Old Crow Tattoo & Gallery

I feel really terrible to even have to write that I will probably never get another tattoo from here again. Simply based on customer service.
Wanting to get a new tattoo with my dear friend and thought why not go somewhere familiar. I was previously tattooed by Sean who is AMAZING and I love his work but because the man at the counter (black male with locks and glasses) was so unpleasant I can’t even see myself steeping foot in there again.
It’s very sad because the artists had probably $ 2000 worth of artwork walk out because of that one singular person who made me and my friend feel very unwelcome.
Would have only given one star but the artists are great, if you can get past the grumpy young man at the front counter.

Great shop. Talented artists. I’ve been tattooed by guest artist, Laura Taylor, and recently by Bryan Porteau. Both awesome experiences and amazing tattoos! For black and grey, Bryan’s your guy. I’ll definitely be back… as soon as the budget allows.

i e-​mailed the shop requesting a pretty non-​specific piece. i wanted something on my forearm and sent some pictures of lace, skulls, flowers, and feathers. i got an email back that sean was interested so i called to schedule a consult to discuss size and design and leave a deposit. i went in for session one about two weeks later. he showed me what he had drawn up and i said let’s do it. it took three sessions each lasting about three hours. sean is a super talented artist, on canvas and skin, and was also nice to talk to. i don’t forsee going anywhere else to have work done.

Stewart was awesome to work with! I got a mandala on my thigh back in July. It was a wonderful experience from the start, great environment, everyone was warm and friendly. The tattoo was done beautifully with an impeccable attention to detail and I ended up getting something I absolutely love! It healed up really nicely too! Couldn’t be happier! :)

Stewart was amazing — cannot recommend him more! He did a small swallow tattoo on my inner wrist and treated me with as much attention as someone getting a full sleeve. The color and the fine line details was everything I wanted and more. Can’t wait to go back for more!

Having gotten 8 tattoos done here, it’s probably about time to leave these guys a review. Ever since day one (almost 5 years ago, now!) I’ve been treated with nothing but respect from every person I’ve talked to in the shop. Everyone has been really supportive and helpful to help make sure I got exactly what I wanted. At this point, I go in having a much better idea of what I’m wanting but they are equally helpful.
The shop is clean and well run. I’ve seen a few others getting upset about prices. but if you’re thinking about cutting corners price-​wise on a permanent body modification, tattoos might not be for you in the first place. The old adage holds true. you get what you pay for.
As with anything, but especially at a tattoo shop, come in with the right attitude and be clear about what you’re wanting. I’ve looked over the bad reviews and all I can say is that they are written by those bitter people you come across who can never find anything to be happy about. That’s their problem.
Long story short, if there’s an artist here you’re into. rest assured that things will be done right and you’ll be making your friends jealous. I was nervous coming into it, but laugh about it after how well I’ve been treated over the years.
Ps — just something to note for anybody who’s never had a tattoo done. Don’t be in a rush to get in & out (here, or any other shop) For example. while you might be quoted an hour for a piece, that could easily mean spending an 1.5−2 hrs at a shop. so keep that in mind if you’re ever trying to schedule around an appointment or anything.

The artists seem talented enough. I looked at a lot of good sample work, but they all charge waaaaaaay too much. The bar started at $ 250 per hour and went up from there. Moreover, the guy behind the counter told me it would probably take 5 – 8 hours to do a medium size outline-​only simple illustration in just black…

Stewart is an amazing artist. His years of experience, passion, honest input, gentle approach, respect and kindness all made for an experience that exceeded my expectations. My tattoo is full of magical detail and amazing colors and Im super happy with it!

So yeah what already has been said about Old Crow is all true! I have always wanted to get tattooed here but was intimidated because I always heard the wait was excruciatingly long. Well I got lucky I guess, Sean had an amazing piece up for grabs and a spot open on a Saturday evening. The shop itself is very nice up front, lots of art and locally made jewelry to look at. The counter person was very friendly and brought out the owners cute little Chihuahua while I waited for Sean to prep his station. Sean made me feel very comfortable and seemed just as excited as I was about the tattoo. Overall, probably my best tattoo experience thus far. Awesome shop, friendly & accommodating tattooers. I would love to come back and get more work done by these guys in the future. Just remember to bring cash because they don’t take cards!

