El Molino Central — Restaurant in Sonoma

The food is absolutely delicious at El Molino Central in Sonoma. This is an amazing Mexican restaurant and I love that it is family owned. Karen Taylor opened this restaurant in 2010 and this restaurant has been amazing for Sonoma County! I came here after several people recommended it to me and I'm so glad that I did!

I always order the fish tacos and they are so flavorful and tasty! The ingredients are really fresh, which I also love! The food is what really has me coming back whenever I'm in that area. I find that the prices are well worth it because the quality is so high.

The service is excellent here and people here seem genuinely happy to work here, which I love and think it has to do, in part, with this being family owned and not a corporately owned restaurant. Everyone is warm and welcoming and our food came out quickly.

The ambiance is vibrant and has a relaxed vibe to it. There are picnic tables outside and umbrellas over them. The parking lot is small so you may need to park across the street and walk over if it's full.

I highly recommend this restaurant if you are in Sonoma because it really has it all: amazing people that work there, great prices for the quality, flavorful and delicious food, and it's locally owned so you know that you are supporting locals and not a restaurant corporation. It's a...

Great atmosphere for Mexican food in Sonoma. Nice colors, great service, and fresh ingredients make it probably the best Mexican food in Sonoma as well.

The food is homely; simple but pure at the same time. Try the guacamole. And the enchiladas suizas. Try the mole sauce... It's all good. Even the chips seem like they're made there, though I might be mistaken.

After ordering, if you've gone in through the front door, you walk straight through the kitchen to the dining area. There's a level of obvious transparency which is really cool. The kitchen always looks beautiful; brightly colored ingredients being cut up, massive stock pots simmering away... The cool part is how clean the kitchen area is. Always. It's a good experience, especially for first timers.

The only concern I can think of is the price. The food is great, as are the ingredients and the people making them into dishes. However, the prices are a bit steep in my opinion. I do believe however, that they're entitled to a small premium for all the small stuff that makes up El Molino Central. How much is hard to say... I know I'll keep coming back.

P.S.- Try everything on the menu, and don't...

Ok let's be honest for a second; the hype train on this place has certainly left the station. Travel websites, other reviews, blogs, all seem to say that this place is the second coming of Mexican food.

Umm.

It's not.

First and foremost, the location's charm rests solely on it being billed as "local" and "authentic" - but I'm not sure that Sonoma really needs any more establishments that are overpriced, slow, and so lacking in flavor that the taco Bell seems a better option. This restaurant pales in comparison to any of the Mexicali food found elsewhere in the state, and the 2x menu prices for really simple things (15$ for a couple chicken tacos? o_O) is just insane.

There's no flavor, no organization, no compelling reason to eat here. At all. Ever.

It's ok. It's food that is cooked and will make you full without any memorable anything, for everything that's in your wallet. If that's what you came to Sonoma for, then you're in luck.

If you came for something you would write home about though, do yourself a favor and go...