Pit Stops: Santa Barbara
A whole bunch of munch stops in adorable Santy B.
Pit Stops are mini(ish) recommendation lists for places (and the roads to them) that I’m familiar with, but not fully knowledgeable of — such as Santa Barbara. This is not a comprehensive list, but just where I’ve been that I’ve liked, and occasionally a couple places recommended to me that I haven’t been to yet.
That said, if there’s a restaurant you love in Santa Barbara that’s clearly missing from this list, feel free to let me know in the comments. I don’t have a monopoly on recommendations around here. All my lists are living and will be updated frequently with your own recommendations or upon further experience.
Enjoy.
Intro
I’ve got a bit of history in Santa Barbara.
My grandparents used to take my brother and me to Santa Barbara as one of their rotation of day-trips on the odd weekends, or more rarely weeks, that we stayed with them (my parents would inevitably be in Hawaii or some other far-flung locale that we the children “weren’t ready for”). The other options in that rotation were the Redondo Beach pier; the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach; the Natural History Museum; the Zoo; Descanso Gardens; and if we played our cards just right, Toys ‘R’ Us.
Santa Barbara was always the premier of the bunch. My grandmother grew up there, the first-generation American daughter of Scottish and Irish immigrants. The four of us — my brother, my grandparents, and me — would pile into their unwieldy, white Mercury Grand Marquis (aka “Moby”) and settle in for the 90+ minute drive. We’d visit the street she grew up on, and point out the several homes that my grandmother’s step-father, “Uncle Jim,” built with his own hands, acknowledging and admonishing the modern aesthetic additions. We might stop by the Santa Barbara Mission to stretch our legs and for my brother and I to gaze wide-eyed at the old gravestones and Boot Hill-style crosses. I’ve always liked walking on grounds that people walked on unfathomable years ago, that direct, unpaved, unturned contact. It reminds me of one of the great things that’s easiest to forget: that We have been Here a long, long time, and every one of those people all the down walked, and talked, and lived, to some degree, like me.
It’d never take too long to proceed to the main event (my main event, at least): lunch. Lunch was always Brophy Bros. There was one time when lunch wasn’t Brophy Bros; they were closed unexpectedly, some maintenance thing. Frowns were frowned, fits were thrown. We appreciated it all the more ever after.
I’ll speak more to the many merits of Brophy Bros in the actual list — which shockingly hasn’t yet begun — but suffice to say we’d leave plenty satisfied and entertained by the marina view and the nautical tchotchkes. Afterwards we’d walk down the breakwater to its end and pet the bronze dolphin statue and let my grandma “hmm” and “tch” and “harumph” at all the kids running down the precarious wooden beam that connects the concrete sidewalk to the sandy spar of Point Castillo. Then we’d jump back in the car for the drive home. My brother and I would be asleep in minutes.
That’s my context for Santy Babs. The following are my personal, and again noncomprehensive, food recommendations for visits in that general vicinity.
One last note before the list: click the name of any restaurant for a link to their Google Maps profile, where you can find more photos, reservation info (if applicable), and their website.
Breakfast
Singing Sun Coffee
1930 E Main St, Ventura, CA 93001.
I can’t drive this way without stopping at Singing Sun. It’s kind of just a neighborhood coffee shop, and a good one. But there’s something about Singing Sun that sticks, that reminisces pleasantly and draws me off of the 101 at the Northern end of Ventura for this minor detour again and again. Singing Sun makes strong coffee and well-balanced lattes (including a few creative originals), with a case full of pastries for nourishment. The space is bright and minimal (and thankfully colorful, unlike so many LA cafes), and indoor seating is limited; though my spot is usually the tailgate of my car, a front row seat to say hello to so many adorable doggy buddies on their morning jaunts around the block. (P.S. A cheerful bookstore, Timbre Books, just opened next door to Singing Sun and is definitely worth a browse if you’re stopping for coffee.)
Little Heart Cafecito
38 W Victoria St Suite 121, Santa Barbara, CA 93101.
Before the 5ish-hour drive up to Carmel-by-the-Sea (🙄), I Googled “breakfast burritos” in Santa Barbara and Little Heart popped up. I’m so glad it did. The cozy stand inside Santa Barbara Public Market serves Mexican coffee and breakfast, with Cafe de Olla and Oaxacan-chocolate Mochas and multiple breakfast tacos and burritos. I got the Cafe de Olla and their Los Alamos burrito; it was one of my favorite breakfasts of last year. It made my trip up the coast that day. The friends in Carmel were great; the town, um, fine. Just, you know…fine.
Little Heart is located inside the Santa Barbara Public Market and from what I can tell is the only tenant open for breakfast. That can, for a minute, charge your visit with a little awkward, am-I-supposed-to-be-here tension; but it’s really just quiet and relaxed, pleasantly distracting to watch the deliveries come in and prep begin in the market’s other stalls. Frankly, it feels a little like a secret, one that you want just enough other people to know that the business continues, but maybe not so many that you walk in one day and find the once-sleepy morning market full of…godforbid, foodies.
