My friend and I were craving Mexican food while in Solvang and decided to try Don Nacho's Café…read moreafter finding it on Google and I'm glad we did! The food took a little while to come out, but it was definitely worth the wait. Everything tasted fresh, well-seasoned, and full of authentic Mexican flavor. You can tell care went into the dishes. The only thing to keep in mind is the portion size it's a bit small for a Latin restaurant, especially at around $20 per plate. Still, the quality makes up for it. Customer service was okay. Since you pay before eating, they didn't really come by our table to check in, which felt a bit impersonal. The place is very quiet, nice decor. Overall, I'd recommend it just know the portions are on the smaller side!

I finally got to try Don Nachos Café on Tuesday the 15th after missing out during my visit to…read moreSolvang last year when they were closed. This place is very tucked away--almost hidden. If you aren't looking up while walking or specifically searching for it, you could easily miss it. It feels less like a traditional sit-down restaurant and more like a casual, fast-food spot. You order at the counter yourself, and while they do bring the food to your table, they don't really come back to check on you. The space is very small both inside and out, with the outdoor seating area feeling especially tight. As for the food, the taste was excellent--fresh and delicious. However, I agree with other reviewers that the portions are quite small for the price. I paid $20 for my main plate and was still hungry, the portion was very small, so I ordered the beef nachos with all the trimmings. I have never seen tortilla chips so tiny and light at a Mexican restaurant. The beef was chopped into such minuscule pieces that it completely blended in with the beans, making it hard to find but you could taste it, just a bit strange I have to say. That being said, the flavor was still very good. While the prices feel a bit high for the amount of food you get, the quality is definitely there. Interestingly, while I left wanting a bit more, the portions were actually perfect for my girlfriend. For the first time ever after eating Mexican food, she didn't feel totally stuffed and didn't even need a Pepcid, which says a lot for her sensitive stomach! Again, the portions are small, she was happy with it, I was a bit too hungry afterwards and trust me, I've never felt hungry leaving any Mexican restaurants or Mexican at a fast-food place. I guess it will also depend on what you order, I read some reviews "so much food", I don't know how much they ordered and if they ordered many different plates of food to share and taste, where of course you can say "so much food", but if you order regular dinner for two people like we did, I still have to say "portions are small" and you will feel hungry afterwards that's why I ordered after my regular dinner plate nachos supreme, and I explained how the "supreme" was anything but; however, very tasty and worth trying it for sure, and I would personally order it again if and when I may visit Solvang again. Basically, order a few different plates if you want to fill yourself up, otherwise, you'll leave feeling good but still a bit hungry. Not knocking the place, it was just my personal experience as far as the amount of food or lack of, but the freshness was definitely there and for Mexican food, it was very light, and that's also a good thing. We both had room for a danish pastry and that was a good thing and still were not stuffed, which is also a good thing. Overall, if you are someone who expects huge plates of food at a Mexican restaurant, this place won't give you that. But because the food tastes so fresh and great, I totally recommend it, I enjoyed it and would definitely eat here again on my next trip to Solvang to try some different dishes.

As vegetarians, my family usually struggles to find decent offerings at Mexican restaurants,…read moreusually settling for bland bean-and-rice burritos, cheese enchiladas that clearly were made haphazardly (if not out-right cooked from the freezer), or calorie-bombed nachos. This is not the case at Dos Carlitos in Santa Ines! Yes, my kids split the order of nachos, but the ratio of black beans, tomatoes, and guacamole to cheese made this mother happy. The vegetable tostada was loaded with grilled vegetables and the freshly-made tortillas were incredible! Finally, the cheese enchiladas (we're creatures of habit) were freshly cooked, with more of those in-house tortillas, and they were, according to my husband, some of the most delicious that he's had in a long time. Service was courteous and prompt, and we were greeted by the host in a very pleasant manner. I have to give a shout-out to our busboy, who was fantastic, ready with water or chip refills before we even thought to ask (whatever his name was, he was working Thursday, July 23 at noon). In short, Dos Carlitos is a first-rate Mexican restaurant! We love how it is not loud or overfilled with patrons. One might balk at some of the high prices, but in general I have to say it was overall worth it!