Disclaimer: I never stepped into their shop. This review is based on the customer service I received as a potential customer.
I called them on a Sunday trying to schedule an appointment with a tattoo artist. I specifically requested an artist who is good with straight lines because I’ve been wanting an single straight line arm ring tattoo. They called me on Friday and told me that they have some time available on the weekend to get my tattoo done. I called them back on Saturday and they nice guy who I talked to put me on hold as he asked people are in the shop whether they are available on that day for me. What I heard over the phone were laughs and giggles as he mentioned to the other person that I want a single arm ring tattoo. I guess my request is too simplistic and boring for them to be laugh at. They never called me back. Hence the one star review.

This place is great. It was recommended to me by a few people. Good vibes. Talented artists.
I would’ve gave it a 5-​star rating if the scheduling and customer service was a little better.
I first emailed back and forth, and talked to different people and got different prices. I was then told to come in, so I did. However, nobody was apparantly available to talk to, so I had to come back for a 2^nd trip (it takes me over an hour of driving back and forth to get here). The front desk person told me that there’s a good chance I get the tattoo tomorrow when I come in. However, it ended up being just a consult, and I was told I had to now make a 3^rd trip back on another day. And the ‘consult’ was really just them asking for a deposit. It lasted about 60 seconds. I didn’t really see the point of it… and didn’t understand why I couldn’t just put the money down on my first trip.
So then on my 3^rd trip, I show up half hour early just to be respectful of the tattoo artists’ time and I wait. And then at 4 pm, I’m told he double-​booked, and if I can come back at 6 p. m, which I did. And then I ended up waiting for an hour. and we ended up starting at 7 p.m. They were just kinda taking their time and chatting and showing each other pictures, while I was sitting there wiating for an hour, so I don’t feel like my schedule or time was respected at all.
With that said, I would still come back to this place, because it’s that good. I had Evan and he was a great guy and a talented artist. Everyone seems pretty chill and down to earth. I think if they cleaned up their scheduling process and customer service a bit, they’d easily be a 5-​star tattoo shop. I’m a pretty understanding guy and don’t mind if something gets miscommunicated or misscheduled one time… but to have to make 3 trips… and end up waiting 3 hours… well that’s going to cost a star lol.
This could’ve also just been unfortunate timing, and it might not always be like that.
Besides that, I’d still highly recommend this place to anyone in the future.

This shop (and mostly Philip) immensely changed my view on the whole tattoo experience. Highly recommended for phenomenal, detailed work, a clean environment, and good vibes all around. After getting tattooed here I won’t get tattooed anywhere else.

