Solace Bar and Grill

I really love this bar. The food is delicious, the drinks are great… But last night my friend and I received terrible service. After waiting for 20 minutes to receive service, the waitress continued to ignore us as we tried to get her attention. It wasn’t until a worker in the bar who wasn’t a server took our order… The food came out and it wasn’t as great as usual. It was slightly cold, and then attention just wasn’t there. I was very disappointed. I hope the service improves.

Solace Restaurant is convenient, close by, and affordable. The AMBIANCE is neutral. On some days the staff (being that they are so young), may have their «off days» (as far as attitude and «morale»). However, it doesn’t deter from them providing a GREAT SERVICE-​and they do! The drinks are deliciously tasty and AUTHENTIC (although they could use BIGGER martini glass. Their Martini Glass is «sub standard» compare to say, IGUANAS down on 54^th Street or HARLEM PUBLIC in Harlem).
The garden plants outside sitting area is GREAT. It serves TWO FUNCTIONS: «privacy», and «ambiance». Inside is equally «cute» and «sheek». It certainly has a YOUTHFUL FEELING to it (which has a HEALING QUALITY to it. The more «youthful» and establishment-​especially an eating establishment, the HIGHER THE VIBRATION of positive ENERGY which you are consuming…).
On certain days they have kareoki (I spell it the old way), and they hold lotteries which an announcer ENGAGES THE CUSTOMER-​AUDIENCE. The customers do participate and derive much fun (it’s short, efficient and neat). It’s a great INTERLUDE between cocktails and the arrival of the cuisines.
Upon arrival of the cuisine, the presentation of the dishes is STUNNING, SUCCULENT, and AROMATIC (enough to even take home!). You could stay and enjoy the atmosphere well after the check has been paid-​with no rush to leave!

I don’t know what has happened to this place. When it first opened the service was outstanding. The owner was always around greeting people, the servers made an effort to provide excellent service and the food was excellent!!! I live across the street so I frequented often. The past two times I have been in there however the service has been absolutely horrible. The bartenders and servers hardly even smile and look like they hate to be there. The food was horrible last night. I wanted guacamole but they were out of it. The wings were disgusting and had a bad smell to them and the sangria didn’t have any fruit in it as it usually does. I don’t understand why would they lose the service especially now with so many bars opening in the area. The owner needs to come back and really pay attention to whats going on with his staff.

Refreshing and welcome addition to this neighborhood. The waiter was very attentive and all around friendly. The owner also stopped by to chat. And the food was so good! We sat in the outdoor space and the plants around the tables made it feel private and away from the rest from the sidewalk. Recommended :)

Good place great vibe service could be a little better
I will give another try

All I have to say is that they hit it out the park with their Turkey Burger & fresh fries… If ya don’t believe me, try it for yourselves…

I really like this place a lot, it’s a really cute spot with good food and who doesn’t love a place with hookah?! I’ve already brought my mom, sister and Bestfriend here and I’m going to keep bringing more, the people who work here are really friendly and I believe it’s family owned the son and father were really cool. And the live music barely fits in this small spot but it’s still a nice vibe.
YOU HAVE TO GET THE SHRIMP! I don’t know what love they put in the hell fire shrimp but it’s amazinggg !

My babies took me here for brunch. First time. We had the spinach artichoke dip… good, the lobster grill cheese… great, the breakfast burger with the sauce on the side… fantastic. Our waitress Marlene was incredible she was very attentive and accommodating. If you have the opportunity to go to Solace do yourself a favor and ask for Marlene. She is worth the visit.
Happy Mothers Day!!!

One of the best brunch in Harlem! We wanna try every dish on the menu. Never goes wrong.

I’ve been to every bar in the area and this is by far the best place. The Mac and cheese is amazing. Not only do they have happy hour 4 – 7 but another 10−12am. The bartender Brigitte made the best Bahama mama I ever had. They also have hookah. Also the music is always popping. I will def be coming back.

