Vinz Wine Bar

I hosted a wine and paint fundraiser here and it was a terrible experience. First of all it was very dark in the back room and you couldn’t see your painting very well. When I walked into the back room I was «greeted» by the owner saying did you bring cupcakes you can’t have those what are you thinking bringing food into a restaurant. He said it in a very rude tone and I was giving them away to everyone who came to my event as a small thank you for attending. I would also like to add that we all went to bjs after and they told us of corse we could bring our cupcakes in and they would even hold them in their fridge for us until we were finished eating. If it was only those two things I would not be writing this review. Next the owner comes into the back room when we are about to start painting and said just to let you guys know for Katie to get money donated for Susan G. Komen you must all purchase food and a glass of wine or I will not donate anything. This was never discussed previously and I was horrified. It was extremely unprofessional and down right rude! Regardless everyone was there to help me raise money for an amazing charity so they did as he said. They purchased more than they would like to make sure I was given my promised donation. Next at the end of the event when people are already leaving the waitress who was very rude and short with us the entire event said oh by the way now she needs to collect every receipt to get money for her charity so give her your receipts even though people had already started to leave at this point. The entire thing was extremely unorganized but I collected a receipt from almost every single person. I talked to the owner after and he said we would be in touch and I would receive the check shortly. At this point I was frustrated with the lack of competence but I STILL gave them the benefit of the doubt. I contacted the owner various times over the following weeks and months and nothing. The paint company contacted the owner various times as well. It has now been 6 months and the owner has not donated the promised money for my fundraiser. If you like supporting businesses that screw over charities than by all means go here by otherwise STAY AWAY! HORRIBLE OWNER, HORRIBLE WAITRESS, AND NO MORALS TO RIP OFF A CHARITY! I will never go here nor will any of my friends or family! I have never been so appalled with any business in my entire life! If I could give this business 0 stars I would. HORRIBLE HORRIBLE HORRIBLE!!!

i have been going here off n on for a few yrs. The food used to be great and now is so-​so. Today totally turned me off and I will no longer go here even during cruizin grand. One of the wine bar guys poured beer into a broken glass and instead of pouring the beer out and discarding the glass he got a new glass and transferred the beer from the broken glass to the unbroken glass and served it to the customer.

Today was exceptionally busy on Grand Ave in Escondido. It was a gorgeous day to enjoy a meal and a cocktail on the patio with my wife! We entered Vinz and the bartender was visibly busy. He was by himself, not expecting the unusually heavy crowd on a Sunday afternoon. He made the absolute best of the situation. We were asked to find a table, which we did (it was the perfect table) and he would stop by after he took the order of the two tables ahead of us. He set the expectation and followed through. I ordered a margarita, which was very good for a house margarita. My wife had a iced tea. We ordered the spare rib cannelloni. The sauce was excellent and rich, the cannelloni was baked nice and hot while still firm, the filling was delicious, tender! The food came surprisingly quickly and despite the opportunity for a disastrous visit, our server/​bartender just kept plugging away and got folks taken care of with impressive quickness while maintaining his composure. We have been here before, never a bad experience. We were even able to sit on the patio for an entire meal without some yahoo lighting up a cigarette! Thanks Josh! From a former bartender/​server, you are the man!

