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** note: had to repost this since vinum popoli was taken over by ugo **
the concept is awesome!!
it's like loading up a D&B card. you stick the card into the machine. push the red button to get an ounce of whichever wine you desire.
it's cool to taste cuz sometimes you buy a glass of wine but would like to try others too. if you want more, you push for another ounce, etc..
you can load up your card as many times as you want.
but they only have one riesling which is not so good. wish they would have more selection.
they have free meat/cheese appetizers during happy hour. the menu for food is pretty good. lil' sandwiches, tomatoes, cheese plates, mini pizza, etc.
Yep, this place is one of my favorites in Culver City.
I have been here for drinks with my girlfriends, I have been here to have dinner with friends, I have had lunch by myself.. and every time I left with a smile on my face (not always due to too much wine ).
The service is good, fast and friendly.
The food is good and prices are reasonable.
Absolutely one my top list.
You mean I can taste up to 40 different wines in one night??? What?! Who ever thought of this is in one word: GENIOUS. Wow, great concept. The best part is that you can spend as much or as little as you like per ounce. Unfortunately, I spend a lot no matter where I go...
Ugo wine bar is amazing. As everyone mentions in their reviews, you give them money, they give you a card, and the rest is up to you. Choose a wine that is .78 cents or 8.00 dollars per ounce. AMAZING.
Also, they have great cheeses! I just found a new favorite spot in LA.
Sadly, this wine bar has fallen off a cliff. It seems just to be a waiting room
for Ugo. As opposed to a bar that could hold it's own. Gone are the small but good selection of draft beer for the non-wine drinking friend you'd like to have come with. And there are a distinct lack of people hanging out and enjoying wine! I'll still go from time to time but there are a lot more options in Culver City these days and I will be more likely to spread my wine-dollars around.
I've been to several of the other wine bars with the same prepaid card concept and I think that this place has a great atmosphere. They have a couple of nice wines and some that are lesser known, but it's fun to try new wines.
Park in the garage right across the street and there are plenty of other restaurants within walking distance in cute downtown Culver City.
We had a wonderful lunch/Sunday Brunch here. The sangria was sooooo delicious! We chose a white wine sangria and they mix it with St. Germain, which is one of my favorite liqueurs, and lots of yummy fruits. Our waiter had told us that they are well known for it and they should be! We all had different dishes... breakfast paninis, quiches, eggs benedict... and I had a salad (lol)... my salad was wonderful... it was strawberries and walnuts with chickpeas on a spinach salad with the most delicious vinagrette... there was just a lot of walnuts that I ditched most of them on the plate. They had the most amazing looking desserts as well but we were all too full to eat any more. They had cakes, cupcakes, eclairs, cookies, whoopie pies... EVERYTHING along with a variety of gelatos in an ice cream case.
A wine version of David and Buster:
A unique concept it is...you grab your wine card...walk around to find your wine, put in the wine machine and there comes the wine a cup...no server for you here.
Upon Cafe Upon, I discovered sparkling Piemonte Muscato..just delish
Amateurs and experts alike can enjoy Ugo's Wine Bar in Downtown Culver City. Wine aficionado, I am not, this wine bar is like an upscale wine tasting spot for Dummies. While I don't know the first thing about wine, I was perfectly comfortable on a date at this establishment. The lighting is dim, and you can walk around and read the wines.
I stepped inside and I was taken aback by how small this place was, but was surprised by how little space you really needed. At the bar, you purchase a wine tasting ATM card of sorts. After inserting your prepaid card into the futuristic wine machines, each dispensing 1 oz into your glass, the amount of each wine you tasted is deducted from your card. SO SIMPLE! and you do it all by yourself! There's no need to go up to the bar after every ounce.
What makes the wine part of the experience even cooler is that in front of each bottle (in the machine) is a description of the wine (ie. where its from, if it's dry, smooth, dark, whatever) so that after you try it, if someone asks you what you think, you can sound like a Wine Pro! So considerate, that Ugo!
I am not entirely sure if food is served for the entire time that the wine bar is open, but I will tell you that the food here is very good, light, and the perfect size to split.
As you can probably tell by my wordy reviews, I am rarely at a loss for words. But, some places are better for dates than others. If there is a lot going on and a lot to do, there will undoubtedly be a lot to talk about. This is one of those places.
This place is so fun! Plus, they have a ridiculously good happy hour from 4-7pm, even on the weekends! My husband and I went on a Saturday night and arrived around 5:30-6pm. We got a great table in the corner and a tutorial on the whole wine debit card thing. We tried a few and found one we liked, Primitivo, and bought the bottle at 40% off! Happy Hour! It's fun to taste this and that but if you're there during happy hour, getting the bottle is such a good deal. We had the veal meatballs, pancetta wrapped shrimp, burrata caprese with heirloom tomatores, pizzette with proscutto and argula, and chocolate mousse cake with vanilla gelato. Everything was delicious! Having gone through the better part of their happy hour menu, I can absolutely recommend this spot!
