Wine 661

Actual score 4.5.
Nice little place. Good selection of decent wines. Some interesting wines too. Appropriate array of food items to go along, well prepared and presented. Attractive design of the store. Friendly servers. Reasonable value.
A few minor items preventing a solid 5 stars include some unattractive views into the back of the house, background music a little too loud for the style of venue, and that annoying toilet paper style pull-​out-​of-​the-​thing-​on-​the-​wall hand towels in the lav.
With a 4.5 do you go down to a 4 or up to a 5? I rolled up because they cheerfully prepared something off-​menu (actually a combo of two menu items) for me. That’s a sign of a proprietress with a clue.

This is a real gem in Valencia, and I am so glad that I found it. The people there are super nice… Tanya, the owner, is very friendly, fun, and likes getting to know us. The place has a very cozy and welcoming feel. But, best of all, Friday and Saturday night there is fantastic live music. We are talking great musicians who really enjoy their music and sitting just a few feet away from them as they play. Oh, and they have some fantastic wines and very unique beers. If you are on the fence about trying this place, just trust me and give it a try on a Friday or Saturday night. You will have a great time!

Cool spot to hang out, good music on Friday and Saturday nights. I felt very welcomed even though I do not like being in the Santa Clarita Valley, something in the air I guess. However this joint had a large selection of wines to choose from, and some hard to come by wines you do not typically see at wineries. You will have to ask for the reserve menu. It’s not cheap, but well worthy if you are a taster. The wine rack was extremely impressive. The ambience was fantastic and the staff was very knowledgeable and content.
Four stars for the establishment and the staff.

I had the best time at Wine 661 when my friend and I were in California for a quick girls getaway. The atmosphere was incredible, the wine was perfect, there was an amazing band playing and they were walking distance from our hotel which was the icing on the cake! The owner was there and she treated us like royalty. We will be back for sure! Thank you, Wine 661!

I’ve been going to Wine 661 since the current owner took over the place, about 7 years ago. I love it here. Not only is it a great ambiance, but they have quality wines and the food is really good, too. I consider myself a regular, and the reason why I frequent this place so much is because it’s just so comfortable there. As a woman I feel fine going there by myself all the time. It’s a bar, but not «meat– markety» at all. If I run into someone I know or not it doesn’t matter. It’s just a relaxing, cool place to be. There’s absolutely no snootiness and chatting with the owner and whoever else may be behind the bar is always an enjoyable and entertaining experience. Tanya, the owner, does sincerely care about her customers and she takes the time to get to know each one of us and what we’re all about. She’s very genuine about it. She’s also extremely knowledgeable about wines (as she should be, ha ha). The music on the weekends is usually very good and the energy these bands bring to the place is fantastic. I feel fortunate to have a place like this nearby where I can stop in and unwind whenever my heart desires.

We had an amazing time here tonight, waitress was very attentive. Local kept their space. Mimic was on point and better than I could ask for especially when they played.“freak”. I brought a bottle of wine and bought one and very happy with all.

Love love love this place! Tons of great wines to choose from in all different price ranges. Plus the live music on the weekends is amazing! Best of all they always make me feel like a special guest. Best place in Valencia for great wine, great company & great music. I even go by myself sometimes & I never feel weird.

Wine 661 is my favorite go to spot! Whether it be with a girlfriend, my sisters or on a date, it’s the coziest little gem! The owner Tanya might be one of the sweetest ever! It’s usually her working and maybe one other girl. Regardless of how busy she is, she always makes an effort to say hello and Quench your thirst. She keeps her bar super cozy, inviting and happy! The food she has is delish and just enough! She has some really cute gifts to purchase as well as a nice selection of wine to buy as well! If you’re looking for a new spot to hang with your friends and or loved ones, Wine 661 is it! Hands down! I should actually apologize to Tanya, because I’m there so much! Yay for new gems!

Great place! The owner’s wonderful sense of style permeates everything: the cool décor, the arrangement of an appetizer special, the music, and of course the wine selection. Love to bring either friends or clients. Everyone’s been really impressed.

ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
It’s just OK. Nothing spectacular. I feel intimidated to try… not sure if it’s thier bar setup or something else: when I spoke, everyone turned quiet had their ear stood listening to me. Wait do I still have an accent? Or it’s just Valencia?
Happy hour Monday through Thursday only because of the «live band» Friday. I requested to have one taste and it was horrible so I went with the cheapest available because it was one of those days i just needed a drink. I was told that they just changed the wifi but the server was too busy to find out the password for me.
(if you’ve got time for a“yelp fight”)
OWNER REPLY:
I thank you for your review. I get a lot of business from these reviews and bad reviews hurt business terribly (every review counts), so I thought I’d take this opportunity to tell you why I think your review is unfair:
1) You were so upset by something (unrelated to Wine 661), that you were on your cell phone and in tears and it’s possible that had an impact on your experience b/​c you weren’t in a great mood (I sincerely hope that was a fleeting moment and that all is well now… SINCERELY).
2) «It’s just ok» is not a reason to leave 2 stars. Something egregious should happen to warrant 2 stars and I remember your visit and that just was not the case.
3) I do have wifi here at the wine bar but it’s not for customer use. If, however, a customer asks me if they can use it, I kindly say «yes» and offer the password. On this day, my IT person changed my password and hadn’t given me the new one yet. It wasn’t that I was too busy to give it to you (and I am the owner, not a server). I didn’t even have it myself. But I am also not advertising that I have free wifi so that is certainly not a point of contention for customers to be upset about. I don’t offer it or advertise it in the first place so that is an invalid point. if I failed to have wifi and was running an Internet Café, THAT is a reason to leave a poor review.
4) There is no «Happy Hour» on Fridays and Saturdays b/​c happy hour is designed to bring business to slow days and Friday and Saturday are the busiest days of the week, so happy hour isn’t necessary. It IS necessary, Sunday thru Thursday so that is when we have it. This is also not a reason to leave a poor review. It seems as if, you didn’t like the news of NO happy hour, so you left a poor review but again, that is not a reason to leave two stars. Happy Hour is a bonus, not a requirement.
Please consider changing your review. Most of the reasons that you listed aren’t valid and Unilocal reviews really do matter.
Thank you for considering it and I hope that going forward you’ll keep that in mind when you review other businesses. If you had a terrible experience anywhere, I understand leaving a poor review and would likely do the same. But I was at the bar with you the entire time and I just don’t see that a terrible experience was had. And that’s precisely what 2 stars reflects.
God Bless.
MY REPLY
«Since you took the time writing this long message bashing about how my review was so unfair for you. I will let you know the real reason:
1) I was ignored for a long time without even given a menu or a glass of water because you were preparing the food for others. If you are the owner maybe you should considering staffing up when it’s busy so your customer don’t get ignored.
2) If I am upset about something at the moment it’s my own deal. I didn’t walk in that way… People that are completely happy coming to your joint is a bonus, not a requirement. Instead of blaming on your customer, if your business is putting smile on someone just teared over, wouldn’t that mean a lot more?
3) I don’t want to put it in public — I can if you want me to tell the truth. The first wine that I tasted was like vinegar. I am not sure how old it was but you don’t put that on the shelf
4) You didn’t tell me the wifi was not open to public. All you told me is that you had new internet installed but you don’t know that password and ended like that. I felt that you could simply find out for me if that was available but you didn’t.
I did not give two star reviews because of you don’t have a happy hour. I would rather pay anything for a place that is truly good. You are right, happy hour is just a bonus. I have more 4 star, 5 star reviews than the 2 stars and I have tried a lot of places. My gauge is fair for every business I have been to. Instead of being defensive and accusing, try to think what you can do to improve your business. Customer service is tough, we all know that. But you cannot survive if you don’t have the skills to make people happy. Sending this kind of message will not do anything but only lower your ratings.»

Too small and crowded. The two women working there were rude. Not a relaxing environment.

By far one of the best places to go get a drink in Santa Clarita. I’m not a huge wine drinker but they always have an amazing selection of new beers that I’ve never tried before. And from what I hear by people who like wine. A great selection too. There’s live music on the weekends. The atmosphere is wonderful and the staff is extremely friendly. If you’re looking for a fun night on the town or just a place to go relax with some friends I would recommend this to anybody.

