Wine Steals

Staff was sweet and helpful. Came here for a reserved party. Had a ton of cheese and meats, and the cheapest wine on the menu was surprisingly tasty. I must’ve had a bottle to myself. I’m surprised this place has the number of stars it does; it’s a really cute place to have a get-​together. I understand that parking isn’t ample, but it’s not the worst place to walk around. There are little venues all along the sidewalks, so the walk from your car doesn’t feel like a mile away.

Ok, all that needs to be said truly about this place is its worth a visit! Was relocated here when the original location we were supposed to do a paint event at god flooded, at first was dissapointed but not so after coming in.
Anywhere that has $ 5 mimosa pints! Yes PINTS! Is so worth it. Seeing that it’s almost a half of a bottle of champagne yeah… good times!
Great rotating selection of wines and a generous pour as well. Not a small glass like other places have been with my visits. Was hoping to find some local wineries (they had Napa Valley and other wordy wines) but not so much. Didn’t try the bites here as we had just ate before arriving but I may have to next tie especially since they have a customized CHEESE BOARD! Love me my charcuterie. They sell full bottles at a decent price and can even have a small corkage fee of you choose to enjoy it there.
Very intimate and small location but still with adequate room for small to mid size gatherings. They have a small room off to the side that can be booked and even one to the rear of the place. It’s a shared restroom but I didn’t have to wait anytime I needed to use it myself.
Definitely will be back to enjoy a Steal.

Absolutely love this place. Great atmosphere l, amazing staff, friendly and fun place to grab some vino and grub.

i have been meeting friends here off and on for quite some time. I like the open room feel, though it does get a little loud. I like coming on Sundays since there’s no cork fee. They have a nice selection of wines to choose from and I can always find a really good Malbec that is reasonably priced.
They also have some good food choices to pair with your wine. I really like the pesto ceasar salad with chicken. But I’ve also had the meatball sub and the Muffaletta on ciabatta. Sometimes a charcuterie board works too. The one woman who takes care of us is always friendly. I’ve been here for their live music, and it does tend to be a lot louder. The patio is great too! I just realized they only open earlier on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday… great place for a HH after work!

It unfortunate that I never got to eat here. We walked in and was told to seat ourselves. There’s only a few tables to sit inside where people were already at and we were forced to sit outside in the cold where the heaters weren’t even on. We went back inside to check if anyone had left so we can sit inside and no luck so we were just standing there then a brunette Mexican girl came up to us and told us she would turn on the heater outside and she never did. She brought up our menus and left and never returned!!! We were waiting for a good 15 – 20 minutes and she never came out to even ask us if we wanted any drinks. We just got up and left. I had some plans here and they never followed through. I will never step foot in this place ever again. Horrible customer service.

Wine steals does a great job with their food and their service and of course their wine! They have two private rooms that are perfect for small meetings and meet ups!

I went to Wine Steals to see my friend, Celeste Barbier, belt out a wide variety of old-​school tunes. She decided to make the theme «hat day,» so my girlfriend and I donned our finest chapeaus (mine was a straw top hat with various accoutrements). Unfortunately, parking is a pain in the ass in Hillcrest, so we had to walk a few blocks to the restaurant/​bar. It was a nice stroll, though, and Hillcrest was bustling with activity.
We could hear Celeste’s fabulous voice before we even entered Wine Steals, and she was right near the door with a selection of her finest hats. Anyone who wanted to could rent one of her hats for a couple of bucks, and for a couple of bucks more she would wear whichever one people wanted. This all went into her tip pool, and I think it’s an inventive way to earn a few extra bucks.
We sat down and ordered a couple of champagne specials they were running, and then we shared a house salad and had a couple of slices of their house pizza. I like how you can get whole pies or slices of certain pies as I’m not always in the mood to gorge on only pizza.
Our server was very friendly and helpful, and I really like the vintage/​modern décor. The inside is large and spacious, and there was a fantastic positive vibe permeating throughout the whole restaurant. I’ll definitely be back to try some of the other tantalizing dishes that Wine Steals offers, and of course, to see Celeste perform again.

I met a wonderful Wine connoisseur named Bryan. He was very friendly and instantly greeted me upon arrival. I went on a Wednesday to Whine and wine;-)
Ordered me pizza specialty which was fresh and delicious and complemented the Moscato beautifully and had the first ever Moscato I could like– Yes, I am a Merlot girl but it was hot and this was the first time I could truly appreciate a Moscato– Called Mo Claudio-​2014 made in Coazzollo, Italy. Although after research it might be Piamonte is located in northern Italy. Its no surprise that it was made from the beautiful vineyards of Italy hence why my nose wasn’t turned up after placing upon my lips. Delicious, I stayed up at the bar and had a wonderful conversations with other Patrons– Shout out to Darrin!!! Nice place for the girls, the bois, distinguished gentlemen; you name it– come out and enjoy the Patio or inside and on special nights one of their jazz singers!!! Get out and mingle even if its by yourself with your pinkie up!