DO NOT GO TO THIS ESTABLISHMENT.
It was Valentines day weekend and my boyfriend and I were hopping around restaurants and local places in downtown escondido. We had Brunch at O’Sullivans, dessert at Plan 9 Alehouse and I wanted to grab some wine at Vinz.
When we got to Vinz, we were seated by our waitress and I had to excuse myself to the bathroom. I got a call from my boyfriend that the waitress kicked him out because he had a small box of leftovers from our brunch.
I went to talk to the manager and ask why he was kicked out, and the waitress rudely interrupted my conversation and was talking about ridiculous excuses about liquor policies. I told her, «excuse me, I am having a conversation with your manager, not you.» She then said that she worked here for a very long time. I ignored her and continued to speak to the manager, asking why my boyfriend was asked to leave. He had no idea that the waitress asked him to leave, apologize her her actions and said that we can stay. The whole time he was saying this, the waitress kept trying to interrupt our conversation to save herself. I appreciated the managers efforts in trying to resolve the matter but this lady was on a rampage literally right next to me and he could not control her and she obviously can’t control herself.
I told the manager, «It was valentines day weekend and the customer service here is rude and inexcusable and we will not be patrons of such establishment.» The waitress keep yelling at me while I was saying this. I told her we will not be staying here. She said, «I’m sorry, I hope you come back.» I told her, «No, you don’t truly mean that and left.»
That lady was rude, unmannered, interruptive, & intentionally malicious. I never experience such rude customer server in Downtown Escondido. I enjoy being patrons to the local Mom & Pop places around town, where everyone treats you like family. This was an utterly horrible experience, all I wanted was a glass of wine to cap off our valentines day adventure. We had to cut our losses and call it a day.
Be fore warned of this malicious individual. I hope you don’t receive her as your waitress. We did nothing to trigger such behavior. My boyfriend and I are college educated individuals. I would not write a bad review unless such actions are extreme enough that I feel obligated to.

Great staff, great food. Never seen customer loyalty like Vinz Winebar has anywhere else. Best happy hour in town too.

Very poor quality pizza. I am very disapointed Unilocalers did not do me justice. The pizza tasted salty, and was so greasy the dough was limp or soaked! Will not be back for pizza here.

Pretty good experience! The beginning was a little shaky because I didn’t realize I couldn’t use my Groupon the say before Valentine’s Day, but the food was pretty good! We ordered the pizza called Al Pesto with sundried tomato and shrimp, and it was amazing. The server was really helpful with our beer choices, and I greatly appreciated that :)
The only downer was that one of the hostesses took our glasses when I wasn’t finished with my beer, which seemed like a rude way of saying «You paid, get out.» I get it because I worked at a restaurant, but that kind of left a bad taste in my mouth.
Anyway, this is one of the most popular places in town, so definitely check it out :)

I went here for Happy Hour today with my girlfriend and had the worst Bloody Mary. The bartender made them way too strong so I asked her to make it less strong. She poured them into bigger glasses and added more tomato juices then have them back. I sent them back again!!! I gagged!!! Worst drinks ever!!!

AWFUL service! Which was pretty disappointing because the atmosphere was fun and food was not bad. We went on a Friday night to see the live music. (Which was great). When we arrived the hostess was no where to seen. Once she arrived she was super frazzled, a waitress was yelling at her telling her she needed to start a wait list. So she put us on the wait list and told us to sit on the couches. Totally fine. We waited for about 15 minutes once she came and
Got us she was very confused «so umm since you had your name down and it was down first I can seat you now» lol, ok. It seemed like it was her first time being a hostess. We luckily got a table where the music was. She only gave us one menu and told us she’d be back with another, but never returned. It was just my boyfriend and I so it really wasn’t a big deal. We waited long time for the waiter to show, once he did we asked for a beer list which he brought back pretty promptly. Said he give us a minute and come back, about twenty minutes went by and he had not returned, I finally asked someone else if he could take our order. But he had to get out server. Justin the server finally returned and took our drink order we also ordered our food because we didn’t know how long again before he’d come back. Our drinks were brought in a timely manner but they brought me the wrong wine, the guy had just dropped the drinks and walked off. Luckily not far, but had to let him know it was incorrect. Our food was received in a timely manner and was pretty good. And our waiter actually showed up to see if we wanted another round, which we did and was given to us pretty quickly. We thought things were on the up and up! We were enjoying the music and wanted to just sit and have a drink. He came back and started to hand us the bill without us asking for it. Told him we would like to stay and have another round in a little bit. (Our drinks were still half full) He left and then NEVER returned! It was awful and annoying. We told you we’d have another round and you never come back! After thirty minutes I asked another waitress if she could let our waiter know we wanted the bill, he showed back up in a minute and said he had gotten busy. But yet you got there In a minute. Asked if we wanted another round, I said no you took too long getting back. I was very annoyed. And asked for the bill. He came back but around to other tables and still no bill. As he walked by I said «can you PLEASE get us the bill?» I was sick of waiting on this kid all night. «Oh I didn’t bring it to you, lol». Finally brought our bill and we paid. Gave him a bad tip. We were there for almost 3 hours and spent most of the night waiting on the crap service. I will only come back if Justin is not our server.
Bad experience.

