Los Molcajetes Bar & Grill

Excellent and our favorite from now on. The service was very helpful catering to our needs and substitutions, gluten free, mild or no spicy…we usually go around 1:30 pm and have no problem finding a table…

The third location of Los Molcajetes in Sonoma County opened last week in Sonoma. It is in the former site of Kina's Kitchen, which received a significant facelift before reopening as a Mexican restaurant. Los Molcajetes offers an extremely large menu - both food and cocktails - and a finer dining experience with attention to detail than the other Mexican restaurants in Sonoma Valley. It serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. I went during happy hour, which is from 2-5 p.m. I was promptly greeted and seated in the dining area – unlike many restaurants/bars, Los Molcajetes offers happy hour throughout the entire building. I was served a carafe of water and chips and salsa with three very good salsas (mild salsa verde, mild salsa fresca and a spicy smoky salsa). My server, Andrea, also brought me the Molcajetes sauce, the house sauce that is 8 out of 10 on the heat level and habanero-based. It's found on signature dishes and is super delicious. There is no printed happy hour menu at this time, so pardon if I don't have all the details. The current happy hour includes house margaritas ($6.99), discounted wine and beer, Buffalo wings ($6.50), super nachos (they are HUGE) and a large cheese quesadilla made with a handmade tortilla (I am unsure on the prices). Well drinks are not on the happy hour list (i.e., vodka and cranberry). I enjoyed my house margarita which has very little agave. I like my margaritas more tart and it hit the spot. Also it was beautifully decorated. The Buffalo wings were insanely good. The wings are now my new favorite wings in Sonoma Valley. Plump baked wings tossed in a perfect Buffalo sauce (spicy sweet). I also ordered three tacos - all served on handmade tortillas - for Taco Tuesday: carnitas, carne asada and pastor. The carnitas was tender and tasty and the carne asada was very flavorful (I would have liked more meat on my carne asada taco but it wasn't a deal breaker). The pastor was OK and I ended up not finishing it – it was too fatty. Note, the pastor is not al pastor, meaning it is not from a trompo. ($4.99 each, but again, on housemade tortillas!) I also had another cocktail – the Una Noche en Oaxaca. I'm a sucker for Oaxacan anything and it was served in a jicara drinking bowl!! It comprised La Luna Mezcal, fermented pineapple juice, agave nectar, lime juice and passionfruit. It was served with a burning cinnamon stick on it. Quite a sensory experience and very delicious. The service was great – Andrea, my server, was kind and friendly and had an attention to detail. The servers dress nice and bring a more elevated vibe to the space - no t-shirts and jeans! The managers were also incredibly attentive and happy to answer questions. I had a nice conversation with the bar manager about mezcal and look forward to trying more of his concoctions. According to Andrea, the most popular appetizers have been the pulpo con camaron la parrilla ($18.99 - grilled shrimp and octopus served with seaweed), the calamari served with broccoli, cauliflower and chipotle aioli ($11.99), the queso fundido ($14.99). The quesabirria is also popular. On the menu, you'll also find parrilladas - large family-style portions of meats, seafood and veggies meant to be shared by groups. I saw one come out (see pictures - the meat platter for $119.99) and it was awesome looking! The menus for this location are not online yet, so I have posted them here. Warning: there are a lot of pages!! If you're looking for a casual - yet more elevated - Mexican dining experience you'll find it at Los Molcajetes. The portions are also very large for the price! I found the prices a great value for the quality. There are vegan and vegetarian options. There is a children's menu. There is no celiac-friendly prep zone, but they appear to have GF offerings. There is a patio, but it is not open yet. I believe it will be dog friendly.