The two stars are for their great selection but they do a lot of business online and unfortunately they treat their local customers like they are just another e-commerce transaction, rather than looking to have a relationship and provide great service like other local retailers do. That formula doesn't work for me- I can get great selection anywhere on the web- too many other great local options that have great selection and great service.
Amy P.
What a gem! The informed and adventurous wine shop team, cute tucked away bar, and solid wine club have had me on board for the last three years. Solano Cellars is great!
Wayne H.
I've been buying from Solano Cellars online since 2018 and since we were in the area, decided to stop in to see if they had a wine they listed in Wine Searcher in the store. As others have discovered, the physical store doesn't carry anywhere near what they list online, which makes sense once you see the store, which is quite small (so honestly should not have been that surprising). I'm happy that I didn't make a special trip out! Contrary to what others have mentioned, we found the staff extremely helpful in making a selection and explaining how the wine bar works. They were extremely busy, but doing an incredible job running between the wine bar and the retail to help people out. I'm not sure if they were understaffed that night but two people to run an almost full wine bar + fill wine club/online orders + help retail customers - it honestly seems a bit much for two people. The wine bar offers flights and BTG, but you can also select a bottle off the floor to open and enjoy for a modest corkage fee (I think it was $10 or $15). We opted to do the latter. Although the shop doesn't have everything that's listed online, there is still quite a good selection of wines - interesting varietals and regions, but also all the more well-known varietals and regions. Based on the selection of wines in the shop, their style definitely tends toward fresher styles over wines wines with super high alcohol and tons of oak. I didn't see any Rombauer Chardonnay or Caymus :) Next time we're in the area and looking for a special bottle or just to enjoy a glass, we'll definitely be stopping in again!
Joel J.
So much expectation but really poor poor delivery wow Francesco he didn't a clue about the cheese, service, everything was I don't know enjoy !!! What kind of business are you running !!! You need to do a meeting before your shift start taste the wines are they oh maybe cork wow horrible service ! Horrible wine
Margaret N.
Such a fun little wine bar. They had their power knocked out for 3+ weeks by a downed utility pole. But they were still open, so glad! We couldn't try the food because if the power outage and there was only server for all of the customers. People had to be patient. Still- cute, fun wines and a few ciders too.
Choriko Hay-Bogues
Moved here from New Orleans and have had a hard time finding a local cali beer to match my favorite from home. I told her what it was and she absolutely nailed it with her recommendation. This beer makes me feel like I'm home again. Thank you!
Laurel M.
We love wine and we love shopping local so we were very excited to try out Solano Cellars. Unfortunately the Manager, Mary Kate, was so rude that we had a poor experience, spent less money as a result, and won't return. We popped in on a Saturday with our little family while we were hanging out after my son's first haircut. Mary Kate seemed annoyed by the mere presence of my kid the second we walked in the door. Didn't greet us, was running around and after a while finally asked if she could get us anything. I asked for a dry white for quiche, she said that was too broad, asked me some questions and got me a wine. We started walking about the store and she just couldn't have been colder (we were the only people there). My husband asked about tasting, really just asking about the shop and making conversation and she snapped "the bar is closed". What a missed opportunity to make money- she could have at least told us how it worked, when it was open, etc. I then asked about the wine club and again just a monotone generic answer, didn't ask me if we wanted to join. Just so unwelcoming. Then my kid started playing with a box of wine on the floor (with me standing directly over him, touching him, while talking) and she ran over and moved the box right from under us "let me take this!". And then we finally checked out, spending about 1/5 of the money we planned and not joining the wine club which we had come in to do. So Manager Mary Kate is not only not kid friendly but also bad for business. Not being kid friendly on Solano seems silly, right?
Mary G.
Since my family has moved to El Cerrito from Oakland we've come to Solano cellars for the past few months. Every experience we've had here has been nothing more than trash. They are a bit more than rude and borderline dehumanizing.
