Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Communal nibbling in the presence of wine

There's a dense little block of restaurants on 6th Avenue in Hillcrest just south of Robinson: two different Japanese places, a good Thai spot, and Jake's on 6th (a wine bar). I've noticed the inviting patio at Jake's a few times. "I'll have to stop in there," I've thought, all the while never managing to make it back.

That has changed. I popped in the other evening with the idea of a very light repast and a significant volume of wine. I got just that. The dining room was dark, almost too dark without having a band on stage and nowhere to sit, but the "living room" layout of the interior puts a lot of options on the table for seating; everything from stuffed chairs to a long, high bar.

Jake's menu advertised little in the way of dinner food. In fact, it's really an excuse to eat lunch food for dinner and drink a lot. The evening was warm and my appetite was low, so the lack of entrees and substantial fare suited my needs. Alternatively, as a preliminary nosh before a more serious meal, Jake's liberal happy hour and specials could be perfect--more on that later.

As far as the food was concerned, I was more or less limited to salads, antipasti, and panini. The various boards of cheese and antipasto compelled me, so I tried a small platter of meats and cheeses ($11) that was optimized for communal nibbling in the presence of wine. Nothing was left out of the platter. There was a trio of cheeses, ham, turkey, salami, baguette, olives, and fresh fruit. But the whole board was fairly reserved and there was nothing, except maybe the olives, in great quantity.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/aug/22/30144/

A kale salad on the menu seduced me with it's healthy charms, but the kitchen was sadly out of kale. Instead, an arugula salad that had been dressed with the lightest of vinaigrettes and topped with tangy sun-dried tomatoes and salty, Italian cheese made a good substitute.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/aug/22/30145/

Jake's big triumph, for guests if not the bottom line, is in happy hour pricing and daily specials. 4-7PM Happy hour means $2 off wines by the glass, $1 off beers, occasional bottle specials, and food starting at $4. Happy hour lasts all night on Tuesdays and beer is 50% off on Thursdays. The big score is Monday nights, when bottled wines are half-priced all night long. Bottles at Jake's are in the $25-$50 range for the most part, so the quick maths reveal a truly smoking deal for Monday evening tipplers.

When I went in, the one server left in charge of the entire dining area was understandably overwhelmed. I wouldn't say the service was rude or lacking, as she was perfectly cordial, but it got a bit inattentive from time to time. Also, in the heat that we've been having lately, I would have liked to see some sort of ice bucket employed to keep my bottle of sweet Vouvray at a cool temperature. Proper service of wine at a wine bar is expected, but it's important to point out that, when things like that happen, it's partially our obligation as diners to ask for what we want. I opted to drink the wine before it could warm up--the hedonistic solution if ever there was one.

With the eminently shareable food and affordable wine, Jake's remains a good enough bet for casual wine drinking and snacking.

3755 6th Avenue
619-291-9463
Open daily at 4

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Why Unified® Review: What To Expect Dropshipping (Positive & Negative)

There's a dense little block of restaurants on 6th Avenue in Hillcrest just south of Robinson: two different Japanese places, a good Thai spot, and Jake's on 6th (a wine bar). I've noticed the inviting patio at Jake's a few times. "I'll have to stop in there," I've thought, all the while never managing to make it back.

That has changed. I popped in the other evening with the idea of a very light repast and a significant volume of wine. I got just that. The dining room was dark, almost too dark without having a band on stage and nowhere to sit, but the "living room" layout of the interior puts a lot of options on the table for seating; everything from stuffed chairs to a long, high bar.

Jake's menu advertised little in the way of dinner food. In fact, it's really an excuse to eat lunch food for dinner and drink a lot. The evening was warm and my appetite was low, so the lack of entrees and substantial fare suited my needs. Alternatively, as a preliminary nosh before a more serious meal, Jake's liberal happy hour and specials could be perfect--more on that later.

As far as the food was concerned, I was more or less limited to salads, antipasti, and panini. The various boards of cheese and antipasto compelled me, so I tried a small platter of meats and cheeses ($11) that was optimized for communal nibbling in the presence of wine. Nothing was left out of the platter. There was a trio of cheeses, ham, turkey, salami, baguette, olives, and fresh fruit. But the whole board was fairly reserved and there was nothing, except maybe the olives, in great quantity.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/aug/22/30144/

A kale salad on the menu seduced me with it's healthy charms, but the kitchen was sadly out of kale. Instead, an arugula salad that had been dressed with the lightest of vinaigrettes and topped with tangy sun-dried tomatoes and salty, Italian cheese made a good substitute.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/aug/22/30145/

Jake's big triumph, for guests if not the bottom line, is in happy hour pricing and daily specials. 4-7PM Happy hour means $2 off wines by the glass, $1 off beers, occasional bottle specials, and food starting at $4. Happy hour lasts all night on Tuesdays and beer is 50% off on Thursdays. The big score is Monday nights, when bottled wines are half-priced all night long. Bottles at Jake's are in the $25-$50 range for the most part, so the quick maths reveal a truly smoking deal for Monday evening tipplers.

When I went in, the one server left in charge of the entire dining area was understandably overwhelmed. I wouldn't say the service was rude or lacking, as she was perfectly cordial, but it got a bit inattentive from time to time. Also, in the heat that we've been having lately, I would have liked to see some sort of ice bucket employed to keep my bottle of sweet Vouvray at a cool temperature. Proper service of wine at a wine bar is expected, but it's important to point out that, when things like that happen, it's partially our obligation as diners to ask for what we want. I opted to drink the wine before it could warm up--the hedonistic solution if ever there was one.

With the eminently shareable food and affordable wine, Jake's remains a good enough bet for casual wine drinking and snacking.

3755 6th Avenue
619-291-9463
Open daily at 4

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.