Not sure why all the attitude at the front door, but atmosphere inside is cool. Waitresses were great. Its is the bumbeling bartenders that really blew my mind. Between the hi-5's and inside jokes with the bouncers. tbe bartenders must have missed me and the guys next to me looking to order. Waitresses are over it as well. They have the makings of a good bar if they can remove all the hip staff. read more

This place has the potential to be great! The staff absolutely ruins it!! Takes forever to get drinks ordered. drinks finally came and it had a fruit fly in it! For 11$ I prefer it without the fly! Then when we asked to get it without the fly the bartender did not get that we were being nice and making a joke out of it and he flipping just scooped the fly out! For REAL!!!!!!! The line to get in is ridiculous and the door man is discriminating! We watched him hug and let his cool friends in while the line kept on getting bigger- finally I walked up and asked if we could get in, he looked me up and down and said: suuuuure!! Eww, creeper!!!! read more

When I write a review I tend to read other people's reviews to see how their experience went. I went to Shelter last week and last night ( Friday 2/21) The place has a very cool look and feel. It has two massive televisions on each side that show the logo and they have some very comfortable booths. So getting a drink was a bit tough. It was incredibly packed. It did not looked very packed when I was peeking in the windows but damn that place reminded me of a club downtown. You know where everyone's shoulders are best friends. Overall the staff was friendly the servers were really on their grind. I noticed they only really wanted to help their tables and avoided anyone else. They were attractive and pleasant so no harm done really. The same goes for the bartenders, busy, but you could tell they were working hard. The doorman and bouncers were very nice in my opinion. Like I said above I read other peoples reviews and notice that these guys do not get that much love. As someone who works the bar industry I understand that though. It is a thankless position. It was actually quite funny we were in line about 5 people from the door.(This was at 11:30) And they were not letting anyone in, but people were coming out. The group in front of us, four women and one man were getting a bit upset. They started moaning and bitching every time the bouncer opened the door. He apologized and closed the door. They began to get even more upset and rude. when he finally opened the door to let them in they had already had enough he checked their ID's and they called him an asshole as they walked in. Classy. We walked up to him and smiled. He smiled back greeted us and told us it would be just a couple minutes. Felt bad for the guy really. But he seemed to brush it off. I saw the other reviews mention people going inside when the line was being held. That is an easy answer those people are friends with the people who work/run/own the bar and locals. If you have to say your a local to prove your a local.. You are not a local You know I have been a bartender, server, busser, food runner... you name it I did it. In reality there are rules to the night life scene. Even if it does not looked packed they still might be at capacity. You know the number of people the fire marshal allows inside the building. Also if you think any bar is ever at the actual capacity you are oblivious People have become so entitled these days. Sorry you had to wait to get into a bar. Hope your week isn't ruined. Keep throwing your cigarette butts on the ground and keep trying to skip the line. I also met two of the owners that night who ill refer to as D and C. Very nice guys who seem like they know what they are doing. I will be back to Shelter for a good time very soon. Hey maybe I will see you there. I just hope your not crying because you had to wait in line read more

I went back here twice since my last review and I'm going back to one star. The staff is rude and the people who go there are annoying. Sorry Shelter, just not a spot I will be returning to. read more

Stopped in with a group of girlfriends last weekend. Ryan the bartender/server gave us shots and never checked back on us. After waiting for over 30 min, my girlfriend approached the bar where he was doing a magic show for some friends. He was literally smirking when she was asking for some service and respect. We left and he could have cared less. He could have said sorry and offered to take our drink orders. Go anywhere else in Encinitas for a cocktail. Obviously less than 10 people in the bar on a Sunday was too many people to get service. read more

Shelter is a pretentious establishment. In my handful of times going, I've only felt the stuffiness of this place. Last night I unfortunately went again and had a horrible experience. First, when I asked how much Buliet Bourbon was the bartender said $8 and then charged me $10 because it was poured on ice. Next, while I was sipping on my $10 bourbon I watched Game 7 of the Clippers vs. Warriors series along with other patrons only to find out that at 9pm Shelter turns their TV screens into a Shelter billboard. When asked to turn the game back on, the manager said they weren't a sports bar. Then why have sports on at all? Management needs to figure out that people can read read through the crap and trying to burn their brand in patrons minds can be done more tactfully. I won't be going back anytime soon unless they figure their stuff out. Pathetic! read more