This place is awesome -- a great way to taste wine at your leisure without a lot of commitment or sales pressure. Just get a "debit card" and try a few different things -- unique idea.
I met an old friend here a few months back. What a fun place, and an interesting concept. With the bar-issued debit cards in hand, my friend and I went to town! The self-service reminded me of the slurpee machine at 7-11, which I liked, (I still can't pass a 7-11 without drooling for one of those brain freezers), but the portions here are only an ounce. There was an interesting assortment of people there, which made for interesting conversations.
Arrived for Happy Hour. The Happy Hour was decent with a handful of white and red wines to choose from and a small app menu. I had the Mono Sauv Blanc since it was about a hundred degrees outside. It was very refreshing with nice hints of floral and citrus. My friend also tried the meatballs and said they were very good, but not phenomenal.
I was intrigued by the concept of loading a card with money (minimum of $10) and operating the wine pourers that automatically put about a shot's worth of wine into your glass to taste. Walking around to all of the wines, they list the rating and description of the wine, the bottle price, and the tasting price.
Most of the tastings fell under $4 a taste. There were some that were associated with $100+ bottles that were very expensive. One was $9.35 to taste a $210 bottle of Cab. So if you only put 10 buck on your card, you could get maybe 2-3 tastes.
Some outdoor seating on the patio. Once Happy Hour got into the swing and more people came in the wine bar really heated up and took over any A/C that was trying to work.
I'd come back again. I liked the open atmosphere and maybe will also try the cafe. The servers were very helpful with wine suggestions and were friendly.
Garage parking across the street that is free for 2 hours and $1 for each hour after. Ugo does not validate parking.
The food here has no flavor no taste at all. I thick my pasta is better that.
Love this place. Great service. Great food. Friendly, extremely attentive staff. And very very tasty wine.
Held a party there recently to celebrate my partner's and my engagement. They went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure we felt special and welcomed. Every single one of our guests felt the evening was a big success.
Of course, there is one down side. After tasting wine for two hours, one loses that internal censor that says "Don't put more money on the wine debit card!!" So it's easy to over spend. But it's tasty wine, so I say splurge and enjoy.
In the heart of downtown Culver City, lies one of my favorite places to go out. Ugo wine bar. Think of it as an adult arcade, where you put in your prepaid wine card, press a button and get an ounce of whatever your heart desires. I absolutely love coming here and I haven't found many people that would disagree. Yes, it can get crowded around the wine dispensing machines, and the cost definitely adds up when you are paying up to a few dollars for a taste "ounce" of wine, but it is So fun. It a great place to taste some wines that are completely out of your price range, but it is also perfect to try some relatively inexpensive wines to add to your rack. Ugo usually has a discount of 25% off a bottle if you would like to bring a bottle home. If you want to try this place out, I recommend going during the week where there is a lot more room to walk around, seats to sit and enjoy the wine, and also live music.
There is one wine that has been seemingly popular every time I have been to Ugo in the past few months. In fact, it was sold out 30 minutes after I arrived on Saturday. Bitch. No really, Bitch Wine. I would like to think that it is only popular for the name, and maybe because it is an 87 cent per ounce at Ugo making it one of the cheapest wines available to try. But actually, this wine is really really good. I read about it before I even saw the bottle in Wine Spectator and its rated 90 points from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate.
Bitch Grenache is easy and fun to drink. It can be found for about $10 a bottle, but sometimes I find it to be marked up a lot which is probably to do the appeal of the name. Bitch is sweet with hints of cherry and strawberry, but subtle and easy to drink in high quantities. I usually go to this wine when I am at Ugo and tired of tasting all the different blends. I highly recommend this wine, it is fun and shockingly good.
http://www.3quests.wor...
I came here for to celebrate my birthday in 2008, when it was Vinum Populi. And though the name has changed, it is still a quaint little wine bar with a large wine selection. It's a great place for a date -- dark enough to make you look oh-so-mysterious and dummy-proof enough to make you seem cultured even if your tastebuds don't know the difference between cheapo wine and fine vino! Be warned that Ugo is small and has seating only for about 25 people. Try to go early and grab a table if you can.
Ugo is like Dave and Busters for wine! Wait...Ugo has got a leg up on D&B because even at the end of the night when your wine card has $0.95 left on it and the wine you want to taste costs $2.50, it will dispense $0.95 worth of the wine. :D
I kept hearing about this place in Culver City where you swipe a card and you get 1oz pours of wine so figured I better check this place out!
Culver City is another place in the area that has some fun surprises - Ugo Wine Bar being one of them! Tucked behind Ugo Restaurant we walked in and where instantly greeted. It was explained to us that we each get a card to swipe, put any amount on the card (min $10) and start enjoying.
We quickly got started and really enjoyed the process and the look of the pouring machines. Pretty self explanatory - the price per pour is over each bottle. The variety of wines here is fun too - some regions you would not think to try and others right up the coast. Each bottle has a little explanation above it, place your card in the slot and push the button for your choice.
