The Socialight

I am not one to complain, but this experience was just… wow.
I have worked in multiple kitchens as a cook and am currently working in the customer service industry. I understand the pain customers can cause, truly. However, the experience at The Socialight was just very unappealing.
My girlfriend and I were excited to share date night at this new restaurant we had seen the week before and boy did it look like a very happening place.
Our reservations for The Socialight was at 6:30. We walked in and were seat in the back of the restaurant between the bathroom and kitchen. Let me explain, if it was busy, if there were no other two seat tables left it wouldn’t have been a problem, totally acceptable. Except it wasn’t.
There was a two seat table near the front of the restaurant and other spots that we later saw were transformed into two table spots.
My girlfriend goes over to the hostess to politely ask if we could switch to the spot right behind her. She replies with a «No, we are booked with reservations.»
SAY WHAT?
We, the people with the reservation at 6:30, who arrived on time and asked before any of the other parties even arrived at the restaurant couldn’t move because they were «booked».
This began to put us in an unwelcomed mood.
We decided to move to the bar, for which no reservation was needed and was greeted by a lovely bartender. He was GREAT! No complaints there.
Appetizers came and WOW awesome awesome Seafood Chowder and Potato Skins. Yum!
My linguine and clams came and every Chef has there own take on how to make things better and so even though I only ate the clams and garlic bread atop the pasta I’m not going to complain about the actual dish itself. Instead, the description of the pasta and the photo that was played on repeat misrepresented what was coming to my table. Very disappointed!
Oh well, Sushi Confidential was right down the street and after spending $ 19 on a pasta that I didn’t eat, I went and devoured some sushi rolls.
Tis life.
And now I’m going to be one of those customers. Are you ready for this snarky comment that means absolutely nothing… because it’s a ridiculous statement but a catchy way to end this post.
I won’t be visiting The Socialight again.

This place has great organic, healthy options for a great price. Coffee is amazing, service is great, and they play reggae! I’m in love!

This place good for drinking and having a relaxing time. I coming second time food here very good. I like it

Thanks for such a great response! We asked before if there were any off the menu items and were told no but I will be a little more persistent next time. Love your place!

Really enjoyed my dinner here! There was live music that was actually really good and not too loud. Loved the ambiance of this place. Had the seafood chowder and potato skins with duck, and they were delicious. Service was great the whole time we were there!

Came here for a birthday lunch. I had made reservations ahead of time, but as I was arriving I had forgotten about the farmer’s market, which had delayed my arrival. I called them to give them a heads up and the gentleman I spoke with was understanding and accommodating. The hostess was a really sweet girl that seated my friend and I. She was also kind enough to give us suggestions as to what to order so that was quite helpful for it being my first time there. I had ordered the Eggs Benedict and my friend got the Linguini and Clams. Both very yummy entrees! Highly suggest the Linguini and Clams. The gentleman that brought over that entrée said it was his favorite as well. For dessert we got the apple pie one. Unfortunately I forget the name of it, but it was very yummy and not your traditional apple pie with ice cream on top. Worth trying if you still have room for it!
As for the service, our server Ryan was very nice and prompt at times. It seemed as though he was the only server on a busy Sunday afternoon, so we were pretty understanding that he had other tables to cater to. Would’ve made sense if there was another server on deck because it seemed like he was pretty swamped, but that’s okay. Overall, very friendly staff and we enjoyed our dining experience here.
It’s a cute, cozy restaurant if you’re in the mood for some Sunday brunch. More convenient if you’re browsing through the farmer’s market and want to stop in for a bite as well. Definitely suggest this place and looking forward to coming back here again!

Loved our server. She was there to assist us as we stepped in the door, gave us helpful suggestions on what to order, and was never gone from her post — the entire 3 hours we were there! She took our picture for us outside because the lighting was nicer outside and was quite honestly one of the most sweetest servers I’ve met!
As for food, the clam linguine was delicious as previously raved in all the reviews. I had to include some Tabasco because I can’t eat anything too creamy without some heat and I would definitely come here again for this. Good portion size and I didn’t feel heavy or disgusted with myself as I normally would.
The made-​to-​order apple pie wasn’t as amazing as someone mentioned. It was ok but nothing I would rave about and eat again. But overall, the service was amazing and food was better than most. Definitely a place worth checking out!

