Our table of three enjoyed the melted goat cheese with honey, almonds and berries, the chicken empanada and the "man & cheese", along with the attentive service. The space was attractive but the low lighting had us pulling out our phone flashlights to read the menu and sometimes to see the food. We all found the vegetarian paella was loaded with far too much paprika, totally obscuring the vegetable flavors and making it a most unpleasant dish.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Empanada
Elvia Vidal
The best
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Donna
New management, new staff, new chef...waiter/Julio very good, chef/Cecelia fantastic, she came out to visit with us, to see how we were liking everything. Because everything and everyone is new you would expect a few glitches, they all handled themselves very well and were very attentive to our experience and receptive to feedback. They are working on creating new dishes as well as keeping crowd favorites. Will definitely return.
My experience at Sol y Sombra was absolutely delightful, largely due to the exceptional service provided by Kim and Daniel. They were attentive, friendly, and incredibly knowledgeable about the menu, making excellent recommendations that enhanced our dining experience. Their professionalism and warmth truly made us feel welcome and valued as customers. The paella is well worth ANY wait, the cocktails are unique and delicious, and you're missing out if you skip on the cucumber salad or tomato bread. I highly recommend this restaurant, especially for their outstanding service, ambience, and great tasting food.
pistolita
Made reservations with open table. showed up for dinner and they were closed. Next door said no one had been around all day. If you are going to put a restaurant on open table and take reservations you should make sure they are still open. Drove from coachella to cathedral city for nothing. Very disappointed with your site and the restaurant and restaurant week.
Showed up to our confirmed reservation on time to an empty restaurant. Another party showed up at the same time for their reservation. After standing around and talking with the other party for a few minutes, hoping staff would show up soon, we went back outside to see if we could find staff. We found there was a staffed pool bar outside the restaurant, where we were informed that the restaurant wasn't able to open for the day due to staffing shortage. While I understand their issue, I would expect to be contacted and informed that the restaurant will be closed rather than having to show up to our reservation to find out.
JimB
Management has understaffed the restaurant. Our waitress did the best she could under the circumstances. She was pleasant as she was running from table to table. The vacuum noise from kitchen was unacceptable and we had to move to the other dining room.
Food was terrible. It makes sense why this place was empty. Our server was great, but every course of the PSRW was terrible and the surprise forced gratuity for a table for 2 is a joke. This place doesn't need to exist.
Welcoming staff, festive environment, delicious cocktails. The food lacked flavor/character. It was more on the comfort food side, than the expected bold flavors common in paella and/or elote. Surprising, since I'm a return local customer. A good experience nonetheless.
SusanY
We had planned a nice evening out and decided on Sol Y Sombra. Terribly disappointed in the quality of the food. We had heard their paella was the best. Ours was dry, over cooked and all meat was dry and tough. Shrimp too. I thought the Chicken Croquette was also overcooked. We felt rushed through our meal as well. And there were only a few tables that night. Not the relaxing and enjoyable evening out we has hoped for, especially at the cost! The setting for the restaurant is lovely tho and very quiet and relaxing. Recommend sitting outside. Inside looks quite dark.
Had such high hopes after reading the reviews. Not sure if we hit an off night but the food was so bland. Empanadas, eloté and the calamari dipping sauce were void of flavor. Brussel sprouts and mushroom fritters were ok but bot good enough for us to ever eat here again. On a good note, the drinks were great.
We've dined here about 6 times, and the previous experiences were really great. This time was not good. Terrible service, our red sangrias were watered down by too much soda water, and had zero flavor. The paella was just decent, whereas before sangria and the paella were both fantastic. Seems like there has been a chef change, and our waiter acted like it was her first day. When you have to get up and find another waiter to ask where your (replacement) drink is, it's bad. For Spanish tapas, go to Catalan in Rancho Mirage. This place is regrettably a no”.
greenee
Someone had mentioned to me that the paella had a slightly metallic taste, so this time I paid extra attention to it. It does have a slight metallic taste. I then had a drink of water and noticed the same taste. I think it's possible that they are not using filtered water and that may affect the taste of the rice. I still think the paella is good and love all the tapas we've tried there. I would still recommend the restaurant but would encourage them to use filtered water.
R Reviews
Was hoping for better than the reviews I read...unfortunately... it wasn't. The calamari was over cooked and rubbery. The garlic shrimp were ok. Not the large prawns I was hoping for. The mushroom croquettes weren't anything special. The chicken croquettes were the only thing we enjoyed. The ambiance outside is nice on a cooler eve ring. Server was very sweet. Don't think I' be going back anytime soon, unfortunately. We didn't even risk trying the entrees. Pricey for what you're getting. The sangrias were just ok.
AnnaBritta Harmon
What an amazing restaurant inside the hotel property. The best Paella my husband and I have had outside of Spain! Danielle was our waiter. He was amazing! His recommendation of the orange cheesecake in the fabulous specialty drinks we started with made our evening.!!
