My wife and I live in Bordeaux, where we are attending wine school. We decided to visit Soléna Restaurant for lunch, a Michelin-starred restaurant in Bordeaux run by chef Victor Ostronzec.
We received a warm and friendly welcome. The space is small, featuring a window (limited) into the kitchen, and is well-organized, filled with natural colors that evoke a sense of relaxation and serenity, which creates a sense of isolation from the distractions of the outside world. When all guests arrive, the atmosphere becomes lively and energetic, creating a vibrant ambiance.
The MICHELIN-starred restaurant offers multiple menus, with options varying by day and time. We chose the five-course “Balande Par Chez Nous” (English: “Walk Around Our Place”) with wine pairing. It’s important to note that all menus are labeled as “Chef’s Surprise,” so you won’t know what you will be served. However, the staff collects all necessary information to be aware of any allergies or dietary preferences so that the chef can adapt your experience accordingly.
While some people may not enjoy the “Chef’s Surprise” concept, we appreciate it because it encourages us to “taste outside the box.” As someone famously once said, “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.”
As an apéritif, I ordered the “Cocktail Maison,” which was a Moscow Mule made with ginger beer and vodka, as pictured below. My wife passed on the apéritif.
We were served an amuse-bouche featuring a variety of delightful bites: a blackcurrant macaron filled with a hint of foie gras, a strudel filled with Mimolette cheese, steamed bread stuffed with smoked anchovies, crispy pistachio paired with sorrel, cereal, and whelks garnished with shiso and mayonnaise, as shown below. Each was YUMMY.
Following the amuse-bouche, we were served two slices of homemade brioche and an olive tasting of Le Carre Des Huiles’ PDO olive oil from the Vallée des Baux-de-Provence, as pictured below.
The starter consisted of scallops accompanied by a watercress coulis and smoked cauliflower, as shown in the picture below. Soléna paired the palate with Domaine Charles Joguet, Les Petites Roches Blanc, 2024.
The main course began with a fish dish: red mullet, perfectly cooked and served with carrots and a clear shiso bone broth, as shown in the picture below. Soléna paired the plate with Domaine Tempier, Bandol Rosé 2023, a classic Bandol rosé.
The next dish was venison ravioli, accompanied by black trumpet mushroom tapenade in a black pepper emulsion, as pictured below. Soléna paired the plate with a Château La Brande, Castillon, Côtes de Bordeaux 2019, featuring dark fruits that lingered on the palate, complementing the earthy dish well.
We were served two desserts. The first was Lovita plum served with ginger and Koji ice cream, as shown in the picture below.
The second dessert was dark chocolate with pecans, accompanied by yogurt sorbet, as depicted in the image below. Soléna paired the plate with a Maury Grenat, a benchmark in Roussillon, made from 100% Grenache Noir, which was a perfect complement to the chef’s chocolate dessert.
In summary, we found Soléna’s ambiance, vibe, and service to be above average. Overall, the wine pairing was well-executed, but we felt the first wine was too acidic to complement the scallop dish. The last three wines were enjoyable but not particularly surprising so that we would categorize them as average. If given the chance to do it again, we would choose our own glasses of wine or opt to buy a bottle. The presentation and plating were mixed, with some aspects being average and others exceeding expectations. The yummy quotient was high, while the desserts, although simple, were above average.
Soléna Restaurant is a fine MICHELIN 1-star restaurant in Bordeaux that is worth trying. We are glad that we did.
Ambiance, vibe, and service: 4
Wine by the glass options or pairing: 3
Presentation and plating: 4
Yummy quotient: 5
Dessert quality: 4
Bonvivant365 score: 20
Address: 5 Rue Chauffour, 33000 Bordeaux
Phone: 05 57 53 28 06
https://solena-restaurant.com/
If you plan to visit and eat in the Chartrons neighborhood of Bordeaux, see my post “Best Restaurants in Chartrons“