Sonoma, United States

El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen

Price per night from$281.50

Price information

If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (inclusive of taxes and fees) available in the next 60 days.

Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (USD281.50), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.

El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen Photos

Style

Landmark lair

Setting

Prime plaza

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Once the adobe home of military captain and rancher Salvador Vallejo, who was taken prisoner during the Bear Flag Revolt of 1846, El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen has also been a school, a church and, naturally, a wine-making facility. Today, it’s a small-scale stay right on the plaza in Sonoma, with an enviable locale, a restaurant whipping up the culinary highlights of California and Mexico, and balcony-enhanced bedrooms.

 

Smith Extra

Get this when you book through us:

A bottle of Gloria Ferrer sparkling wine and house-made chocolate truffles

Facilities

Photos El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen facilities

Need to know

Rooms

27.

Check–Out

11am. Earliest check-in, 4pm.

More details

Rates don’t usually include breakfast.

Also

Some of the Patio Deluxe King rooms have been adapted for guests with limited mobility and feature roll-in showers and grab bars. Not all rooms in the historic building are accessible by elevator, but there is reserved parking and access to the pool, communal spaces and public restrooms.

At the hotel

Bikes to borrow, free WiFi throughout. In rooms: smart TV, Bluetooth speaker, air-conditioning, Illy coffee machine and electric kettle, free bottled water, hand-held steamer, bathrobes and California-made organic EO bath products.

Our favourite rooms

For the most space and peaceful views of the Sonoma Plaza, book a Plaza Deluxe King and toast the valley’s finest vintages on your spacious balcony.

Poolside

There’s a solar-heated outdoor saltwater pool, open for swims around the clock.

Packing tips

Restrict the urge to over-pack so you can fill your suitcase with fine Sonoma Valley wines and trinkets sourced in the city’s cute boutiques instead.

Children

All ages are welcome, but there aren't many dedicated facilities for kids, though there is a park in the middle of the plaza. Families can book a Standard Double Double room, which sleeps four.

Food and Drink

Photos El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen food and drink

Top Table

Out on the patio, by the old fig tree and surrounded by fairy lights.

Dress Code

Attire doesn’t have to be fancy, but something red-wine-proof will be wise.

Hotel restaurant

El Dorado Kitchen is the main hub of the hotel, an all-day dining destination on Sonoma Plaza, where you can tuck in to California’s famously sunny produce in between jaunts out to the wine country. We loved the melt-in-your-mouth pork belly, but staff seemed even more enthused by the sizzling seafood paella. Other menu highlights include shrimp ceviche, salmon tartare and fritto misto. There’s also a ‘cantina’ menu of chips, salsa and tacos that can be served poolside. For breakfast, the Latin theme continues with huevos rancheros and burritos, or keep it California-clean with seasonal smoothies and granola bowls. 

 

Hotel bar

There’s a bar within the restaurant, which serves the same menu and keeps the same hours. 

Last orders

Breakfast hours are 8am–11am (10.30am on weekends), with brunch on Saturday and Sunday from 11am–2pm. Lunch is 11.30am–3pm Monday to Thursday (3.30pm on Friday). Dinner is from 5pm–8.30pm Monday to Thursday; 3.30pm–8.45pm Friday to Sunday.

Location

Photos El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen location
Address
El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen
405 First Street West
Sonoma
95476
United States

El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen is on the main square in Sonoma, close to the vineyards of Sonoma Valley in northern California.

Planes

The two airports that serve Sonoma are in San Francisco and Oakland, both within a 90-minute drive away. Hotel transfers can be arranged (price on request).

Automobiles

If you’re planning on touring the wine estates or arriving via the Pacific Coast Highway, a car is essential — there’s free parking at the hotel when you arrive.

Worth getting out of bed for

Trips to Sonoma don’t have to be entirely based around wine, but it’s a good place to start — Napa Valley may be the more famous of northern California’s wine regions, but it’s not the only place putting out some fine vintages. Wineries within an easy drive include the OG Buena Vista (est. 1857) and hot-on-its-heels Gundlach Bundchu (est. 1858). And if your sybaritic itinerary demands dairy alongside wine, visit The Epicurean Connection for a cheese-making course. More highbrow activities await at the Transcendence Theatre, where you can catch an off-Broadway show. In Sonoma itself, set off on a bicycle borrowed from the hotel (free of charge) and explore the scenic city in the heart of the Sonoma Valley wine region. It’s home to various boutiques, galleries, ice-cream shops and thrift stores, and a farmers’ market pops up every Tuesday night.

Local restaurants

Bottle shop, wine bar and restaurant Valley is your one-stop Sonoma shop for every dining need, from breakfast pastries and weekend brunches to Middle East-leaning meals and wine to take home and enjoy on your balcony. Surrounded by the historic buildings of Sonoma Plaza, La Salette blends flavors from the chef’s native Portugal with the sun-blessed ingredients of California — naturally, sardines and salt cod feature. More Portuguese plates await at Tasca Tasca on West Napa Street. 

Local bars

Just off the plaza in downtown Sonoma, The Beacon will send a signal to anyone in search of a speakeasy, promising refreshment in the form of craft cocktails and seasonal twists. On the corner of the plaza, The Girl & The Fig is somewhere you can insouciantly sit up at the antique bar for an apéritif, wash down the admirable wine list with cheese and charcuterie platters, or enjoy seasonal suppers out on the patio. 

Reviews

Photos El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen reviews

Anonymous review

By Mr & Mrs Smith

Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this wine-country hotel and unpacked their zinfandel and cabernet sauvignon, a full account of their Bacchanalian break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen in Sonoma… 

It’s not every day you rest your head in an 180-year-old adobe building, but El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen promises guests just that. The landmark Salvador Vallejo building was created in 1843 for the military captain and rancher brother of Sonoma Valley’s founder, and is surrounded by fellow colonial-era constructions on the city’s main plaza. Everything you need in Sonoma is within walking distance, from the famous galleries to the buzzy boutiques, wine-tasting rooms and weekly farmers’ market. It’s also the perfect base for exploring more of the Sonoma Valley and its heritage wineries. The service is personalised and passionate, with local staff leading you to their favourite Sonoma spots.

At the hotel, El Dorado Kitchen serves up plates of sunshine, alongside Mexican favourites, from tacos to churros. There’s a patio with a fig tree that’s as old as the building, primed for romantic dinners — or you can take a bottle and a picnic over to the park in the middle of the square. Either way, in Sonoma, it’s always wine o’clock. 

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Price per night from $281.01