Swill Automatic

I’m so sad this place is closed!!! I’m trying to get through all my Unilocal review bookmarks and I just noticed this.
The location doesn’t leave much to be desired. I don’t know why the owners picked an industrial ghetto by the L.A. river. I was afraid for my life looking for parking and walking up here for a CYME especially since my +1 flaked and I was driving up alone. And the event was at night so imagine all the thoughts running through my head. I think I practically ran to the entrance from my parking spot and then asked to be walked back.
But once inside you’ll forget all about your location and where you just came from. This place is lined with enomatic wine machines and the food is made from scratch. I had an unforgettable pesto tortellini dish and I watched as the chef prepared it fresh from the open kitchen. My meal was comped because they thought I had left. I had switched tables and decided to watch the Oscars with the lovely LA CM Katie B. At the end of the night, they brought some fresh chocolate chip cookies that were amazing.
It’s sad that I’ll never get to go back here again but oh well. I hope they find another concept and a better location. That was some scary sh*t…

The short of it:
— Perfect for the wine enthusiast!
— Automated wine dispensers (kinda like a wine vending machine)
— Located in a random neighborhood
— Favs: freshly baked choco chip cookies with a glass of wine!
The long of it:
This makes drinking wine even more fun! They have automated wine dispensers where you just load a card with money and you can go around to the different dispensers, read the info on the different wines, pick a wine, insert your money card, and the wine gets filled into your glass. They have a large selection of wines and I also noticed they had dispensers for a few different kinds of sake too. They also have wine flights if you don’t want to give the dispenser thing a try. In addition to their extensive wine list, they also have a food menu and dessert! I think this place is pretty creative and I haven’t seen anything like it yet.

Visiting LA from a small booney town in a desert to run some errands. Came here for a late night dinner with my boyfriend. There were only maybe 3 couples and small groups dining. The place had a relaxing ambience.
We came here with the guilt city deal: 4 course dinner with 3 wine pairings for 2. I think the 6 glasses of wine for the 2 of us pretty much paid for the deal. Wish I took a picture of the menu (maybe someone already posted here). From what I remember, first course was some kind of a bruschetta. It wasn’t a typical bruschetta imo and it was really good. Second was the salad with tangy dressing. Nothing special but nevertheless a needed component of dinner. Main course was pasta that looked like chicken fettuccine alfredo. I thought the dish was a little bland but not to a point where I didn’t want to eat it. Dessert was warm chocolate something that we devoured in seconds.
After 3 glasses of wine each, we decided to get a $ 20 card to try more wines there. The last wine I dispensed was empty so Jensen got a new bottle and poured me a generous portion herself before replacing the bottle in the dispenser for the next customers. My favorite was a Cab Sauv called Textbook. If you like Cabs, i recommend Textbook.
Our server was Jensen (mentioned above), who was a Anne Hathaway look-​alike except with blonde hair. She says she gets that all the time and I’m sure she’s sick of hearing people asking. Nevertheless, she was a fun, sweet and awesome server, who made the experience at swill that much better.

We made a large group reservation for my girlfriend’s 25^th birthday… only for them to cancel on us today, the day of.
Sooo uncool. I’m scrambling now for an alternative. Thanks a bunch Swill.