My husband had come here many times to meet friends for beer and munchies, and we also came here for a New Year’s celebration a year ago. They are somewhat pricey for what you get; the food can be good, never spectacular, but all of our friends thought it was a convenient central place to unwind and chat… until now.
There were six in our group that met for happy hour, ordering pizza, salad, appetizers, and wine. Two more friends arrived and ordered dinners. One in our party had carried in a $ 4.00 cup of chocolate gelato from Esco Gelato next door. As we we were eating, talking, and enjoying ourselves, a man (presumably the owner or manager) worked his way across the restaurant and began admonishing us for bringing in «outside food». He literally went on and on; what should have been a 5 second discreet request was a 30-​second public reprimand telling us that he was not cool with having the gelato there, and that really we should be billed for an extra plate charge, but he won’t this time, etc.
Um, let’s think about this for a minute. I totally get it – of course you don’t want to lose money letting people use your facilities in order to eat a competitor’s food but, (1) it’s not as if we maliciously sneaked in forbidden food; we weren’t passing around a huge bucket of chicken and ribs – everyone in our party was eating and drinking Vinz fare to the tune of a $ 250 tab. That’s over $ 30 per person which I’m sure was more than what other people there were spending in happy hour prices, (2) we weren’t making a spectacle out of eating a gargantuan dessert, or causing people to come over and see what was going on (we had a table in the corner and it was a scoop of gelato in a little plastic dish, for God’s sake), and (3) it’s not comparable to a wine corkage fee since upscale restaurants make a good proportion of their profit from selling wine. So if you bring in your own and also utilize the waitstaff to open and serve the wine in restaurant glasses, the restaurant is losing income. Vinz doesn’t even sell gelato on the menu, and we didn’t use any of his servers or dishes for it, (4) he didn’t quietly pull one of us aside to inform us of the restaurant policy; he publicly announced it to the entire table and beyond. Well, THAT was just not cool.
I’m not arguing his right to set and enforce restaurant policy, just his manner in how he went about it with an otherwise regular clientele. We apologized profusely, then finished our meals and drinks and paid our tab, but then the charm of the conversation, the wine, the food and the moment was gone. Others in our party would probably have ordered desserts from Vinz if we had stayed longer. But we decided that there are too many good restaurants around to hand over our dollars to a proprietor with little diplomacy. Even buying our own wine and a better pizza from Filippi’s, and enjoying each others’ company around the fireplace at home would have been much more worth our time and money. When you own a small business, it’s of utmost important to be gracious to your guests, while of course not allowing them to take advantage of you. Vinz was already benefitting well from our patronage there that evening. As a business owner you choose your battles wisely and weigh the benefits v.s. the losses. He chose poorly. He would have lost nothing letting us be, but now has lost all of our future business.

there service has been getting worse daily. I don’t now if it’s management or what. I love the deli, only because of the food.

Love this place! We just moved to Escondido and this was the first place we decided to eat. My daughter and I went out for dinner after work. The food was amazing. The wait staff is very friendly and knowledgeable. We found out the owner is from Long Island NY and that’s where we are from originally. He came over to the table and we all chatted for sometime.
The pizza was very close amazingly to NY style pizza. Definitely recommend to our friends and neighbors and we can’t wait for some family to get into town for the holidays to take them here.
Also they have so many specials. We will definitely be back very soon!!! Thank you for the great food and service!!!

