Solera Restaurant
Tel: (506) 225-0034
Specialty: Eclectic fusion cuisine with French, Italian, Asian and Mexican culinary highlights.
Chef: Co-owner Michel Bellefeuille.
Recommended Dish: Roasted Breast of Duck with Blackberry, Red Wine and Fresh Thyme Sauce, served with Savory Vegetables and Fried or Mashed Potatoes.
Prices: Dinner entrées range from U.S. $6.75 to $30, not including sales and service taxes (23%).
Location: Los Yoses, eastern suburb of the capital city of San José
Directions for Taxi Driver: Del costado sur del I.C.E. de San Pedro, 50 mts. oeste y 400 mts. sur.

Dining at Restaurante Solera is an unforgettable journey of good taste down the eclectic road of fusion cuisine.

Although its name is Spanish (and has many meanings, for example, the barrel used to make sherry), the food served at Solera cannot be placed into any one category. Co-owners Ray Forté and chef Michel Bellefeuille have combined their talents and added the highlights of several culinary styles to their well thought-out menu.

Together, they have created an inviting atmosphere that blends comfortable warmth with smart elegance. Guest can choose indoor seating at tables adorned with cheerful yellow cloths highlighted by the soft glow of a candle, set amidst classic back-and-white photographs of Costa Rican jungles and Parisian cityscapes, or a more relaxed outdoor setting amidst a verdant foliage-filled garden terrace.

Or make yourself comfortable at the bar, where you can choose from among more than 50 cocktails and mixed drinks, including all the classics, a national or imported beer such as Carlsberg or Tuborg from Denmark, or select a white or red wine from the finest wine-producing countries in the world. Solera's extensive wine list includes selections from Argentina, Australia, California, Chile, Italy, France and South Africa's Cape coastal region.

If the thought of a warm soup awakens your appetite, Solera offers two soups of the day to choose from. On a recent visit, the choices were Cream of Tomato or Chicken with Vegetables. The menu also offers a variety of salads to begin your meal, including a creamy Caesar with tender pieces of grilled chicken, Goat cheese salad with roasted red peppers, pickled beets and pesto vinaigrette, and an Asian heart-of-palm salad with sesame seed oil, ginger and soya dressing.

Other appetizers include Escargots stuffed in mushroom caps with garlic butter, Beef Carpaccio with Manchego cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinegar, Sautéed frogs legs in garlic butter, Marinated Salmon with tequila cream cheese and capers, or Coconut shrimps with spicy mango sauce.

Entrées include Shrimp Agnolotti pasta with saffron cream sauce and caviar, Grilled Squid with provençale sauce, Grilled Surf and Turf, beef tenderloin and shrimp, Spinach Ricotta Cheese Ravioli with fresh tomato, garlic and basil, Beef Osso Buco with red wine reduction, Crispy Duck with mango and ginger chutney, Salmon with white wine and herb butter sauce and Mussels with tomato, basil and white wine sauce, among others.

Less expensive options are offered on the special Festival Menu, which changes every couple of months. A recent Festival of Pasta (which followed the Festival of Shrimp), offered guests seven different choices of pasta, such as Farfalle with smoked salmon and vegetables in a white wine cream sauce, for example, along with soup or salad and dessert of the day, for just $7.25 plus taxes.

Each beautifully arranged plate is a symphony for the senses, leading diners to an utterly delicious conclusion of good taste. Freshly ground pepper is available to spice up your soup or salad, as well as freshly grated Parmesan cheese to sprinkle over the aromatic pasta selections.

Dessert selections include the highly recommended and deliciously rich chocolate mousse, which literally melts in your mouth, or freshly baked apple pie with vanilla ice cream, accompanied with a cup of strong espresso or a cinnamon-dusted cappuccino.

Co-owner Ray Forté makes sure the details are perfect, making guests feel perfectly at ease while ensuring their satisfaction. Behind the scenes, co-owner and chef Michel Bellefeuille whips up culinary creations to satisfy the most demanding tastes.

The partners, who ran a restaurant together in their native Canada before moving to Costa Rica, put their synergy to work to create Restaurante Solera, which debuted in November of 2001.

Prior to launching Solera, Forté helped create and manage the popular Café Mundo in San José. After four years of success there, he sold his shares to the other two partners in 2000. "I like creating things much more than administering them," he explained. In fact, Solera is his fifth restaurant endeavor.

More than three decades of experience in the restaurant and hospitality industry - and his constant search for warm weather - took him to places such as Bermuda, Cuba and the Dominican Republic before he finally decided to settle down in Costa Rica in the mid-1990s.

Restaurante Solera is open Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for lunch, and Monday through Saturday from 5:30-10:30 p.m. for dinner. It is closed on Sundays. The menu, a map of how to get there and photos can be found on the restaurant's website: http://www.restaurantsolera.com.