Unique, original, local, upscale dining. Â
If you are one to go weekly or the one who saves every 6 months for a wonderful experience out, great choice.
Rotating menu as well as a standard, both are excellent. Â Great service and its always fun to dine at a location where someones' imagination has spilled over on to the food that is prepped.
Having recently moved to Cola, been having trouble finding any good restaurants - especially if I don't feel like making a trip downtown. Â This place scores, as does its sister (brother?) restaurant Mr Friendly's. Â
I would say I like Mr Friendly's a tad batter, but it is much further. Â Solstice is very relaxed, service is great and the food yummy. Â The times we have gone, they bring out a little something from the chef - nice touch.
So - you guys - how about opening up a cousin restaurant over in Lake Carolina? Â :)
One of the top restaurants in Columbia. Great food, wine, service. Neighborhood feel. Interesting menu which changes frequently. One of the best places in Columbia for new and interesting wines. Bartenders are pros and very knowledgable, friendly. Local, fresh, healthy food, cooked right. The fish is always very fresh and cooked simply and to perfection. It can be busy. Casual dress ok.
Review Source:My wife and I just recently moved to Cola and were looking for a last minute place to celebrate our anniversary.
I found this place on Yelp and we rolled the dice based on the mostly good reviews.
Lucky for us, we couldn't have had a better anniversary experience! Â From the ambiance (classy but comfortable, low lighting, nice background music) to the service (attentive, genuine, friendly but not over-bearing) to the food (sort of a southern twist on classic American food ala people like Tom Colicchio).
Emphasis on using local fresh ingredients and keeping it simple and not too complicated resulted in some amazing flavors. Â I had the hanger steak with fois gras butter while my wife had fried chicken with gruyre and bacon mac n' cheese. Â Mmmm . . . hard to decide which dish was better but my wife's probably won out.
I will agree with one of the more slightly negative reviews that the skinny frites are a bit hard to pick up and dip in the handmade ketchup. Â I used a fork which sort of made that easier. Â If I were to criticize anything else it would be that in both our cases the greens that were served (spinach on mine and green beans on hers) really paled in comparison to everything else on the plate. Â Nothing wrong with them, but when everything else shines so brightly it might almost work better to leave them off than to just put out something that is so obviously on a lower level of flavor.
The dessert list too left us wanting more. Â Why such an emphasis on white chocolate?
Anyway, those nitpicky criticisms aside, our overall evening was fantastic! Â Oh, and great daily specials (include $20 wine specials) and a great wine and cocktail list too!
What really won us over though was seeing that they did a babysitting night (I think) every other Monday (which is why I checked the "good for kids"m box). Â Drop the kids off in the private dining room for 7 bucks and they get fed, watched and entertained while we dine in the next room. Â Brilliant!
Upscale, great for a date night. We stupidly came in with a group of 5 on a Saturday evening not realizing reservations would have been a good idea (first-timer, didn't know what kind of place we'd stumbled on). The manager got us seated faster than I have seen with some places with reservations. The food was wonderful, the atmosphere was upscale but you never felt stiff or out of place. Everyone was very warm and attentive. Definitely a great spot for a food adventure.
Review Source:I love this place. Â The food and ambiance was wonderful.
Very trendy with a taste of the South. Â I started with the Buffalo Pork Chops (not on the menu anymore). For the entree, I indulged in the Provencal Herb Seared Duck Breast; very tasty. Â And topped the meal off with the Krispy Kreme Bread Pudding. Â And to weight my whistle, I had the Cable Car; and it was not a Sunday drive (lots of alcohol but tasty).
The service was very good. Â This would be ideal spot for romantic date with that special someone. Â I would caution parents with small children; not the place for kids even though the restaurant tried to accommodate children. Â Had no trouble finding it, located in Northeast area of Columbia. Only negative, the seating was a little tight & I could clearly hear the conversation of the people next to me.
I plan visit the Solstice Kitchen in the near future.
The evening started off on a bad note when the location proved difficult to find and the hostess I kept calling clueless to help. Our server Tyler, however, proved more than able and escorted us along a lovely, reasonably-priced, locally-sourced meal sensation. The whole mood bit the dust when I saw my bill did not reflect that I had asked to sub out somewhat-uninspired mashed potatoes for the squash and was then charged for them. So I essentially was cheated out of one of my sides.. not too pleased with that.