I love going here both on a quiet afternoon to read with a glass of wine or with friends for dinner, drinks and live music! The staff is super friendly, attentive, and even remembers names! They have various menu items that are gluten free, large portions at a great price, and just a super chill vibe! There’s ample parking, except that gets tricky on Friday nights in the summer. I highly recommend this place!

Vinnie does a decent job, there is so much potential to do more, but I doubt the Escondido crowd could support it. Food is good, not memorable, but good. Atmosphere is nice, and bartenders friendly.

I came into Vinz in my sandals and they were super fucking cool about it. Great beer suggestions, great service from Ryan #1 and Ryan #2. This is the best damn wine bar in all of San Diego County!!!

This place is great to chill and eat some yummy apps. Great for parties and games too with several rooms available for reservation. The owner is really nice and friendly and they work really hard to make sure their food is top notch. I’ve been coming here for years and never been disappointed

It was just okay… thought it would be a little more upscale as it seems on the website and previous reviews. Has lots of potential to be better… food was good but mediocre. I left a little disappointed cute place but maybe I thought it would be more to it.

After going to Vinz several times over the last year — went last evening 10÷20÷15 for wine and dinner with wifey. Had horrible experience with the service and food was less than stellar.
Waitress was not nice and skipped over us in taking a simple drink order. She then seated the table next to us and took their drink and food order. They actually got their drinks before us as well as food. We will definitely take this restaurant off our list — sad because our previous experiences were very good. But, there is just too many choices in the area now to pay for a bad experience.

Vinz has so much potential. They have a great location and a great menu (food and drinks), but I’m always left slightly disappointed. It’s not the service at all — I’ve never had anything less than great service here. The food is just so mediocre — so many things look great on paper, but the actual execution isn’t great. Every single thing I’ve had here lacks flavor — the burgers, the pizzas, the salads. I’m not sure what the deal is, but it’s almost as if the chefs are afraid to use herbs or seasoning. Yes there is salt, pepper, crushed red peppers, and parmesan at the tables, but that only goes so far. Overall, for the price it’s not a terrible option but the food definitely needs work.

Ry is awesome! Fantastic atmosphere with a great selection unique food and drinks. Came in on the last night of cruising grand and they were slammed but still managed to get me and my love a table in a secluded area on the outside patio. Ry was our server, he was very knowledgeable and personable. Will come back!

Britaney was awesome very friendly delt with a taster veer mix up. Had a smile all night even thou it was busy for the first foot ball game of the year. I love this place
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I was an unsuspecting guest of the farmers market on tues of Escondido which was great, but when I walked upon vinz I was greeted by a awesome crew whom welcomed me as a family or friend open arms… Ashley was the hostess warm, smiley, and welcoming! She invited me to the bartender to meet Justin! Probably my new favorite bartender of the area! Even the barback Saleem was welcoming when I returned. He remembered my name. What a welcoming experience. If you want a true dining experience go here. Good food good beer good wine good timez

They made a late last minute reservation for a group of 8 of us on a Crusin’ Grand Friday night.
Seated us all in the lovely back room with a band! Great food, drinks and fun!!!

Ok so this place is pretty legit. The pizza was pretty darn good. And the beer! Man they have some good beers. They even have Pliny the Elder from Russian River Brewing Co. I dont know if you evem know hoe hard it is to get your hands on one. The bartender was pretty knowledgeable on beer so that was cool. They are dog friendly on the patio section (even have a water bowl) this place deserves my 5 stars. I didnt find any cons.

I had my concerns about going here. I left a loyal customer and will let everyone I know it’s the real deal. The service is very laid back and knowledgeable which I personally enjoy. The food is the best in North County for its style and execution. The only thing is the menu and it’s 1960 looks. The owner needs to get someone to write a menu for today’s clientele. Trust me it is so bad, but every thing else is really great!

