Heart

This may be the lamest bar in the mission, seriously. First of all, it is not a hipster hangout, its a marina hangout. secondly, my drink was WAY over priced, small in size, and tasted like fecal material. Thirdly, the food was disgusting and made me sick later in the night…
Places like this have ruined the mission. barf
–p

I live next to Heart and I go here often.
It’s one of the only nice wine bars in the Mission, which is otherwise full of divey hipster hangouts or very loud cocktail bars (like Beretta down the street, which is nice but too loud for conversation). This makes it one of the only bars near to me where I take my dates.
This place was recently named «Where to go for romantic and artsy cocktails» in the
«2011 Gentleman’s Guide to Romance,» so I suppose I’m doing something right.
I’d like to see more upscale bars like Heart in the Mission, catering to well-​off yuppies like myself.
I like the wine on the menu, and the waitstaff is very nice and knowledgeable about the menu. The charcuterie is delicious. Seating is so-​so but it’s generally quiet enough to enjoy conversation.

A great surprise on a Sunday night! We came here after our urban hike, and we stopped in for a bite. I loved the communal tables and the interesting menu. We shared an awesome bruschetta with ripened tomatoes. It was so fresh with the perfect ratio of bread to tomatoes. Then we had a great salad with squash and radicchio, with some Michigan cheese and baguette.
They had an awesome French cider that had a cork and was nice and dry… not super fruity like American ciders, I highly recommend this cozy spot if you are in the neighborhood.

Well, that wasn’t all that.
Despite my misgivings about the place (after having walked by/​mocked it many times on the way to Arizmendi), we went to Heart on a Wednesday night. The place was about ¼ full, maybe. Our waitperson came over and we ordered the cheapest white wine for $ 6 a glass. Yep, I’m too cheap to pay $ 9 – 16 for a glass of wine. Sue me. The wine, billed as extremely drinkable, was way too tart and acid. I wouldn’t have finished it except that I’m too cheap not to.
As the place fills up a little, two pinched-​looking people plop down right next to us, not asking if it’s ok (common courtesy) and knocking my coat onto the floor without retrieving it. So of course I bang my head on the table trying to get my damn jacket. (Is that going to be reflected in this review? Yep. Sue me.)
In the meantime, no one has asked us if we would like to order anything else. I am starting to feel like we’re being punished for ordering the cheap wine. When we ask for the check, we receive it in a rather brusque manner. Yep, we are definitely on the cheap list. After we pay, the server buses the table alarmingly quickly while we are still gathering our things.
Yes, we semi-​surreptitiously ate our (delicious!) Arizmendi cookies instead of ordering food (which looked very uninspiring). See previous re: cheap. And yes, I was prepared to mock the place. But given the service and the other customers, Heart did nothing to win me over. And folks, the house white really needs to be drinkable.

how apropos to come to this place while I am at my emergency medicine conference.
so for anybody who has been to philly and been to tria wine bar, this place is a similar idea: small plates, cheeses and wines. the polenta was quite tasty, i found a wine on there i liked. but those sounds sure did echo along the high ceilings… making it hard to conversate.
it’s cute, but it sure ain’t no tria. now, i love mason jars. really, i do. but do i love drinking my wine out of them? eh, that’s highly debatable. if i lived around the corner, i’d probably come back. would i mark it as one of my repeats for my next SF trip? nah.

So it’s been about 6 months since my last visit.
I’ve always liked this place and so, I’m baffled at my recent experience.
The vibe is still cool and the service is still competent, friendly and without any attitude. Great eye candy too.
The wine selection however, absolutely sucked ass!
To drop $ 15 bux on a glass of 2001 Rioja that tasted like mouthwash or $ 12 bux for a glass of Meritage that is better used as tire cleaner is just plain fucking wrong!
Now, I’m no wine snob. I don’t drop $ 500 bux for a bottle of Château D’Yquem like mon ami, but I will gladly drink it. I have however, traveled enough around the world and consumed enough grapes, to know that you can find great wines at very reasonable prices. I always say, if it tastes good to you then fuck the bouquet and anything else a wine snob says you should be aware of.
But, if I’m gonna drop $ 15 bux for a glass of wine, it better taste like liquid fucking silk rolling down my throat with an orgasm for finish, else I’m gonna have something to say about it.
Frankly, I think the Loire valley wines are overrated. I’m still a huge fan of Bordeaux, but I lean towards Spain and Argentina because they’re much less pretentious. And I think that California is unbeatable for Pinot but hey, that’s just my oenophile opinion.
Besides, I like having the option to drink a nice table wine while kicking it with friends, or splurging for a treat when the opportunity presents itself. The problem with wine consumption in this country is that it is typically profit based, versus culturally based. That’s why you can find great table wines in other wine consuming countries for under $ 10 bux a pop.
Hey Jeff: If the Torrontes got discontinued then replace it.
Maybe Matt and I should open a nearby wine bar, with homemade pizzas.
Hmmmmmm…

An interesting wine bar with a chill atmosphere.
I didn’t try any of the food, and my rating mostly comes from that fact that this is a chill place to hang out, with non-​intrusive music. It’s somewhere you can go when you want to chat with people over some wine or beer, and don’t want to scream your lungs out.
They have a good selection of wine, but I haven’t found anything especially interesting there yet. They do give you jars as wine glasses, which is cute, and you don’t feel obligated to be a wine snob when you come here.