Went here for the first time yesterday during happy hour. We had the half cheese board. Delicious!!! There were 4 different cheeses, 7 types of savory meat– salamis, proscuito, etc. dried fruits, chilis, bread and a nice flaky flatbread.
I had the Moscato. It was fantastic! I was full by the end.
Our waitress checked on us enough to be attentive but not overbearing.
I am not thrilled about bar scenes, so this was a lovely place to grab a glass of wine with a friend and enjoy.
I will definitely come back.

This is one of my favorite places to both perform and hang out. The owner, Wendy is always coming in and having a glass of wine with friends and patrons. The servers are friendly and the ambiance is like hanging out with friends in a really cool living room filled with wine barrel bistro tables, leather sofas, and wine bottles made into oil lamps. There are some great party rooms you can rent out in the back and front of the venue and some uniquely delicious pizzas and sandwiches. If you’re into charcuterie, pizza or salads there is a lot to be offered and you can customize to your taste or dietary requirements. They even offer gluten free pizza crust. Great for pairing with the perfect wine. They also offer Ginger Beer for those that don’t drink or a selection of local craft beers so there’s something for everyone. Of course, as a performer, my favorite part is the LIVE music which happens on Saturdays and Sunday afternoons. Lots of various local styles in here. This is a place you can stop in for a glass (or 2 or 3) of wine (or try one of the flights if you like tasting!) and maybe even meet a few new friends or find a new favorite performer. I perform here every 2^nd Saturday of the month!

I love this place. The atmosphere is friendly and very wine oriented, the servers are extremely friendly, the ambiance is super laid back, and the wines are worth coming in for a visit. Their selection of wines and food changes by week so you’re not likely to get bored if you become a regular. I definitely recommend checking this place out!

Here to enjoy great wine, music and friends!!! Love this place!!! Great service from all the bar tenders and manager. Super friendly people and atmosphere. I’ll be back soon! Also, the thin crust veggie pizza was delicious and perfect with our dry Chardonnay.

Had a great tasting on Sunday. Very good wines and a chance to try new ones. Whitney was awesome! Great prices too!

Their happy hour deals are pretty good – you can get a slice of their «pizza of the day» for $ 2 and house wine for $ 5. Some pizzas are better than others. There are different deals each day of the week, too – Tuesdays is a glass of sangria for $ 5, which is great. I wouldn’t come here to specifically eat, as I don’t think the food is that great; I’d come to hang out, drink wine, and *maybe* order just a snack.
There is trivia on Tuesday nights that is fun. :)

Very divey in their furniture choices, but the name of the joint implies that they have cut corners /​prices. I had a very good Tobin James Zin.
Service was quick and helpful in finding a red I would enjoy.

After eating the pizza here after all these years, I now know what colace is for — it’s a stool softener that I am going to need to get all of the dough out of my system.
I have been a loyal patron of this place since 2004. My husband and I actually had our Wedding Reception here 10 years ago and had a total blast. This was back in the days of Lindsay Pomeroy and the other servers who worked behind the bar who KNEW wine and also could recommend wine. San Diego is pretty sad when it comes to wine knowledge or rather Nowledge… but this place and the Wine Bank were my go to’s when it came to getting the right wine with character. No more, it’s as if something died inside here. Looking at the management and the staff behind the bar, it’s no wonder. As in days of past no one could recommend a wine to me, I was handed a list of wines and heard a litany of happy hour drinks. Their cask Chardonnay was 5.00 but is was really good so that’s a bright spot but the pizza or whatever it was… NO just no. Pickled Marzetta veggies on my husband’s turkey sandwich and on my so called «veggie pizza» — I am starving so I eat it and give my meat slice to my husband, order a «White Pizza» and what I get is the Pillsbury Doe Boy under cooked with a TON of garlic. I ate one slice, used the other to mop up some spilled wine and dumped it. Very disappointing. My server, Brian gets 5 stars for caring enough to ask me what was wrong with the food and for comping me 7.00. Thank you dear — but Management, the blonde drinking at the bar with her friends, get it together. There is a reason this place is dead.
It really, really pains me to see what has happened to this place, I have spent countless hours and disposable income here. It’s a shadow of what it used to be back in 2005 — 2010…
I realize that I know more about wine from my 30 plus years of education and of course drinking that I could have my own wine place and be successful. I would just have meat, cheese boards, bread, salads that complimented the wine like the Ox Bow Market Wine Bar does in Napa and be done with it.
Anyhow, this place broke my heart tonight… I will still pop in for a wine and a cheese board but I am going to have to lower my expectations going forward. How unfortunate.
I only wrote this much because I care about this place. Otherwise, who gives a sh*t?

