Solea Restaurant and Tapas Bar, Boston

Okay, so it's actually Waltham's Moody Street...but apparently a lot of people have been stopping by here as an alternative to eating in Boston.

Solea is a restaurant and bar with atmosphere that is energetic and romantic. Dark, luxurious decorations include chandeliers, tiles, mustard-colored walls, Spanish posters of bulls, and many other simply and lovely adornments.

It's a bit loud, but we could all hear pretty well. The staff was very friendly and helpful. And the tables aren't too crowded in together. The bar is separated from the restaurant and there are two dining rooms separated by a half wall.

There are many tapas to choose from and the entrees are varied as well. No vegetarians entrees, but the tapas were enough to make me very happy.

Favorite Dish: I loved the artichoke crostini and the patatas bravas. The table ordered a Paella Valenciana and ate it all. We also all had sangria...very good!

My friends took me to this restaurant as it is pretty popular among Bostonians. I understand it belongs to the owner of a family of similar restaurants, but this was my friends' favorite. It is located on Moody Street (please see my Night life tips), quite far from Boston's downtown.

The environment is very nice: they have dim lights, live music -- at least on Thursday night -- and it's mostly frequented by locals (many people coming after work). Opening hours are:

Dining Hours
Mon-Wed: 5-10pm
Thurs, Fri & Sat: Noon-11pm
Sunday: Noon- 10pm

Bar/Cafe Hours
Sun-Wed, to 12am
Thurs-Sat, to 1am

It's usually crowded and tapas (Spanish entree kind of dishes) are their specialty, both warm and cold, besides some other Spanish dishes.

The food is not what you usually find in USA: the portions are small and the ingredients are not what Americans usually eat, so I liked its originality. What I do think is that the prices are a bit high for what you get.

Favorite Dish: I preferred the warm tapas (Queso de Cabra Montañes: Baked Goat Cheese with Tomato & Basil), and I also tried a couple of desserts (Brazo Gitano: Almond Encrusted Sponge Cake with a Lime Custard Filling served with a Spiced Rum Caramel & Ginger Ice Cream, and Quesada de Banana: Chocolate Crusted Cheesecake covered with Rum Spiced Bananas & Caramel Sauce -- this was nicer) which were OK.