Restaurant in London, United Kingdom
California cooking, Michelin stamp, hard booking.
Victor Garvey's Michelin-starred Californian tasting menu on Dean Street is one of Soho's harder reservations to secure, and at £159 per person it asks for commitment. It earns both: the ten-course format delivers technically precise, flavour-forward cooking without gimmicks, backed by a wine programme adjusted to your taste mid-service. Lunch is the smarter entry point; dinner is for when you're all in.
SO|LA is one of the harder Michelin-starred tables to secure in Soho, and the ten-course tasting menu at £159 per person makes it a considered spend. But the 2024 Michelin Star and a Google rating of 4.5 from 274 reviews confirm what the buzz suggests: Victor Garvey's California-inspired kitchen on Dean Street is delivering at a level that justifies both the price and the planning. If you want technically precise, ingredient-led cooking that doesn't mistake complexity for cleverness, this is worth your time. If you're after flexibility or a casual drop-in, look elsewhere.
SO|LA sits at 64 Dean Street in the heart of Soho, bringing Californian cooking to one of London's most competitive dining corridors. The format is a ten-course tasting menu priced at £159 per person, and that structure is non-negotiable: this is a committed, progressive meal, not a menu you graze. The kitchen's approach is described consistently as innovative without gimmicks, which in practice means bold, precise flavour combinations built around high-quality ingredients, presented with visual flair but grounded in taste rather than theatre.
The flavour profile leans into deep, punchy sauces and well-calibrated contrasts. Dishes reported by guests and critics include a devilled egg that has become something of a signature talking point, bluefin tuna preparations with ponzu jelly and avocado mousse, squab breast alongside artichoke gratin and foie gras parfait encased in squid-ink gel, and desserts ranging from Pink Lady apple with Calvados sorbet to poached pear with truffle ice cream. These are not safe plates. The cooking asks something of the diner, and rewards those who engage with it. For food and wine enthusiasts after genuine depth, this is the kind of tasting menu that generates conversation rather than just checking a box.
The wine programme is an all-American selection, with some bottles exclusive to the restaurant. The sommelier approach has drawn strong praise: guests report wine flights adjusted to personal taste mid-service, and the presence of lesser-known American producers that would be difficult to find elsewhere in London. For wine-curious diners, this is a genuine selling point. The caveat, noted by critics, is that the exclusively Californian focus can feel limiting against the broader ambition of the food, and exchange-rate dynamics mean the wine pricing stretches the bill. Go in with that expectation set.
2024 Michelin Star represents a meaningful marker for SO|LA. It confirms that what Garvey has built on Dean Street has moved past the novelty of its Californian premise and into a register that the industry's most rigorous validators take seriously. The set lunch menu has been particularly noted by critics as a value proposition that punches above its price point, delivering the same kitchen's ambition in a shorter format. For diners considering a first visit, lunch is a lower-risk entry point into the experience before committing to the full dinner tasting menu.
SO|LA is an intimate restaurant: the room is compact, the experience is designed around the tasting menu format, and the service model is attentive and personalised. For groups, this intimacy is a double-edged consideration. Small groups of two to four will find the format well-suited to a focused, shared experience. Larger groups seeking a private dining buyout or semi-private space should contact the restaurant directly to establish availability and terms, as no specific private dining configuration is listed in the available data. What is clear is that the service style, with sommeliers actively adjusting wine pairings to individual preferences mid-flight, makes SO|LA better for groups where everyone is engaged with the meal rather than treating it as background to a conversation. If you're organising a celebration or business dinner where the food and wine are the point, this format works well for small parties. For large group bookings of eight or more, confirm logistics in advance.
Booking difficulty is rated Hard. SO|LA operates Tuesday to Saturday, closed Sunday and Monday. Lunch service runs Wednesday to Saturday from 12 PM to 3 PM; dinner runs Tuesday to Saturday from 6 PM to 10 PM. The limited opening hours and intimate room size mean availability moves quickly, particularly for weekend dinner. Book as far in advance as your calendar allows. The set lunch is your leading option if weekend dinner slots are gone. Walk-ins are not a realistic strategy for this format.
Booking summary: Reserve well in advance for dinner. Lunch Wednesday to Saturday is your fallback.
Address: 64 Dean St, London W1D 4QQ. Price: £159 per person tasting menu. Hours: Tuesday dinner only; Wednesday to Saturday lunch and dinner; closed Sunday and Monday. Nearest transport: Leicester Square or Tottenham Court Road. Dress code: not specified, but smart casual is the appropriate register for this price point and format.
For more London dining options at this level, see our full London restaurants guide. If you're planning a wider trip, our London hotels guide, London bars guide, and London experiences guide cover the rest.