Wes Williams
Great wine selection and knowledgeable staff to help find the wine to go with whatever you are having for dinner.
aramis rodriguez
Fantastic service. I ordered a hard to find wine online and got a great price for the case. When there was a problem with shipping (not Solano fault), they kept me informed and found a way to rush the order so it would arrive for my mothers 60th birthday. Thanks Nick 10/10
Sought out an interesting and affordable, local pinot, and they found a great one for me. Been coming back weekly ever since!
Johnny V.
DO NOT BUY FROM HERE. They do not stock even a minority of the wines they post on their site. They list all the wines under the sun at ponzi-scheme-like pricing and bait and switch you once you order. I ordered a high-end wine off their site for in-store pickup...and crickets. No reply, no nothing, and finally once I reached out to them a week later they told me they tried to special order it but it was out of stock, and tried to offer me an inferior vintage of a similar wine. With fine wine, the vintage can be VERY important, and they tried to s***** me into an inferior wine. These folks are worse than used car salesmen trying to sell you a lemon. There's a reason why the saying "if it's too good to be true" exists. Do the right thing and support wine shops who DON'T TRY TO SCAM THEIR CUSTOMERS. There are plenty of other nice retail shops out there who are doing honest business. What a joke of a business.
Johnathan W.
DO NOT BUY FROM HERE.They do not stock even a minority of the wines they post on their site. They list all the wines under the sun at ponzi-scheme-like pricing and bait and switch you once you order. I ordered a high-end wine off their site for in-store pickup...and crickets. No reply, no nothing, and finally once I reached out to them a week later they told me they tried to special order it but it was out of stock, and tried to offer me an inferior vintage of a similar wine. With fine wine, the vintage can be VERY important, and they tried to sucker me into an inferior wine.These folks are worse than used car salesmen trying to sell you a lemon. There's a reason why the saying "if it's too good to be true" exists. Do the right thing and support wine shops who DON'T TRY TO SCAM THEIR CUSTOMERS. There are plenty of other nice retail shops out there who are doing honest business. What a joke of a business.
Cesar Cancino
Fabulous wine shop!
Mary A.
Solano Cellars offers awesome home delivery of a wide assortment of wines and ports. Great customer service with timely deliveries!
The two stars are for their great selection but they do a lot of business online and unfortunately they treat their local customers like they are just another e-commerce transaction, rather than looking to have a relationship and provide great service like other local retailers do. That formula doesn't work for me- I can get great selection anywhere on the web- too many other great local options that have great selection and great service.
What a gem! The informed and adventurous wine shop team, cute tucked away bar, and solid wine club have had me on board for the last three years. Solano Cellars is great!
I've been buying from Solano Cellars online since 2018 and since we were in the area, decided to stop in to see if they had a wine they listed in Wine Searcher in the store. As others have discovered, the physical store doesn't carry anywhere near what they list online, which makes sense once you see the store, which is quite small (so honestly should not have been that surprising). I'm happy that I didn't make a special trip out! Contrary to what others have mentioned, we found the staff extremely helpful in making a selection and explaining how the wine bar works. They were extremely busy, but doing an incredible job running between the wine bar and the retail to help people out. I'm not sure if they were understaffed that night but two people to run an almost full wine bar + fill wine club/online orders + help retail customers - it honestly seems a bit much for two people. The wine bar offers flights and BTG, but you can also select a bottle off the floor to open and enjoy for a modest corkage fee (I think it was $10 or $15). We opted to do the latter. Although the shop doesn't have everything that's listed online, there is still quite a good selection of wines - interesting varietals and regions, but also all the more well-known varietals and regions. Based on the selection of wines in the shop, their style definitely tends toward fresher styles over wines wines with super high alcohol and tons of oak. I didn't see any Rombauer Chardonnay or Caymus :) Next time we're in the area and looking for a special bottle or just to enjoy a glass, we'll definitely be stopping in again!