The special bourbon (sent out for herbal treatment and brought back - amazing!) is worth it for any fan of bourbon. Â The duck, savory and succulent. Â The spinach tasted like FRESH spinach and a generous helpful of such. Â The scallops with corn cake and succotash was incredible.. and I don't even like seafood - the spicy lowcountry seasoning gave us a much-needed taste of South Carolina cuisine. Â I'm curious to go back and try more, and I might even have money left over to try one of their delicious-looking desserts! (let's be real, I'll have another bourbon).
Overrated.
However, I wish you could give an extra 1/2 star for the cocktails and wine list! Â They serve St. Germain cocktails, yum. They also have a house-made gingerale. Hello bourbon and ginger?
You will probably be happy with your meal at Solstice, but I've had way better versions of the dishes, and at a better price. In fact, their sister restaurant, Mr. Friendly's seems to do a better job of the same fried green tomato dish. Â
When we last went, the mussels were dirty/muddy tasting, not enough white wine and garlic, and the frites were kinda pathetic. Â They were too tiny for a proper broth dipping. Â I rather enjoyed my wedge salad, but again, I've had better? Â The buttermilk ranch dressing was good, but it almost tasted store-bought. Â It didn't compare to the fresh buttermilk dressing at Hunter Gatherer. Â Actually, the mussels didn't either!
The desserts are redeeming, though. Â They have a krispy kreme bread pudding. wow.
If we come back, it will be for the alcohol, appetizers and dessert. Â I found the entrees boring or lacking.
My wife and I ate dinner at Sostice on New Year's Eve, and everything about the experience was wonderful. When I made reservations, I was told that we got the last slot before 9 p.m., so when we arrived a little early, I was worried we might have to wait to get seated. No problem. We were seated right away.
Our friendly waiter came and took our wine away to decant while we enjoyed some champagne. We each got a sample of a sweet potato bisque that was very good.
For appetizers, we shared the fried calamari. We've had calamari at lots of restaurants across the country, and this was the best. Tender and flavorful, not tough or greasy. It also came with oregano-basil pesto and lump crab. Big plus!
My wife got a mixed greens salad that she said was great, and I got a Caesar salad that was huge, delicious, and not very expensive. If you don't like the bite of anchovies, this is the salad for you.
I ordered the filet mignon medium rare. It was perfectly cooked. I haven't had a steak in a couple of years, and I enjoyed every mouthful. It practically melted in my mouth. The steak came with garlic mashed potatoes and "portobello fries". Slices of mushroom breaded and fried. My wife said she could have made a meal out of them. I would go back just for those!
My wife had sliced chicken breast served over pasta with lots of ingredients that she couldn't identify. Maybe she didn't have her reading glasses on. I tasted the chicken: moist and perfectly seasoned.
For dessert, I had the caramel pecan fudge cake. Delicious! And it was only $7. Most restaurants in Solstice's league would have charged nine or ten.
My wife ordered a glass or port, thinking she would get a small glass. Instead, the waiter brought out a wine glass that was about half full of port! I wasn't about to carry my wife out, so after about fifteen minutes of sipping, we got a "to-go" cup for the rest.
The waiter was attentive, but just OK as a waiter.
When the time comes to celebrate again, we'll be going back!
Very nice restaurant.
I came to South Carolina from New York City for a business trip, and client suggested this restaurant.
The food was southern, unique, and tasty. I especially liked the fired green tomatoes and the duck breast with BBQ sauce. The portion was good, and waiter was very nice and friendly.
The atmosphere also was beautiful. It was quite enough to carry a good conversation. I would recommend this restaurant, and if I ever come back to South Carolina, I will come back here.
Definitely one of the top three meals out the hubby and I have had in recent months. The restaurant is definitely more ritzy (very well decorated and dimly lit, with candles on the tables during dinner service), but they had no problem serving people from all walks of life (some dressed up, some dressed down) while we were there.
