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Ethel’s is the ideal place to meet friends for happy hour after a long day’s duties. (It’s a great escape just before OR after the a massage appointment from down the walkway as well!) Fantastic selection of wines from around the world. But it’s the atmosphere, the PEOPLE and POSITIVE vibes that attract me MOST to Ethel’s Wine Market. Lovely setting. Great selections. Sincere service. 5+STARS

communiTEA Room – Menu with Prices – 505 S Water St #501A, Corpus Christi

Good people, tea, atmosphere and vibes. The décor is eclectic and apropos to the mood of the space. Selections of tea were exceptional. Tea pots and cup were just lovely. It feels like a really good old friend that welcomes you and inspires you (and this was my first visit). Sorry FB only offers 5 stars.

blanca Food+Wine – Menu with Prices – 4117 Granby St suite a, Norfolk

Honestly, this place was absolutely fantastic – and if you’re in the market for a special occasion kind of spot with charm and flair, this is it. First, I was easily able to make reservations online through Yelp, which is always a plus. Second, when we were wandering around somewhat lost trying to find the restaurant, our server called us to check on our arrival time and make sure we could find the place. Once we did, she immediately ushered us to our table. The best way to describe the place is eclectic — it looks like it used to be a gas station or something. Basically, someone took a lot of care and effort to turn an old not-quite-functional space into something lovely. But let me rave on about the food and wine selections. Their wine list is fantastic for the size of their venture — lots of high end choices and mid-range choices that don’t break the bank but still boast high quality. We started with the meat and cheese boards. The selections on both were excellent and perfectly paired with the wine we selected. I opted for two smaller courses instead of one of the larger main courses. Because the weather was nice, I was feeling like something light – so I went with the melon salad. The cantaloupe was fresh, paired quite well with the ham, greens and tangy dressing. I then got the wild mushroom risotto with blueberries because I was intrigued. I love risotto. I would never in a million years think of putting blueberries in it. But oh my, was it delicious! The balance between the earthy mushrooms and the slight sweet burst of berry was delightful. For dessert, we went with the cherry cake and paired it with a nice light glass of pinot. All around, the food was excellent. Our server was fantastic. And the ambiance was perfect for a date night. It is on the more expensive side – with wine and our food purchases, it was easily $100 per person. So depending on how much you order/what your wine budget is like, just be prepared for that. The only downside (and this didn’t impact us because the weather was lovely) is that the bathrooms are located outside of the main restaurant. So if it were raining or something, you’d have to go outside and cross the courtyard to use them. That’s a structure thing you can’t quite account for though. Just a note to be prepared for it. I highly recommend trying this place out if you haven’t yet local Yelpers!

Wilhelm Family Vineyards – Ventana – Menu with Prices – 5425 N Kolb Rd #119, Tucson

We wanted to love this place. It has such a great story with the first female wine maker in Arizona, who is knowlegable, fun and charismatic, if not a bit too talkative, a lovely atmosphere here, and an a beautiful winery in Elgin. Sadly, after two visits, we just had to say we won’t be back. Despite a nice white, whose name I can’t remember, all the reds in the flights we tried were just … not good. We left most of them barely touched. None of our party enjoyed them. The owner and the manager, who were both very nice, offered a port for dessert, which I have to admit was actually well rounded and lovely. The tapas selections were quite nice, so I can recommend those.. . I understand Wilhelm has done well with some of their wines at competitions, but I feel that I am missing something because I just didn’t care for them. Obviously other people do. We tend to prefer red wine, so since none of us enjoyed their reds, we won’t be back, which is a shame since we wanted to support or local wineries.. . A 4 for the white, 3 1/2 for the port, 1-2 for the reds, 4 for the tapas and 5 for the ambiance.