For Californian cooking in its home territory, compare with Caruso's in Montecito and Citrin in Los Angeles. For other ambitious UK tasting menu experiences outside London, The Fat Duck in Bray, L'Enclume in Cartmel, Moor Hall in Aughton, Gidleigh Park in Chagford, Hand and Flowers in Marlow, and hide and fox in Saltwood are all worth considering depending on your travel plans.
Small groups of two to four are well-served by the tasting menu format and the attentive, personalised service. For larger parties or private dining arrangements, contact SO|LA directly: the intimate room means capacity is limited, and nothing in the public record confirms a dedicated private dining space. At £159 per person, budget accordingly for group bookings.
The tasting menu format at SO|LA is well-suited to solo dining if you're coming as an engaged food and wine enthusiast rather than for a social occasion. The sommelier interaction and the structured ten-course progression give a solo diner plenty to focus on. In Soho at this price point, it's a more intimate and considered experience than the bigger-room options nearby.
The kitchen is working with a structured ten-course tasting menu, which limits flexibility compared to à la carte formats. Dietary requirements are leading communicated directly when booking. No specific dietary accommodation policy is published, so do not assume; confirm before you arrive.
Lunch is the smarter entry point. Critics have specifically called out the set lunch menu as a value proposition that delivers the same kitchen quality at a lower price than the full dinner tasting menu. If you're testing SO|LA for the first time or working to a tighter budget, lunch Wednesday to Saturday is the right call. Dinner at £159 per person is for when you know you want the full ten-course commitment.
For most diners, yes: the 2024 Michelin Star and consistent guest feedback about flavour precision and sommelier quality support the price. The caveat is that roughly one in five guests considers it overpriced, which likely reflects the wine bill as much as the food. If the exclusively Californian wine programme doesn't excite you, the pairing costs can push the total into uncomfortable territory. Go for the food; treat the wine as a bonus rather than the centrepiece.
At £159 per person, the ten-course tasting menu is positioned at the more accessible end of London's Michelin-starred tasting menu range. Given the 2024 Star, the ingredient quality on show (bluefin tuna, squab, foie gras), and the sommelier service that adjusts wine flights mid-meal, it delivers genuine value within its category. The format demands your full attention for the duration: this is not a quick dinner. If you're committed to the experience, it holds up against the price.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| SO|LA | Californian | ££££ | Hard |
| CORE by Clare Smyth | Modern British | ££££ | Unknown |
| Restaurant Gordon Ramsay | Contemporary European, French | ££££ | Unknown |
| Sketch, The Lecture Room and Library | Modern French | ££££ | Unknown |
| The Ledbury | Modern European, Modern Cuisine | ££££ | Unknown |
| Dinner by Heston Blumenthal | Modern British, Traditional British | ££££ | Unknown |
Side-by-side comparison to help you decide where to book.
Groups are possible but the room is compact and the format is a ten-course tasting menu, so everyone at the table moves through the same experience. Parties of four to six are workable; larger groups should check the venue's official channels before attempting a reservation. If your group needs flexibility on format or a private room setup, CORE by Clare Smyth or The Ledbury offer more infrastructure for that.
Yes, with a caveat: at £159 per person for the tasting menu, you are committing to a full evening spend alone. The intimate room and attentive service model make solo dining comfortable rather than awkward, and the counter or smaller tables suit a single diner well. If solo spending feels steep, the Wednesday-to-Saturday lunch service is the more manageable entry point.
The venue database does not document specific dietary accommodation policies. Given the fixed ten-course tasting menu format at £159 per person, contact SO|LA directly at 64 Dean Street before booking if you have restrictions — tasting menus at this level typically require advance notice to adjust, and assumptions can derail the whole format.
Lunch is the stronger value case. Multiple sources specifically flag the set lunch menu as remarkable for the price, with the same kitchen and ingredient quality as dinner. Dinner is the full tasting menu experience and suits a special-occasion spend; lunch suits anyone who wants to test the cooking before committing to the £159 evening format. Lunch runs Wednesday to Saturday from 12 PM to 3 PM.
For most diners, yes — but one in five reporters considers it overpriced, so go in calibrated. The Michelin 1 Star (2024) and the depth of the ten-course format at £159 put it in range with peers like CORE by Clare Smyth and The Ledbury, both of which cost more. The wine flight adds cost but draws consistent praise; the sommelier tailors it, which matters at this price point.
Yes, if a ten-course fixed format is your preference. At £159 per person, the menu holds a Michelin 1 Star (2024) and draws consistent praise for balance and innovation without gimmicks. The devilled egg is specifically flagged as a highlight by multiple reporters. If you want à la carte flexibility, SO|LA is not the right fit — the entire experience is built around the tasting format.
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