I don't leave reviews ever, but after my experience last month at Sonoma Cellar, I was so upset, I can't not say something.
My family has been long-time advocates of Sonoma Cellar since they popped up on King Street a few years back. We always love the food and have a great time.
Last month for my mom's birthday, I thought what better place to take her. So my dad called the day of and got us a reservation. We were running behind schedule so we called again and asked if it was alright if we pushed back about 15 minutes. The gentlemen at the end of the line was super pleasant and assured us that that was a-ok.
When we arrived, the place was pretty empty but for a couple at a small table and a woman sitting at the bar with a glass of wine. There was a musician there performing with his guitar, and he was just excellent (truly saved our evening).
The manager (?? not sure if it was the manager, but seemed like it was) got up from her corner (a dining table by the window), took one of her AirPods out, and came up to us. She told us we could sit wherever and gave us some menus. She didn't seem aware that we had made a reservation.
It's probably important I tell you it was "Thanksgiving Eve" when we went. This didn't really matter to me or my parents, but it definitely mattered to the manager, which is something we learned.
About 10 minutes into sitting there with our menus and water, she had asked us what we wanted twice. She explained that she wanted to make sure her kitchen staff could leave early tonight "because of the holiday" so that's why she was rushing us. She seemed more concerned with getting our orders in than giving us waters.
After a mere ten minutes of being there, we order, and she returns to her corner to do computer work with her AirPods in. The AirPods really bothered me because there was a musician there performing. It felt rude.
After we finished eating our EXCELLENT FOOD, she comes over to grab our plates almost immediately. It became more apparent that rushing us had little to do with wanting to send the kitchen staff home, as we were still being rushed AFTER we had received and eaten our food.
She brings us the bill after clearing our plates, then says, very loudly, to one of the other customers, that she wants to close soon because it’s Thanksgiving Eve and a lot of people are drinking tonight, and she doesn’t want to deal with drunk drivers on the way home. She comes over to check on our bill and processes our payment.
After we get the card back, we’re finishing our water and diet cokes when she comes over and collects either one of our empty glasses or our silverware (can’t remember which)— but she basically picks something off of our table that wasn’t our plates (already cleared those). And that was the real kicker. Because we had finished eating; we had paid; the musician was still playing; there were still two other customers at the bar drinking wine. We were just sitting there minding our own business, finishing the diet cokes we paid for, and even that was a problem.
So we left, said thank you to the musician, gave him a nice Venmo tip and were on our merry ways. It was just so shocking. She didn’t even say have a good night when we left--the musician did.
For the up-scale vibe of this restaurant, the price point, etc. I was truly not expecting to be treated like the biggest headache. I tried to be understanding at first. As someone who’s worked in the service industry, I know you have good days and bad days, and it can be hard to give absolutely every customer the best experience. However, there were SO many moments in which the manager could have chosen to be kind or professional or respectful, but she just wasn’t. It seemed her only goal that night was to get us in and out as fast as possible. Needless to say, it wa
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 1
Yashar
Not sure how they got a 4.5 rating, but....
Ok, so we got the cheese and meat board as our starter. I love cheese, and of the 4 cheeses, one of them taste like it was washed with sewage water... gross. The other 3 were so-so; cheddar was good, the other two that had no name or real description besides "this is a soft cheese and this is a hard cheese" 🙄 were mid and we were given very small portions. I can get better cheese from wegmans for like cheap.
For food, we got fish tacos, carne asada tacos, and the chicken skewers. Chicken was well seasoned and had good portions.
The fish tacos were good, per my friend. I didn't try it. The carne asada tacos was very good and getting 3 for 20 was a great deal
Overall, it was fine. Cheese board? Skip.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Wanda Negron
The service is outstanding. Our server Eliseo was on point with being around taking care of everything. The food is excellent and the wine selection is what you are looking for. Coming back soon!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Mzuri Tiffany
Bryan, from Sonoma Cellar is incredibly knowledgeable and a genuinely amazing person. He turned a basic wine taste experience into an absolute spectacular experience with knowledge about every wine on the menu. He is a true gift to this establishment. Go day hello to Bryan ♡
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
shanea williams
Very intimate setting with fire pit, piano player, wine, and blankets for the cold.. Wasn't expecting this setting but it was really nice! Food was delicious. Burger, short rib pasta and avocado shrimp toast
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Beef Short Ribs
deborah outlaw
Fun laid back place. For dinner or late snacks. Fine quality. And great wines that don't break the bank
jeffrey potter
Great wine selection and the bartender Sofie was great!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Devlin Kostal
We wanted to like this place so much. The atmosphere is great, and the service was very good. The problem is the food and wine were terrible. The wine selection is mediocre, and there are oddities like the fact that when you order a flight, you can’t get any of those wines individually. Add to that collectively disappointing food - my eggs benedict was the victim of the runniest hollandaise I’ve ever experienced, and the french onion soup had no salt - and the salt we were given was stuck together. It was just altogether severely underwhelming, and I can say for certain we won’t be going back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 4
Lord Emperor
Great Service, excellent food and wine. Ask for Roy.
