Solare

Reviews 5

JA

Jay Keyes

Located in Liberty Station, Solare Ristorante is an authentic Italian restaurant with a Sicily-born chef who executes southern Italian cuisine. In other words, if youre looking for "chicken parm" and "pasta primavera," look elsewhere! I am picky about Italian, which is to also say that San Diegos mostly lame Italian options have been a source of frustration and angst since moving here last year. Solare is one of a handful of Italian restaurants in San Diego that could survive in New York City. I recommend the "Tartara di Tonno," Solares Sicilian interpretation of tuna tartare: a meaty cake of chopped raw ahi tuna with capers, horseradish, basil, and garlic. The vibrant pink color of this appetizer makes it as nice to look at as it is to eat. Do you like meatballs? Try the "Polpette al Forno." The smooth texture and delicate flavor of these small Subway-sized veal meatballs are not lost in a thick marinara sauce, as they instead swim in a collagen-rich stock-y sauce that is lightly touched with tomato. The meatballs are topped with crispy arugula leaves and grated parmigiano reggiano. The "Pappardelle Verdi Salsiccia e Carciofi" is a spicy pasta dish constructed with spinach pappardelle noodles, sweet fennel sausage, chopped artichokes, tomatoes, chilies, and covered in large, thin slices of pecorino crotonese cheese. Solare indicates that all pasta served during the course of a day is made from scratch that morning, and this is evident by the quality and freshness of their hefty and terrific pappardelle. The citrusy crotonese is the ideal cheese for this heavy (and oily) bowl of meat and noodles. If youre looking for a heavier meal, youll want to order the "Ossobuco di Maiale," which is very similar to a traditional ossobuco alla milanese, but with a 22oz Salmon Creek pork shank instead of the traditional veal shank. Braised meat rarely ever will be done better than it is here -- the meat was velvety, soft, rich, and had incredible flavor. The marinated cremini mushrooms were also insanely excellent, my only complaint being that there were just three of them on my plate. The shank itself rested on a bed of creamy risotto flavored with a tangy gremolata and a perfect amount of saffron. The interior of the restaurant is stylish, with teak wood furnishings, stone accents, and a glass-enclosed cube-like wine room that separates the bar area from the dining room. There is also a ton of outdoor seating. Solare is a fantastic destination in San Diego for Italian, as they have hit all the right notes on taste, presentation, creativity, price, decor, and service.

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MI

Mike Nguyen

wow was this place is a HUGE disappointment. First we get there and it looks decent. we go to the hostess stand and the guy says "do you have reservations?" me, "No". him, "well, well fit you in but you should make reservations in the future because we really busy on Saturday night." um.......i looked around and saw about 10 tables open plus all the seat on the patio, which is where we wanted to see anyways. Strike one.....lie and make it seem like you are super busy especially when i look around and i see half the restaurant empty. AND.....while, im sitting outside and i can see how many more people go in and it definitely wasnt enough to fill all your open tables. AND definitely dont lie to me and say that the tables in the front near the heat lamp is reserved when the couple after me asks if they can sit there and you let them.WTF?! My next problem was the service. we waiting 10 minutes to get water and our drinks ordered. the food itself..........ive had better at olive garden. We had the prosciutto and salami board to start..... um, 4 pieces of prosciutto and about 10 pieces of salami.......seriously?! that was the biggest waste of $15 ever. My wife had the Osso Bucco, which is pork by the way if you dont read carefully, its not the traditional veal shank which was kinda tough and had no flavor at all on top of "risotto"....like about 2 tablespoons of risotto. I had the linguine alla pecatora......meh......tasted like they opened up a can of Del Monte Stewed Tomatoes and just mixed. We got the bill and paid......the freakin waiter took the bill while we were still sitting there........at least wait until we get out of our seats!!!! i will never go here again........STAY AWAY........unless you like be overcharged and enjoy horrible service.

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JO

Jonathan Adler

Solare excels in all respects as one of the best Italian fine dining establishments. The restaurant is large and very well designed, featuring gorgeous private dining rooms with wine rack walls as well as a full bar and spacious dining areas. The Staff recommended the Tasting Menu which consisted of: Insalata-lettuce wedge in egg mouse with mustard seed caviar. This was a superb and memorable combination of flavors. Ravioli in brown butter, sage, arugula with ricotta Papardelle al Sugo di Salsiccia-house made pasta aged a year with sausages and pistachos. This dish is a winner featuring a delicious crunchiness and deep flavor. The highlight was my first ever Hawaiian Monchong fish in smoked tomato broth and fingerling potatoes. The fish was perfectly cooked, very fresh and tender. My wine selection, Montepulciano was exceptional and perfectly complemented the food. I also had a Voltaire mixed drink which I highly recommend. Before and afterwards, the Owner and head chef from Sicily were gracious enough to welcome me as a guest. Solare also features a gorgeous outdoor patio and is full of art which really enhances the mood. Verdict: Solare is well deserving of its #1 rating in San Diego magazine for Italian restaurants and is easily within the 100 best in the nation in my experience. Kudos to the exceptional team there.

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TO

Tony Corsini

Very good, high end Italian restaurant. They do have very small portions, which keeps me from not coming back more often. All the food dishes Ive had has lots of flavor and taste high quality, but you will not be full and at $20-30 dishes, this is a little upsetting. Both me and my girlfriend ate all our food and were still hungry after and this was during Restaurant Week, which means we had 3 courses and still didnt get full! Visited this place, not during restaurant week and again enjoyed my pasta dish but was left wanting more. You do get complimentary bread, but its nothing too special. They have a great selection of wines, especially the Italian ones. The best part is on Tuesdays its half off bottles of wine under $80. You can get some really high end wine for a great price! They also have happy hour everyday, which I hear is a very good deal. Very friendly staff and the restaurant environment is very romantic, a good place to take a date.

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RI

Rich Miño

Located in Liberty Station, the team at Solare have done a great job making the place elegant and welcoming. The place seems to be divided into two sections, with more formal dining to the left and the bar and additional seating on the right. Both offer the same great menu and ambiance. On certain nights, Solare has live entertainment which adds even more reasons to love this hidden gem in Point Loma. If its available, ask for the table in the wine cellar, its a glass room in the middle of the restaurant that stocks an amazing selection of wine bottles to enjoy. You can also ask to be seated at the kitchen table where the chef can prepare selections for you to enjoy. A large private room for special events is available, and they have outside dining as well if thats more your thing. Were definitely coming back to Solare, as the food was by far some of the best weve had in Point Loma. (Happy Hour, by the way, is pretty great, too!)

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