Lesson Learned — Never go to a business on the first day for Groupon redemptions.
I was thinking about giving this place 2 stars (or more) because the owner seemed nice and I felt bad for him but after finding out that they have already offered deals on Unilocal and Gilt City, I think they knew exactly what they were getting themselves into and should have been more prepared.
We arrived around noon on Saturday for brunch. The place looks great and has an awesome vibe. The tall server told us to wait 2 minutes and he would seat us. But almost 10 minutes passed and we were still not seated so I decided to talk to the other server, the «short server». The short server said that he would clear a table for us in 1 minute. After about 5 more minutes, I asked the short server whether he was going to clear the table and he had a blank confused look on his face as if our conversation never occurred. At this point, the owner stepped in and apologized and said that he hoped we would have a good experience from then on. I fully expected him to take us under his wings to make sure that nothing bad would happen.
But of course that was only the start of the bad service. We had to ask multiple times for menus and water. I ordered a tuna melt and a mimosa and my friend ordered eggs benedict and a café latte. My mimosa didn’t come out for a good 20 minutes. At that point, the short server promised us that the café latte would be coming right away. 10 minutes later, it still wasn’t ready. When it finally arrived, it didn’t come with a spoon so I had to get up and grab one. The spoon came from the clean spoon container but it was still dirty. We were also supposed to get a $ 10 card for the wine machines but we didn’t get that until we asked for the nth time.
I could have forgiven some of these issues if the food had been good. My sandwich came first and it was cold. The cheese didn’t even melt and it was NOT GOOD AT ALL. My friend’s meal didn’t come out at the same time as mine and in the meantime, the table next to us who arrived more than half an hour after us were given their food. Of course, we were not provided with silverware when the food arrived. When we finally got some, one of the forks was really dirty so I had to get up to get another. Anyway, my friend’s eggs had a side of potatoes. The potatoes looked great but didn’t have any flavor whatsoever. I tried the meat portion of my friend’s eggs benedict and it was hard and chewy. We each ate about half of our meal and wanted to get out of there. I was still hungry and pissed off that I wasted an hour and a half on a crappy experience.
Yes, the owner offered a meal to us on the house and even offered to give us extra drinks while we waited. But sometimes you only get one shot at things and this one experience was so terrible that I will never go back, even if it’s free.

The best part of this place is it’s flexibility. You can try sample sizes of wines, or order them by glass or bottle. Their card system makes sampling their many options simple.
There are also a lot of food options. There are small and large plate options. The tots were my favorite.
This is a small place so plan ahead. There is also a small outdoor sitting area next to their garden.
We will definetely be returning to Swill.

Gilt City Four Course meal for Two…
FOOD:
Warm Bruschetta with Dill Cream Cheese, Roasted Red Peppers and green tomato marmalade… with a Rose’…
— GREAT Combination! The Wine and the bruschetta… the ONLY problem was… they gave THREE bruschettas for TWO people… it’s kinda awkward to share it. They should do FOUR so TWO each… it didn’t make sense to me…
Mixed Green and Mustard Vinaigrette with Blanc
OH TO DIE FOR… TO DIE FOR… I need to find good mustard vinaigrette… I must. It was SO good. I even ate the tomatoes… and I only like tomatoes in bruschetta, pizza and burgers.
Truffle Pasta with Seated Breast of Chicken, Roasted Garlic and Herbs with sauvignon
NO on the pairing. The red and the chicken… it needed to be with a red meat or at least pork… I did not like the pairing but the Chicken and pasta was SOOO good. Loved the chicken.
Chocolate Fondant and chocolate strawberries — good
SERVICE:
Good, fast, efficient
PARKING:
Street or garage
BUSY DAYS:
Went on a Wednesday and NOT BUSY AT ALL
Next time I’ll def try the wines from the machine… looks good! :D
AMBIANCE:
Very LA Wine feel. Not a lot of seating if it was a busy night. Great for socials!
OVERALL:
Good

Awesome little wine bar hidden in DTLA. They have a ton of the enomatic wine machines and some great bottles to try.
I had the Banh Mi based on the reviews and honestly, it was just ok. I wouldn’t order it again. I think I’d try their meatballs next time instead.
They do have phenomenal chocolate chip cookies that they’ll bake any time of the day if you ask really, really nicely.
There is an adorable garden that is a nice place to sit and work. There is a lot you can park for $ 4 or you can look for street parking.

Talk about a true hidden gem! I’m jealous of the people who live and work in the lofts in this secluded part of downtown (right down the street from Church and State), who can come by Swill and swill all they want whenever they want.
I always think those self-​pour wine tasting thingies are fun, as you can choose your own type and price and not have to commit much, but sometimes I get sad at places that don’t have any pours for under $ 5. What’s the point of having all of that selection when you can only afford a couple pours? Swill’s pours seem to generally be about $ 3 and up, and they have a nice range of different types of wines. I love that the waiters aren’t shy about suggesting their favorites, either.
The best part about this place is the amazing service. The owner and the waiters all went out of their way to see that we were happy and well-​fed. They even baked us some fresh chocolate chip cookies on request (which were delightful, by the way). They let a group of us set up shop at one of the tables with our laptops, using their outlets and lingering long after we were done with our lunches. We even used their adorable back patio as a conference room!
I highly recommend stopping by this place during the daytime if you can… it’s empty and peaceful and perfect for a little civilized daytime wine tasting!

food, ambiance, automatic wine dispensers, crowd+good
service=honestly…not that great.
cute place – very casual & trendy with all the dispensers lined up against the wall. we ordered two prix fixe menus which included wine parings for an appetizer, salad, main dish, and dessert. the food was probably a 3.5÷5. the downside was that they took foreverrrrrr (like srrrrrsly forever) to bring out our food.