1. I was so happy to see cider. but then to realize it’s not the cider like the sweet wydner’s pear that I was expecting.
2. There’s no space that’s private, everything’s a share-​the-​table-​with-​your neighbor style.
3. I was getting hungry but then realized there was no snacks aside from cheese =(
4. I’m the type who eats with her favorite bowl at home and if I have to eat with the ones I don’t like, the food just doesn’t taste as good. You know where I’m going with this. Mason jars.
5. Fun vibe tho with friendly servers and wide array of people on a friday night

I came here for the first time when meeting some friends for a Girls’ Night Out. Very cute wine bar in the Mission! They use these awesome jars for the wine and you can get some cheap bottles (the one we got was only $ 20). The only thing is that if you want to split a bill into multiple credit cards, then you must pay tip in cash.
I would come back but not for a date — the place is a little too loud for anything romantic.

This is a little sweet place here in the Mission.
Pretty good selection of wine and food. Service is prompt.
The space is very open with popular communal tables in the front, bar in the center, more table at the back, and space along the wall. Open space which means it is a bit noisy.
Why didn’t this place get a 4 star? The food was very salty, the devil eggs was like a salt bomb. If they improve their food, I would be likely to drop in often for a quick drink with freinds.

The wine is mediocre, and call me snooty, tastes better in wine glasses than out of old jars. It’s a cute idea, but doesn’t really work that well for me.
I’d return to give them another shot with the wine and possibly small plates, but won’t be running back.

Not feelin’ this place.
Sorry, but wine in a jar? Beyond tacky. More like wacky.
Add that to the fact that my wine was absolutely horrible. And what’s up with such a limited food menu? Pickled beets and warm olives weren’t even great.
I understand that they’re going for character, but this place needs to beef up their wine menu, service, and sophistication. I’m not a snob by any means (ok, only sometimes), but I just can’t do wine in a jar again.
Even if I just need a place to chill with friends before dinner, I would consider a TON of other places in the Mish before I went back to Heart.
Great space though. Not much else :(

I guess I’m starting to Unilocal the great places LOL!
So unique! Crazy cool art on the walls, wine descriptions are funny and real and they serve it in mason jars (they have glasses too if you request), and delicious cheese and meats to compliment the beautiful liquids!
Open, artistic, chill, and good beats = go!

hmm im torn between a 3 and a 4 so this is a 3.5. Having already had dinner, we basically came in for drinks only. Place was pretty well filled so we ended up at the 4 counter facing the wall in the very back. I do love the alternative descriptiveness of the wines. things such as:
«Appley soul wine made by a Czech badass living in a French trailer»
or
«Better than sex, proceed with caution»
The Petillant was definitely not my style as I don’t really like champagne style wines (unless they’re really expensive, funny that.) but the Vin de Paille was pretty damn good. Our server was pretty cute and awesome but the facing the wall in a cavernous space wasn’t as pleasant as it could be. I suppose if I’m in the area I’d drop in again and see how it goes

I came here and unfortunately already had dinner. I was couldn’t help but salivate at the dishes ordered by my friends and nearby patrons. but I simply didn’t have room!
The décor and vibe here is super cute and super chill. The wines were delicious. def coming back to try the octopus. the halibut.and the chicken pie!

Why I Heart HEART:
1) It is the perfect place to take your Gay BF.
Who is a cardiologist. A nerdy cardiologist. He will love the anatomically correct heart sign outside. (I told you he was nerdy!)
2) The adorable and knowledgeable hostess.
She provided us with a warm greeting, the menu, and the scoop. Order your drinks and small plates at the counter, grab a seat at one of the many long communal tables, and order more via prompt table service later if you’d like. Easy!
3) The creative genius who wrote the wine list.
This wine list will make you smile. I ordered a glass of 2008 darting pfalz reisling kabinett trocken ($ 11). The description said: «holy schnikes, acidity!» Gay BF had the 2008 hofer zweigelt ($ 7) which is purportedly, «The wine you’ll want at dawn when you’re done drinking the above.» Yeah!
4) They put the art in heART.
We liked the cool abstract blue toned paintings that were featured along one of the walls. We liked the wood paneling and artfully placed wine bottles on the opposite wall. (We did not like the goofy B-​movie that was projected on the back wall.)
We’ll definitely be back because a wine bar that drops the F Bomb in the colorful descriptions on their wine list and forgoes conventional notions of what a wine bar should be with a wink and a smile (goodbye wine glasses, hello mason jars) has found a special place in my (where else?)
HEART.