Happy Hour review.
For a Saturday lunch, we stopped by VINZ for pizza and salad. The waiter made some great suggestions from the happy hour menu and then we sat back and watched the people from the farmer’s market. The Salad and Pizza were both better than expected. The price? Great! I would recommend stopping by VINZ after visiting the tiny Escondido Farmer’s market.
The Bottom Line —
— Great happy hour prices for pizza. Around 7 bucks.
— Chicken on the Caesar salad was pretty good. It wasn’t chewy or processed.
— Iced tea was very drinkable, much better than cheap Lipton.
— Outside chairs are uncomfortable.

I’ve been planning on coming here for so long and I just haven’t made the effort to come by. until the other night! It’s surprisingly a lot bigger than I thought it was.
We started off with the Prosciutto & Fresh Mozzarella appetizer. For $ 8 I was kind of surprised how little bread there was. They gave you a tomato/​basil mix but put it on top of a bunch of salad and it just made the whole thing a mess. If they cut out that salad mix it would’ve made it a lot easier to deal with. They really don’t give you much bread or cheese for as much as you pay.
We shared the Barnyard Rustica pizza. It was actually a decent pizza. but… maybe I’m spoiled. Had the pizza have been a bit crispier, I would’ve enjoyed it more. I’m just not crazy about «soggy» crust pizza.
They have a variety of wines and drinks here but for that night we decided to get some mixed drinks. They were decently priced at $ 6.50… Buuttt they were definitely on the weak side. A little more alcohol would do it good.
What saved this place was the music. It was actually a good time and we enjoyed ourselves. The music was by two guys, one on a piano and another on a guitar. They did some awesome music of more «mainstream» songs but they were amazing and I gotta commend them for that.

