Location: Solvang
Top Restaurants in Solvang
Solvang Food Guide: 10 Must-Eat Restaurants & Street Food Stalls in Solvang
Solvang (/ˈsɒlvæŋ/; Danish: [ˈsoːlvɑŋˀ]; Danish for 'sunny field') is a city in Santa Barbara County, California. It is located in the Santa Ynez Valley. The population was 5,245 at the 2010 census, down from 5,332 at the 2000 census. Solvang was incorporated as a city on May 1, 1985.
Things to do in Solvang
1. El Rancho Market
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 88 reviews
Reviewed By PeggyChism - Long Beach, California
The hot ticket is to go here and have them make you a custom Sandwich ...add cookies and potato chips and head out to Rusack Vineyards buy a bottle of wine and sit on their outside deck and feel the pure pleasure of the Valley. We love this market with it's friendly staff especially the gal that works in the Wine area. This is a must!
2. Fresco Valley Cafe
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 195 reviews
Serving Breakfast & Lunch 7 days a week in a casual atmosphere, Fresco Valley Cafe places an emphasis on organic & natural ingredients with many light, healthy options to get you through the day. Proudly offering regional, local wine with a variety of microbrews our outdoor patio is a great way to enjoy the beautfiul California sunshine.Our patio is pet friendly, we even have a dog menu!
Reviewed By 19er - Yorba Linda, California
Ate lunch here before we were able to check into our hotel. There’s a nice selection of soup, salads and sandwiches. We saw a note in the menu that sandwiches could be ordered whole or by the half but didn’t consider the half option. We will next time. Our sandwiches were huge and so good we kept eating after we should have stopped. Fresh and very tasty. The multigrain bread was very good.
You can select seating inside or out. We sat on the patio, in a lovely garden setting.
Good friendly service.
3. Paula's Pancake House
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1 reviews
Serving classic American breakfast and lunch in addition to our worldly famous Danish pancakes.
Reviewed By 345rg - Los Angeles, California
Great spot for breakfast in walking distance of our hotel. The fresh strawberries were delicious. Try the Danish pancakes. I didn’t like their special “house” sausage but loved the regular breakfast sausage (had a little spice) Very busy, bring a newspaper.
4. Succulent Cafe
Overall Ratings
4 based on 478 reviews
Succulent Cafe is in the heart of downtown Solvang, Ca. Our Daily Menu serves breakfast & lunch items and our dinner menu serves up comfort cuisine with a twist! We're open everyday but Tuesday. Lots of bacon, housemade soups & dressings, desserts, and wonderful local wine & craft beer. Many ingredients are seasonal and locally-sourced when possible. From eggs benedict to sandwiches to our signature 3 Little Pigs, come see what we're all about!
Reviewed By Brad H
Succulent has a nice casual atmosphere with reasonably priced food (for a tourist town, that is). The Crispy Brussels sprouts (with bacon, of course) topped with a nice balsamic glaze were shockingly excellent. Turns out they’re the most popular starter. Roasted Beet Salad was good but needed more Humboldt Fog. Grilled Duck Breast was excellent - lots of food with a really nice orange gastrique. Even has a sea salt caramel sundae topped with bacon! Very good selection of local wines at extremely reasonable prices, and excellent service. Even though it has a limited menu would return.
5. Belgian Cafe
Overall Ratings
4 based on 190 reviews
Reviewed By Lars_92705 - Santa Ana, California
We had breakfast here Saturday morning (11/11). We had the Travelers Special with a side of fried eggs. The eggs were good and fresh. The bacon was thick cut and done just right and, of course, the Belgian waffle was sooo good. Light with crisp edges. Yummy!
6. Root 246
Overall Ratings
4 based on 445 reviews
Reviewed By 2ReadyforVacation - Jenks, Oklahoma
Made a last minute reservation here after arriving in Solvang. We weren’t real hungry, but figured we should have something after our long day of travel. Our server, Dana was great. We asked to split a salad and the braised short rib. We figured it would be a small portion. Boy, we were wrong, the salad was more than enough and I swear the braised short rib was a FULL serving. The short rib was pull apart tinder and had just the right amount of seasoning. It was our second anniversary and Dana made sure it was special with a deconstructed s’more to finish the meal! The only reason for the 4 rating was the table was a little short and the chairs were kinda huge! Thanks again for a great time!
7. Cecco Ristorante
Overall Ratings
4 based on 283 reviews
Reviewed By JeannetteC1 - Manhattan Beach
Cecco's has an outdoor patio away from the main street. The patio tables have tablecloths and dappled sunlight. We had a romantic, fun outdoor lunch of fabulous thin crust pizza and a chopped salad which was perfect. Wine was finishing touch.
After our lunch, we had a gelato in the same little center. We would definitely return!
8. Solvang Restaurant
Overall Ratings
4 based on 386 reviews
Reviewed By GardaGal0912 - Huntington Beach, California
Solvang is such a lovely little town. It never changes and maintains its authenticity. The Solvang Restaurant was a great place to have a snack during our cruise shore excursion. Our waitress was very professional and amiable. I hate that I did not get her name, but she is likely a familiar face at the restaurant. We were between a ship breakfast and a ship dinner so we just had coffee, pea soup (naturally), a Danish sausage and the famous aebleskivers with raspberry jam. All delicious and satisfying. The Solvang Restaurant is one of the venues featured in the movie, Sideways. A must stop. The town is very picturesque.
9. Aly's Restaurant
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 95 reviews
New location. Aly's Restaurant features exquisite wine country cuisine. It's elegant ambiance is the perfect setting for couples, small groups, an intimate private event, birthday or wedding dinners, business meetings, wine tastings.
Reviewed By John K
We had dinner at Aly's before attending the Solvang Festival Theater across the street. Our dinner party of four had the following entries: Scallops with garlic mashed potatoes, duck breast, wild king salmon and sea bass. We shared bites given the outstanding compliments
made by each about his or her respective main dish. The atmosphere is one of quiet elegance. It would also be a great setting for a romantic dinner for two! The Service was as great as the food! We dine here about once a month and always consider it the best of Solvang!!
10. Solvang Brewing Company
Overall Ratings
4 based on 781 reviews
Reviewed By taylor426 - Eagle, Idaho
We went for dinner. We were seated fairly quick inside. It is dark and loud.
We had the Western burger, all American burger and the beef stroganoff. First they got our water and soda but forgot about the beer. Eventually got it. The food took awhile to come out. The burgers were ok, fries looked well done though
Disappointed in the beef stroganoff missing mushrooms beyond the 2 micro pieces found. They brought a side oud sauteed mushrooms however totally different flavors and then my dish was cold. It was a lot of food but I was bummed it didn't come out correct for what is cost. Flavor was just ok.
Service was ok, they need to check if the food is ok sooner.