Our table of three enjoyed the melted goat cheese with honey, almonds and berries, the chicken empanada and the "man & cheese", along with the attentive service. The space was attractive but the low lighting had us pulling out our phone flashlights to read the menu and sometimes to see the food. We all found the vegetarian paella was loaded with far too much paprika, totally obscuring the vegetable flavors and making it a most unpleasant dish.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Empanada
The best
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
New management, new staff, new chef...waiter/Julio very good, chef/Cecelia fantastic, she came out to visit with us, to see how we were liking everything. Because everything and everyone is new you would expect a few glitches, they all handled themselves very well and were very attentive to our experience and receptive to feedback. They are working on creating new dishes as well as keeping crowd favorites. Will definitely return.
My experience at Sol y Sombra was absolutely delightful, largely due to the exceptional service provided by Kim and Daniel. They were attentive, friendly, and incredibly knowledgeable about the menu, making excellent recommendations that enhanced our dining experience. Their professionalism and warmth truly made us feel welcome and valued as customers. The paella is well worth ANY wait, the cocktails are unique and delicious, and you're missing out if you skip on the cucumber salad or tomato bread. I highly recommend this restaurant, especially for their outstanding service, ambience, and great tasting food.
Made reservations with open table. showed up for dinner and they were closed. Next door said no one had been around all day. If you are going to put a restaurant on open table and take reservations you should make sure they are still open. Drove from coachella to cathedral city for nothing. Very disappointed with your site and the restaurant and restaurant week.
Showed up to our confirmed reservation on time to an empty restaurant. Another party showed up at the same time for their reservation. After standing around and talking with the other party for a few minutes, hoping staff would show up soon, we went back outside to see if we could find staff. We found there was a staffed pool bar outside the restaurant, where we were informed that the restaurant wasn't able to open for the day due to staffing shortage. While I understand their issue, I would expect to be contacted and informed that the restaurant will be closed rather than having to show up to our reservation to find out.
Management has understaffed the restaurant. Our waitress did the best she could under the circumstances. She was pleasant as she was running from table to table. The vacuum noise from kitchen was unacceptable and we had to move to the other dining room.
Food was terrible. It makes sense why this place was empty. Our server was great, but every course of the PSRW was terrible and the surprise forced gratuity for a table for 2 is a joke. This place doesn't need to exist.
Welcoming staff, festive environment, delicious cocktails. The food lacked flavor/character. It was more on the comfort food side, than the expected bold flavors common in paella and/or elote. Surprising, since I'm a return local customer. A good experience nonetheless.
We had planned a nice evening out and decided on Sol Y Sombra. Terribly disappointed in the quality of the food. We had heard their paella was the best. Ours was dry, over cooked and all meat was dry and tough. Shrimp too. I thought the Chicken Croquette was also overcooked. We felt rushed through our meal as well. And there were only a few tables that night. Not the relaxing and enjoyable evening out we has hoped for, especially at the cost! The setting for the restaurant is lovely tho and very quiet and relaxing. Recommend sitting outside. Inside looks quite dark.
Restaurantji Recommends
Had such high hopes after reading the reviews. Not sure if we hit an off night but the food was so bland. Empanadas, eloté and the calamari dipping sauce were void of flavor. Brussel sprouts and mushroom fritters were ok but bot good enough for us to ever eat here again. On a good note, the drinks were great.
We've dined here about 6 times, and the previous experiences were really great. This time was not good. Terrible service, our red sangrias were watered down by too much soda water, and had zero flavor. The paella was just decent, whereas before sangria and the paella were both fantastic. Seems like there has been a chef change, and our waiter acted like it was her first day. When you have to get up and find another waiter to ask where your (replacement) drink is, it's bad. For Spanish tapas, go to Catalan in Rancho Mirage. This place is regrettably a no”.
Someone had mentioned to me that the paella had a slightly metallic taste, so this time I paid extra attention to it. It does have a slight metallic taste. I then had a drink of water and noticed the same taste. I think it's possible that they are not using filtered water and that may affect the taste of the rice. I still think the paella is good and love all the tapas we've tried there. I would still recommend the restaurant but would encourage them to use filtered water.
Was hoping for better than the reviews I read...unfortunately... it wasn't. The calamari was over cooked and rubbery. The garlic shrimp were ok.
Not the large prawns I was hoping for. The mushroom croquettes weren't anything special. The chicken croquettes were the only thing we enjoyed.
The ambiance outside is nice on a cooler eve ring.
Server was very sweet. Don't think I' be going back anytime soon, unfortunately. We didn't even risk trying the entrees. Pricey for what you're getting. The sangrias were just ok.
What an amazing restaurant inside the hotel property. The best Paella my husband and I have had outside of Spain! Danielle was our waiter. He was amazing! His recommendation of the orange cheesecake in the fabulous specialty drinks we started with made our evening.!!
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