This would be an easy place to like if they could just adopt a service model that aligns with the location. I've been to Shelter twice, once at night and once during the day. At night, they do a bottle service and you're steered away from their comfy trendy booths unless you buy a bottle. I get it, but it's a bit of a pain, especially when you see plenty of empty tables with 'reserved' signs on them. Why not let me and my party sit down until you have a customer who wants bottles? The message I get from this is that my patronage isn't terribly important.Got it. I'm a quick learner and I won't come back at night. Fair enough. The last time I came, it was during the day and I must admit that it was a great atmosphere with the open roof on a sunny day. Very open and breezy and potentially perfect for coastal day drinking if the service was better. We sat at the bar initially and the tender was very pleasant but service was simply slow. It took a long while to simply be acknowledged and it was a bummer. We came within moments of actually leaving but finally we were able to place a drink order. Cocktails were quite good FYI. We later moved to a table and I was pleasantly surprised that they didn't enforce the "bottle service or no seat for you" rule during the day. But it was a bummer to discover that our cocktail server couldn't care less that we were in her section. It took forever just to have her look in our general direction and order another cocktail. It honestly felt like we were in LA getting the urban slow disinterested service that we often get there. Bummer. read more

I can understand why there are some less than pleasant reviews on Shelter- the drinks are on the pricier side, there is no happy hour, it is generally pretty crowded, yada yada. But that is WHY I like it- this is something different from the neighboring bars; it is the perfect place to meet at be able to dress a little nicer and treat yourself to a few drinks that are a little fancier. The atmosphere is awesome: an open bar, filament light bulbs, and of course the highlight is the retractable roof that they leave open as long as it is a nice night out. I was excited to hear last night that they are now open 7 days a week (before it was Thurs-Sun) because they are serving food! I am just hoping that it will not take away from the lounge vibe that Shelter already has. read more

Super cool space. The open air roof, old chandeliers and hanging old fashioned light bulbs make this place a must go. The glassware and signature cocktails were also spot on. Super busy (it was the grand opening) and they had a DJ spinning. I had no trouble getting in and getting a drink but they do enforce a mild dress-code. read more

Very bad attention. We came here with a group of friends and three of the bartenders were super rude at us. Bad service. I wouldn't suggest this bar to anyone. I asked for the check and they never bring it to us and made fun of what we were asking for. Avoid this place read more

Met a few friends at Shelter last night. So disappointed. Great atmosphere but terribly unfriendly and rude servers and staff. We def felt as if we were an inconvenience to every staff member we has the displeasure of having wait on us. Sorry you've just hired the wrong people. Won't be back. The only positive were the bouncers. Super nice! read more

Absolutely horrible service. Their staff has no idea how to treat customers. The place was empty and their staff still had no clue.

Omg! Bartenders are super rude! They throw the menu at us and treated us like crap! Dude! chillax, we don't need that attitude... cocktails are definitely overpriced for what they offer! read more

My Wife and I were hanging at the beach and started to walk home. Decided we wanted to grab a cocktail so stopped in. The whole experience was excellent. Great music, fantastic bartender, delicious and well made cocktails. The bar interior is very cool and casual. Even everyone hanging in the bar was cool too. Well done and great to see in Encinitas. Recommend to anyone any age anytime. read more

I had a horrible first experience in which the rude bouncer at the front yelled at me in my face when I was trying to just pay my tab. Once it finally got paid...I didn't add a tip because of the horrible service. And I work in the service industry- I never don't leave a tip because I know that is the majority of what the wait staff lives on...tips. But after spending over $50 myself earlier in the day while with my large group of friends for 3-4 hours and opening up another tab and not being allowed to go back in to close it and even trying to give the bouncers my id so they can get my tab without me having to wait in line to go back in and get it (a convenience for them because I wasn't even trying to go back in!) - I decided not to tip on my $17 tab. But come to find out, I was charged a $4 tip without my consent. So now not only do I not respect the bouncers but I do not respect the wait staff as well- for adding the tip. Somehow, a friend convinced me to give shelter a second chance on Friday night. Well, the same bouncer checks my id and gives me an attitude as he says "welcome back- we remember you". I calmly walked in and reminded my friend that I refuse to spend money there so we better make this quick. My friend had the female bartender, who is actually always very sweet and never forgets or messes up our order- so props to her for being awesome and knowledgable! But as we leave- the bouncer says under his breath- "see you later yelpers!". Well a few of my friends wrote yelp reviews about our first experience at shelter, and he obviously took the time to read them. So I opened the door again and told him- it's his own fault for yelling in my face, and then he apologized...which I will say thank you for apologizing jerk. But there is no need for an attitude with me as a customer. How rude, disrespectful and childish to act like that. The day he yelled at me- I got in a cab down the street about 3 hours later and the cab driver noticed me saying "you're the girl that got yelled at in front of shelter!". So that goes to show how ridiculous it was. Needless to say, a fake apology from the rude bouncer is definitely not going to make me want to go back. My friends and I will not be back there. And to the bouncer reading this- looks like I'm not the only yelper who is making you guys loose good local business. read more

