StillWater Spirits and Sounds

My husband and I love this place for the outdoor ambience with the bar and seating. Heat lamps are great too! We also love the live music here on weekends! Edgar is the bomb bartender and makes drinks to your liking! Food is delicious! Only complaint is the wifi is poor! (Many others share this opinion.) Get better stronger wifi and you’ll have 5 stars from me!

Came for a painting class!!! Great everything!!! Great service !! Great vibe location!

Rolled through here on a Friday night during one of the «Keep the Pint» nights. Laguna Beach brewing company were the beers being offered. The place was a bit crowded because a band was setting up for later that evening but we were lucky to snag two spots at the inside bar. The bartenders were friendly and we only ordered two of the Laguna Beach beers that were on tap but the place had a great vibe and would definitely be a place to come back to one day.

Great place to watch football. Cool ocean breeze bartender Becca knows how to pour a great drink. The staff is super friendly Morgan made sure that the day was running great. Thank you I will be back.

Great place. Great food lots of beers on tap. Becca was our awesome bartender so much fun! The manager Morgan was making sure things flowed nicely all day. The place was packed with a great crowd.

Cool place, whether you’re outside or inside watching a band. I come here fairly often to sit on the patio for happy hour, which is great on a nice day. Bands inside are fun. Brick chicken and chicken sandwich are both solid bets, and we also like their flatbreads.

Best band — The Reflexx — so fun. Awesome service by David. Great sandwiches and flatbreads.

Took my wife and 21 year old daughter to StillWater the other night for a quick bite and a few refreshments. We sat at the bar and we were immediately engaged by Edgar when we arrived. He said «welcome, my name is Edgar. Thanks for stopping in.» and he stuck his hand out for a shake. It was a very genuine welcome and it felt great. We sat at the bar and within minutes Becca came over and introduced herself and welcomed us with her big smile. I thought this was all really impressive for a bar/​restaurant.
The food was terrific, but what really impressed me was how buttoned up the service was everywhere I looked. It was almost like watching a rehearsed performance with how the various team members went about their tasks in such harmony. What also struck me was how everyone seemed genuinely happy to be working there. You could see they had real camaraderie as a team and they were willing to support each other without a request. For example, the bartender would drop something and immediately behind her one of the back bar staff was there to pick it up.
You might be wondering why I was so impressed with the service level and attention to detail, so here’s why. My wife and I are both in the service business and my wife works for Montage Laguna Beach, which in my opinion has the greatest service levels in the US. So we know service and when we see it like we did at StillWater we really appreciate it.
I did learn that Edgar is the guy leading this impressive team. You can see that he expects the absolute best from his crew, but he also greatly appreciates and respects them for it. Thank you StillWater for giving me an awesome night with my girls and for renewing my belief that service minded people still exist! We will become regulars… so keep delivering those great experiences!

Great place for food and drinks. Great value for A Happy Hour. Mgr David is fantastic!
You will not find grilled shishito at many places but they have. Chicken wings are very good. Lemon drops with Lavender is must to have. I would recommend highly.

Visited this place on a whim while looking for somewhere to watch football. The food is excellent! Definitely not what I expected.
My only complaint is the service. There seemed to be one waitress for the entire indoor seating area. We ordered an appetizer at the same time we ordered our drinks. Unfortunately, the hummus came around the same time as our entrees.
The sweet potato tater tots are really good. I highly recommend the grilled cheese and tomato soup.

StillWater was so dissapointing.
My wife and I came to StillWater for a Painting Class and we wanted to get a bite to eat before are class starts. We were greeted by a bartender who said we could sit anywhere. We sat on the patio and I was pretty impressed with the décor. It was very nautical. It looked freshly renovated. The bartender asked us if we wanted to order and I said that it was our first time and could she give us a recommendation. She rattled off a few items. I decided to get a Ruben Sandwich because i love them and my wife order the Blackened Fish Sandwich. After waiting about 25 minutes for our food we started to get upset. I was thinking how long does it take to make a sandwich there are only like 4 patrons in the place? Not a good first impression.
Ruben Sandwich was a TOTAL FAIL due to leaving it under the heat lamp too long and it was totally ruined. I didn’t want to eat that soggy bread.
My wife’s Blackened Fish sandwich was bland beyond bland. Flavorless, no sauce, no seasoning. I don’t get it. We also were served french fries but they were heavily salted. I ask a waitress for Ketchup and Ranch and about 10 minutes later it comes out but I ate all my fries already. ANOTHER FAIL!
Then my wife had some left overs we ask for a box and the server brings out a tiny little box and we look at her and say this box is too small can we have a to go box that is bigger. I mean it was so obvious that tiny box wouldn’t accommodate the plate of food. This server had bad judgement and needed more training.
Overall this place looked really good but lacked on service and flavor. I mean this place could be really great if they hired right Chef and trained their staff a little better.
Thanks for Reading,
Matthew Y.