Great food, unique and beautiful restaurant, great atmosphere and decoration. Great selection of wines and beers. Excellent service. The staff was very knowledgeable and helpful.
We love Sonoma Cellar! It’s been a bit since we’ve been as we have an infant, but we decided to come for Happy Hour (with the baby), and we instantly remembered why we love this spot! We enjoyed wine flights, charcuterie boards and prosciutto & burrata in the courtyard, everything was amazing. Our server, Jody, was wonderful, so personable and fun to chat with. We’ll be back!
Mary Bender
We are wine club members…so when Sonoma Cellar was sold we were concerned. It’s a local favorite so we weren’t the only ones …faces changed a bit, the chalkboard was different —maybe one or two new items on the menu….but we were leery …
And then we met Jacob. Jacob brings everything you want to a casual wine bar…knowledge of all the wines offered, enthusiastic about new offerings and flights, accommodating when you order something you thought you’d love…but don’t .
More than one visit…he remembers your name…he checks in as if it’s a pleasure…not just his job…
The food is great…hardly any miss on the menu…but the service…and Jacob is why you come back
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Wine Tasting, Nibbles Trio
Gerard Maraj
Sonoma Cellar has been this hidden gem from where you can relax and enjoy a great wine selection with good accompaniments. Kylie was our “sommelier” during our most recent visit and she provided us with a down to earth description of the wines and what best flavor profiles fit our personality. Love coming here to unwind, y’all should too.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Wine Tasting
Trenide Grant
The service, food, atmosphere, and most importantly the wine is sublime. This place is now my second home. Kaylie made my husband and i feel at home and is extremely knowledgeable.
P.S. surprisingly the Carne Asada Tacos are 10/10. Everything I have tried has been spectacular but the tacos are just amazing
I don't leave reviews ever, but after my experience last month at Sonoma Cellar, I was so upset, I can't not say something.
My family has been long-time advocates of Sonoma Cellar since they popped up on King Street a few years back. We always love the food and have a great time.
Last month for my mom's birthday, I thought what better place to take her. So my dad called the day of and got us a reservation. We were running behind schedule so we called again and asked if it was alright if we pushed back about 15 minutes. The gentlemen at the end of the line was super pleasant and assured us that that was a-ok.
When we arrived, the place was pretty empty but for a couple at a small table and a woman sitting at the bar with a glass of wine. There was a musician there performing with his guitar, and he was just excellent (truly saved our evening).
The manager (?? not sure if it was the manager, but seemed like it was) got up from her corner (a dining table by the window), took one of her AirPods out, and came up to us. She told us we could sit wherever and gave us some menus. She didn't seem aware that we had made a reservation.
It's probably important I tell you it was "Thanksgiving Eve" when we went. This didn't really matter to me or my parents, but it definitely mattered to the manager, which is something we learned.
About 10 minutes into sitting there with our menus and water, she had asked us what we wanted twice. She explained that she wanted to make sure her kitchen staff could leave early tonight "because of the holiday" so that's why she was rushing us. She seemed more concerned with getting our orders in than giving us waters.
After a mere ten minutes of being there, we order, and she returns to her corner to do computer work with her AirPods in. The AirPods really bothered me because there was a musician there performing. It felt rude.
After we finished eating our EXCELLENT FOOD, she comes over to grab our plates almost immediately. It became more apparent that rushing us had little to do with wanting to send the kitchen staff home, as we were still being rushed AFTER we had received and eaten our food.
She brings us the bill after clearing our plates, then says, very loudly, to one of the other customers, that she wants to close soon because it’s Thanksgiving Eve and a lot of people are drinking tonight, and she doesn’t want to deal with drunk drivers on the way home. She comes over to check on our bill and processes our payment.
After we get the card back, we’re finishing our water and diet cokes when she comes over and collects either one of our empty glasses or our silverware (can’t remember which)— but she basically picks something off of our table that wasn’t our plates (already cleared those). And that was the real kicker. Because we had finished eating; we had paid; the musician was still playing; there were still two other customers at the bar drinking wine. We were just sitting there minding our own business, finishing the diet cokes we paid for, and even that was a problem.
