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East Haley Street Wine Bar Excels as Takeout Joint, Defending Crown in Vegan Chef Challenge.

Walking into Crush Tasting Room & Kitchen, I felt like a kid in a candy shop. With a delicious menu, more than 20 inventive wines from small-batch Central Coast producers as well as kombucha and regional beer on tap, and a convivial atmosphere ripe for striking up conversation, the East Haley Street establishment made my head spin like a child entering the white gates of Disneyland for the first time.

What's not to love about Michael and Lisa Amador's lively wine tasting room and kitchen, which serves up great food and unique wines in a former Haley Street dice bar? the space has been remodeled and gussied up with a visible kitchen, high -top tables and wine dispensers.

Spend the remainder of your day perusing the streets of Santa Barbara’s contemporary art district, the Funk Zone. You won’t be disappointed by the selection of diverse eateries, quirky bars, and eclectic shopping. Be sure to stop by Crush Wine Tasting and Kitchen for a unique wine tasting experience accompanied by yummy lite bites. They utilize the latest technology to offer do-it-yourself wine tasting, and it’s a win-win. The wine dispensing system keeps their wines fresh and gives guests full control of what they’re tasting. Give it a try for yourself, and don’t forget to order the lobster sliders. @crushsb1

Beth Wettstein, a devout vegan of nine years, is unsatised by the monotony of salads and veggie burgers that seem to be the only plant-based menu items at most Santa Barbara restaurants. “Compared to cities like Los Angeles, there’s just not too many options,” explains Wettstein, who usually opts to alter non-vegan plates by substituting fruits and vegetables for animal products.

Reported by the Santa Barbara News Press. Four Star Ratings for Crush!

In only 4 short weeks since CRUSH opened its doors, they have become the 6th highest ranking Tasting Room in Santa Barbara

What happens when you put wine, food, matchmaking and “Amador,” or lover, in Spanish together?

You get “Crush,” at 432 E. Haley St. Just in time for this year’s wine crush season.

The idea for Crush started evolving over the past 5-6 years ago as I looked back over the constant stream of new winemakers through my many years managing the winelist of some of Santa Barbara's top restaurants.   It has been great seeing new wineries take off and on occasion turn into some of the best wineries in California, which I might then argue are some of the best in the world.