Zwillinger & Co.

Bought my wife’s engagement ring here. Literally nothing bad to say about these guys. Very personable and will find you exactly what you’re looking for. You never feel like they are just trying to rip you off (like some of the bigger jewelry retailers). They ask you what types of things you are interested in and what your budget range is, and they simply give you a range of options within those constraints. No vulturous up-​selling whatsoever. Easy and very reasonably priced. Highly recommended!

They have a small shop with simple, modest inventory. I searched high and low for a certain Omega watch as a gift for my boyfriend. Then I have known this place from searching through the internet. I finally went there and bought a nice watch for my bf.
They have both men’s and women’s jewelry too. They had the largest selection of Men’s Wedding Band’s that I came across in San Francisco.

hey it’s awesome and it’s a beautiful place some of my good friend’s perform their duties there also.

I came to buy a bracelet and had a great experience. I spent hours going to all the hoity toity jewelry stores but came to this modest place and was helped right away and found exactly what I wanted. They didn’t have what I wanted in stock but the salesperson called up the distributor and then went to pick up the samples herself. Very professional, and knowledgeable staff. Willing to go the extra mile. I will be coming back here for all of my jewelry needs for years to come.

I took a pearl ring here for resizing (bought as fiancée’s Christmas present). They were the only place open in the area at the time. The expert wasn’t in at the time so they kept the ring for a few days to give an accurate estimate. This was a year or so ago so I don’t remember the exact price but it was very reasonable ($ 25 – 35). Upon examining the ring after the job was complete, I saw that it was sized properly but it seemed like a sloppy job (see photos). The bottom of the ring was not uniform and there were a few very tiny holes (not completely smooth). In addition, a few months after the procedure the pearl came off (not necessary related, but it’s possible). I wouldn’t come here for resizing.

Son was ready for to propose. Bought him to see Mel for a diamond for the engagement ring. Bought diamonds from Mel before and had very good experiences.
I called and told him the 4C that we were looking for and he said to give him a couple of days to locate some diamonds that fits our criteria. Came by 3 days later and Mel showed us about 6 diamonds that fits our criteria. We checked them out under the
lens, lights, etc and about an hour later, we picked out one that we really like. Son then chose the setting and Mel said it would take about 3 to 4 weeks to have it ready. When I picked it up, I could not believe how gorgeous it looks. I think my son’s girlfriend would be surprise when it will be presented to her and will definitely say «Yes»!!!
I highly recommend Mel & Suki for diamonds and will definitely see him again in the future.

My friends all bought their diamonds and gold jewlery here. I needed an engagement ring and they told it’d be a mistake to go anywhere else.
I found a beautiful diamond ring at an impossible to beat price. I am so happy with my purchase. Thank you, Zwillinger’s.

Without question, this is THE PLACE to buy diamonds and fine jewelry anywhere. I bought my wife her engagement ring here. Other retail stores like Tiffany and Shreve were charging over $ 10,000 more for the same size and quality diamond that I bought here. Not only that, they are extremely helpful and knowledgeable about gold, fine watches and all jewelry. I have been sending my friends here for years and now they in turn send their friends here. I will never buy jewelry anywhere else.

This review is overdue since my fiancé bought my rings here in May 2010. After reading reviews of different jewelers and visiting a few of them, we decided to venture out to SF and pay a visit to Zwillinger. We knew that we wanted to talk to Suki because she had several raving reviews for being nonjudgmental and very helpful. Suki exceeded our expectations and spent over an hour to educate us on what to look for in diamond (well, Suki and my fiancé mainly talked and I marveled over how sparkly diamonds were).
Suki worked with my fiancé’s budget and recommended palladium, which is from the same family as platinum, yet less costly. We were able to afford the solitaire we liked and have the engagement and wedding band custom made as a set. After the rings were made, I also appreciated the fact that palladium weighs less than platinum.
Customer service after the purchase was amazing as well. Resizing and cleaning were complimentary. About a month after getting the ring, a little diamond fell out, and Suki took care of it at no charge. I am sorry that the owner decided to close the store, but I understand that they also have another jewelry company.