So unexpectedly delicious!
Beautiful outdoor seating.
Had a Unilocal deal. $ 30 wine card, cheese plate and 1 appetizer.
So many wines to choose from and all 6 that we tried were delicious.
One of the bottles did run out but our server filled my glass TO THE TOP! to make up for it. I’d say that’s the best deal in town! No joke, he poured me a full glass of wine since the wine had run out during my pour.
Banh Mi are really delicious.
Mussels– with gorgonzola?! Strange combo but surprisingly good.
Garlic with bread– yum!
Pear and Gorgonzola Raviola Tapa– HUGE PORTION– great sauce! Fantastic!
Can’t wait to go back!!!
You can bring your dogs too!

IT“S OKAY. I expected better. Lame slow service, Wine running out, Loud happy hour types lingering, … did i really drive for this.. .
First of all, let me just say— every downtown newbie is jumping on the downtown «bahn mi» sliders or dish— way to jip a country, just sayin
Lame: The automatic wine. I mean, isn’t the joy of being in a restaurant the comfort of sitting down and being served with being topped off generously? — not this automatic shit. AM I AT YOGURTLAND?! It was fucking impossible to flag down the servers (ONLY 2 in a packed house) and I hate getting up every 5 minutes to get a new 2oz glass of wine. Also because you forget which one you had– trust me, your 2 oz is 6 – 8 $ a glass that is not worth it (esp if u dont like the wine)…
And people who use $ 30 card between 2 people– WOW, you gotta be kidding me. I don’t think $ 50 is enough for 1 person. The portion is so small and with all the cardio you’re doing walking around, trust me— the wine $$ will Rack up.
GUYS (cus i know u boys are the owners), its like $ 1.50 a sq foot to lease this place AND you have the capability to hold an amazing local DT clientale, You can do SO MUCH BETTER.

Upon invite from a friend who purchased a Unilocal deal for $ 29, I gladly joined her for a very casual and entertaining evening. The deal offered a $ 30 wine card, a cheese platter and a free side.
There were plenty of tempting items on their menu but we decided on artichokes with prosciutto and balsamic vinegar. We also added in the pear and roquefort cheese ravioli. The raviolis were fantastic. The added sweetness of the pear with the cheese was delicious. The artichokes were nice too, but then again I can never complain about anything wrapped in pork product and drizzled with balsamic.
The cheese plate was nice. I did expect more from it, but I couldn’t really complain. The triple brie, peccorino, and sage cheddar were nice with the wine samples.
The wine machines are always a fun way to try out some different kinds of wines. With the 2 oz pours, your cards can go rather fast if you are drinking a lot. I wound up zipping through a $ 30 card, and had to plop down another $ 30 when another gal joined in. (I actually had an error with a card and turned it in thinking it was empty. Rather making a big dispute, Jensen kindly offered $ 10 card in case there was a balance).
The wine machines make it very approachable without fear of a snobby remark from a worker. A worker actually recommended a zinfandel and cab sauv that were very delicious. I almost wound up buying a bottle. The staff were very helpful and attentive. They didn’t hover over you nor act like wine snobs when asked a question.
I think that’s what I enjoyed about Swill. It was very easy to enjoy some time there. The place is actually quite tiny. But that cozy tight space lends itself to huddle in with some friends to enjoy good food, good wine, and good conversation. But isn’t that what a good wine experience should be?
Swill is a very welcome addition to its location, with a french bistro next door, a pub across the street, lofts all around, etc. Whether you are a local finding a regular spot or whether you’re trekking around dtla looking for a good spot, Swill is a place worth visiting.