The service, presentation, and food were all top notch. My hubby had the ribeye off the weekend special menu and I had the salmon dinner. We shared a side of the mac and cheese as well. All of our food was excellent and the flavors worked so well together. Hubby isn't a huge fan of spinach, but he ended up eating all of his because he enjoyed the way it was cooked so much. We aren't very knowledgeable when it comes to wine, so our server was able to help us pick a wine that would work well with his steak. I tried the house made gingerale, and although it had a bit of a kick, it was definitely good.
I love this place! The atmosphere is awesome, its fine dining but many people wear jeans or are dressy and it does not matter. The couches are comfortable and the food is AMAZING! The chef is always coming up with new dishes that  are surprising and delicious. The service is good if you have the money to come you should!:)
Review Source:This place is is suprisingly nice. The atmosphere is a little more upscale so i was thankful i went right after work and didn't have time to change into my usual t-shirt, shorts, and flip flops before going to dinner. They offer certain specials that change nightly, I know this because my coworkers and I were so impressed with the dinner on Thursday that we came back on Friday.
For the type of restaurant, the price seems reasonable (take into consideration that I am from California). During weekday meals excluding Friday, you can add $2 to your entree and pair it with a salad/soup and dessert. The first night I got a bean soup, grilled S.C. sea bass with curry sauce, and peaches and cream spring roll, the price was around $27 w/o tax or tip. Friday night, I ordered pulled pork spring rolls (i tasted beef short ribs spring rolls the night before and they were better but our server told us that the price had nearly doubled on beef short ribs so the restaurant transitioned to pull pork. They should still offer the beef short ribs w/ a marked up price, because they were something to remember). For the entree I got fried chicken and mac&cheese, which was honestly the best fried chicken I have ever tasted (again, please take into account that I am from California). No dessert on Friday, but my meal was somewhere around $23 for the fried chicken and $9 for the pulled pork spring rolls.
If there was a way to tag on a half star there would be one on this review.
But here is the reason why:
Food was great, Both the wife and I tried things outside our comfort zones and were pleasantly surprised. Â The duck was amazing in a cherry sauce and the scallops were great too. Â The portions are smaller, not a bad thing, equal with traditional Haute cuisine but that only means that with is set up as a higher standard dining experience, traditionally you have a drink and a appetizer then a soup or salad, main course then an aperitif along with a sweet dessert. Â Or a main course at the regular American national chain in size equivalent. Â
  The wait staff were helpful with suggestions but being a bit younger then the usual patron at this establishment I felt a heavily judging eye from our waiter.  The decor was fair but the building didn't add to the overall environment.  It was like fancy decorations hidden in a plain square box.
  But that isn't any of the reasons for the reduction of a half star.  They like to appear a slightly higher class so they only take reservations. If you are thinking about going try the reservation button on yelp and hope it works, I haven't used it so I can't say it does or not.  The other and major down fall is the restrooms.  This is one of the most overlooked portions of most places and this one isn't only overlooked but shamefully hidden. Â
There is no Mens/Womens but two unisex and the arrangement is counter intuitive. Â A full length mirror in from of the toilet seemed like a females nightmare and the doors opened outward allowing no room to wait for a open room, much like waiting in the isle in an airplane. Â But still, it could have been a little cleaner. Â Over all a good place to eat ( I'd take away two stars for the douchey self important pompous business class loud talking tacky dressing a-holes but that isn't their fault) Highly recommend... enjoy
To me the reason this place gets five instead of four stars comes down to their unbelievable mocha chocolate truffle, which my friend, gotta love her for her food expressions!, described it as "stole my soul," "pure euphoria," and "chocolate bliss." Thank you Ricky Mollohon for your heavenly chocolate creation! And the crazy part is, we got it for free! More on that later...
As for the rest of our experience, we both had their three course price fix dinner which starts at $25 and got to enjoy an appetizer, entree and dessert. The favorites for me were their veggie parmesan and stuffed yellow squash entree (delicious!, and made with excellent and not messy, thin angel pasta) as well as their chilled melon soup (light complimentary pre-appetizer that is perfect during hot weather!). My friend liked all her dishes - short rib spring rolls app, and bronzed pork tenderloin entree, but she was over the moon when she took a bite of her pineapple passionfruit springrolls dessert. She loved it so much she actually, I kid you not!, cried with joy! It was a priceless moment and something I will always love Solstice for. I've never witnessed a person cry with happiness b/c of something they ate! That was a first for me and I have to say, it was pretty cool.