I’m finally writing this because I recently learned this venerable and well– regarded establishment is closing (though present owner Mel Wasserman is purportedly planning to continue on as a jewelry broker beyond closure of the retail store at its present location).
Just wanted to say that 3 generations of my family have been buying from Zwillinger’s with confidence and trust. My father first started working with Gil Zwillinger many decades ago, and my husband and I bought our wedding rings from him in the early ’80’s, and had the pleasure of working with Mr Zwillinger on other occasions in the intervening years.
This is, indeed, a place of old-​world service and elevated approach; their hallmark has been serving the customer and cultivating relationships, over and above merely selling jewelry. Definitely NOT what you might find in walk-​in and mall jewelers. And it was never about snobbery or exclusivity, but rather, about working with whoever came in and whatever they had to work with to make «magic».
Another little piece of San Francisco history is transitioning into memory; thus this tribute to the triumph of grace and humanity, of which Zwillnger’s
was a singular example, and a very real part of what has made San Francisco the very special city that it is.

It seems like I am a minority here star-​wise, but just wanted to let you know about my experience. On a whim, I decided to stop by Zwillinger to check out some wedding bands. I picked out a few to look at, the jewelry was nice. I asked about pricing, and the answer for one particular one was «thirty three thirty». Maybe I did have a puzzled look on my face, but I did not think so. nontheless, the woman repeated it as «three thousand three hundred», like I was some kind of idiot.
She then proceeded to ask me about my price range, which I provided, based on some diamond bands I’ve found on the web. Her response was a rude «You DO realize there is nothing here in your price range.» Really? I mean, wtf? If I REALLY love something, I will get it. But not from this place.
The woman tried to maybe backpedal a bit by showing me a nice band closer to my price range, but after her initial two comments, I was completely turned off.

Thank goodness for the gems in the rough that Unilocal leads me to.
Zwillingers exists by word of mouth, or so it seems, so I figure I should do my part to keep a good business around!
As mentioned in many reviews, Zwillinger’s is in a non-​descript building on Market on the 8^th floor behind a non-​descript door. But once you’re in they truly do take care of you and if they don’t have the jewelry you want, will figure out how to get it.
We went looking to buy our wedding bands and my wife wasn’t able to find the style she wanted anywhere else. At Zwillinger’s we decided to get a custom ring made after seeing one they had just made for another couple that was breathtaking. They took quite a bit of time with us making sure that the ring would be the exact right size and would fit perfectly with my fiancé’s engagement ring. The price they quoted was very reasonable.
Being out of town, they planned to ship it to us when it was complete. A week or so later, we received a call from them. We were worried that there was a problem, but it turns out that the jeweler who was making the ring felt that our ring wouldn’t be of the quality he wanted using white gold as we ordered so he used platinum instead. Expecting a sudden price change, we were amazed that they were just calling to let us know it would be the same price and they just wanted to make sure this was alright.
A jeweler that uses a more expensive metal for the same price just because using the cheaper one would have compromised quality! This is the definition of customer service and craftsmanship. We will definitely be using Zwillingers in the future for our jewelry needs.
Oh, and he was right… the ring looks amazing.

This is a fantastic place. I went there with an engagement ring that I wanted to get custom-​engraved (on the outside, to make it look more antique /​different-​from-​the-​norm) and Bradie couldn’t have been more helpful. She was very patient with my indecision about what I actually wanted, and really seemed to care that we came up with a design that I would love. Later on I sent her pix of a ring I liked, and she called me up to make sure that they picked up the right parts of the design in the picture I sent. And the engraving was done a week early, and I love it! Will definitely go back to them for the wedding band engraving :-).

This is an old-​school jewelry shop. You enter a building, take a lift to the 8^th floor and cross a security gate before being greeted by one of the staff.
The service is excellent, the prices are very reasonable. They made shopping for a wedding ring an easy and enjoyable experience. Besides showing me exactly what I was looking for, they checked prices, delivery and came up with a plan to accommodate my relatively tight deadline. They followed up really quickly and the ring was ready for pick up a week before the agreed date.
We’ll go back in, maybe for sizing or a clean up later on. I have no problem dealing with them again.

