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    Venus Spirits Cocktails & Kitchen - Beachside

    3.7 (190 reviews)
    Open 12:00 pm - 9:00 PM

    Venus Spirits Cocktails & Kitchen - Beachside Photos

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    VENUS SPIRITS COCKTAILS & KITCHEN - BEACHSIDE ATMOSPHERE

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    Recommended Reviews - Venus Spirits Cocktails & Kitchen - Beachside

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    Shrimp cocktail
    Nicole L.

    I enjoy coming here because it's so close to the beach and usually like to sit on the patio and enjoy the sunshine and lunch. This last experience dining we decided to try out a bunch of starters to share and drinks. The pitcher of beach don't kill my vibe was really good, it's like pink lemonade. I think it is premade because it came out very quickly. The crispy pork belly was the best thing we had, 10/10 recommend. It is sweet, and the mustard greens go great for a bitterness. It was such a flavorful dish. The foccacia is also delicious, it came with 3 pieces and it's warm and crunchy but soft! I really liked the shrimp cocktail, the waitress said they poach them and the texture is like buttery goodness. I swore I tasted a smokiness to them too, they definitely had some sort of seasoning on them. Would get these 3 items again!! I wasn't that into the bean and leek soup, wasn't very flavorful and I didn't finish it nor order this again. My friend also got the clam chowder and he didn't like it either, it was watery. The soups were a miss here. The calamari wasn't the best either, it's a light batter but not seasoned, the cocktail sauce was good though. Had lots of horseradish! Our server had a great personality, she was outgoing and didn't make anything awkward when we let her know we weren't feeling the soups. She handled the situation well and with grace. I would give this a 3.5 stars! I still enjoyed my meal and will return in the future.

    Halibut special
    carissa p.

    Made a reservation online, showed up and was walked right to our table despite a busy waiting area. The waitress interesting... she mentioned she got called in early since it was Valentine's Day and said "all I heard was money," so at least she was honest? Sour punch non alcoholic mocktail was good, classy fizzy orangey, worth eight bucks? Probably not. Gin and tonic came with grapefruit, when hubby asked for lime, but he had to complaints. Pork belly appetizer was delicious. Crispy outside and juicy inside, the sauce was sweet and salty and the peanuts were a good crunch. There were some greens on the plate to make you feel less guilty eating pork belly, but we all know the truth. It came with three pieces so you'll like fight over that last one. I wanted to love my halibut, but it was so overcooked I had to use a knife to cut it. I loved the fennel salad on top, but if you aren't a fan of bitter flavors I wouldn't recommend it. Grapefruit, dill, arugula were a lot, but it was better than the fish. We also had the short ribs which was the favorite of the night, and actually so much more tender than my halibut it fell right apart with just a fork. You can't beat the sunset we had tonight. Not sure how I feel about the waitress telling the folks next to us, "time to go" (literally) because the next party had arrived, but I suppose that's how you keep the dining room moving? For the cost of the food, if I'd like to chat with my dinner party with our coffee and dessert, I would imagine it isn't a terrible inconvenience. Oh, not the greatest overpriced espresso martini we have had, so alcohol heavy it was a disappointment. I'd give it 3.5 stars but I don't know how to do half stars.

    Calamari, Fries and the Halibut Fish and Chips
    Suzanne Scully H.

    Donell was a fantastic server and so attentive, but the food oh goodness the food! So fresh and delicious! The Brussels.. HAVE THEM! The fish and chips are so perfectly cooked and I love halibut so much! The calamari was tasty and not fishy at all which I appreciate! The views are great and the decor is simple and clean, and as a huge plus the bathrooms are clean and beautiful. Great experience

    Thai mushroom soup
    Sarah S.

    We stopped in around 1pm on a Sunday where they wern't busy. We asked to be seated outside on the patio which has a nice view of the water along with plants and trees. We were provided menus and waters quickly. We waited about 7 minutes for a server so I went back into the host stand and asked if our server could come by. A few minutes later a girl came out and seemed annoyed (not sure with us or the host?) apologized for the wait and took our orders. We decided to share the crispy fish sandwich and Thai Mushroom soup and had a pacifico draft. We asked for an extra plate, so were happy the server asked to have it split for us, which was a nice gesture. She also seemed more friendly when she came back out and we ended up being happy with her service after all. The fish sandwich was delicious, was fresh rock fish with a great crispy batter and came with lightly dressed mixed greens on the side. The Thai mushroom soup lacked flavor, was a thick coconut base which had potential but didn't have any spice or seasoning. They also put coconut shavings on top which completely ruined it for me. The pacifico draft was ice cold and tasty so we did appreciate that. I would try this place again with different menu choices and recommend especially due to the convenient location by Seacliff Beach.

    Menu
    Roya J.

    Cool spot at Rio Del Mar with friendly service, indoor/outdoor seating, well made food and cocktails made from booze from their distillery in Santa Cruz. Though it's on the beach there aren't much views unless cars aren't parked, which I'd say is next to never during business hours. Parking can be challenging at times, but the experience was worth it for our group of 6.

    Frozé Paloma
    Chelsea C.

