Soif Wine Bar & Merchants

So you can read my previous write up of Soif here, which was about as flattering as I know how to be. Sadly, after last night, I can never go to this establishment again and suggest no one else continue to patronize this place. My review of a dining spot I "enjoyed" for the last time tonight. You can scratch 'Soif' off your list, FYI. So Soif, been there about a dozen times. Tonight I asked my girlfriend to join me there for what would be our sixth time there, and we love it there, great food, great atmosphere, wonderful all around. So I made reservations for 730 so we could enjoy ourselves before a performance I had scheduled for the Fringe Festival. And I showed up about 10 minutes late and my girlfriend has already arrived and seated herself early waiting for me. grabbed a table and ordered a glass of bubbly. So, a table of drunken assholes who were there at the same time had been seated near her, as she waited for me, and as she explained to me later, two drunken assholes from this party decided to sit at her table, grab her iPhone, scroll through her pictures while she was in the bathroom, and then insult her and basically sexually harass her while the staff, ownership and management of Soif did nothing. I showed up and these drunken assholes bemoaned my arrival, meaning as it was, that their fun at her expense was now over. Again, the staff and ownership of Soif was not prepared to help a woman seated by herself while drunken assholes, who the Soif staff continued to serve alcohol to, gladly, preyed upon her. And I guess if one of those fuckers had hit on one of their lady servers someone might have done something but if it is one of your customers, tough shit. Deal with it right, Soif staff? So as the wait staff continues to serve more alcohol to the table of drunken assholes who are clearly already too drunk (good job, Soif, you guys are doing a great job!!! These people were clearly loud, obnoxious, literally staggering on their feet when not seated, and loudly making fun of the name of the place, often!) The assholes were Oregon motorcycle/date rape enthusiasts who will never come back to this establishment. But they were waited on hand and foot while regulars, people who used to love coming here and spending their money and tipping well, turns out, they get short shrift. No woman can safely eat here alone apparently, and the staff seems OK with that. I can read people and I saw that the staff knew this group was no good, was too drunk and were making people uncomfortable and YET THEY CONTINUED TO SERVE THEM ALCOHOL.  Side note: the bathrooms at Soif are behind a closed door obscured from view from the kitchen which is loud. When I went to make sure my girlfriend as OK leaving the bathroom because I saw some of these drunken assholes had also gone to the restroom at that time it occurred to me that someone could easily assault a female patron of this place and no one would be the wiser. Really, it could happen, especially if you continue to serve already obnoxiously drunk assholes who clearly enjoyed making your female patrons feel victimized while you did nothing about it. Wait, you did not do NOTHING about it, sorry, you continued bringing alcohol to drunken assholes, so you did in fact do something about it. Never been so mad or disappointed in my life. Scratch one more place to enjoy a meal in Santa Cruz off the list. Seriously, women, you cannot safely go and eat here alone, the staff is not on your side.Enjoy your shitty new clientele,. Soif, fuck you, seriously, fuck you, you should go bankrupt, you took two people who loved you and made them your enemies. Enjoy losing at business, when you are out of business and wondering why you did not make it, this is why, enjoy your date rapist clientele, you worthless motherfuckers. Enjoy it, fuck you. I perform standup comedy all over the Bay Area every week and will make sure to work into my act what a worthless place you are. Soif, I hope you are out of business soon, I am going to do my part to help, you surely are already doing your part to run off your own loyal regulars, I will help you finish the deal!

Recently I joined a friend for dinner at Soif.  This is one of the few places in Santa Cruz where I have received attentive and prompt service.  The staff at Soif anticipated our every need and we never had to ask for anything.  

The food was excellent and well executed.

I will be going back every chance I get!

The porkbelly appetizer was stellar.  The Ribeye dinner and the duck breast dinner were also good, but some pieces didn't come entirely together.  The duck breast was fabulous, but it didn't seem to go with the corn puree (which was fabulous on its own).  Then there was a green sauce my wife and I had to ask what it was.  Happened to be basil, but the other flavors cancelled any basil flavor.  All in all, a bit pricy for what you get (small portions) and the service is never as good as the food (I had to pour all but the first pour of my $60 chardonnay for both my wife an myself, and the resturaunt was not busy.  They need to train their waiters and waitresses better.  If I'm going to pay $150 for a bottle of wine, an appetizer, and two main courses, I want good service.