So we left, said thank you to the musician, gave him a nice Venmo tip and were on our merry ways. It was just so shocking. She didn’t even say have a good night when we left--the musician did.
For the up-scale vibe of this restaurant, the price point, etc. I was truly not expecting to be treated like the biggest headache. I tried to be understanding at first. As someone who’s worked in the service industry, I know you have good days and bad days, and it can be hard to give absolutely every customer the best experience. However, there were SO many moments in which the manager could have chosen to be kind or professional or respectful, but she just wasn’t. It seemed her only goal that night was to get us in and out as fast as possible. Needless to say, it wa
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 1
Not sure how they got a 4.5 rating, but....
Ok, so we got the cheese and meat board as our starter. I love cheese, and of the 4 cheeses, one of them taste like it was washed with sewage water... gross. The other 3 were so-so; cheddar was good, the other two that had no name or real description besides "this is a soft cheese and this is a hard cheese" 🙄 were mid and we were given very small portions. I can get better cheese from wegmans for like cheap.
For food, we got fish tacos, carne asada tacos, and the chicken skewers. Chicken was well seasoned and had good portions.
The fish tacos were good, per my friend. I didn't try it. The carne asada tacos was very good and getting 3 for 20 was a great deal
Overall, it was fine. Cheese board? Skip.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
The service is outstanding. Our server Eliseo was on point with being around taking care of everything. The food is excellent and the wine selection is what you are looking for. Coming back soon!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Bryan, from Sonoma Cellar is incredibly knowledgeable and a genuinely amazing person. He turned a basic wine taste experience into an absolute spectacular experience with knowledge about every wine on the menu. He is a true gift to this establishment. Go day hello to Bryan ♡
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very intimate setting with fire pit, piano player, wine, and blankets for the cold..
Wasn't expecting this setting but it was really nice! Food was delicious. Burger, short rib pasta and avocado shrimp toast
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Beef Short Ribs
Fun laid back place. For dinner or late snacks. Fine quality. And great wines that don't break the bank
Great wine selection and the bartender Sofie was great!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
We wanted to like this place so much. The atmosphere is great, and the service was very good. The problem is the food and wine were terrible. The wine selection is mediocre, and there are oddities like the fact that when you order a flight, you can’t get any of those wines individually. Add to that collectively disappointing food - my eggs benedict was the victim of the runniest hollandaise I’ve ever experienced, and the french onion soup had no salt - and the salt we were given was stuck together. It was just altogether severely underwhelming, and I can say for certain we won’t be going back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 4
Great Service, excellent food and wine. Ask for Roy.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Artisan Cheese Charcuterie Plate
Great Service, excellent food and wine. Ask for Roy.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Artisan Cheese Charcuterie Plate
Restaurantji Recommends
Great food, unique and beautiful restaurant, great atmosphere and decoration. Great selection of wines and beers. Excellent service. The staff was very knowledgeable and helpful.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Strawberry Chicken Arugula Spinach Salad
We love Sonoma Cellar! It’s been a bit since we’ve been as we have an infant, but we decided to come for Happy Hour (with the baby), and we instantly remembered why we love this spot! We enjoyed wine flights, charcuterie boards and prosciutto & burrata in the courtyard, everything was amazing. Our server, Jody, was wonderful, so personable and fun to chat with. We’ll be back!
We are wine club members…so when Sonoma Cellar was sold we were concerned. It’s a local favorite so we weren’t the only ones …faces changed a bit, the chalkboard was different —maybe one or two new items on the menu….but we were leery …
And then we met Jacob. Jacob brings everything you want to a casual wine bar…knowledge of all the wines offered, enthusiastic about new offerings and flights, accommodating when you order something you thought you’d love…but don’t .
More than one visit…he remembers your name…he checks in as if it’s a pleasure…not just his job…
The food is great…hardly any miss on the menu…but the service…and Jacob is why you come back
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Wine Tasting, Nibbles Trio
Sonoma Cellar has been this hidden gem from where you can relax and enjoy a great wine selection with good accompaniments. Kylie was our “sommelier” during our most recent visit and she provided us with a down to earth description of the wines and what best flavor profiles fit our personality. Love coming here to unwind, y’all should too.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Wine Tasting
The service, food, atmosphere, and most importantly the wine is sublime. This place is now my second home. Kaylie made my husband and i feel at home and is extremely knowledgeable.
P.S. surprisingly the Carne Asada Tacos are 10/10. Everything I have tried has been spectacular but the tacos are just amazing
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Carne Asada Tacos
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