My friend told me that Vinz Wine Bar is a go-​to place when you’re in Escondido because they have a great happy hour — the «Happiest Happy Hour,» to be specific. However, please note that said Happy Hour is only Monday-​Thursday and also on Saturdays … but NOT Fridays, and we went on a Friday. Fail in terms of saving money, but the food at Vinz’s was still good.
The eatery is located in Downtown Escondido, so if you go during some major event Downtown … it’ll be hard to find parking. However, I’m sure if you go on a normal weekday/​weekend, you can easily find street parking or park in one of the public lots.
I definitely would not order some of the appetizer/​entrees if they weren’t at Happy Hour prices, but here’s what I would recommend (and would want to try on future visits):
«Truffle Oil Crispy Stealth Fries»: My friend and her husband ordered this app to share, and though I like truffle oil-​coated dishes, I do not like crispy, shoestring-​like fries, so I didn’t really partake in this dish. These oil-​braised potato strips were definitely crispy, but my friend and her husband really liked them. The truffle oil does add a great element, I must admit.
«Sweet Potato Cajun Fries»: I tend to prefer regular French Fries as opposed to sweet potato fries, but this version sounds appetizing, as these sweet potato fries come topped with garlic aioli and Cajun spice. I’m sure they sport a great sweet-​and-​savory mixture, so I’m definitely down to try them. Hopefully they are a bit thicker and softer than those crispy stealth fries.
«Baked Goat Cheese in Phyllo»: On Unilocal,this appetizer dish got tons of great reviews, but I probably wouldn’t get it unless I’m sharing with someone. I do love goat cheese and I do love phyllo dough, but I’m not sure how I feel about this app’s other components – fresh strawberries, toasted pistachios and lavender-​scented honey. I’m sure the honey-​goat cheese-​phyllo dough combo is bomb, like a sweet grilled cheese sandwich. However, I would probably scrape the strawberries to the side (or ask for them on the side). The Unilocal reviews and stunning food photos have convinced me to give this app a try … one day.
«White Cheddar Cheese Toast Roll»: My friend and I ended up not ordering this appetizer because we were getting pizza, but if we do end up going for Happy Hour, I think we would order it next time. It features an aged white cheddar cheese spread that’s melted on a baguette and topped with fresh herbs. You can’t really go wrong with melted cheese and bread, so I would be willing to give this app a taste. Then again, however, Vinz serves a great complimentary bread and butter, so if I’m really wanting more bread, I’m sure I could just ask for more of the complimentary toast.
«Pizza Blanca con Spinaci»: Basically Vinz’s version of a white pizza, this meal would have been at half price if we went for Happy Hour during the week! I really enjoyed this pizza and ended up sharing it with my friend. It featured a savory blend of cheeses – homemade ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan – as well as fresh spinach and roasted garlic. I especially enjoyed the strong garlic flavor and the oozing, melted cheeses that filled every bite. The pizza dough wasn’t super crispy, but I didn’t mind. I’m determined to actually go for Happy Hour at some point to take advantage of the great pizza prices …
«Al Pesto»: Though I didn’t order this one during my first visit to Vinz’s, this is one pizza I wouldn’t mind trying. It features Gorgonzola cheese, shrimp, homemade pesto and sundried tomatoes … but if I ordered it, I would get it without the tomatoes. I do love a good pesto sauce, so I’m excited to try this pizza one day.
«Barnyard Rustica»: I love the variety of meats featured on this pizza, so I would want to try it one day, even if it does come with tomato sauce. This pizza includes Italian sausage, pepperoni, garlic chicken, capocolo, mozzarella cheese and pizza sauce. If I did order this pizza, I would ask if I could substitute the sauce for one of the cream-​based or pesto options, but if not, I would just ask for light pizza sauce. The assortment of meats makes ordering this pizza worth it.
«Homemade Lasagna»: I don’t make lasagna very often at home, so it’s always a treat to order it at the restaurant. Vinz’s version features fresh mozzarella, homemade ricotta, pecorino Romano, grana parmesan and marinara, all layered between fresh pasta sheets. I don’t like too much tomato in my pasta dishes, and this lasagna sounds super cheesy, so I’d love to give it a try one day.
«Fish & Chips»: Even at normal price, the fish & chips entrée at Vinz’s isn’t as expensive as I think it could be. This dish features three pieces of Alaskan cod that’s coated in beer batter and fried to a golden brown, and they’re served with steak fries and tartar sauce. Since I’m always on the hunt for a good fish & chips, I wouldn’t mind trying this entrée sometime.

This place is always packed on Friday nights, but I always see drinks and rarely food. Plus, based on the store front, some of the other restaurants on Grand Ave. seem more appealing. But, came here on a whim thanks to my spontaneous roommate and wow, what an underrated gem!
Few things:
–Ask for the tasting room. Sure, you may have prime people watching real estate from the outdoor seating, but depending on the weather it may be too hot or too cold. And, the indoor restaurant area seems just okay. However, with the tasting room you get the best of both worlds — people watching, plus a nicer and quieter area filled with bottles of vino.
–Got the Special of the Week Deli Sandwich. When I went, it was a chicken sandwich on squaw with lettuce, sunflower seeds, goat cheese, and cranberry spread and a slice of pickle. Amazing and filling — both equally important. Chicken was ample yet tender, while the mix of goat cheese and cranberry was the perfect marriage of savory and sweet. The sunflower seeds added a unique and pleasant texture to the sandwich. I do wish that the bread was toasted, and my only other gripe is that it was pricey at ~$ 9 given how «easy» it looked to prepare.
(Side note: You know you’re in SD — more specifically, Esco — when the draft list is partitioned by «Stone» and «Not Stone.»)
–Get That Guava Beer by Legacy — 5.5% ABV for $ 5. The guava beer was literally the best beer I’ve ever had in my life. Even that is an understatement. Bumps Magic Hat #9 to #2. Note to self: Need to head over to Legacy in Oceanside, ASAP.