The Sonora Room

I have always loved my delicious visits to the Sonora Room.
We celebrated our 4 year anniversary here and it was by far the best restaurant for the occasion. The service was excellent from beginning to end.
I had the cured salmon as an appetizer and the herbs and pickled red onions complimented it beautifully. I was very happy with this dish. The presentation on a mason jar was a little unusual.
My main was seared scallops with pork belly and spicy popcorn. The scallops were seared to perfection and deliciously sweet.
Dessert was a winner. The lemon and blueberry combo was light and delicious.
I highly recommend this restaurant for a romantic date or any special occasion. By far a classic must visit when in wine country.

We had lunch at Sonora room a few days ago. I went with their duck confit and it was delicious! Duck was tender and full of flavor. Too bad we live so far away!

We were so incredibly disappointed considering my wife had such a lovely experience in the past
Everything except the service was horrendous. The food was less than mediocre.
My wife ordered duck dish. Duck was overcooked, sauce was as if it was the exact same as the soup we ordered as an appetizer. The sausage that paired with the duck was not complimentary. It was like «what happened here???»
I ordered seafood chioppino which was not impressive at all because of the broth quality.
The restaurant was quarter full and we were placed in a corner next to a party of eight very loud group or men. I am not sure why the restaurant couldn’t place us away from the big party when it was so empty and we had a reservation.
The whole experience was so bad that we didn’t even finish the wine and left in a hurry. It was unfortunate since we liked Burrowing Owl and the winery visit was supposed to be our highlight of trip. We never went to the winery since the experience was so bad.
There are other good places to eat in Osoyoos and hope this review helps for others.

The food is great, presentation especially. Service was good — our server introduced herself and went through the menu briefly with us before we ordered.
The restaurant itself is very quiet which is nice we went during the summer so we enjoyed the view and the weather in peace and quiet. After a long hot car ride from Vancouver it was nice to be away from city noise.
We had the happy goat cheese salad — light and simple and good portions (not too cheap with the cheese or shortcutting with too much salad)
The pulled pork sandwich was delicious! a little too much sauce but I guess that’s expected of pulled pork.
They had these awesome little stainless steel salt and pepper shakers that you could purchase I think they’re $ 25 or so pretty pricey…
You should make a reservation if you’re planning to sit outside — they are great seats but they usually have them booked up ahead of time. We sat inside but no complaints we still enjoyed ourselves.
After the meal we walked up their stairwell to the viewing balcony and read all the posters with information about the winery and their processes pretty cool. The little terrace at the top gives you an amazing view of the vineyards (great for pictures).

I don’t know if it’s ‘bad’. but it just didn’t come together.
They have a GREAT view in the balcony/​terrace area. it’s amazing during sunset. but that’s not really the restaurant, it’s the area. you can stand outside the restaurant and it’s the same beautiful view of.
The place itself feels like it wants to be white linen high end with amuse bouche, and little petite fours (two actually) at the end etc.
but the food is just busy, over thought, and too many conflicting flavors.
Salad Appy — i want a salad, but this one has a massive scoop of a creamy cheese. it dominates the plate and u barely notice it’s a salad.
Ordered the Lamb loin, came with purple potatoes, some sweet fruit, 2 sauces, some alfalfa greens, and some shaving on top. just so busy. and medium rare was more like rare.
Also got the Duck confit. Same problem. comes with multiple sides, sauce, shavings, toppings, etc. just confusing.
All in all it’s not enjoyabe, and by far the most expensive restaurant. not worth going.

Best dinner and dessert ever! Duck was amazing and the chocolate ganache was the best. Really! We came from Vancouver and tried 17 different wineries… burrowing owl is the best for food and wine. You have to try for yourself ! If heaven exists, this must be Heaven.

Easily a 4.5 star experience. We heard nothing but amazing things about the Sonora Room from all the wine tastings we did, and it definitely did not disappoint.
The antipasti plate for the night was amazing and filling, full of delicious pickled veggies and some yummy chorizo.
I had the flat iron steak and it was hands down, the best steak I’ve ever had. The restaurant itself is very quaint, and I would recommend making a reservation early as it fills up quickly.
This is one of those places that you can’t miss when you’re in Osoyoos.