Throughout ever step of our dining sanctuary, our server Shige, was on top of everything and just super awesome. He checked in with us the right number of times, not over bearing, and helped us understand the menu and what to order.
For me, at the time we got our checks, I was happy with the place, but I wasn't feeling it was five stars, if you had to give it a grade, I was feeling a strong B+. And then something happened. My friend told me, after we both had paid, that it was her birthday. She is such a sweetheart and told me she didn't want to tell me beforehand because she didn't want me to feel obligated to pay for her dinner, she just wanted the company (meeting for dinner that night was her idea). She told me this and mentioned that she was very happy with the place (my pick) and that she had a great birthday. I was super happy that she had a great birthday and liked the place, but I felt terrible that I didn't do anything for her birthday. I excused myself as if I was going to the restroom and found Shige and told him that I just found out it was her birthday and was there anything they could do? Such as bring a cupcake with a candle or a slice of cake, or something. He didn't bat an eye and said he would take care of it.
In minutes Shige came to our table with one of the most beautiful desserts I've ever seen, the mocha chocolate truffle (oh YEAH!), and a birthday wish to my friend. When I offered to pay for it, he said it was on the house (thank you Solstice!). Honestly we had no expectations on the taste, by that point we both were full and had already had dessert, but we still took bites nonetheless. And that's when we had as my friend perfectly described yet again, "rapturous joy around my tastebuds!" On my end, I heard hallelujah singing, felt my heartbeat go up, and most importantly got my first foodgasm for the night. And we did not have to pay a penny for it!
So that's how I got to the five, and that's why I will be glad to go back to Solstice anytime.
This is a very nice restaurant in the suburbs (just outside) of Columbia. For a wine bar, I thought the wine selection was short, but the prices were reasonable by the bottle. I had a slighly blah spinach salad, and then I had the Oysters on the half shell. Let me tell you about the oysters! They were VERY fresh and delicious. I also really enjoyed the cucumber topping that was paired with the traditional cocktail sauce.
For an entree, I really enjoyed the bronzed jumbo sea scallops. They came in a seafood chowder, but that was very thin. The scallops were perfectly cooked and the Old Bay seasoning gave a great flavor. I really loved the taste.
Our waiter seemed new and slightly nervous and he brought us out the wrong oysters at first (fried instead of on the half shell), but this was quickly remedied. Wait time was longer than quoted, but the food was very nice. Overall it was a nice dining experience.
Modern, creative fare with a Southern twist.
Introduced to Solstice by a couple of friends, the first time I went I just got a couple appetizers (like salad and sliders) and was disappointed. Â But wait, why 5 stars? Â Because I tried my friends' dishes and they were phenomenal! Â
I've been back a couple times since, and everything has been a hit! Â I highly recommend the steak with your choice of 2 toppings and 1 side. Â The gouda and bacon penne mac-and-cheese is creamy wonderful, but you may need to be rolled home after choosing that.
The autumn flavors were executed superbly this year! Â
Certain weeknights have a 3 course meal for a fixed, affordable price and you can choose most items on the menu. Â The seafood, pork, steak, and seasonal items will keep you coming back. Â It's worth the drive from downtown.
Best restaurant in Columbia by a long shot. Have traveled a great deal and this restaurant stacks up to any I've been to. Menu is inventive, service is top notch and food has met or exceeded expectations. When we have business or personal guests in town, this is where we go. You will not be disappointed.
Review Source:Given all of the great reviews here and elsewhere, I was beyond excited to try this place. Â Maybe my expectations were too high, but first I was bored and by the end of the meal I was deeply disappointed. Â Normally, I would just leave it at that and not write an unfavorable review, but given the almost unanimous adoration for this place, I thought it would be helpful to offer another view. Â
First, the ambiance. Â My husband and I felt like we were in a cheesy hotel restaurant, everything was very corporate, boring and safe. Â The servers were fine. Â Not particularly knowledgeable, but nice and reasonably attentive. Â The real problem was the food. Â Oh, the food. Â Most of it was not just ho-hum, but downright unenjoyable. Â The pork belly tasted like nothing other than the oil it had been deep fried in and was paired with this sickly sweet sauce that didn't work with it at all. Â The bouillabaisse was really a fish stew with overcooked fish in a boring chunky tomato broth. Â It came with cheesy (and this time I mean cheesy as in cheese) toast that would be great at an olive garden, not so cool at an expensive "farm to table" joint like this. Â The fried chicken was good. Â The drinks were good. Â But so good that I would recommend the place to, well, anyone? Â Sorry.