We were here on a Thursday night in mid November. It was relatively quiet, just 5 or 6 tables in use but the bar was full. Great atmosphere outside. Lots of heaters for these «cold» winter months. The service was OK.
We’ve probably been here at least 6 or 7 times. The food is good but the menu choices are limited. We had the grilled green beans, blistered shishito peppers and the burrata flat bread, along with a couple of glasses of the house Pinot ($ 5 each during happy hour). Everything was good. It was an enjoyable evening. We’ll definitely continue coming here.

Not from the area and came here after a very long travel day. They have many draft beers on draft, including my favorite, the White Rascal.
The food was delicious. We had the blackened fish sandwich, kale ceasar salad and the derby salad. Great presentation, full portions and great flavor. No complaints
The atmosphere is if a rustic look with tons of outdoor seating. There are fire pits in the middle of the tables on cool nights. Nfl football was on and there were plenty of tv’s and coverage inside and outside.
Staff was great! Very friendly and accommodated the three of us. They gave us recommendations on activities to do in the area and even put up the umbrella to trap in the heat!
Awesome place… Highly recommended.

Have come here many times but first time meeting Becca the bartender!
Her energy is amazing I would come back here just for her to serve me not to mention she makes the best dry martini I’ve ever had!
The ambience is great with the outside bar love all the TVs can’t read about this place more for happy hour starts at three just FYI!
Wish there was more girl bartenders that she did other females this way! Becca is the best!!!

Great Spot! I came here with my co-​workers for dinner. I love the outdoor patio. There is a bar in the middle and a fireplace and everything was decorated for fall. The bar tender mixed tasty, creative cocktails. They were served pretty glasses and the presentation added a little extra something special. The food was excellent. We all shared the spicy Brussels sprouts. So yummy! I got a chicken sandwich with caramelized onions and French fries. It was all just so tasty. I love that the food is presented in rustic wood serveware. I am a sucker for stylized details. I heard they have live music some nights of the week. This is a great, cozy spot with excellent food and drinks. Can’t wait to go back!

Is it a bar? Is it a great restaurant? Is it for drinks? Is it for concerts? YES!
This place surprised me! We went for dinner a couple weeks ago and had their special of the night. «Pot Roast». I wasn’t expecting much but was pleasantly surprised. They do a special every night it seems and they all looked interesting. And while the menu looks like mostly pub food (besides the short ribs), the quality of the food looks more like a high end restaurant.
What could they do better? The outdoor seating is not comfortable IMO.
So I finally went for brunch yesterday with the family as many other reviewers have recommended StillWater for brunch. I also took their reviews to heart and chose the Short Rib Eggs Benedict. (See review below)
LOCATION & AMBIANCE (Rating 4.25) It’s located in Dana Point so expect some breezes in the evening on their patio. It used to be the Renaissance forever and I had been there many times over the years. But now, it’s much nicer (at least on the outside patio) and the prices will reflect this a bit, but I still think it’s a good value. The outside patio is centered by a happening bar and the place was hopping even on a week night. Luckily, we were a little early and got a seat right away. The building houses a music lessons place as well so go around back to enter. The place has allot of seating and just as much character. So we had brunch inside yesterday and quite frankly, it needs updating. The interior looks and feels the same as it always has and exudes «last night’s party». My suggestion, eat on the patio.
SERVICE by VISIT (Rating 2.75)
*10/​17/​2015 (Rating 3.25) Lunch Visit — Very busy with art festival going on. The waitress was very nice and did her best but was overwhelmed.
* 10/​04/​2015 (Rating 2) Brunch Visit: Our waitress was nice, but just didn’t have it together. They couldn’t find menus, they did’t set the table with napkins or silverware and I had to beg for coffee refills.
* Original Visit (Rating 2.75) The place was so busy that while the waitress did her best to help us and was great at her job there’s only so many tables you can wait on at a time.
BREAKFAST ========
ORGANIC BERRY PARFAIT (Rating 4.75) This is an extremely tasty and light breakfast. It consists of greek yogurt, local berries, agave and baby mint. The canning jar it’s served in is unique and adds to the experience.
CRAFTSMAN BREAKFAST (Rating 4) Three eggs, fingerling potatoes, English muffin and you add a meat at an extra charge. (Bacon, sculpin IPA brats or burger patty). This is a large breakfast, so come hungry and while there’s nothing extremely unique about it, except the wooden plate it’s served on it was very good.
SHORT RIB EGGS BENEDICT (Rating 3.5) I love short ribs and I love eggs Benedict, Add to it spoon spinach, onion marmalade and Bearnaise and this dish should have been a slam dunk, right? While the taste was good, the short ribs tasted like left overs. And while some may be happy with left overs. I’m not that guy! The onion marmalade was great and the flavor of the sauce was very nice as well. I’m sure they could have done better on this dish so I may give it another shot in the future. One other note. the wooden dish for this entrée is not such a great idea IMO, cutting through English muffins is not easy, so the knife scratches the bowl making the coating come off the bowl which I’d prefer to stay on the bowl instead of in my food. Just a thought guys.
LUNCH ========
BLACKENED FISH SANDWICH (Rating 4.25) So the blackened salmon was thick cut and cooked perfectly. It wasn’t blackened heavily and the flavor was relatively mild, not overwhelming the flavors of the citrus, avocado or cucumber. My main complaint was there was no distinctive sauce leaving the sandwich a bit dry, especially because the bun was very thick, sapping some of the wonderful flavors. I see now, re-​reading the menu that it was supposed to come with a garlic aioli (typically a spread) which would have made this sandwich perfect. If it was applied, it was so thin I didn’t taste it. This sandwich was very good and with a bit more sauce would have been closer to a 5.
DINNER =========
POT ROAST (Rating 4.5) I’ll tell you what. This was some far and above most pot roast I’ve had when eating out. The quantity of meat was surprising and it tasted like it had been marinated for a day or two. The flavors and seasonings were robust and I couldn’t wait for each bite. I’ll do this again. :)