I thought this place was pretty lame. Came with friends on a Friday night. The decor was cool but it seemed pretty out of place in Encinitas. Maybe it's just me but when I think of E town I think of super beachy/ casual bars. This had more of a downtown vibe. And it most certainly had downtown prices. I absolutely thought we paid too much for the drinks. The music was way too house/ new age/ whatever for my taste and so we left for 1st Street Bar after our round of drinks. It was packed and seemed like a lot of people were having fun which is cool but I probably won't be back. read more

Your website says you should be open on Mon -weds 5pm-10pm. I have been here on the weekends and it is a fun experience. But since, I've tried to bring my friends (who have never been here and been wanting them to check out your place) here on a Monday night and Tuesday night and this place has been closed from 530pm onwards. What's up with that? read more

Shelter is extremely overpriced and overrated. Encinitas isn't L.A. or NYC last time I checked. The staff is rude and cocky. Drinks are very weak (cranberry vodka $12.-???) The music was horrible and the dj didn't take any requests. The crowd was young and unattractive. The line was unnecessarily long outside due to the overly rude and obnoxious bouncers lying to the people in line by telling them that the place was at capacity, which is clearly displayed by a fire code sign near the front door as a max capacity of 92 people. There were at least 200 people in the place. However, when the bouncers' friends or acquaintances showed up they were ushered in immediately, which made people annoyed from the get-go. Navigating through the place is impossible. Just to get a drink from the incredibly small bar, you have to push your way through a sea of people standing on the sides of what should be a dance floor, but instead are a bunch of oversized, rib-high bar tables directly in the middle of the place. The bathrooms are also in the very back of the place on either side of the bar, which means you have to push past the sea of people dancing in the aisles because of the lack of an adequate dance floor, or any dance floor for that matter, as well as the patrons at the bar trying to get a drink. The concept of Shelter is a refreshing change from North County's typical beach dive-bar, however this place certainly disappointed our group of 7. I wouldn't recommend going here at all. We certainly won't be back. read more

Very cool place. The people that work here are cool and the ambiance is very nice. The roof opens, come on. I recommend.

I went to Shelter for my best friends 21st birthday and we had a blast. She flew in from another state so I was glad that Shelter gave her a good experience. Shelter is a bar, however at night it feels more like a club which is good if you're looking for that type of experience with loud music and a decent social scene. Everyone there was quite sociable and it was easy to get an invite to a table. They played good house music that was upbeat and easy to dance and drink to. It was $9 for each cranberry vodka we ordered and they made them strong so I ended spending roughly $40 without tips. The place was busy though so it took a couple minutes for the bartenders to get to us, but once they took our order we got our drinks fast. I'd definitely go back to Shelter if I'm looking for a fun night out with my friends. Also, the outside bouncer was really friendly and there were bouncers inside the bar to make sure everything stayed in order. Many reviews say that there's a long line to get in around 11pm/midnight however we didn't have to wait in line on a Friday night. So much fun! read more

I went there with a group of friends a couple of weekends ago. The service was not even close to good. The bartenders ignored me until I basically shouted to them! We were not an exceptionally large group (about ten of us) but wanted to have a conversation, so we waited for a group to leave and we took over their area on the couches (bottle service "only" as were later "informed" ). The server was pleasant enough. At about 9:30ish, another person comes by and rudely tells us "You guy need to leave, this is for VIP bottle service only." I have been to enough bars/clubs in my day where you don't need to rude to your patrons. My tab was still at the bar (fine) It was sort of, kind of getting crowded, so it took about 15 mins. for me to settle up (not even a "thank you"). The net net is this - NEVER again! If you are over 30, don't bother. read more

Kind of a joke. A line. Door guys. A TINY bar. Bad music. Reserved tables where no one sits. Gay crowd turned hipsters turned people annoyed that they can't get in. Why do you want to get in so bad? The emperor wears no clothes. read more

This place is awesome. Came here on a Saturday night with my ladies around 5 to get some drinks and the music/atmosphere was awesome. I highly recommend any speciality cocktail on the menu. Bartenders made sure to ask if our drinks tasted well. Very hip atmosphere with chill vibes. check it out! read more

35 year old Encinitas native here. Going to give this place the most honest review i can. When they first opened 2+ years ago, they rubbed a few people (especially laid-back locals) the wrong way, because they had a stricter dress code, even at 5 or 6p they would require close toed shoes and shirts tucked in i believe. Since then they have relaxed and you can day drink there on the weekends or go in before say 8p in shorts or more casual attire. Not being in my early 20's anymore, i usually don't go there past 8 or 9 because it starts to get really crowded and loud. I'll stop by on my way home from work on a Thurs or Friday night from say 630-8ish and it's a great chill place to socialize with friend or the bartenders and get a little loose. If you are up for partying like your Downtown, cruise in anytime after 930 or 10p and you will get your fix of loud music, body 2 body action and having to wait sometimes 5-10 min for a drink. read more

Great atmosphere. Beautiful staff. Music was awesome. I don't get the complainers about this place. It's what north county needed.

