SETS Kitchen & Bar - San Marcos, California

Gary G.

First time eating at Sets in San Marcos and the atmosphere was really nice. Cool beach vibe with some gray background music. Come for lunch on a Sunday for a late lunch. We had their pretzel appetizer and a side of tots. Really great cheesy sauce and nice crunch to the pretzels. Ordered the lettuce bibs which were on par with PF Chang’s.also my clients had the smoke house burger and they loved the burgers! Will come back!

Diana M.

I am so glad we found SETS Kitchen & Bar!
The Artichoke Ravioli with spinach was surprisingly delicious. And the pan seared salmon with rice and summer squash really danced on my tongue. The menu had many new and exciting options. The kind and knowledgeable employees made it so enjoyable. The owner was on the floor and working as hard as his employees. We loved this place and we will return as soon as we can.

Trevor B.

Our server Sarah was fantastic. Friendly and attentive. Food was wonderful and very refreshing.

My wife and I started with the spinach dip. Very good.

My wife ordered the fish tacos and I got the Ceaser Salad. Both were fresh and light. The dressing on my salad was very light and not over bearing like some.

Over all a very good experience. Music was very good too. Would highly recommend if in the area.

Jerry S.

I ordered the chicken & waffles, but it wasn't anything special. I'd definitely rather have Roscoe's... But my friends all ordered different dishes, & they all liked their choices. Atmosphere is nice. Service is good. I'll just try ordering something different next time.

Blair T.

We were so pleased with our experience at SETS! We were a bit unsure of how it would be considering how new the restaurant is and how the current situation with jobs and the pandemic are still not ideal. We truly enjoyed our experience and are excited to return frequently!

The hostess was friendly, and our waitress was fantastic! She was knowledgeable about the menu, had helpful suggestions, and gave encouraging feedback as we ordered. She was attentive and friendly without being at our table too much.

I ordered the Spicy Primavera cocktail (basically a watermelon margarita), and it was really light, not sweet, and delicious! My husband enjoyed their beer selection and happy hour pricing.

We shared a couple of appetizers for our early dinner and thoroughly enjoyed both. The Seared Ahi Delight was lovely, but the tuna was a bit over cooked. The slaw of mango, snap peas, fried avo, and wontons was delicious. The Pork Belly Brussels were spot on! We love Brussels sprouts, and these were delicious!

I admit that I did a bit of research before dining by looking at reviews on both Google and Yelp. One of the Yelp reviews mentioned sticky floors, and I did notice that as I was walking in, and the wooden tables and chairs were slightly sticky, too. It didn’t concern me greatly since most heavy-duty antibacterial cleaners for the pandemic can leave a residue. I’m sure they will figure out a solution that is not quite so sticky as they continue to work out the kinks of a new business. We’re looking forward to trying out more of their menu in the months to come!

Visit 2:
We ordered the banh mi sliders and the caprese. The sliders were some of the most delicious things we’ve eaten in a while! The caprese was good, but nothing special. I ordered the R&R lavender cocktail, and my husband had the Young Buck. We both really enjoyed our drinks - especially mine! SETS is slowly working its way to being a 5-star experience for us. *Also, the floors were not sticky this time!

Monica V.

We had high hopes for our dinner, but unfortunately, the experience fell short. My husband and I put our name in at 6:50 and were quoted a 15-20 minute wait, which seemed reasonable for a Saturday evening. However, after waiting for an hour, it became clear that we had likely been skipped. We had to ask the host about our table, and only then were we seated right away. While she did apologize, it would have been helpful to receive a more accurate wait time upfront—we likely wouldn’t have waited that long if we had known.

Once seated, our server was friendly, but it seemed like things got lost in the shuffle. We ordered wings with our drinks, but after 30 minutes of waiting, I had to ask the host to check on them because we were getting hangry. No one communicated what the delay was, and our wings finally came out shortly before our entrees. Additionally, we had to ask for water three times, which added to our frustration.

This was our second time dining here, and unfortunately, both experiences have been less than great. We wanted to enjoy it, but the long wait and lack of communication made it hard to fully enjoy our experience.

Matthew S.

We've gone twice now. First was on a busy Friday night and food took 40 minutes. People around us were about to start a fist fight. Second time today we're two of maybe 25-35 people there. More than half of the people are already fed and almost done. Food still took 40 minutes and we sat at the bar and had to go out of our way to get a drink. I don't know what it is maybe San Elijo residents who know the staff get treated better, but something is off. A turkey sandwich and egg scramble shouldn't take 40 minutes. Next time I'll just eat at home shower, change, walk my dog, cook breakfast, and eat in the same time it takes a customer here to get their meal.
The food is decent at least but nothing worth the wait.

Donna S.

There isn't much "lunch" in "brunch" at SETS. The server and kitchen couldn't produce a house salad at 12:15 pm or ANYTHING considered lunch. (Except alcohol, of course) Very disappointed. We have been coming here a lot. It's time to rethink SETS and go somewhere else. We actually thought about leaving today, but packing up the kids and leaving was just too much trouble.
I wonder where the owner was today while employees didn't try to ensure happy customers.
People come in with the expectation of a true brunch, but SETS just serves a limited breakfast menu until one.