Stopped by Burrowing Owl Winery while in the Okanagan and decided to grab some lunch at the Sonora Room. Got a table with a lovely view of the vineyards and surrounding hills. Service was knowledgeable and friendly. The décor is upscale casual, very clean and comfortable.
We started with the seared tuna (very nice, and well accompanied), the breads and spreads (perfect with some wine), and the antipasti platter (excellent selection of top quality local foods that also pairs perfectly with white and red wines). For the mains, I had the duck confit — a favourite of mine, and this place delivered! Not too salty, tender, unctuous meat with a golden crust — mmmmmmm. My wife had the hand made spinach and ricotta gnocchi — magnificent! Flavourful, perfectly cooked, I had to pry some away from her just to taste them. The kids tucked into the grilled chicken and bacon sandwiches, wonderful combinations of fresh grilled chicken and home-​made bacon with just the right amount of toppings to enhance but not hide the flavours. I don’t know if it is possible to dine here without sampling the wines, and the selection is terrific, something for every taste and mood.
Looking forward to returning!

Enjoying a summer lunch in Southern Okanagan overlooking undulating fields of terraced grapevines with high desert mountains jutting out in the background is not a bad place to be. Not by a long shot.
We enjoyed the full, bright reds at Burrowing Owl and the view at their restaurant, the Sonora Room, along with some good food makes this a good stop for a splurge. The combination of food, wine and view at the Sonora Room is enviable, and while the food scene here in Okanagan is still emerging, this is one of the better stops.
The soup and sandwich at $ 20 were a questionable value, but certainly tasty. Arguably this is not the easiest sandwich in the world to eat. It is incredibly thin and piled on a thick baguette and knife and picking it apart are the only real ways to get at it. The accompanying carrot soup was smooth, creamy and savory. There is a small kids menu, with about three options, but it seems sadly that kids want the same three foods at every meal. Or perhaps I am just a parenting failure, sigh. Anyway, our meaty beef cheek pasta dish with fresh cherry tomatoes and mint pesto was tasty and very hearty. The red wines here are warmed in the Oosoyos desert and a few get a very full, robust flavor, and are favorably comparable to some of our favorite Washington wines.
The view and the wine are the two best things about this place. While the wine is enjoyable in the Okanagan, above average dining options are harder to find. Its still working towards that in my opinion, although I admit my benchmark is the Northern California wine country. The winery here does have good food and wine options. and a beautiful little hotel & infinity pool facing erraced grapevines, which I imagine would make for a very memorable stay. We recommend the wine and the location for a splurge lunch in the Okanagan.

The Sonora Room is perhaps the best restaurant in the valley. It was our first time there and we were really impressed.
First, we made reservations the same day and they accommodated us. The room and view were both fantastic. We made reservations during the end of low season.
It started with great drinks, including a unique fire wine ceasar, highly recommended. My wife had a fantastic duck dish and I had a great beef special. The food was great overall. Perfectly cooked and well presented.

Two of us went for dinner and sat on the patio. The views were amazing, some of the best in the Okanagan. Getting to watch the sunset over the hills was incredible.
Service was right on. Lovely eastern European lady was our server and she was attentive without hovering. Funny without lowering service level. Well Done.
Food was very good. Both mains were a little over-​cooked/​dry (Halibut & Lamb), but the flavors and creativity was excellent. The 1^st course and dessert was great.
Décor inside is a little old & dated, wouldn’t have wanted to dine inside, but the patio was magnificent. We most definitely will be back!

Good food, wine and view. The service was slightly put-​off-​ish compared to other winery restaurants in the area.
Remember to bring insect repellent, especially if you plan on sitting on the patio around dusk!

Every time I visit the Okanagan, a highlight is having lunch at the Sonora Room at Burrowing Owl, that is, until this past weekend… wow, disappointing is an understatement at best! We were a party of 4, and each ordered a different entrée, plus 2 appetizers. I have always enjoyed the salad with chevre and toasted almonds. This time, the greens were not locally grown as they have been in the past, but generic spinach and (ugh)…watercress. It seemed like they came from a bag. The taste of bacon overpowered everything else, including the dressing and although ok, was nowhere near exceptional, which it has been in the past. The potato and leek soup was not served hot and was sampled by all, as there was a curious muddy mélange of flavors, of which crème fraîche and fennel/​dill were prominent over leek. It turned out that fennel was prominent in all the entrees as well, including the beef on a «homemade pretzel bun», which I ordered as I wanted a glass of the the recommended Cab-​sauv pairing. The only other accompaniment on the plate was a slaw, which was ok, but definitely unsatisfying. The beef tasted strongly of fennel, and was quite fatty as well as dry and chewy. No other flavors were presented to complement the plate. The bun was dry/​not fresh. The chicken hot pot was not presented in a hot pot and also tasted of fennel. Probably the best dish was the crispy duck (also tasting of fennel), but it was also not exceptional. Too bad… a real come-​down experience.