Came here for a friend’s birthday with a huge group. They were incredibly accommodating and friendly. Bonus points for already having the Mavs/​Heat game on!
AMBIANCE: Once you step inside, the place is relatively small and cozy. You’ll see that it was a modern-​esque feel but still home-​y at the same time. They even have an outdoor patio!
FOOD: Their food menu is pretty extensive considering the place is on the small side. I had their Longsubi (it’s spam musubi but with a sausage) and shared Banh Mi sliders. Both were good, but the sliders beat out the musubi in my opinion. At least half the table ordered the sliders, and everyone enjoyed them!
WINE: Their wine selection is extensive, and everyone was knowledgeable. The dispensing system is super pro!
SERVICE: Service was great. Our waitress was attentive and helped us out a lot when we were deciding what to order.
If I were less into two-​buck-​chuck and more into wine, I’d definitely make this a weekly trip!

This restaurant is located in the old Toy District so the neighborhood has that «industrial» feel to it. There’s enough street parking but they also have a paid lot ($ 4). Swill is a hip and trendy wine bar with an innovative way of wine tasting. You basically get a card ($ 10 or $ 20) and you go around the room trying the different wines by inserting the card into the machine and pressing the button of the wine of your choice. The wine is dispensed like coffee from a vending machine. Each wine is priced differently. It ranges from $ 3.50 to about $ 5.80 for half a glass. The wine are from a wide variety of regions (Napa, Sonoma, Hungary, Europe, etc.).
They also offer food from small bites to regular entrees.
We started with the assorted cheese board which was pretty good. The brie was nice and soft and it spread on the cracker like butter. YUM!
Then we had the Banh Mi Sliders. The pork is very tasty and has a bit of spice to it. Very delicious. We also tried the Filipino version of the spam musubi. Instead of spam, they put longanisa in it which is a sweet Filipino sausage. It was genius!!!
We ended the night with the «Dirty» Mussels. Unfortunately my fiancé is not a big fan of the blue cheese so she didn’t like it. I thought it was pretty good but I’ve had better tasting broth at other french restaurant. Good quality of mussels though.
Overall the food is very good and reasonably priced. The staff were fantastic, very attentive and took the time to explain some of the wine and the food.
They also have a DJ and a big screen TV which adds to the appeal of the restaurant. I’ll definitely go back. Very cool wine bar!

Trivia is no more, even though the website says it exists on Tuesday. If you’re looking for it; call and confirm if they have it.
Had a Travelzoo coupon — 2 $ 20 cards, an appetizer (went with the sliders), and a cheese plate. The cheese plate was a bit lacking — I mean, two cheddars, really… alright, maybe I’m a cheese snob. Free refills on the crackers though, so have at it. The sliders were chosen with a Unilocal recommendation and I thought they were delicious. And spicy (jalapeños)!
Ordered the Tortelloni Gigante — it wasn’t gigantic, but it was delicious.
Self serve wine is fun — you insert your card in the machine, hold your glass under the spout and press the button for a 2oz fill. Prices vary between ~2.50 and 5.00 a taste, so it’s up to you how much you get for the $ 20 card.
Parking is on the street and easy, staff was laid back and friendly, and the space feels nice. There’s a flatscreen tv (airing the Lakers when I was there) and a projection screen with an old school movie. Interesting ambiance.