    Great and only spot to go to in rio Del Mar. I could eat the lobster roll everyday. And fish and chips are to die for. Frozé Paloma and espresso martini are hitters

    Took the soup home to see if I could spruce it up, but tossed it after my husband's all nighter .
    Justine C.

    FOOD POISONING!!! We've been here several times and enjoyed the ambiance, service, and food, but their food quality has clearly taken a nose dive. The menu descriptions are deceiving and my husband got food poisoning from the oysters. We rarely get upset over a subpar meal but every dish was borderline insulting and my husband spent the entire night expelling his insides. We're both grateful I narrowly avoided getting sick because I'm pregnant. I obviously avoided the oysters, but had shrimp cocktail which could've been cross contaminated. ---------------------- Oysters: Server didn't know the name of them but just said they were the small ones from Washington. When they arrived they looked huge and...bloated. I made a face, but didn't want to start throwing off the vibe bc I was already annoyed with the other dishes and wasn't the one eating the them. It didn't come with cocktail sauce (wtf) so my husband used mine from my shrimp cocktail - I overloaded it with horseradish so both of us were amusingly distracted with how potent I had made it. We now know the horseradish probably covered up the taste of the spoiled oysters. Dungeness Crab Hush Puppies: presentation was nice, but was literally a fried ball of corn meal that was SO dry. There was NO crab in it. It was served with what looked like whipped butter with flecks of red, that we assumed was the "crab". No flavor whatsoever. Shrimp Cocktail: The color was off. Smelled fine, tasted fine but looked slightly brown. Doesn't come with lemon or horseradish and was charged $1 to add. Grateful I didn't get sick from it and in retrospect should've avoided entirely. Thai Mushroom Soup: Confusingly gross. Was expecting something reminiscent of Tom Yum Kha, but it smelled like Hawaiian Tropic sunblock and tasted like bland cream of mushroom soup. Other than the overpoweringly coconut cream (tasted like flavored cream - WHY??), mushroom and the toasted coconut, didn't see any of the ingredients listed on the menu. Just looked like overly cooked chopped onions and celery. Texture was gross too, like mucous. Thai soups are SO common, cheap, abd easy I don't understand how you could f*ck this up so badly. These were all EASY appetizers. Needless to say we won't be coming back.

    Spirits! Distilled in Santa Cruz CA! @Venus Spirits Cocktails & Kitchen - Beachside Aptos CA Fri 12/27/24
    Grey R.

    Venus Spirits Cocktails & Kitchen - Beachside Aptos CA Fri 12/27/24 Here we come to the beach! Venus Distillery is on Esplanade! White stucco & modern comforts! Let's go inside! © From the Bittersweet Bistro staple, next stop is Venus Distillery! This terrific location in Rio del Mar is practically on the beach! The sun sparkles, the skies brighten, and the ocean waters invite! VSCK is contemporary Californian mellow space with New American style! High ceilings, open beams, industrial feel, floating metal wrought shelving, glass jars with aromas & smells! Spirits are everywhere, our Californian bourbon! Distilled right here in Santa Cruz! Once again, after taking care of business, after enjoying a few cocktails at the Bittersweet, we situate ourselves at the bar here at VSCK! Handcrafted cocktails that showcase in-house distilled spirits, it's a must! A Venus spirits experience brings your spirits up! Eccellente! BEACH, DON'T KILL MY VIBE Venus gin no. 01, strawberry, lemon, basil Gin + Tonic with Gin No. 01 Gin + Tonic with Gin No. 02 EL LADRÓN MARGARITA: el ladón agave blanco, lime, triple sec, salt rim Venus Martini! Focaccia: Sea Salt, Rosemary, Whipped Butter! Fries: Fresh Herbs, Garlic Aioli, Ketchup! Crispy Brussels Sprouts: Date Jalapeño Cashew Cream, Black Garlic Sauce, Rose Pickled Onions, Nori Sprinkles Customer-focused staff! TYSM! Cocktails & Dreams! Succulento! è molto saporito! *Hangin' out, hangin' out down by the beach I hear it now, I hear it now sweet melody Neon lights, neon lights illuminating Music on, music on my TV screen Cocktails and dreams give them to me! [ Review #818 w 13 pics Jan 22, 2025 ] @Venus Spirits Cocktails & Kitchen - Beachside Aptos CA Fri 12/27/24

    Perfect place to celebrate a birthday
    Heather R.

    What a fantastic experience! Not only was the staff hard-working, but they were also friendly and gave Great recommendations. High praise to Angie our amazing server and the rest of the hard-working crew.

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    Ask the Community - Venus Spirits Cocktails & Kitchen - Beachside

    Do they have happy hour?

    Yes I believe from 4-5 or 5:30

    I was just given instructions over the phone to book my reservations online through Open Table which is fine. However, I hope that they will take phone reservations as well as not every individual especially seniors are tech savvy or even have a pc?

    Hi Ali, I'm sorry if there was confusion when you called. Our staff should be able to make reservations over the phone during our regular hours. We just ask that reservation requests are not left on the voicemail to avoid situations where we miss… Read more

    View All 4 Questions

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    Venus Spirits Cocktails & Kitchen - Beachside - newamerican - Updated June 2026

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