PHILIP MILIC! if you haven’t already seen his work you must be blind. insta: @pmtattoos
I could write an essay on how talented and charismatic this dude is, but I know you won’t read it all and you have to pick up what I’m puttin down or else your life won’t be complete. This wasn’t my first tattoo experience but it was BY FAR the best. Our session was scheduled from 2 – 6, but they called a week prior and told me he wanted to talk a little first to get more of an idea — so we met at 12 pm… and ended up finishing at 1 AM. I’m no artist and I had no idea my vision would take as long as it did, but Philip was so genuinely happy to be at his shop, tattooing the same fidgety person throughout his Saturday night, that he agreed to do it. We met for about five minutes, I said almost three words, showed him one picture of a prior piece he did that I loved, and he told me to come back in about two hours and he would have the sketch done. I walked around the beautiful lake that’s right across the street, and when I came back he had EXACTLY what I wanted down on paper. I didn’t have to change a single thing about it.
The tattoo that Philip did for me has an insane amount of straight lines and symmetry, which is what he’s respectfully known for in the Bay Area. He placed and replaced one of the stencils on me, had me seen by all of the other artists for their opinion, and measured with rulers just so everything would be completely symmetrical. These pieces are on the back of both my thighs, which is an extremely sensitive and difficult area to tattoo (or so I tell myself); I also have zero pain tolerance nor control of my reflexes. So my legs were twitching like crazy and making it impossible for him to draw a straight line. He did both the outlines really quickly and told me he would use numbing gel to do the rest of the tattoo and as soon as he put the gel on I felt no pain. I don’t know why every artist doesn’t use this, but I should have asked him what that shit was cause damn. He did the first leg for what felt like 2/​3rds of the time, and the second went by so fast I didn’t even have time to twitch (LOL JK). But really, he took such a long time on the first leg making sure everything was completely perfect and said that when he did the second, it was so much quicker because he already had the muscle memory from the first one… That beautiful genius.
Mind you the session started from around 4 PM and went until 1 AM, and I am a person of no pain tolerance nor patience. I felt so badly for taking his Saturday night (he initially wanted to be done by 6 PM), but he kept reassuring me that he’d rather be here tattooing than anywhere else. Philip is so eccentric with such a positive attitude, and he talked to me the entire time for distraction (he asked if I minded and of course I didn’t, he’s so insightful!), even if though I was being a total brat. His shop that he’s created gave me the best tattoo experience I could of asked for. The beautiful décor, amazing eye for detail, and super clean and safe setting create an ambiance that I already want to return to, and I left a mere 15 hours ago.
My tattoos are my new favorite thing about my body and I’m so grateful that I saw him and get to wear this art for the rest of my life. Even though it was in the most painful/​sensitive area I’ve had tattooed, I had the best experience and overall outcome with Philip that I could have ever imagined. Not to mention he gave me an AMAZING PRICE for his time and work, which I felt could have been doubled for what he did for me. I’ll be back real soon Old Crow!

I walked in to the Old Crow shop today to schedule appointment and hopefully to get tattooed.
Luckily with short time of waiting i was able to get my tattoo.
Victor did the tattoo for me and he was super professional and a great guy too.
With just few words Victor got the idea and started working on it right away.
The results are amazing! It’s exactly what I wanted and how I imagine it.
Thank you guys! I Highly recommend Victor and Old Crow!

A few days late but I was here yo! Dope spot. Dope staff. Dope art. Evan ur da man who killed my plan. Ill be back and with as many ppl as possible lol. Highly recommend this place.

The Shop:
For my first tattoo, I wanted the best. Naturally, I searched Unilocal for reviews. With five stars, you can’t get any better and it totally deserves them. The first thing I noticed in the shop was the smell! It’s an amazing incense. It was very clean — and I’m particular about that.
There’s a front and back room, I assume the front room is for people getting tattoos done in non-​revealing places, and the back is for more private areas where you might need to show a little more skin.
There’s also a bathroom that was clean, just in case… though I couldn’t figure out how to turn on the light. Oops.
The Artist:
I saw Evan Wilson aka ESK, not sure what that stands for but it doesn’t matter. Evan was awesome. I told him I would write his very first personal Unilocal review and here it is. I walked into the shop and the secretary/​clerk/​whoever was running the desk found Evan. He mentioned to me that he had a few hours available to do my tattoo.
I showed him what I had in mind (a quote, about 11 words, wanted on my side). He immediately vetoed that — but told me exactly why that wasn’t a good idea. The amount of space it would need to have taken up to not run together as it aged would have taken up my entire side. So we worked together to find something that shared the idea of the quote but was much more simple — 4 words.
I did get a little «of course you do» after I said I wanted it on my side buttttt it is kind of basic and I was already judging myself for it, so no big deal, no feelings hurt.
After drawing up what I wanted and making sure it was what I wanted (and a little yogurt break), we got to work. That’s kind of the boring part for me, but I will note that Evan was so concentrated on doing a good job that he wanted to keep conversation to a minimum, on his part. Much appreciated. And he did break his silence to comment on my pain tolerance. Woohoo!
As it was my first tattoo, I didn’t know what to expect, but my friend who came with noted that he went over the lines a few times and really took his time. Again, much appreciated. Discharge instructions were detailed and my questions were all knowledgeably answered.
Thanks for my first (of soon to be many) tattoo, Evan!
PS. He is also easy on the eyes.

