First Crush Restaurant Wine Bar & Lounge

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sallysally11

Joined 5 years ago

wine. i like this place for a wine bar, the food is ok, but not my favorite place. The set up of the restaurant is odd and often times feels a bit cramped and awkward if there are a lot of people there. Overall I am a fan of this restaurant though and have visited several times. Many people I've referred to it however wonder why I've sent them here as it doesn't always please. I would suggest giving it a try as I like it, but i guess it's not for everyone.

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smithy11

Joined 7 years ago

Delicious, Delicious, Delicious!. We had our company holiday party here and it was perfect! The ceasar, duck and amazing bread pudding was out of this world! Of course, the baked oysters and shrimp apps were phenomenal, as well! Thank you, First Crush for such a great party!

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cspike

Joined 6 years ago

Wonderful dining experience. Wine flights were fun.. Whenever my wife and I are headed to SF for dinner, I like to check out citysearch for something fun and exciting; First Crush jumped right out at me. The decor was very classy, and cozy. It was a little loud when we first got there, but people were obviously enjoying themselves. The wine list is very extensive, but the option to select wine flights was what really drew me to First Crush. We ordered three flights, which allowed us to sample 8 different wines. What a fun way to experience different wines. The food was excellent as well. We split the Crush Salad, and I had the Pork Chop while my wife had the Tortellini. Both entrees had wonderful sauces, and everything was quite flavorful. The service was very hospitable; just enough attention to make you feel important with a little privacy thrown in. The only thing to note was that our server did not mention an addition to the menu for the evening, French Onion soup, but perhaps they were out. We would definitely eat here again.

Doesn't Recommend

welove2eat2008

Joined 6 years ago

Very Disappointing. We had our fist experience for dinner on Thanksgiving evening. Our daughter ordered the Thanksgiving Dinner; the potatoes were room temperature at best. The turkey and dressing was like something you would get at a buffet. My husband and I ordered off the "limited" menu offering. Which I must say had some potentially interesting items. He started with the crab cake which was served over too much lettuce and was over dosed with too much banyuls vinaigrette; his second course was the dry aged rib eye, served over wilted baby greens, again served room temperature with cold gravy poured on top. I started with a squash trio which was also served cold, but did have a nice flavor for my second course; I ordered the Alaskan halibut pan seared w exotic mushrooms with haricot verts and tarragon beurre blanc. The halibut was cooked perfect, but the "exotic" mushrooms turned out to be button cap with a few chanterelles tossed into the mix.

Based on the rave reviews we were expecting an incredible meal, but we left unsatisfied with an 18.5% gratuity added by the server for our party of 3!

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bacchusfa

Joined 7 years ago

Great first date spot. Had a great dinner! It was our first time at First Crush and they made all our decisions very easy and they server suggested food as well as wine pairing for us. The wine list was huge and the menu seemed to have something for everyone. The desert flight was great as well. Three different and great tastings desserts and we had a nice port wine to go along with them. The place was packed but the service was very calm. It was a great experience all around.

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ziccc

Joined 6 years ago

Great Wine Flights!. Good wine and decent staff. The wine flights are a great choice. Try and ask for a table closer to the bar or downstairs. Some of the tables closer to the entrance tend to be chillier.

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northbay07

Joined 6 years ago

Great Wine, Average Food. I went last year for the first time, choosing the location for the 'romantic' aspect. We went for our 1-year anniversary, on a Sunday night. It was packed, being the Sunday of the Nike 26.2 Marathon, so there were a lot of runners and tourists, since most stay in Union Square or thereabouts.

Our waiter was much more interested in chatting it up with the 3 ladies next to us who were in town for the race (and single) so we had to ask the waiter for something anytime we needed it.

The wine flight was GREAT. Lots of good choices and we tired wine that we had never had before.

My husband's food was fantastic, I had fish that was still raw in the middle - and it was supposed to be baked Halibut, not seared.

Overall, I found this restaurant a bit overpriced and the service was poor. Perhaps it would have been better had it not been so crowded, but we have not been back in the last year.

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mermaid72

Joined 6 years ago

So Romantic and Great Food!. I?m always looking for good restaurants, so we had a SF trip planned for this past weekend, so I looked online for good restaurants. I came across ?First Crush.? I saw the reviews and had to check it out. We went on Saturday night and it was just great. The place is set very romantic like. We started off with great wine and the cheese appetizer platter. Then we had our meals. Their menu is divided into sections of ?small plates? and ?large plates?, (which I think is a great idea), I can never finish my plate. This way you know what size plate you?re ordering. I ordered the ?ahi tuna? which was under the small plates and it was perfect size for me. My bf ordered the ?filet mignon? and he loved it. The staff was very helpful and so friendly. I?ll never forget our time here. It was so romantic and had very reasonable prices. We?re definitely going to come back to ?First Crush.?

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trojanstace

Joined 6 years ago

Lovely, cozy and romantic!. My boyfriend and I came to San Francisco for a little weekend getaway and I made reservations at First Crush based on the great reviews on Citysearch. The reviews didn't lie! This restaurant was adorable and cozy and charming. A wonderful wine selection and beautiful ambience. You do sit kind of close to other people, but that was o.k. with me. I loved it!

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ericfood

Joined 6 years ago

stopped by for a quick bite. Had a nibble with my date. Nice spot. Wine flights were fun. Had a couple of nice appetizers. Place was hopping at 8 o'clock. Downstairs looked fun but we wanted something more intimate. Read some of the reviews and decided to try First Crush. Some reviews were helpful, others seemed funny. All in all, the service was nice and non-intrusive but professional. We'll come back for a full dinner experience soon.