This is a service review.
Used opentable to make a reservation. Got to the restaurant and it turns out that there were actually no tables available.
No apology. Just told to use a different other app instead next time.
Nope.

Love the Socialight. It has a nice, simple yet elegant décor. The booths are great, situated between grandeur wine racks, and it blocks out quite a bit of sounds if you want a comfy, cozy spot.
We’ve tried breakfast, lunch, dinner and a winemaker event. Dinner and winemaker event has been our more favorite times (probably because it’s been more relaxed without a little kiddo in tow ;))
My favorite dish is the bobotie, a South African dish. Being South African, the only thing I’d ask is, no almonds next time ;)
Overall, a great go to spot with lots of wine options, and great ambiance and crafty foods.
We will be back.

This is a beautiful restaurant with huge wine cellars and pretty lights accenting the space. Service was wonderful. They get really packed so be sure to make reservations. It’s a small restaurant. I liked the variety in the menu. There’s something for everyone, fish lovers, meat lovers, GF or vegetarians. I highly recommend the potato skins for an appetizer. They were loaded with deliciousness and can easily fill you up so beware if you intend on ordering a hefty entrée. We had the paella and duck breast to follow. Unfortunately Paella was a big disappointment. Seafood was overcooked and the rice was dry. I can’t be mad at this place though because the service was so good and the other items on the menu looked delicious, especially linguine and clams. The duck was excellent and portions were generous. Definitely worth a visit =)

This is Campbell, right? The Socialight is a lovely venue with cool décor and the requisite wine bottles everywhere. Staff were wonderful, too. But they have to fix two things: the bar stools that would make any drunk person fall over, and the breakfast food. I had the Eggs Benedict. The quality was of the cheapest available ingredients possible. The muffin was small and dry, the meat was thin and dry like cardboard (was it really bacon-​wrapped meat?), and the sauce was an odd, off-​flavored bright yellow goop. I was so hungry I ate all but half the meat, which wasn’t much to begin with yet I couldn’t force any more of those dry pieces down. And the end result — I’m talking about the end of the road, was not pretty. Everyone else, however, seemed to enjoy what they ordered, especially the breakfast burrito. So the burritos save the day and the ratings with an extra star. Maybe higher quality ingredients are used for lunch or dinner. My recommendation for brunch would be to head down a couple blocks to Moe’s or Opa’s next door.

Double dated here and everything was great. Pretty good beers on tap, and their seafood chowder was probably the best i’ve ever had. We came for dinner and ordered the short ribs, burger, lamb, and Paella (we all shared with each other and the food was pretty delicious).
LOVE the décor here. The location is great, as we hopped over to Khartoum after to continue our night!
Little pricey, but if you’re looking for a nice date spot for a special occasion, would definitely recommend this place. –1 star for them kicking us out at 10… guess that a thing in Campbell but it still sucked.

Awesome place to grab lunch or a drink!
Order the Soma salad and add salmon. You will thank me later! They were out of the lamb sliders last time I was there. I was disappointed, but hopefully I can try them next time.
I only wish more waitresses were like Chelsea. She has such a bright and bubbly personality. She was well spoken, polite, and provided excellent customer service. Every restaurant should have a Chelsea.

Surprise visit turned out to be a great meal and service. Fair prices with very good food. Definitely a good night out.
Second visit: enjoyed our first visit so much we decided to return. It’s super cozy on a really cold night too. Had a couple of their special beers and also shared a green salad which had yummy pears and cheese. My wife had the short ribs (real meaty, a bit heavy for her) with tasty mash potatoes. Definitely comfort food that hit the spot. I had the «worlds greatest spaghetti». I was quite skeptical of this position since my mother in law was from Florence, Italy and I’d put her spaghetti up against ANYBODY. To my amazement, this spaghetti met its rating. Incredible! My wife sampled my plate and said «we’re coming back just so I can order the spaghetti». Socialist nailed it again.

