132 Main Street
Indian Orchard, Springfield, MA 01151
413-543-7901
www.solmarbarandgrill.com
www.facebook.com/pages/Solmar-Restaurant-Pub/105930086141440

FunInNewEngland Rating: (0 votes)
Cuisine Type: Portuguese, American, Pub, Sports Bar
Days & Hours: Daily 11 am - 10 pm (bar until 2 am)
Parking: Private lot (Free), Street
GPS Coordinates: 42.15993, -72.50413

Restaurant & Sports Pub; Separate bar and dining rooms; Serves sandwiches, wraps, salads, soups, daily specials, and Portuguese dinners

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Springfield Solmar Restaurant & Pub

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Reviews

Rating: 4 2011-11-19 Website Administrator
Solmar is divided into two separate sides: the bar room and a fairly small dining room. The majority of the customers are usually bar patrons. It seems dining room is either empty or crowded.

I ate here once before on November 27, 2010. Tonight I think I ordered the same entrée as last time... the Mariscada a Chefe, which is a seafood stew that comes with rice. The seafood consists of lobster, shrimp, scallops, and whole clams. The rice comes separate, but I mix it with the seafood after I remove the shells. Note that the Paelha a Valencia is very similar, but contains some different meats. I'm not used to Portuguese food. The smell and flavor is a little strange and fishy, but it does not taste strong or spicy. I can say that it is good, but I lean more toward Italian cuisine. They give you a generous amount of seafood, but you have to do a little bit of work to get the shells off. My friends got one entrée the same as mine and one entrée of Frango no Churrasco (Portuguese Style Barbequed Chicken). They thought the food was top notch. I tried the chicken. It was good and had a very nice flavor. It was covered with a sauce that was slightly spicy.
The side salad was nice. It was fresh and mix of the usual ingredients. The free rolls were delayed, but when they finally came, they were fresh and hot and good. I did not try the Kale Soup, but it looked good. I was told it was ok.

Last time I was here the place was nearly empty. Tonight they apparently had a private party that filled up the small dining room. We were forced to eat at a table in the bar room. This did not make for a pleasurable dining experience due to the loud pop-dance music and the bar customers talking and watching sports on TV. Had I known about this circumstance ahead of time I would have chosen to come here on a different night.
Final verdict: I don’t know Portuguese cuisine, but the food seemed fresh, good quality, and tasty. I would say above average to very good... 4 stars. I forgive them for the seating arrangement.

Update: 2011-11-19 New Rating: 4
My friends insisted on coming here for the Portuguese style blackened chicken. I ordered the Mariscada a Chefe. The free bread is so-so. For an appetizer I got the shrimp special, ordered not spicy. It was quite good, but soaked in a little too much butter. I got a side salad which was ok (mostly iceberg lettuce) with creamy Italian dressing. For my entrée I ordered the Mariscada with linguine instead of rice. I liked it this way much better. I'm not a big rice lover. It contains shrimp, scallops, lobster, and whole clams in a reddish Portuguese sauce with just a hint of spiciness. It comes in a very good-sized portion.

One of my friends got the blackened chicken which looked good. I tried a tidbit that was excellent. It came with "silver dollars" which were a cross between scalloped potatoes and potato chips. I liked them. It also came with rice. My other friend got the Mariscada with rice.

The dining room was empty when we came this time. Our waitress was friendly and helpful.

Next time I might try the blackened chicken or the monk fish.

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