Stopped in for brunch today with my family and I must say everything was great! The food was delicious, I had an amazing turkey burger and my daughter had the best veggie burger EVER! The server was the best! She made sure we were comfortable at all times. She even brought out a chair with a back from storage. She’s the best, never skipped a beat and managed herself well throughout the restaurant. I will be back every time I’m in the area. This is a place for good food and attentive service.

Came here for brunch on a Sunday morning and had to wait an hr and a half for a burger, chicken and waffles and a lobster roll. Plus, found out that their brunch is simply mimosas and you only get an hour so by the time we got the food (which after taking SO long to get to us was cold) we didn’t have any more drinks. There was also only one waitress and everything took forever, even a glass of water and she kept forgetting things. This was a disaster!

One of the worst dining experiences I’ve had in Harlem. It’s sad because the spot is really quaint and nice. Service was terrible… our server was downright rude. Quality of the food is mediocre and it’s overpriced. Definitely won’t be back.

Came on a random craving for Mac and cheese and Solace didn’t disappoint. I’m very particular when it comes to customer service and my customer experience as a whole and I was really satisfied with my visit. The food was delicious, the specials are awesome, the music was great, and my customer service was stellar from the moment I walked through the door. I’ll definitely be backs

Where do I begin? We came here on a Sunday and it wasn’t packed so we thought this was a good sign. No one really seated is so we (party of three) seated ourselves in a table for 3. The waitress then comes and puts two smaller tables together next to us and moves us there. We already knew we wanted the unlimited brunch drinks (it’s only mimosas btw not bellinis and Bloody Mary how they have on their menu. I ordered the chicken and waffles, my friend ordered a turkey burger and my other friend ordered a sandwich with Mac and cheese as an appetizer for all of us. I kid you not, it took over an hour and a half to be served. Our hour of unlimited drinks was over before we even got our food and when we got our food, it was cold, bland and over all not satisfying at all. Please avoid the disappointment. Do not come here.

Bottomline: The place is a nice neighborhood bar with attentive and polite service. Happy hour is reasonable and this would make a good spot to catch a game midweek. Do not come hungry or you might lose it. Best move is to pre-​game (food wise) at the local chicken spot/BK’s and then head over or make a run while you wait for your order.
Long Review:
I try to be a champion for our local businesses and for the most part approach a new spot as a defacto fan. I wanted to give Solace a try. Aesthetically, the place is on par with newer nightlife offerings in the nabe. It has the requisite vintage touches that are now indispensable. However, that’s where the similarities end. The place was at about 30% capacity when the Mrs and I arrived for an impromptu date night so we figured it was the perfect time to come. And it should be noted we were hella hungry. We got in just a few minutes before end of happy hour (weekdays 4PM-​7PM and then again at 10PM). I ordered a Solace Pilsner draft ($ 5) to start things off. The beer was decent. The menu looked legit and other Unilocal reviews made it clear we should try some of their staple dishes. I ordered the Chimi burger which as a Dominican I was giddy about trying. The Mrs, for the same nostalgic reasons, ordered the Chofán. We put in the order at 7PM. The waiter brought out the plates and the coke we explicitly asked to receive with the food. This was at 7:20. I thought, «Hell yes! The food’s almost here!» It turned out to be the most incidious ‘sike-​out’ in a long time. Clock hit 7:45 and nothing. Our waiter, Davis, kept apologizing for the lateness insisting there were many orders. We were incredibly hungry. We decided that if the food did not come out by 8PM we’d get the check and bounce. Solace did not disappoint. 8PM arrived like clockwork. The food, however, did not. I calmly asked Davis for the check. He went back to try to salvage the situation and ask the cooks about the order. He came back and said the order was already done and pointed to the pick up counter. I saw a burger. No chofan. I thanked him for trying but let him know that the place isn’t anywhere near capacity and the kitchen was moving too slow. I also said that if the kitchen was running behind this is something you should share up front, not 45 minutes later. Also disappointing is the fact that no one else higher up felt compelled to apologize. So we paid for our beer and headed to Texas Burger for a surprisingly tasty $ 3 box of chicken (3pcs + a legit biscuit) for an appetizer (2 minutes) and then Burger King who took care of us in 10 minutes.
To the owners/​managers I would recommend this: Have a few pub items on the menu that can come out quick in 10 – 15 minutes and warn patrons that your popular dishes may take 30 – 45 minutes (even if it’s a lie). Also, serve some complimentary tortilla chips and salsa or seasoned popcorn while people wait for their food. It’s a minor investment that will keep people in their seats and ordering drinks. Extend happy hour through the night (Mon-​Thurs) to incentivize people for the wait. Finally, start working on shaving minutes from the prep time on your main dishes and get some more help in the kitchen either with more staff or add another grill. It seems like the added volume of take-​out/​grub-​hub orders are taking a toll on how they prioritize food orders.

