Toast Wine & Cafe

Located in a strip mall near USF with Mr. Dunderbaks and a Greek place. Parking can be a pain on busier nights. Nice atmosphere. Good choices on wine, average $8-12 per glass. Not cheap but not outrageous. Only had appetizers there but think they do a nice job with a tiny little kitchen. Hector is the heart and soul of the place. Not sure if he is the owner or manager but definitely knows his stuff. I know he has been there since the doors opened. Lately there is some slug there who swills down two bottles of J. Lohr by himself every night that is a "part owner". Never lifts a finger to help Hector, never greets a guest or stops by a table. Apparently he never heard the rule that owners and employees don't drink on the premises. He is a complete waste of space but other than that it is a great place to go.

Great, really just so nice to have a place by campus with good wine and a quiet no undergrad atmosphere. Really lovely service and friendly patrons.

The atmosphere is nice, with cheesy 70s-80s rock music. When I walked in, I was the only person there, and the guy greeted me oddly with "Can I help you?," as if I were in the wrong place. I said, "I'd like a glass of wine, please." And he said, "A girl who knows what she wants." I found this off-putting since I am a professional person in my 30s. My friend joined me about 10 minutes later, then one other customer was at the bar the entire time we were there.

There are many bottles of wine. The by-the-glass prices are high, with the cheapest being $8 (and only one for that). The prices are probably high to keep the university crowd out and to make a bigger profit, but I wouldn't worry about students with Dunderbak's next door and profit can be better earned by keeping customers. Some inexpensive wine is worth drinking. I know I would've spent more here at $6/glass and would've returned.

There is no vegan food. My friend ordered the cheese and fruit plate, and the creepy guy tried to dissuade her from it. She ordered it anyway, and literally 35 minutes later, she got it. The guy took her order, then proceeded to talk to the one other man at the bar for half an hour while standing directly in front of us before going to the back to finally prepare it. It was ridiculous, but she was polite about it. It looked delicious, and she shared it with the only other customer, and they ate it all.

Suggestions: Andy is a creep. Replace him with someone friendly, attractive, and good at her job. Add one or two vegan options. It's easy: hummus and pita. Vegan cheese plate. Fruit only plate. Salsa and chips. Black bean dip. Flatbread with Daiya cheese. Sports on every TV is really...limiting. Change one of the channels.