Joan — It’s your last week in L.A. — where do you want to go?
Me — surprise me
Tucked away in the strange random area east of Downtown… in the toy district, is the most charming neighborhood spot with a smart décor and smart understated signage.
Swill is one of those new concept bars with the self-​serve wine dispensers that i’d only read about, but heretofore never experienced. I’m not that sure i’m sold on the process of ordering a $ 20 card and then helping myself to the various wines on «tap». But I’m sure I can be convinced of it…
What I really loved:
Menu: great variety from small plates (loved the Bahn Mi Sliders!) to entrees, seafood choices, salads, cheese plates… It was seasonal, and featured ingredients from various regions around the world (s.e. asian, mediterranean, middle eastern, etc.). Very well thought out.
Food: excellent! we shared a chicken entrée with a middle eastern flair — it had a topping of pine nuts, capers & kalamata olives. The prociutto wrapped grilled asparagus was perfectly done… and again — we loved the sliders.
Service: couldn’t have been better! He was friendly and knowledgeable, but didn’t «fake» it. If I stumped him on a wine pairing/​recommendation, he went in, asked someone else who knew — and came back with the answer. Much more respectable than just naming some random wine.
Setting: well, the perfect weather of the random heat wave made outdoor seating the optimal choice. The patio was lovely with the strings of lights overhead, and a little garden just next door.
Prices: fair. reasonable for the quality.
But what i didn’t quite like was getting up to get my own wine. Perhaps if the context was different — If we were inside and just sampling the wines with some cheese and fruits… this was one of those occasions where i didn’t want to have to bother about getting up, looking at labels, reading descriptions… yeah, the selection overwhelmed me… but that’s just me.
Discovering places like Swill in a neighborhood like the toy district — an area where just 10 years ago would have been one of the scariest places to walk around alone at night — makes me happy. I loved this little adventure. I’ll really miss Los Angeles.

The staff here is so accommodating, it’s hard to not give this place anything but 5 stars.
It also has going for it:
–a classy feel
–simple, yet sophisticated décor
–a great menu (although more vegetarian/​vegan options would make it a plus with some fellow Unilocalers I know)
–great mixed drinks
–great table arrangement
–technologically advance wine dispensers
–they allow you to cash out your wine cards so you don’t have 85 cents left over. I wouldn’t mind coming back, but I don’t want to feel like I must.
–a dive-​bar feel (I love dive bars) yet so not a dive bar
–easy to find FREE parking
–SO MUCH wine

This place knows good service. I’m pretty positive they would have a PhD in it if there were degrees for that sort of thing. Warm, full of smiles and willing to go the extra mile.
The robot wine thingies (yes, that’s a technical term) are filled with quality wines and since you control your intake and selection, you can have a wild and crazy night (although it does get pricey since they are only 2 oz pours) or a sophisticated evening swirling and tanin sipping.
The food is delicious (although I wasn’t a fan of the bahn mi sandwiches) and the cookies are worthy of their own bakery. Don’t forget to Check-​in with your Unilocal app to score 2 free ones with any purchase.
Also of note. This place is not just a wine bar, it’s a coffee shop/​breakfast place too! I just recently spent a morning/​afternoon there and enjoyed an egg white omelet with spinach, cheese, Kalamata olives and onions for only $ 8 (with a side of potatoes)!
It doesn’t matter the time of day, make the trek out to this hidden gem for a good meal, wine, and some splendid service!

Tuesday Night Trivia.
I have to admit, that’s what lured me in. I didn’t care about wine or food or location… I wanted to win.
To truly understand the level of competitive drive I possess, one must know that a few Christmases ago, whilst playing Trivial Pursuits with my family, I noticed that my sisters were helping each other cheat in order to beat me. This was nothing new, they suck at TP, but it angered me so much, caused me to have such rage, that I… God I don’t even want to type it…
I slapped my sister.
I know, I’m a bad person.
So needless to say, I take my trivia seriously.
When I arrived at Swill Automatic, I was nervous and excited. Nervous that I may flip out, Hulk style, in front of people that aren’t required to love and accept me. Excited to see if I could place and win one of the very cool prizes.
I had no idea what Swill Automatic served, and wanted to calm my nerves. I was so pleased that, not only do they posses a very impressive collection of wines, they also allow for samples via very generous mini-​pours. Score.
I also eat when I’m nervous (or tired, or angry, or happy, or depressed) so I peeped the menu and, though it was a tad pricey, I liked what I saw.
Ordered the Tamale Plate, and the guacamole app, my friend got the chiliquiles. All of it was mighty tasty, and spicy!
The trivia was great… and I’m not just saying that because my team, 5 Boobs, got 3^rd place and a nice $ 25 gift card upon our return visit. It was fun and a great way to spend a Tuesday night. So fun, that the team made a return trip. Same great wines (and sample pours) same great food (I had the hummus plate and shared the Banh Mi sliders which are THE BEST THING ON THE MENU) and, once again a great 3^rd place victory.
5 Boobs will be returning in January to defend our 3^rd place title… you may want to come and hang out… someone might get slapped.