A wine bar for people who don’t get wine, with a menu for people who don’t get food. Everything is tentative, like someone who hates hip hop but doesn’t quite know what it is. The experience is like reading a book that’s very smart but isn’t really saying anything. By that I mean they coax you with attitude, décor, and concept, but the food and wine don’t really reach warm the soul.
They’re part of the noncommittal food movement: carts, part time cooks, half-​equipped kitchens, and attaching adjectives like sustainable and artisan on the same local vendors everyone else in town uses. At a recent so-​called street food event they gave their in-​house operation all the facilities, space, and location, while consigning guest cooks to folding tables and far corners. That’s like making the visiting team set up their own tents for a locker room.
The wine selection is interesting but on my visit that was washed out by a bartender uninterested in helping out, with wildly inconsistent pours. At first I assumed it was simple incompetence, you know, always see the best in people. But it happened twice in a row: I know you like the guy next to me better, and that’s why you filled his glass twice as deep as my three and a half ounce splash, but please don’t do that in front of me. This is a recession and last time I checked my money is good.
What’s with the mason jars anyway — reverse snobby? Anyone can be too cool for school if they want, the art is in shedding conventions in a way that improves the taste, or at least says something interesting about it.
It’s not as if they aren’t trying, and maybe I’m being too harsh. It’s stimulating and fun, and I would go back with friends for conversation, I’d be noncommittal in return about whether I order anything. I just think, well, there’s a reason for certain food and wine standards as far as service, style, equipment, presentation — and if you’re going to drop all that in the name of being unpretentious and accessible I hope you’ve got something else in mind.

It’s places like this that make me think SF is overrated.
I could have done this too: «I know! Lets open a wine bar and serve mediocre wine at triple what we paid for in candle jars! We can serve whatever cheese is on sale at Trader Joe’s and hire kids off the street and .post pics of gay construction workers on the wall! And we can call the place LOVE SF»
Like another Unilocaler said. some things are classic because they just work best that way and Faux Pas’s are abundant here. The Mason glasses are dumb. I couldn’t even swish or experience my wine. The bowl of the wine glass is meant to help the wine breathe and release flavors and take the smell in!
Avoid the cheese platter. Really. Trader Joe’s cheddar Cheese and brie and some really poor quality blue cheese. I’m just guessing this as the server didn’t explain a thing as he plopped the plate on our table.
And, wine bars should have wine tasting and baristas and that kinda thing. which this place had none of.
Since this is a new venue I’ll offer some suggestions: Clear, real wine glasses, hire actual baristas, get rid of the number system, LOWER YOUR PRICES! You’re in the Mission! And, not even a good part at that! More selections and a better quality wine, offer flights/​wine tasting, increase quality of food. Take a visit to B Street and Vine in San Mateo for an example of quality.
Good luck!

You have no idea how happy I am to have Heart in the neighborhood. I have been wanting there to be a wine bar in the 24^th street area forever! But wine alone it is not. The food from kitchenette is beyond this world!
I came into heart on Sunday, superbowl day, and my friend and I were pretty much the only people in the restaurant. We talked to the server forever about the menu, and eventually got the raw scallops, the cider braised marin sun farms goat shank, the spicy bar mix, a softer cheese, and the fennel pana cotta. We were impressed when we got our first item, the spicy bar mix. It features jalepeanos, anchovies, peanuts, and scallions. It is delicious! Then came the raw scallops. Lord, the texture. Silky, melt in your mouth good. They came on little crackers that combined well with the olive oil they were in.
Following the scallops came the goat. I dug my fork into it, and watched it easily peel off the bone. I took a bite and rejoiced by the juicy flavor and the crumbling in your mouth texture. There was also a side salad in the same bowl that came with a lot of goat cheese. Eventually the goat cheese and cider mixed and you could dip the goat in it. I definitely recommend doing that. It is most definitely a foodgasm! After that, we dug into the cheese which was intense and rich — but only in a good way.
For dessert we got the fennel panna cotta. Such a refreshing, unique flavor. I was savoring it.
The wines all paired very well with our food. They were also pretty inexpensive compared to other places. One of the glasses, the house wine, is $ 6 a glass. I never drink merlot, but I had a really delicious tart glass of it at Heart. Actually, I had more than one glass. In fact, I tried pretty much all the reds by the glass. If I had it my way, I would be there drinking more wines by the glass instead of writing this. Sadly, though, Heart is closed on Tuesdays.

Date & Time: Wednesday January 27, 2010 @ 6pm Opening Day
Crowd: Cute Hipsters & Attractive 20 – 30 Something Singles in Pairs
Music: Hip Hop
Vibe: Fun
Décor: Industrial Barn. Exposed Beams & Communal Tables Opposite Mirrors. Provocative Art Work for Sale.
Service: Very Friendly & Accomodating Eye-​Candy
Imbibe: 2007 Joyeuse Terrior de Dinosaurs Pinot Noir & 2008 Isastegi Natural Cider (Green Apple Bomb Party in Your Mouth) Served in Mason Jars
Devour: Food by Kitchenette SF– Raw Scallops w/​Preserved Lemon, Fennel Oil & Black Pepper Crackers. Berkshire Pork Blade Steak w/​Smoked Onion Salad & Pickled Mustard Seed Ranch Dressing. Pastured Chicken Pie w/​Celery Slaw. Panna Cotta w/​Crispy Fennel & Apple Chips
Total: $ 65.52