Port Gardner Bay Winery – Menu with Prices – 3006 Rucker Ave, Everett

I had an excellent experience at the PGB Winery. My boyfriend and I stumbled upon this place thanks to Yelp. I have nothing but good things to say about both the service and the wine. For starters, everyone there was very friendly. It felt like a family inviting us to share their delicious wine. The wine kept coming with the tasting, and the company was just as great. I personally think the atmosphere of a place helps to define their repuation, and this place is probably one of the best places I have been since moving to the West Coast. Second, the wine. Every single wine we tried was absolutely delicious. It was very hard to only choose 2 bottles to take home with us. We did a red wine flight where we were able to choose 6 out of about ~10 reds to try. Don’t worry, they have whites as well, we just were in a red mood. Every wine we tried was very good. How anyone could have rated this bad, I don’t know. The wine was great, and everyone we encountered knew their stuff, which was nice never having WA wine before. There was cheese/salami/crackers served with the wine, which I didn’t touch very much because I was so focused on the wine, but it was nice that they had something to go along with while you drink. Honestly, the wine may speak volumes for itself, but the people made it that much better. They welcomed us and made our first experience exploring Everett and the WA wine world even better than we had expected. We will be back here, no questions about that! A precious gem in the heart of Everett!

Allentown Fairgrounds Farmers Market Menu with Prices 1825 W Chew St, Allentown

The Allentown Farmer’s Market is GREAT and certainly deserves 5 Stars over all, but do NOT let anyone at the new cell phone shop touch your cell phone (shop name is Deal Wireless). My daughter’s iPhone had a cracked screen, and the guy there said he would fix it in an hour, and I thought it would be a good idea to shop in the Farmer’s Market for an hour or so and pick up her fixed phone on the way out… Well, the screen was replaced with a VERY low quality screen that appeared quite dark and the phone exhibited unexpected behavior when swiping and tapping the screen. The guy would not stand by his shoddy work and said that he could not do anything to help us. We took the phone to a reputable cell phone repair shop (FIX Mobile in South Mall) where we got a higher quality replacement screen, installed by a skilled technician who showed us a sensor the guy at the Farmer’s Market had BROKEN while trying to remove the cracked screen. I would not recommend doing any business at all at the cell phone shop in the Allentown Farmer’s Market. I go to the Farmer’s Market just about every week and I intend to continue going, but I will steer clear of the cell phone place. UPDATE: I changed this to 5 Stars because the Farmer’s Market management team intervened, and Deal Wireless refunded my money, only because of this intervention. So 5 Stars for Allentown Farmer’s Market.

Fine Wine & Good Spirts – Menu with Prices – 7200 Peach St, Erie

This is a local chain of obviously wine and spirit stores located back in a strip center by the Sams Club and Giant Eagle. As a transplant to PA having to go to a separate store to buy wine, beer and liquor is a new concept. This particular store is small and they carry the basics to cover your personal wine and liquor needs. The staff is interesting, I’ll just leave it at that. The reason I am giving it two stars is because they lack a certain price point of French wine. No, I’m not a baller (do people even use that word anymore) but I did need a gift and they had no French varieties over $20.00. You can’t really be giving Yellowtail for a gift (I have nothing against Yellowtail). In all fairness, they do have some nicer wines, I did see Rombauer Chardonnay on the shelves which is fantastic wine and not inexpensive. The two stars rating also takes into consideration the interesting staff.

Falafel & Co. Inc. – Menu with Prices – 1000 Brookside Dr Ste 119, Raleigh

Falafel is such a great place & refreshing revamp of the old Brookside Market! The customer service is top notch, and their wine program is so extensive. They’ve also got a great selection of to-go beers in the cooler & many other food/snack staples that you’ll need from a neighborhood market. Did I mention the amazing patio space out front & free parking lot? They also have a full restaurant that opens next week; I’ve sampled several things at their soft openings & I am soooo excited to try it. At the bar, you can get 10-12 beers on tap & at least 15 different wines by the glass… and the bartenders are so sweet. I love that they use real glassware & only charge $5-6 per drink! You can also snag a bottle of wine with a small corkage fee & they’ll provide glasses… grab a snack of fresh pita bread with housemade hummus, tzatziki sauce, or Muhummara (OMG the best),,, and you’re set for a great night. You can also get all of this to go too if you’d rather veg at home! Their market has last minute things you need too like cheese, milk, soda, chocolate, chips, lots of gluten free options, etc; Falafel has you covered. All in all, it’s a neighborhood market with a great atmosphere, friendly staff, fresh food, awesome beer/wine, & all the staples you need for last minute things at the house… all reasonably priced too!! Oh & they also host great events with live music & wine tastings. It’s great addition to the neighborhood & I’m stoked to see it stay around for many years to come ?