As an avid tasting room enthusiast - $10 does not get you a lot here. At most (4) 1 oz pours and you would have to go with all the least expensive wines. If you are use to getting a hefty pour at a winery, this is not that. The pour stops at 1 oz so for $3.25 on average a pour- it can leave you wishing for more. If you have any change left on the card - that goes to the house.
Of course you can purchase by the glass and bottle here as well.
Nice appetizer selections, inviting environment - high lofty ceilings, exposed brick back wall, clean slab floor and a fun/ comfortable overall experience. This is kind of a novelty place, great for meeting friends and gets the conversation rolling or a great before or after dinner spot. It can get crowded which makes it hard to stand around and read about the wines but also a sign of a good place.
My favorite wine bar because of the sheer novelty of it. When I describe it to people, I say it's like a Dave and Busters for wine. You buy a pre-paid card, put that card into the slot of some wine dispensing machines, and make your selections until the money on your card runs out. The wine is dispensed by the ounce and the selection is very good. Reds, chilled Whites.. all with little placards with a description of each. There are always varietals I've never even heard of!
There are obviously lots of advantages of tasting your wine this way: (1) You can try really expensive wines that would cost a small fortune by the glass, but is affordable by the ounce; (2) You can try more wines than you would by the glass (and without getting hammered); (3) Don't have to flag down a worker.. just look around and make your selections; and (4) You don't overspend since you've already prepaid your monetary limit. The only negatives I can think of is that parking ain't great and the place is small so it's almost always crowded. Go earlier in the week if you want to avoid the crowds bumping into you as you trek toward these wine dispensers.
This place used to be called Vinum Populi but is now part of the main restaurant Ugo. This review is for the wine bar only... never had the pleasure of eating at the restaurant.
its a little less than4 stars but im rounding up
came here last night with friends because the concept of tasting wines by the ounce is soooo cool! me and the pook got $40 on one card to share. it was a little dark and tough to read the descriptions of each wine cuz im not as tall as i want to be. haha..
we had the 6 cheese assortment and i couldnt tell you which cheeses we tried. i know the goat and bleu cheese was there.. and our favorite was the black truffle cheese.. yummers!
at the end of the $40 i was not buzzed so i was a little disappointed. but the ambiance is great and we had great company so it was a very pleasant evening.
Formerly Vinum Populi now Ugo Hopping little wine bar!
About 30 -40 varietals, mostly good. Some nice European boutique wines. Just don't leave your card in the machine! Good fun. Nice crowd. Friendly staff. Definitely a place to bookmark!
Edit Remove
What's not to like about wine-shot vending machine?
(or something like it).
Swipe your card (prepaid at the bar - however much you want it),
Choose your kind of wine - depending on wine varietal knowledge// region preference// bias towards label design (uh-oh)
and beeep.
Wine tasting per shot. Enjoy!
ps. Great date outing venue.
It's a bit hit and miss. Great staff always on the ball so staff is not the problem. Food is, one night it's great the next night it isn't. I have eaten here eight times now. Last night Calamari was soggy ) Steak sandwich (Panino) was tasteless & chewy. On the other hand we have had excellent calamari and very good fillet mignon. Lobster ravioli's were good if bland. Caprese was good. One night I had the filet it was good another night the sauce was bland at best. Meat does vary from animal to animal, but sauces should not in the same restaurant. So while I like this place very much I find the food too unpredictable as if there's a different person cooking every night. I must have tried most things and with many people and there is no stability within the menu. But I really want it to be a good restaurant!
O the wine bar is great the concept is very novel and fun!
I live in Los Feliz and have recently fell in love with Culver City's restaurants. This was worth the drive just for the wine tasting and fun way it works...load a card up with a minimum of $10 and sample a wide variety of reds (whites are more limited, I think 8 or 10). My friend and I split a $15 card and sampled some excellent wine.The service was excellent and informative, especially about the wine. Food was good, but I don't feel I can comment well since I only tried one thing and was having too much fun with the wine to care about eating. I think this place is better for a date or a small group of friends before going out to a larger restaurant as the wine tasting room is fairly small and intimate. Oh, and I have to give props to the fun people at the table next to us. They shared this fun Spanish drink that's wine and coke (sounds gross but was kinda like a sparkling sangria) that you drink out of a crazy looking decanter with a spigot and you all pass it around. So while the atmosphere began a bit too intimate for meeting up with a friend, the fun clientele & staff and unique aspects of the place made it a great night out.
first of a kind, got to try it! pick your tastes by the oz. Get a pre paid card and start tasting! LOVE IT
Really I think I'm just not cool enough to "get" this place. I went here with a few friends after having dinner at the adjacent restaurant. The wines were fairly good, but it ended up being quite expensive. I did like the idea that for $7 you could try an ounce of a $200+ bottle of wine (that people like me could never afford), but the whole atmosphere just seemed over the top. We just wanted to hang out and get a little tipsy, but the whole vibe was of people who take their wine tasting a little too seriously and were thinking they were a little too awesome. Might take out-of-town friends here for a "LA experience", but really it's just not my kinda scene.
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