It's been years since I was last here. This visit, some friends were craving Mexican and I…read moreremembered coming here a few times. Like prior reviews, it's more Tex Mex for me. But food is still good. It's a nice little restaurant right in the heart of Santa Ynez. A cute little town with restaurant and some shops. Theres plenty of parking along the street as well as a small lot behind and to the side. You'll find parking somewhere. There's both inside and outside seating. I personally prefer outdoor as it can get stuffy inside. It's not that big inside and the seating area are over sizes chairs so it can feel stuffy. Just my opinion. Regardless, the menu does offer pretty much loads of dishes. The salsa and bean salad that's brought out with chips is always good. Don't fill up on it though. Drink wise, it's was quite strong this visit so worth the money. Also, the guacamole was good. Decent amount for sharing. A few dishes were had. The grilled chicken salad which was quite nice with the dressing. Then there was the shrimp tacos. The shrimps were pretty big which was nice. Two tacos with a small sides of beans, guacamole and salsa. Also the chicken enchiladas with both rice and beans. And the carnitas meal with rice and beans. Food is good and flavorful. It's alway busy so they're doing well. Each visit, it feels like it's more of the locals that visit versus tourists. Overall, the visit was nice. Chips with the salsa and bean salsa were good. The meal was enjoyed as well as the margaritas. A little pricey for Mexican food but with location, it works. More Tex Mex in my opinion but much appreciated and enjoyed. Friendly staff and good service.

We ordered the El Molcajete to share for dinner. It was absolutely delicious and way too much food…read morefor 2 people. Chips and salsa were great. People are friendly, service was fast. Nice, casual place.

You can tell a lot simply by the chips and salsa. It was about noon on a Saturday and almost empty…read more(big red flag). The chips were from a metal heating bin that were thick and hard enough to cut your mouth up. The salsa is almost the equivalent as grocery store bought salsa and not the better stuff. I had the carne asada torta and my wife had 2 different tacos. All of it was dry and relatively flavorless. What is sad is that after I posted this review, it didn't show up. However it is working, this review hasn't shown up. They had 2 waitstaff and with 1 family and 1 person at the bar, they couldn't keep the water filled.

Love the food here and the service is amazing . The owner…read morehimself treats you like family and makes you feel so welcomed This is me and my hubbys place

This is a hidden gem in Buellton! It is a small, cute…read morelittle place. There is a salsa bar, who doesn't love a salsa bar! You can pick your salsa, there was also limes, chopped cilantro and pickled veggies. The chips were thin and warm. Service was perfect, very helpful and friendly. The side salad was so good, I might go back and get that for an entree. It had fresh greens, walnuts and clementines with a light creamy mango dressing. It was bomb! I got enchiladas with the creamy Chipotle sauce, delicious. My husband got mole, he really liked it. The mole was a little sweet to me but I dont like or ever order mole, so I shouldn't speak to it. We also got the churros, so good. Prices are very reasonable. I will definitely return.

Food was fresh and fast. They made a delicious cheese pizza…read morefor the kids. Had some gluten free options. Nice indoor/outdoor space

Spent a week in Milan in June…read more Pretty close to that! Great pizza and service. Outside looked nice. But inside had great music playlist.

The Central Coast Corvette Club likes to go to The PCPA Theater in Solvang each year and have…read moredinner somewhere before the show and for the last couple years as the group gets larger and less restaurants in the the area are able to accommodate us, The Craft House has never said no. There was a menu adjustment but was more than acceptable for a large group of our size. The first thing I look for when I enter any place serving food is (is this place clean)? YES! Food safety is very important. Food taste excellent. Service was Excellent. The personal touches they put into hosting us for dinner were over the top. This was one of the best dinning experiences we have ever had. Thank you so much.

Best dining experience of our entire trip. My wife and I were in town celebrating our 10th…read moreanniversary, and Craft House is the meal we're going to remember. Our server Hally greeted us the moment we sat down. I asked her for an appetizer recommendation and she immediately named three with no hesitation, no hedging, no "everything's good here." We landed on the calamari and the Truffle Gnocchi, and that gnocchi was the surprise of the night. Not a lot of places do gnocchi at all, much less one built this well. Spinach dumplings, grilled artichokes, and a black truffle cream sauce that stayed balanced instead of heavy. Exquisite is not close. We both ordered the filet mignon. Perfectly cooked and tender enough to cut with a fork. Hally checked on us the whole night without ever being pushy or hovering. She was warm, welcoming, and completely professional; the kind of server who clearly takes pride in her work and is a real asset to the ownership team. This meal alone would bring us back to Solvang.