Topping & Legnon Winery and Tasting Room – Menu with Prices – 1301 Cleveland Ave, Santa Rosa

We actually came here by accident when we were on our way to the winery next door, but it ended up being the best accident ever! We had such a great server, who was very friendly and relaxed, and we got to try 6 different wines over the course of an hour and a half. My favorites were the cabernet franc and the pinot noir, followed by the syrah. We came on a mild summer day in August where it was just the perfect temperature outside so we sat under some trees on their patio and slowly sipped our wine. They have a great groupon available – $24 for wine tasting for 2 plus souvenir glasses and a bottle of rose or a $24 voucher. Their great service plus delicious wine means 5 stars!!

Cumberland Grill – Menu with Prices – 1807 W, Cumberland Ave, Knoxville

The Girls Behind the bar are great (Alex too). Fast Service and great food all in a mood setting atmosphere. Try 5$ Burger Night or any of the Daily Happy Hour Food & Drink Specials. If those don’t catch your eye then 99¢ Beers After 9:00PM will!!

Astro Karaoke – Menu with Prices – 2212 Artesia Blvd, Torrance

– Locale Destination – It’s on Artesia Blvd and Van Ness Ave in Torrance. It’s in the quiet shopping plaza. They got a karaoke bar right next to it. It used to be called something different, I forgot. Maybe the change of ownership? It seemed reopened, but inside decor and setting are pretty much the same as before. It’s just too bright! Ambiance: casual, more like family dining atmosphere than gastro pub. The too bright lighting should be toned down. Menu: snacks for booze to pasta. Very Japanese homie “Yoshoku” items like “Bistro Beaux” in Torrance. Good quality for gastro pub. Wine menu: Cheap and very genetic ones only. They don’t put much efforts on wine. Price: reasonable Service: very friendly Parking: plenty – Gluttony Expedition – French fries: very good. Steak cut and seasoned. Grilled scallop: 1 scallop (4 of 1/4 cut) was on the little grill. They stuck to the grill and over cooked. Mmm. Meh. Namero: basically “aji tataki” with miso, which is called “Namero” in Japanese. A bit salty for me, but good for beer. Not bad. French onion gratin soup: all the necessities were in it: cheese, onions and bread. A bit salty for me but decent dish. – Conqueror’s Deduction – 3.5 Stars. Nothing stands out, but decent quality. If you drink one here, your karaoke for one hour ($5/person on weekdays) is free! If you drink 2 here, your karaoke for one hour (for 2 people) is free! You can even bring the drink to the next door. The more you drink, the more you get discounts at next door karaoke! I think it’s a good deal if you loved karaoke unlike me.

Brandywine Bar and Bottle Shop – Menu with Prices – 2408 W Northwest Blvd, Spokane

I highly recommend Brandywine for both enjoying and purchasing wine and beer. I have visited several times and am very impressed with their exceptional bottle and tap list (WINE ON TAP, people, is a glorious thing). In addition to friendly, knowledgeable service, great beer/wine/cocktails and lovely food, the live music on weekends provides a very welcoming ambiance indeed. And if you need beer or wine suggestions, they can be trusted to advise you perfectly! I needed to bring a bottle of wine to a recent dinner party, and asked the owner John for his advice on what to provide for people really into wine. He suggested a Cab Franc from Oregon which ended up being such a tremendous, delicious hit with everyone that I will absolutely rely on John’s wine recommendations henceforth. So if you’re stopping by to enjoy the well-curated tap offerings, be sure to take advantage of their insightful take-away beverage advice as well.

Villa Wine Bar and Kitchen – Menu with Prices – 618 Anacapa St #1867, Santa Barbara

We found Villa Wine Bar and Kitchen through Yelp, so thank you, Yelpers! What a great spot just off of the main drag through SB. We met both the chef and Sean, the owner, who was very knowledgeable yet not pretentious about wine. He had a nice selection of many local wines and different varietals, as well as some great beer selections on tap. The wine bar has a nice tiled fountain inside which gave a soothing sound as we sipped wine. The chef here is sending out of the kitchen the perfect food to complement the drink…paninis with prosciutto, sun dried tomato jam and mozzarella, a trio of dips with ciabatta bread, and a very nice meat and cheese board. This was all at lunchtime, which was not crowded and gave us a chance to talk to Sean and learn more about the wines we were enjoying. A very nice time was had, and we wish Villa all the success in the world!