Ok shelter... Enjoy the 'new' bar popularity while it last because your dumb gorilla doors r not needed after that. Worst experience ever they let all these people ahead of the line... Bs! And the place was not ever nearly full. read more

What can I say? I went back and I had a fantastic time. They took care of me and couldn't have done more to make sure I had a blast. I will be back, lots of fun and I'm glad I was given the opportunity by their team. Thanks guys, you won me over. read more

Racist door bouncer, so rude. Never had a bad experience before him. I'm not one to yelp bad reviews but he was so rude and I am not about non genuine people. He let people in before me and accused me for cutting even though I was waiting in line for over 15 min. I will never come here again because of him. read more

Great music for being so far away from the city. Lots of locals, drinking, and late Ong drinks.

I've been waiting a long time for this place to open. At first, it seemed like it was going to be an extension to the Saloon next door, but once inside it's really a stand-alone establishment (although there is a door that leads directly next door). The booths are very cozy, although there are a limited number. There's additional seating at bar-height tables in the center of the space, and at the bar. Four big tv's adorn the place, so surely you can expect a crowd on Football Sunday. When I was there, the roof was closed, but according to their facebook page, it's convertible... which I think is awesome. Looking forward to going back again to have a drink with the top open. read more

Awesome place to grab a cocktail and relax. Great location and creative drinks to choose from. We like to grab dinner on the 101 then swing by after for a drink! read more

It was a good night out, cocktails were fun and strong, cool that the roof was open. Very upscale hipster, not sure why there is bottle service. read more

So disappointed in the treatment of their customers. I tried to go to the outside patio area and a security guard forcefully grabbed me by my arms and said I wasn't allowed back there. I asked why and he physically pushed me back inside and slammed the door on me. I went to the front and explained what had just happened to me. Another security guard said he would speak with the man for putting his hands on me. I'm still very confused, there were other people back there and I had been back there earlier without incident. I've never been treated this way before at a bar. I was never once told to please leave the area, I was manhandled without any warning. I'm disgusted. read more

Staff is extremely rude and I have been groped and followed around by creeps here. On one occasion, I was touched inappropriately and told this drunk dbag to keep his hands off me, but he persisted. It was packed and the bouncer just told him to leave me alone instead of making him leave, the guy did not leave me alone and I was forced to leave. People are always wasted, not a good vibe. read more

Love the option for bottle service so you don't have to go up to the bar! We went there with a group for my friend's birthday and the service was awesome!!! The retractable roof is a huge plus too! read more

I have always enjoyed the atmosphere at Shelter (retraceable roof is insane) and was stoked to hear that they were finally serving food. Right off I was impressed with their selection of typical bar food taken to the next level. I ended up with the Buttermilk Fried Chicken Sandwich and Truffle Fries. Sandwich was perfect and fries were delicious that coupled with a few drinks and a friendly wait staff made for an amazing late lunch. read more

I went to this bar tonight and have to say my experience was amazing!!everything was good but especially our bartender Luis made our experience the best we Ever had!! He made sure our drinks looked good and tasted exactly how we wanted them.he was very friendly and helpful and we will be back because of how good our service was!!thank u Luis!!! read more

Super cute fancy spot. Roof was open so it was nice and not hot even tho it was crowded. Small room though. The shot glasses were small and fancy. $30 for two tequila shots and a cranberry vodka. Felt like I needed 10 more the cup was small! Once u leave... Even to smoke outside... You'll have to wait in line again to get back in. Small place so they reach capacity fast even tho there were tons of open tables. We ended up next door at the saloon and it was way more fun! read more

We went here for the first time for a friend's 41st Birthday at 6:00 on a Friday night recently. While the ambience is nice and there are plenty of cocktails to choose from, there was ZERO food at all offered. I know this is supposed to be a 'club' (which is kind of funny for downtown Encinitas anyway) vs. a restaurant, but when you have 30 people there drinking cocktails for 4+ hours or so...it would be nice if they even put a bowl of nuts on the table. Most of our party left to eat randomly and then returned because everyone was getting so drunk without food too, not even appetizers. It was okay, but I would not choose to have a party there again or even seek it out for a happy hour place. read more

Nice spot, great ambience - the drinks are over priced. Its a good place for a drink before dinner. Probably wouldn't want to go later at night to be subjected to standing in line - when the place obviously has occupancy. read more