We caught wind that they were going to do a fundraiser for Nepal — $ 100, walk-​in, palm-​sized, traditional — so Kelle K and I jumped at the opportunity. I got there super early just in case there were lots of people, and I was first in line. Once they opened up the super friendly folks there were quick to get everyone sorted out and signed up.
I got hooked up with Stewart for my tattoo, and he did an excellent job with it.
I’ll definitely be back for more the next time I’m feeling I need some ink therapy.

*****havent gone yet this review is about contact so far*********
Okay, I have contacted other shops trying to find out info since I cant go in to find out info. I would email and try to get a hold of the shops. They would respond weeks later. BUT Old Crow responded THAT DAY which was awesome! They were friendly and then I have my number to them for a call from one of tje artist to set up a consultation. I expected them not to call until the next day. NOPE Stewart called THAT DAY. Awesome! I Unfourtenetly couldn’t get the tattoo at the time because of a trip I’m going on a trip. I told them expecting a harsh responses, but no, I was warmly told that they were excited for me and would love me to tell them all about it once I go to get my tattoo. Again, I am only speaking on their communication which is just amazing!
Other places in sf wanted me to come down there just to schedule! I live in Alameda. .
I am seriously glad to find this awesome shop. The work on their site looks BOMB too!!!

V I C T O R !! {@ollingraffix on instagram}
I knew the first time I walked in to Old Crow that it was the place for me. As an artist myself, it was welcoming to see such stunning work up on the walls, and I got a real sense of quality and care the people here put into everything they do. My first tattoo here was by the incredibly patient and detail-​oriented Dave Rodriguez, who executed my vision perfectly. It was kind of an odd request, but he did not hesitate, and was really wonderful. When I was ready for my next piece… it was the wise Dave who suggested that I talk to Victor instead, who is an absolute master and expert in the type of work I was looking for, and wow was he ever right!
Victor and I arranged a consultation and went over my ideas and drawings, for ancient Mixtec animal warriors, a jaguar and an eagle taken from the Codex Zouche-​Nuttall. He offered to re-​draw them, as he knew exactly how each curve, feather, claw would need to be, based on his extensive knowledge and experience with Mexican history, art and imagery. I felt absolutely confident going in for my scheduled appointment.
Victor also has the cutest sweetest little dog Mochi. I love dog-​friendly tattoo parlors!
I was so impressed with Victor’s patience, and ability to transform/​edit the stencils to perfectly fit my body. He made absolute certain they were where, and what, and the size I wanted before we got started. If you have any trouble communicating, perhaps you’re not ready for a tattoo! Communication is key in most things in life, but especially before permanently inking your skin. I felt a great sense of calm, and confidence knowing I was safe in such skilled hands.
The work itself took around 6 hours, with short breaks including a quick run for tacos, much needed and appreciated. Victor calmly and carefully outlined incredibly lightly, then went over the outlines with a thicker needle, resulting in a gorgeous varied and «built up» line. His color knowledge and work was expertly done, and the result are two of the most beautiful tattoos I’ve ever seen, let alone ever had done. An absolute professional.
It was cold in the shop, and he not only set up space heaters under me, but let me warm up under a blanket — i could not have been more comfortable. I have never been happier! Thank you VICTOR! They are so beautiful. I am so so so happy.
Five stars!!!
Hannah

Two words. Philip. Milic.
There’s a reason he’s consistently recognized as the best artist in the Bay Area. And there’s a reason his wait list is over a year long.
Ink is perm. You already know that.
Now go look up his art online. There’s also a couple pix in my Unilocal profile.
Lotsa places you can choose in the Bay.
There’s only one Philip Milic.
Oh…did I mention that ink is perm?