On a Sunday morning during my stay at Flying Flags in Buellton, I woke up craving some good menudo…read more With four Mexican restaurants surrounding the resort, I had a few options to choose from. After looking through photos and reviews, I decided to give Burrito Lalo a try. It was only about 1.4 miles away, right off McMurray. I ordered the menudo to-go and decided to go without "pata" (pig's feet), along with a bottled Coke. My order was ready in about 5 minutes, which was impressive. The young lady who helped me was friendly and packed everything nicely in a cardboard box, including all the fixings and a bag of chips. I have to admit, the menudo was very good! The broth tasted clean, flavorful, and delicious. My only reason for giving it 4 stars is that I would have preferred a little more hominy to balance everything out. There were also plenty of large chunks of tripe. Depending on how you like your menudo, that could be a positive or negative. Personally, I prefer my tripe cut into smaller pieces. Overall, I really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend Burrito Lalo to anyone looking for a good bowl of menudo in Buellton. My only advice is to make sure you tell them exactly how you like your menudo, especially the size and amount of tripe and hominy. That part was my mistake for not asking. Either way, the menudo was delicious, and I would definitely give Burrito Lalo another try the next time I'm in the area!

What a fantastic little place. It's very unassuming. However, looks are very deceiving. The food is…read morefantastic and the service was very good. I had the Tres Amigos (3 tacos) and they were filling and tasted delicious. My wife had the flautas. They were also fantastic and a huge portion of food.

Not sure why this place isn't 5 star. Not 4.9999 but 5. The…read morebest brisket and best chilly ... Review to come

We had an awesome experience here! First off, they have the option to sit outside on a nice sunny…read morepatio or inside where everything is accented in dark wood and metal, exactly like you'd expect a bbq place called Whiskey N Rye to look. The drink options were great and our server even suggested the perfect one for me based on other drinks I like. Now most importantly is the food...the serving sizes are large and everything is so flavorful. Make sure you get the elote corn side, it was incredible! I ordered pulled pork with beans on the side and my boyfriend ordered the full rack of ribs with the elote corn. Both were delicious. We were starving when we got there so we were disappointed when we found out his ribs were cold. We told the server and she replaced it immediately, including the full side of corn we ate in the meantime cause we were too hungry to wait! It was definitely the best service we got during our entire time in Solvang. Highly recommend this place!

I reserved a spot for my wifes birthday and was very pleased. Kenslee welcomed us in and placed us…read morein a wonderful spot by the fireplace! Food was exceptional as well as the service. We can't wait to go back!!

I was in town on a friend's trip and a local friend brought us to brothers. I would say this was…read moremy very favorite meal of the trip. It's a nicer restaurant than most, and very well plated. The atmosphere is 'fine dining' but with a more casual feel. The service was also incredibly attentive. There's a parking lot right out front, which makes it incredibly convenient. We were a large group and ordered a lot of items, but the ones that really stood out were the Salmon/Dill on Crostini, the Tuna Tartare and the Mushroom Soup...by far the best we had the whole trip. I look forward to coming back some day!

During a recent trip to Buellton, CA, my family and I decided to stop at Rudy's Mexican Restaurant…read morefor some good Mexican food, and I'm so glad we did! It was a beautiful, hot and sunny day, so we decided to sit outside and enjoy the weather. We ordered the shrimp taco plate, chicken taco salad, classic burrito, and some additional shrimp tacos that unfortunately didn't make it into the pictures. We were welcomed with fresh chips and had the opportunity to try as many salads as we wanted from the salsa bar. I also enjoyed a nice, cold Corona while we waited for our food, which was perfect on such a warm day. When our food arrived, everything was fresh, hot, and cooked to perfection. Everyone in my family enjoyed their meals, and there were absolutely no complaints. We were all full and satisfied when we finished, but instead of rushing out, we simply sat around and enjoyed the moment together. That's what makes a family meal even better. Our server, Ms. Gutierrez, provided excellent service. She was friendly, attentive, and consistently checked on us to make sure we had everything we needed. The restaurant was very busy, but the service remained great. The restaurant was also clean, welcoming, and had a great atmosphere. And the prices were very reasonable! Our bill for four people, including food and drinks, came in at under $85, which I thought was a great value. Overall, we had a fantastic experience at Rudy's. Great food, great service, reasonable prices, and most importantly, a great time with my family. I would definitely come back again the next time we're in Buellton. Thank you, Rudy's, for a great experience! We'll be back!

Stopped here with my family for breakfast after a camping trip to Lake Cachuma…read more First time visitors and we enjoyed the vibe, food and overall dining experience at this restaurant. The service was EXCELLENT! The food was very tasty and fresh, prices were reasonable for the portion sizes and the employees were extremely friendly and welcoming. The restaurant itself was clean and well organized, We will DEFINITELY be back the next time we come out to visit Solvang which is only three miles east of this restaurant.