This is an old school style jewelry store with excellent customer service.
Braidy is very nice, not pushy and spends a lot of time with you.
I highly recommend this place to anyone looking for an engagement ring
or any other type of jewelry. The prices are reasonable and I can’t say enough nice things about the staff.

I came here with my man looking for a ring that I saw online. Though they didn’t have it on display, the sales associate Suki took down all the information and brought in the ring from the designer (Varna) a few days later. She called me in to let me know and put no pressure on us to buy anything. I appreciated her professional opinion and helping me pick a ring that would match my engagement ring. In the end, we ended up picking another ring (Christian Baeur) and were given the option to put a hold deposit on it, as well as doing a layaway plan. This place isn’t as big as chain jewelers, but the service is friendly and the prices are fair.

When you first enter the building and head to the 8^th floor, you feel like you may be heading to a dentist office, but then you enter through the security gate entrance and are welcomed by friendly rep.
Bradie helped me pick out a wedding band for my wedding and she was unbelievably helpful and a pleasure to work with throughout the whole process. She was courteous, patient, informative, and made me feel comfortable asking the ‘dumb’ questions because this was my first time buying a ring for myself and I really had no idea.
She followed up with me promptly on pricing and availability. And when it turned out that the ring I wanted wouldn’t make it across the Atlantic in time for my wedding, she allowed me to borrow a placeholder ring to be used during my wedding ceremony. She even brushed on a satin finish for me while I waited.
Not only do I think this place is a steal for the quality of jewelry compared to most other options you have around union square, it is one of the most comfortable jewelry store I’ve been into, no pushy salespeople, just honest answers and fun conversations.
They have both men’s and women’s jewelry. They had the largest selection of Men’s Wedding Band’s that I came across in San Francisco (after browsing through a dozen other stores).

I’ve TOTALLY forgot to write a review for this amazing jewelry store. I searched high and low for a certain Omega watch as a gift for my boyfriend. Randomly the site I came across was for Zwillinger and after checking the address, I realized I worked a few blocks from there. (saving $$$ on shipping — score) After going into the old-​school Phelan Building and heading up to the 8^th floor, I entered Zwillingers double-​security gate and felt like I had gone back 40 or 50 years.
For some reason the jewelery store/​office space is reminiscent of «Mad Men» times and the service was equally as impressive. Everyone who helped me was amazing and so friendly. They never pressured me and were super patient. Eventually I found the perfect watch and got the best deal I could have gotten.
!!!yay for old school indie jewelry stores!!!

You simply don’t feel like you get ripped off here. Buying jewelery can be such a harrowing experience. A lot of nodding and mumbling until you find something in your price range and style… The folks here listen to you and bing a lot to choose from and don;t lay down the pressure.
I like this place quite a bit.
Oh yeah, my dad bought my mom’s engagement ring here more then 30 years ago: it’s been top notch forever.

My rock came from this hidden lil’ place. They have a small shop with simple, modest inventory. No razzmatazz or fancy light and mirrors here. Just jewelry.
My hubby bought the loose stone here for my ring. He chose Zwillinger only after he had exhausted all of the fancy schmancy designer jewelry stores. None of them would let him pick out a setting separate from the stone, and they were quite snobby about it. It was all or nothing.
However, the nice folks at Zwillinger gave him the opportunity to peruse their collection of diamonds, and helped educate him on the finer points of engagement ring shopping. They eventually found him a sweet lil’ rock, nearly perfect.
When he took it to Shreve and Co to get it set in a platinum setting, the man at the counter took one look at the diamond and said it was the nicest he’s seen in that size… ever!
I went back that following month to get hubby’s ring. They remembered my name… so cool!
Zwillinger is the first place I recommend when anyone is looking for quality, reasonably priced fine jewelry. They’re a hidden gem! (pun intended)