So much expectation but really poor poor delivery wow Francesco he didn't a clue about the cheese, service, everything was I don't know enjoy !!! What kind of business are you running !!! You need to do a meeting before your shift start taste the wines are they oh maybe cork wow horrible service ! Horrible wine
Such a fun little wine bar. They had their power knocked out for 3+ weeks by a downed utility pole. But they were still open, so glad! We couldn't try the food because if the power outage and there was only server for all of the customers. People had to be patient. Still- cute, fun wines and a few ciders too.
Moved here from New Orleans and have had a hard time finding a local cali beer to match my favorite from home. I told her what it was and she absolutely nailed it with her recommendation. This beer makes me feel like I'm home again. Thank you!
We love wine and we love shopping local so we were very excited to try out Solano Cellars. Unfortunately the Manager, Mary Kate, was so rude that we had a poor experience, spent less money as a result, and won't return. We popped in on a Saturday with our little family while we were hanging out after my son's first haircut. Mary Kate seemed annoyed by the mere presence of my kid the second we walked in the door. Didn't greet us, was running around and after a while finally asked if she could get us anything. I asked for a dry white for quiche, she said that was too broad, asked me some questions and got me a wine. We started walking about the store and she just couldn't have been colder (we were the only people there). My husband asked about tasting, really just asking about the shop and making conversation and she snapped "the bar is closed". What a missed opportunity to make money- she could have at least told us how it worked, when it was open, etc. I then asked about the wine club and again just a monotone generic answer, didn't ask me if we wanted to join. Just so unwelcoming. Then my kid started playing with a box of wine on the floor (with me standing directly over him, touching him, while talking) and she ran over and moved the box right from under us "let me take this!". And then we finally checked out, spending about 1/5 of the money we planned and not joining the wine club which we had come in to do. So Manager Mary Kate is not only not kid friendly but also bad for business. Not being kid friendly on Solano seems silly, right?
Since my family has moved to El Cerrito from Oakland we've come to Solano cellars for the past few months. Every experience we've had here has been nothing more than trash. They are a bit more than rude and borderline dehumanizing.
Great wine selection and knowledgeable staff to help find the wine to go with whatever you are having for dinner.
Fantastic service. I ordered a hard to find wine online and got a great price for the case. When there was a problem with shipping (not Solano fault), they kept me informed and found a way to rush the order so it would arrive for my mothers 60th birthday. Thanks Nick 10/10
Restaurantji Recommends
Sought out an interesting and affordable, local pinot, and they found a great one for me. Been coming back weekly ever since!
DO NOT BUY FROM HERE. They do not stock even a minority of the wines they post on their site. They list all the wines under the sun at ponzi-scheme-like pricing and bait and switch you once you order. I ordered a high-end wine off their site for in-store pickup...and crickets. No reply, no nothing, and finally once I reached out to them a week later they told me they tried to special order it but it was out of stock, and tried to offer me an inferior vintage of a similar wine. With fine wine, the vintage can be VERY important, and they tried to s***** me into an inferior wine. These folks are worse than used car salesmen trying to sell you a lemon. There's a reason why the saying "if it's too good to be true" exists. Do the right thing and support wine shops who DON'T TRY TO SCAM THEIR CUSTOMERS. There are plenty of other nice retail shops out there who are doing honest business. What a joke of a business.
DO NOT BUY FROM HERE.They do not stock even a minority of the wines they post on their site. They list all the wines under the sun at ponzi-scheme-like pricing and bait and switch you once you order. I ordered a high-end wine off their site for in-store pickup...and crickets. No reply, no nothing, and finally once I reached out to them a week later they told me they tried to special order it but it was out of stock, and tried to offer me an inferior vintage of a similar wine. With fine wine, the vintage can be VERY important, and they tried to sucker me into an inferior wine.These folks are worse than used car salesmen trying to sell you a lemon. There's a reason why the saying "if it's too good to be true" exists. Do the right thing and support wine shops who DON'T TRY TO SCAM THEIR CUSTOMERS. There are plenty of other nice retail shops out there who are doing honest business. What a joke of a business.
Fabulous wine shop!
Solano Cellars offers awesome home delivery of a wide assortment of wines and ports. Great customer service with timely deliveries!