Cute little spot tucked away in a shopping center. A group of seven of us went for a girls night on a Wednesday after work. The wine selection is nice but limited. The food was okay. The primary issue was service! There was only one person working everything. So while she was VERY nice, she’d disappear into the kitchen making our food and we’d be on our own. When a group of regulars came in, our service basically stopped. Not somewhere is go with a group again, maybe just with one or two friends.

Great wine, at the right temperature! Live music on a Friday night. It’s the perfect place to have a relaxing, good time. You can have a conversation while listening to great live music. Perfect!

What a fantastic Saturday night! We came here thinking we’d just sit down for one glass of wine each… After the fantastic service, delicious wine and inviting atmosphere, we stayed for two more glasses. The bar quickly filled and shortly after was a fun, room filled game of cards again humanity ! Needless to say, another glass of wine was ordered and perhaps a quick snack before we called it a night!

My girlfriend and I stopped by Wine 661 on my way out town after a long weekend. It was Sunday, and few other places were open at 3pm, so we ended up at Wine 661 and were delighted!
It’s a small, intimate shop, with maybe 8 – 10 seats at the bar and a few sofas for lounging. I prefer wine tasting to have this intimate feel, so I was nicely surprised seeming the store is in a shopping center. Tanya was fantastically personable and helped my and I select a few great wines for tasting. There were some great small plates– we got the charcuterie– which was actually a fantastic portion for the price. We had a lovely girls day out and left with a couple of bottles of good wine in tow.
Unfortunately, because it’s a wine bar and these things happen sometimes, I may have left with wine but forgot my credit card. I phoned back a few hours later and Tanya had safely secured it– and mailed it promptly back to my home in Virginia. Have to love above-​and-​beyond customer service like that!
Overall, it’s a place I’d recommend!

So, a lot has gone down since my last review. New owner has been in place since 2008. She cleared out all of the atrocious wines and really fixed the place up. They have live music and some small plate food items. Really so much going on here with such a small space.
What I absolutely love though is the winemaker nights. I have been to two of them. My favorite was the Caymus night where they had samples of many of their wines and a rep on site to answer questions and discuss their wines.

Love it here!!! Best wine bar in the Santa Clarita valley. The owner is super knowledgeable and welcoming. My boyfriend and I love our date nights at Wine 661. The weekends are filled with AMAZING BANDS and the weekdays are filled with laughs and great conversations! Thank you Tanya and Flossy for such fabulous service.
Great selection of Bubbles and Champagne.

Nice little wine bar. You would never know it by the outside but it’s dimly lit and has a romantic interior. I see reviews saying that they are pricey, but c’mon, it’s a wine bar! It’s going to be more than the house wine you get across the street at the chain restaurants! I know there isn’t a whole lot of culture in SCV, it’s nice to pretend every once and awhile!
The staff was very friendly and prompt. The food was actually pretty tasty too. I’d like to see a larger selection of wines though.
It’s definitely a more mature «cougar like» crowd but nothing wrong with that. They have live music and it gets crowded as the night goes on. I suggest going early if you are looking to have a quiet glass of wine and catch up with a friend.

I happened upon Wine 661 as an accident, but I’ve been coming back ever since. My office is down the street, so I was eager to find a good wine bar in the area. First thoughts: the owner, Tanya, is lovely. She is extremely personable and friendly, and knows a ton about wine. She can help a newbie and an experienced wine drinker alike. Flossy, one of the employees, is equally great.
Now to the wine. FIrst of all, you get 25% off any bottle you walk out of the shop with. Not bad, right? The wine list, while not extensive, has pretty much everything you can imagine, i.e. a good range of sparking, white and red. If you don’t see anything you like, wander over to the bottle section and purchase a bottle to crack open with a few friends. Don’t like wine? No problem. The bar has an extensive beer selection as well.
The food is equally delicious. I LOVE their cheese options. The menu also includes more unique options such as a selection of sausages, bruschetta, panini and dessert. I believe, Happy Hour is from 4 – 6 daily. Also, on Friday and Saturday night the bar hosts live music. Quite a hip joint for Santa Clarita.