***An apology to a Ricky M, who I suspect I know what you last name is... and Kaitlin. I had a copy and paste error on my review of Solstice, Cellar and Gervais & Vine. The star rating is the same but I cleaned up the mistakes I had mis-pasted.
This is a place in Columbia like, Gervais & Vine and Cellar on the Green, that people seem to think is amazing and creative but in truth, they are just good for Columbia. I suspect none of these places would survive in Chicago, NY, LA or even Kansas City.
The Good:
The atmosphere is dead on, it;s like your funky eclectic friend got rich and did the interior design. The wine list is excellent, although I wold like to see more sparkling wine additions. The staff is super friendly and more than happy to share their opinions on the menu.
The Bad:
I find this place interesting for a handful of reasons. I believe the same people who own Cellar on the Green/Mr. Friendly's own this place. It is OBVIOUS that the chef is only interested in cooking half the items on this menu. For example, this place serves about the worst burger in the U.S. but I have had beef carpaccio that was amazing on the same night. The staff seems very committed to this place, which is rare but the food is just so so for the money.
Sorry Ricky, that''s the way I see this place. However, I would be more than happy to take you up on an opportunity to prove me wrong about my lukewarm review of your place. Shoot me a few times next week, I am out of town this week, and I would be more than happy to have your kitchen prove me wrong... so long as there is an end to the name calling.
Solstice Kitchen is definitely one of the better high-end restaurants I've been to here in Columbia (as a side note, I would refrain from comparing the higher-end restaurants in Columbia to higher-end restaurants in cities like Atlanta, Charleston, and elsewhere - Columbia is a smaller city, and its higher-end restaurants are comparable in flavor/experience to middle tier restaurants in bigger cities); it specializes in dishes that I think are best described as modern, dressed-up Southern cuisine, with a touch of American Fusion cuisine here and there. The location is a bit out-of-the-way though, in Northeast Columbia off I-20, about 25 minutes from the center of downtown Columbia. Solstice Kitchen is run by the same owners as one of my favorite restaurants here in Columbia, Mr. Friendly's . Â The restaurant has a relaxed, warm atmosphere, and is a great date place, if you are looking for a private place with good food. My only criticism of this restaurant is that they need to vary their sauces more (see my blog for more info), but all in all, I enjoyed the good here very much! Â
For more details, as well as photos of the restaurant and the great food here, you can visit my food blog, <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fepicurious-eats.blogspot.com%2F&s=5d2fce5e036d9458e7632a4febd4c6725b5c3d5626a151b13d80ae977f3d1b3a" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://epicurious-eats.b…</a>
I've been here twice. Â I thought the food was fantastic, the restaurant feels like a top tier gourmet spot, but price wise, I didn't think it was too bad. Â If you opt for the special 3 course menu (weekdays only) it is just $25 for a starter, entree and dessert. Â I love this option because of the variety. Â I had their New York strip off that menu that was fairly small but enough for me and absolutely superb. Â It had foie gras butter on it and something else, it was delicious.
I would definitely be back if I lived nearby.
Best Food in Columbia, Period.
I was surprised there weren't any reviews on Yelp yet of Solstice (I guess its pretty new). I recently tried it after hearing ads for it on the radio all the time, and boy am I glad I did. The location is out of the way for me downtown (it's up in the northeast of cola) but it well worth the drive. The food is very eclectic and the wine/bar list is superb (650+ wines!). The service was great and the ambiance was also. The food is where they really shined. In my party, no one had any complaints about any of their food. They have something for everyone; from the picky eaters (burgers) to the upscale connoisseurs (foie-gras). This is my new favorite restaurant in Columbia (better than my previous favorite, Motor Supply Company) and I suggest you check out their website for their specials (think they do 3 course meals at a set price on most nights).
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