Atmosphere: somewhat disjointed in a weird but kinda cool way. Looks and smells more like a bar that serves beer than wine (they sell both) There was a charity event that day and the band played a variety of covers that I actually knew which is awesome!
Bartenders: a dude who was super nice and a gal who might be new (?) She mis-​keyed our order, almost overcharging $ 20 for a wine we didn’t order. I told her the correct wine and she pretty much blamed it on the dude. Next time, just say sorry and fix it! I really don’t care who’s fault it is… FYI it was you tho!
Half deluxe plate: PLEASE COMPARE MY PICTURE WITH OTHER UnilocalERS! Biggest disappointment ever… I totally got jipped! Needs a lil consistency on your portion size.
Personal pizza-​Meat. This was actually really good. For about $ 10, nice portion and tasty.
Artisan olives– pricey for peanuts and salty as heck. Save your money on this one.
Overall I’d come here again if I’m around the neighborhood but I wouldn’t go out of my way.

Excellent service and fabulous wine and food! Met up with some friends for a midday wine and lunch who had been there and they were definitely accurate in their praise for this place!
I had never been here and honestly don’t know much about wine. We sat at the bar and the bartender helped me choose a fabulous wine after asking me a few questions. He called it a «mommy drink» since I was having mommy time away from my toddler. It was perfectly refreshing, not too sweet, and just right with the food we chose. I can’t remember the name of the wine, but it was a white wine and he put some lime in it. So good!
I had the tzatziki dip with toasts and pita. One of my friends ordered the «white» pizza and the other ordered a half board of the salami and cheese. All of the food was excellent as were our drinks! I can’t wait to go back again.

Date of visit: 7÷17÷2015
After dinner at 100 Wines Kitchen, I was looking for another glass of wine and some french fries (classy, I know), but got sidetracked by the live music playing at Wine Steals. We hesitated at the doorway, but grabbed a seat at the bar after noticing the sign that said seat yourself.
We weren’t greeted by anyone at the bar, but I saw some menus from the previous customer, so I looked through the wine list and decided on the Cask Pinot Noir. We looked around for a bartender, but they were talking at one end of the bar, so we decided to enjoy the music. After two songs, we still hadn’t received any service, but neither did the guy who came up next to us.
The bartenders finally noticed that they had some new customers, so we got our drinks ordered, which came out quickly since we were right at the bar. The wine was good, but there were no french fries, so I decided to just sip at my wine and enjoy the music.
We left shortly afterwards, that ambiance didn’t really fit what we were looking for and the music stopped at 10, so we decided to wander around and look for some french fries. Our experience was just okay, I’m on the fence about going back.

First of all, let me say that the female server we had was very nice and attentive. This review has nothing to do with her. The level of service was right on point — our drinks and food came out in a timely manner and the staff were reasonably responsive to everything we needed.
I’ve been to the Wine Steals in Cardiff previously and have always been impressed with the quality of the food, particularly the pizzas. In fact, Wine Steals pizzas have always been memorable for me because they’ve always been so ridiculously good. However, I have to say that the pizza we had Friday night at this Hillcrest location was not up to standard.
We ordered the Everything Pizza. Unfortunately, the crust was a huge disappointment. The crust on our pizza was almost like cardboard. Tough and difficult to chew. The overall texture of the pie was just not up to standard, in my opinion. In fairness, my dining companion enjoyed the pizza and had no issues with the crust. He has never had the pizza at the Cardiff location so he didn’t have that to compare this to.
We also had an order of the Cheesy Garlic Bread as an appetizer. While palatable, it was still overcooked. Luckily, the marinara and garlic sauce salvaged it.
Our sangrias were wonderful, though. It’s hard to beat a Wine Steals sangria. Near perfection. I just wish they would put some more fresh fruit in the drink. :)

Went here for a French Conversationalist wine Meetup, but unfortunately neither of the hosts showed, so the three of us just kicked back and enjoyed some wine.
The place is really laid back, we were situated near the front of the place, a comfy couch along with a large plush chair. Both were worn in, which added to the warmth of the place.
They have an extensive wine collection, and they usually have specials of the week (or month, can’t remember due to the wine). They also have a brunch special on Sundays, so I’ll have to check that out as well.
All in all, it was a cushy place to come and meet people and drink wine, but as far as holding a conversation, not a good place to chat, as the acoustics are not made for that.