate here b/​c we had limited choices. If/​when back at this airport terminal, I’m way more likely to try some other food/​drink choice.

If you’re really really really craving sushi and you’re absolutely desperate, then come here. The rice came out cold and hard, the eel and the shrimp were chewy, and it was way over priced. There was only one person working there, and he was the bartender. The ginger was good though!

I lounge at 8 bar way too much (i.e. I’m at OAK airport frequently). Good news — this place is behind the security gates — protecting it from the general public.
Why do I dislike so much? They are almost always out of Sushi. Two out of 10 times I think they have any in stock. But not to worry, weather at OAK is usually great so your flight out of here will likely not be delayed, reducing the temptation to sit at 8 Bar and consume overpriced watered down drinks without any Sushi for absorption.
OAK terminal 1 is dreadful for food & drink. But I refuse to fly SWA so I accept the suffering.