![\"Solera](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Solero-French-Onion-Soup-300x200.jpeg\")
Solera Kitchen\u2019s French onion soup<\/p>\nStratus Financial LLC, a Newport Beach-based provider of financing for student pilots seeking commercial flight training, was ranked No. 1 in the Business Journal\u2019s 2024 and 2025 lists of fastest-growing locally based private companies.<\/p>\n
Now, Stratus COO Brandon Martini has taken his high-flying success to an even loftier goal: opening a restaurant.<\/p>\n
Martini is the proprietor of Solera Kitchen + Wine Bar on Main Street in Seal Beach, which opened June 29. By mid-July, the 31-seat restaurant had welcomed more than 1,200 guests\u2014an impressive feat for a new dining establishment.<\/p>\n
According to Martini, who co-founded the restaurant with entrepreneur Todd Wohrman, he wanted to bring an elevated feel to Seal Beach and near his home in Sunset Beach.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted something local and close by to me so I can get here whenever I can, and have all my good friends come and visit,\u201d he told the Business Journal. \u201cSeal Beach afforded that perfect location for us. It\u2019s quaint and has a nice beach vibe, which I absolutely love.<\/p>\n
\u201cI tell everybody you can come here in either a bikini or a full suit, and we\u2019ll serve you. But we\u2019re going to give you elevated service no matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n
Martini said he looked at potential restaurant locations in Corona del Mar and Huntington Beach before nabbing the Main Street location, which is two blocks from the pier.<\/p>\n
Solera is not a typical beach eatery.<\/p>\n
Executive Chef Michael Droma, whose background includes The Bazaar by Jos\u00e9 Andr\u00e9s, runs the from-scratch seasonal kitchen, which includes handcrafted charcuterie.<\/p>\n
Martini, a certified sommelier, oversees the wine program, which features selections from Napa and as far away as South Africa. He even has a Ch\u00e2teau Mouton Rothschild 2019\u2014rated between 98 and 100 points by leading wine publications\u2014lurking on the list.<\/p>\n
Droma has created separate lunch and dinner menus with only a handful of similar items on both.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrandon gave me a guideline of what he wanted and what was expected, and then from there, all of this is just based on my training that I did prior,\u201d said Droma. \u201cI\u2019ve been creating menus left and right for other restaurants, especially the restaurant that I opened in South Korea, which was a changing menu all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Many menu items have aviation names, such as The Boarding Pass, Pre-Flight Bread Service, The Hangar, Tailwind Kale and The Smooth Landing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m entrenched in aviation,\u201d explained Martini. \u201cI\u2019m a pilot instructor myself; it\u2019s my whole life. It\u2019s what afforded me to build this place, so I wanted to make sure that part of my life was incorporated in this new part of my life and new chapter. And family is number one for me, too. On our dinner menu, the first dish on our mains is named Austin\u2019s First Choice, and Austin is my son.\u201d<\/p>\n
Solera Kitchen\u2019s French onion soup<\/p>\n
Droma and Martini agreed that one of their favorite menu items is dubbed Captain\u2019s Crock: French onion soup\u2014his favorite soup in the world.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve traveled to several countries and all over France to try the best French onion soups. If it\u2019s French onion soup, I want it,\u201d Martini said.<\/p>\n
Martini and Droma collaborated to create a dozen versions of the soup until they came up with one they both loved.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we have the best French onion soup around,\u201d Martini said.<\/p>\n
Martini may be right. I am normally not a fan of French onion soup, but this is a soup I would order every time.<\/p>\n
Popularized in Paris, traditional French onion soup involves slowly caramelizing onions in butter and deglazing them with wine, dry sherry or cognac. Droma\u2019s version calls for beef stock, duck stock and chicken stock, along with an abundance of different types of onions, plus a slab of focaccia bread topped with melted cheese.<\/p>\n
Even the bread-and-butter plate is elevated, with three types of bread and three different butter blends.<\/p>\n
The citrus-marinated artichoke hearts are creative and delicious, while the cornbread \u2013 baked in an oblong skillet and served with a dollop of butter on top \u2013 is some of the best I\u2019ve had.<\/p>\n
And then there\u2019s the burger: Beef patty, giardiniera spread, house sauce, Swiss cheese, and a side of leafy greens (or sub yuca fries for salad). This is a delicious, gloriously messy burger that now ranks in my top five burgers in OC.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s only available for lunch, but it\u2019s so good I wouldn\u2019t be surprised to eventually see it on the dinner menu too.<\/p>\n
I also tried the duck mole, which was superb, along with two decadent desserts.
The plating on every dish was lovely, the service pleasant and friendly, and the ambiance reminiscent of a caf\u00e9 in Europe.<\/p>\n
Solera is a hidden gem that won\u2019t stay hidden for long.<\/p>\n