Stillwater is a nice place to spend some time, get a few drinks, and maybe some food. There are multiple TV’s both inside and outside where you can easily watch whatever sporting event is on (the day we came in it happened to be football). Bartenders wear jerseys of sports teams too, which is cute.
My boyfriend and I came in at around 2pm on a Sunday. It wasn’t too crowded the day we came in and we got a seat at the inside bar. We were greeted right away by the bartender and she asked what we would like to drink or eat. My boyfriend ordered a Margarita and I got a couple of beers on tap. We both enjoyed our drinks. For food we ordered some fries, which hit the spot.
Prices are about on par with the area. There are mixed drinks on special daily, which are cheaper than usual. Service here was great and I really liked our bartender, Becca. She was nice and friendly.
My only gripe is they don’t have AC, so if it’s a hot day, the inside bar gets really hot and humid. There is also outside bathrooms here, which are nice and clean.
I’d come back here for a drink or two in the future!
Cheers!

When you go for dinner or drinks at Stillwater it is my recommendation that you sit at the outdoor bar.
Especially Friday and Saturday nights.
This last week we sat at the outdoor bar and as always Edgar makes the bar run smoothly.
I wasn’t sure what I wanted so Elise, another superb bartender and personality recommended the salmon salad with lemon citrus dressing with the romaine lettuce. I asked if the salmon could be blackened. It was the best recommendation I have had in a very long time.
Elise is very professional and entertaining. The bar gets very busy but the staff, Edgar, Yair and Elise make every visit a lasting memory.
This is not just a bar and restaurant it’s Home.
The food is great, the prime rib, the baby Back ribs with bbq corn on the cob is awesome. The great thing for me is the recommendations and that the staff have become friends.
Thank Goodness for Stillwater.

I was pretty disappointed in our brunch experience this past weekend. Upon arrival there was no clear indication on where we were to check in for our reservation and we weren’t greeted at all by three staff members that we did see. We asked the bartender for direction and she was able to get someone to assist us. We were told if they didn’t have a reservation that we wouldn’t be able to done there as they were booked. Mind you our reservation was at 1030 am and they were less than ¼ full. Luckily (?) we had a reservation.
We were waiting for our 4^th person to arrive and our server was very attentive and patient. While we waited a few other parties arrived and they did end up seating people that didn’t have reservations. Honestly that didn’t sit well with me. Why say one thing to us and not to other parties?
We ordered sweet potato tater tots for an appetizer and they were pretty tasty. I wish they would have had better dipping options though. It makes a standard option stand out.
My friend and I decided to split two options. The kale salad and the veggie wrap. The monte Cristo and breakfast burrito were also ordered. The hot items were served well before our dishes. The salad brought out was wrong and the kale salad itself was highly lacking. Marinating the kale in the dressing is a must. It was tossed together at the table, which left it too dry and the other ingredients in the salad were very minimal. For the cost of the salad, I expected a little more.
The veggie wrap is in a pita and it is mostly all pita. There were not enough veggies. It also fell apart and was pretty bland. Definitely not something I would recommend to anyone.
The monte Cristo and breakfast burrito were both enjoyed by my mom and her boyfriend though. Our server was also very pleasant. I’m just not sure I would come back, as they don’t have any other options for a vegan or vegetarian.

We stopped in at 5:00pm on a Friday to grab a quick bite to eat before our drive home. Thank goodness Unilocal helped me find this place that is just off the main road because it was soo good! Lucky for me it was happy hour so I enjoyed a $ 4 glass of Chardonnay on their beautiful patio and we shared their Friday Special Tri Tip Sandwich. OMG their Tri Tip is amazing! They BBQ’d it nearby, right outside, and it was to die for! The seating was first come first serve on the patio but the restaurant inside was totally booked, so make a reservation! The patio is very nice and complete with fire tables and heaters. Can’t wait to return when we’re back in Dana Point!