We had a lovely dinner at the Sonoma room. We started off with duck confit and charcuterie plate. The duck was nice but the slaw which accompanied it was mediocre at best. The charcuterie plate was nothing to write home about. But things got better with the Rockfish and the organic wild rice with sun dried tomatoes. Very nice dish and well balanced yet amazing flavor profile. We then had a cheese plate and dessert. The cheeses were from Vancouver Island and very nicely presented.
Desert was surprisingly good, why I say that, because with my European background I find that most North American restaurants have too sweet of desserts. The chocolate parfait was creamy and tasty so was the hazelnut parfait. All wine parings were good and well chosen.
A nice place but for what it was should have a different price structure.

Yum! I think this was my favourite restaurant on our trip to the Okanagan. Their wine was amazing, but I knew this already as this is one of my favourite wineries but the overall food was amazing.
I had the duck confit which was cooked to perfection — crispy on the outside and moist on the inside.
The view is not as nice as Mission Hill or Quail’s Gate, but the food and wine make up for it.

The Sonora Room is one of the best restaurants I have been to in a long time, every thing was exceptional. First the winery setting is absolutely gorgeous only to be exceeded by the quality and presentation of the food. There were four in out party and each meal was outstanding the leek potato soup of the day exceptional as was the capressi salad and fresh crab cakes. For the dinners I had the steak accompanied with wild mushrooms, my wife had the Salmon, daughter the duck and her friend the lamb and each dish was prepared to perfection. Don’t miss this place for lunch or dinner (or both) if you are in Osoyoos.

Had a bithday celebration on June 20 so we made a reservation at Burrowing Owl. Told them when reserving we were vegetarian and it was a birthday. No recognition of either were noted on arrival. in fact I had to mention to the waitress that I had specifically requested vegetarian options when making the reservation and had been told they would accommodate me. We sat on the deck which was very nice overlooking the valley and vineyards, be careful tho, late in the evening the mosquitoes do come out and the waitress quipped they were on steroids! Inside, the room is very noisy due to the high ceiling and tiled floors made worse by the awful cold blue lighting from the energy saving lamps hanging from the ceiling. Not a first class restaurant ambience in my book.
Menu was very limited for the vegetarian. We started with a cheese plate consisting of 4 or 5 small wedges of local organic cheeses bread and candied hazelnuts, We then had salads with fried breaded goat cheese. We were going to have the potato leek soup but fortunately the waitress advised at the last minute that it was made with chicken stock after I asked her to double check. Then the mains, I understand the salmon was good but my friend who had the halibut (a 2″ square) and 3 prawns with pasta thought it was poor value at $ 29 per plate. I had a mushroom risotto (which was a side for one of the meat entrees) they concocted for me (after I had cojoled them abuot vegetarian options) and added some seasonal veg too. Points to them for that. We had a large bottle of Pellegrino ($ 8.95!) and a bottle of their own Pinot Gris, nice but we defintiely prefer the Hester Creek Pinot Gris (where we are staying) Finished up with Rhubarb sponge cake and sorbet and a glass of sweet late harvest wine, which was quite good. Service was casual and friendly, however there was none of the finesse which is expected in a fine dining establishment.
In conculusion, the location was lovely but this was not a fine dining experience though the prices were certainly of that calibre. I doubt if I would go again.

If you are not staying at the Burrowing Owl Guest House, good luck finding the Burrowing Owl Estate Winery in the dark. Give yourself extra time to drive back and forth on Hwy 97 as you try to locate Road 22. We really didn’t think we were ever going to find it. Obviously, we eventually did.
We started with the salmon platter appetizer. It was quite good, especially the salmon pâté. I was disappointed in the lack of vegetarian and fish options for entrees. Salmon was the one fish entrée and mushroom risotto was the veggie entrée. I went with the risotto, but wasn’t really impressed by it. My wife had the duck comfit appetizer as her main course and thought it was very good. I enjoyed a lovely glass of Burrowing Owl Gerwertztraminer with my dinner. I highly recommend it. For dessert we shared an apple tartine that was very good.
Service was very good, though our waitress often mixed up her words when describing things to us. For example, saying macaroons instead of meringue. Overall, it was a very pleasant experience. If there were a few more options for pescatarians and vegetarians, I’d give them another star, but I think meat eaters will be very happy here.