Happiness at El Dorado Kitchen in Sonoma

After a long day of travel, you may be eager for a delicious meal in a relaxed Sonoma setting. We got exactly what we were looking for at El Dorado Kitchen restaurant. One of Sonoma Plaza’s prime destinations, El Dorado is a homey, farm-to-table restaurant that offers fine food and a truly comfortable atmosphere.

Opened in 2005, and part of the El Dorado Hotel, the restaurant has long been a Sonoma fixture. Walking in, you may be fascinated by the lighting. How do they make it so warm? It soon became obvious that someone had given this a lot of thought.

And that really summarizes the entire place. The designers took a walk in the guests’ shoes and created a complete restaurant experience around it. The open kitchen, the solid wood tables and chairs, the light surroundings. It’s kind of like going to a good friend’s house for dinner.

Gourmet Comfort Food

During our visit, we started with truffle fries, a popular side that was just too good to pass up.

From there, seafood paella and pan roasted salmon.

Both were delicious, especially the salmon, which was served over a bed of lentils, bacon, chanterelles and mushroom foam, comfort food meets molecular gastronomy.

El Dorado Kitchen was packed with an eclectic crowd. There was a large bachelorette party, small groups who came up from the Bay Area for a long weekend of wine tasting, as well as the East Coasters, complete with Penn State gear and New Jersey accents, who were happy for a break from frigid weather.

But there were also locals, many of whom seemed to be on a first name basis with the staff. This was obviously a go-to place for them, and they ordered after only brief glances at the menu. “Our restaurant is on the square surrounded by tasting rooms. El Dorado Kitchen is a perfect location to grab a bite between wine tastings at places like Three Sticks Wines and Walt Wines, which are a short walk away from the restaurant,” said Joel Hoachuck, General Manager at El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen.

El Dorado Kitchen serves breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner, so they’ve got us covered all the way around. It’s a great place to grab a bite to eat between wine tastings – or save the middle man and just sample the restaurant’s own extensive wine list.