Awesome customer service! My wife dropped an oyster shell on the floor and the person at the front desk immediately came over and help cleaned off the dish full of shells and brought a brand new clean dish for my wife! That’s some of the best service I’ve seen!
Oysters were fresh, rib-​eye was well cooked, clams and linguine had the right amount of sauce and the sauce was flavorful but not overwhelming on the linguine! Toffee panna cotta as dessert just closed out the night for my pallet :)

We stopped in here recently for drinks and appetizers. Even though the streets were packed with trick or treaters we were able to find 2 seats at the bar right away. They had a lot of tasty beers on tap so my husband was excited. We shared the Pork Riblets and the 3 piece cheese plate. The cheeseplate had kind of a random assortment of things on it but still pretty tasty. The pork riblets were fall off the bone tender with good flavor. They do have a social hour menu, but sadly we didn’t make it in time to take advantage of those deals. Maybe next time!

Brunch?!?
I’m really not a brunch person. I’m more of a breakfast girl. That doesn’t mean I don’t HAVE brunch, it means I don’t wait in lines or go out of my way for it.
I made an Open Table reservation to have lunch at this «grand opening» restaurant a colleague told me about. The last time I was in Campbell, it was a sleepy town. From what I saw recently — certain areas changed.
What’s so great about this restaurant? They have a Sommelier who put together a great wine list. Check out the wines by the glass list and you’ll see what I mean.
They offer free wine tasting with the sommelier Wednesdays from 5 – 6 PM.
The Monster Vanilla Bean Pancakes I ordered were huge. They were chewy opposed to cakey/​fluffy but they came with real maple syrup so that was a good thing, but I wouldn’t order it again.
The Crabcake Benedict was excellent. It boasted freshly made hollandaise (not that gross canned yellow stuff other places try to pawn off as fresh). This was delicious!
I didn’t eat the Croque Madame, but it was enjoyed to the last bite by the person who ordered it so that fussy eater enjoyed it.
It was good, not great. Listen, there are so many restaurants vying for us to eat there, I can’t say I would be enthusiatic about coming back.
Unless it was for a lovely bottle wine and nibbles, then maaaaaaaaybe.

This is a great place in downtown campbell: classy, fine food, very professional and friendly service.
I really like the ambiance and the vibe. Contrary to other «trendy» restaurant (I am mainly thinking of few places in Los Gatos), the Socialight proposes quality food, rightly cooked, in reasonable portions.
The offer Dogfish IPA on tap, which is one of my favorite beer. The wine selection looks great as well.
The duck nachos are really well prepared, tasty and very fine a must try, especially for my expat French friends ;)
Will go back to try more food and update my review!

Awesome happy hour menu! Their appetizers are delicious. Great quality food for the prices. All the appetizers ranged from about $ 5−7ish. Beers and house wines were $ 5 during happy hour.
This place has a really nice ambiance and more of a modern, rustic, upscale type feel. Great environment for a nice dinner or some wine and appetizers with friends!
All the appetizers we tried had huge portions and tasted wonderful. We got the duck nachos which were huge! Quality thick nachos with tomatoes, cheese, sour cream, guac and lots of meat. The duck wasn’t too gamey tasting which was great.
The mussels in wine sauce were very tasty. The meat in the mussels were a little tiny, but nonetheless delicious.
The pork rib lets came with 2 pieces and were extremely meaty! The meat was nice and tender and had a nice mild flavor to it. They came on a bed of these crunchy noodle things which were also very yummy.
3 huge appetizers and 2 house wines came out to be about $ 13 each for my friend and I which is super cheap for what we got. I was a little shocked at the price. This place is definitely at the top of my list for one of the best happy hours in the area.
Service was awesome, everyone was super efficient and helpful. They’ve got limited happy hour seating, however we didn’t have to wait when we got there which was a huge plus!

The duck nachos were delicious. My only complaint about them is the lack of cheese. But I think that is a consistent nacho complaint across the board anywhere. Great beer and wine selection, but I would expect nothing less from Franco.
He has the knowledge and taste for great wines and pairings. Followed him over from Rootstock in LG.
The bar/​restaurant is upscale, classy and cozy at the same time. Everyone there was chatting with their neighbors and sharing stories.
They really seem to have nailed the cozy neighborhood feel along with the upscale type of place that it has to be to last in Downtown Campbell.
Congrats Socialights!