My BF and I wanted to grab a bite before hitting the road back to CT and his sister recommended Solace. At first glance it looks small however they have a lower level to accommodate large crowds. The food is amazing! Everything we ordered was full of flavor and absolutely delicious. We ordered BBQ wings as an appetizer and they were amazing. I ordered a turkey burger, he ordered the lobster grilled cheese. Both meals were delicious and full of flavor, including the French fries. We happened to be sitting next to one of the owners, the wife (it’s a married couple). She was very friendly and answered a lot of our questions regarding the restaurant life.
The drink selection is great, the music was awesome, we had a great time!
I’ll def be back to try the buffalo Mac and cheese.

I stopped in for a quick lunch with my daughter, I ordered the Solace burger of course. The burger was amazing. It took a while for our order to come, but they were switching over from brunch. I wanted to try the Mac n cheese but it wasn’t available yet because of the switch. Which I understand from working in restaurants. The Guac and chips were suggested as an appetizer as we waited for our food that was gonna take a little longer than usual. They were so delish. (A little pricey) but really good! I didn’t like the terra chips I loved the platano Chips better! My daughter loved her food as well! The seating is a little weird and slightly uncomfortable, and the music was also a little weird. My only complaints.

Went here for brunch mostly for the bottomless
Mimosas. Was pretty disappointed it only lasts an hour and were relatively weak. Got the Solace Burger and my friend got chicken and waffles. Both were very good. The burger was excellent. Something that was annoying however was the music. They had some sort of groovy lobby/​elevator music blasting the whole time making it hard to talk and downright annoying overtime. Not sure why this is on in a gastropub. The service was also really good.
Overall the experience was fine but the ambience and drinks fell short.

Edit: 500^th Review!
I’ve been to Solace a couple of times; once during the middle of the day and the other in the evening. Both times left much to be desired — not sure what the rave reviews are all about.
The first time, we were probably the first to walk into the restaurant. We had some lobster Benedict, which was decent, and a couple of drinks. The service was spotty and chatty among themselves. For a gastropub, there was absolutely no attention given to the beer menu by the staff which was disappointing. Half way through the meal, someone decided it was time to blast the music. It was just us and the sun was still out. Really?
The second time was in the evening so the music was already blasting. Fine. My partner got there before me and placed his order. By the time I got there, he only had a beer in hand. The server was here and there but never came by to greet me or check in. It must have been 20 minutes before a busser came and offered me a glass of water. Thanks.
Finally, the waiter appeared. I asked for the draft menu, because you know, it’s a gastropub and all. He had to return to the bar to get a list of six or seven beers for me; and they were beers I could find at the local Key Food. Seriously? Lagunitas, Blue Moon, and Coors Light is what you have to offer me? (Anchor is right down the street and they have quadruple the amount of beer Solace has, and they’re a wine bar!) The food that my partner ordered arrived another 15 – 20 minutes later (about an hour in) with no apologies. Seriously, it was an order of mac and cheese. We were so over it by then we just asked for it to go.
Nope.

Un jour c’était dimanche et on voulait bruncher à 8 dont deux enfants. Après avoir tourné longtemps dans les rues de Harlem, nous avons été accueillis au Solace. Assez sombre et un peu bruyant mais sympathique tout de même (préférez les tables près de la vitrine). Le service est assez lent et l’assiette un peu décevante bien que copieuse. Pancakes gratuits à volonté pour les enfants !