Lunch
Bettina
1014 Coast Village Rd, Santa Barbara, CA 93108.
Bettina is maybe the most-recommended Santa Barbara restaurant by the LA food media. By all accounts it isn’t over-recommended. For brunch, lunch, or dinner, you go to Bettina, you get a stellar cocktail, and you get an exceptional pizza. Maybe some other stuff that’s probably good, too. You definitely make a reservation, as far in advance as you can; and if you’re planning to just walk up, you’d better be patient…or arrive the minute doors open. But even with all that, the collective verdict is: you go to Bettina, you’re gonna have a good time. (P.S. You can also order Bettina online to-go, and enjoy one of those exceptional pizzas from nearby Channel Drive, overlooking pretty, and pretty-chill, Butterfly Beach.)
Brophy Bros
119 Harbor Way, Santa Barbara, CA 93109.
As I mentioned in the opening, I’ve been going to Brophy Bros. (that’s Brophy Brothers, not Brophy Bros) since my single-digits. I liked it then, when my grandparents and my brother and I sat on the balcony in the briny air and I got a cup of clam chowder and the kids’ fried shrimp basket; and I like it now, when I sit at the long bar overlooking the marina and get a Bloody Mary, a half-dozen oysters, a cup of chowder, and fish & chips. It’s exactly what you want from an old school seafood haunt: white tablecloths with a casual air; simple, well-cooked (or well-fried), hearty plates; and the occasional boat horn sounding between waves crashing against the breakwater.
Bossie’s Kitchen
901 N Milpas St, Santa Barbara, CA 93103
Bossie’s Kitchen makes for just about a pitch-perfect sunny brunch, lunch, or afternoon hangout. It’s a real neighborhood spot, its backyard seating backing into other backyards right down the street from Santa Barbara High. The menu, more or less “California-fare” — French toast and acai bowls, sandwiches and salads, a few grill plates — pulls its influences broadly, a little Southern, a little Asian, a little Southwestern. But it passes the sound-good test with flying colors: take the tamarind-sambal glazed fried chicken with cashew slaw, the roasted turkey & walnut pesto sandwich, buttermilk biscuits with rotisserie gravy, and a pastry case stuffed with housemade treats, brioche donuts and crullers. Seems like an excellent spot to start an afternoon wander down bustling Milpas St.
Corazon Cocina
29 E Victoria St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
This is the reason Little Heart Cafecito exists; Corazon Cocina has been recognized by many a food publication in Santa Barbara and beyond as one of the city’s standout Mexican restaurants, and more recently by Michelin Bib Gourmand (that’s Michelin’s sort of “casual restaurant” recommendation). It’s located right next to Little Heart in the Santa Barbara Public Market, where it’s grown into one of the tentpole tenants in the space. The Market as a whole is a great stop for lunch; but if you want to sit down, perhaps sneak a midday michelada with your guiso tacos or puerco en mole de olla (pork mole) tamales, the Cocina is the place to be. (P.S. For a reliable additional dinner option, check out the same group’s sit-down restaurant Corazon Comedor, just down the street.)
Chubbies Hamburgers
2908 De La Vina St, Santa Barbara, CA 93105
Chubbies is the kind of classic, no-frills, all-business burger joint I am always on the lookout for — in this case almost especially, suspiciously optimized with laser precision just for me. At Chubbies they offer a “Chubbie” (a double cheeseburger), a cheeseburger, a hamburger, a “chickenburger,” and a veggie burger. Also fries, fountain drinks, and milkshakes (strawberry, vanilla, or chocolate) and that’s it. Burgers are garnished with lettuce, tomato, pickles, a shmear of mayo, and onions; grilled or raw. I like a burger where beef and cheese are the first and foremost flavors of every bite, only complemented and not overwhelmed by the garnishes (unlike, say, Five Guys, where it feels like every burger is trying its best to hide behind their ten thousand topping options). Fries are McDonald’s style, but — and believe me, I do not say this lightly — a full leap and a long bound better than those benchmark-setting golden products of the Golden Arches. They’re extraordinarily light and crisp, without being dry. I honestly don’t know if I’ve had a better burger joint french fry. All of that for dirt cheap, in 2024: you’ll get a burger, fries, and drink combo for just around $10.
The only extra on offer is ranch, for 55 cents. That’s what puts Chubbies over the edge and riddles me with suspicion. Someone crafted this sneaky little too-perfect burger stop just for beefy-burger, milkshake, and ranch-loving me. The only question is…why.
East Beach Tacos & Batting Cages
226 S Milpas St, Santa Barbara, CA 93103
At East Beach Tacos & Batting Cages, get three better-than-solid tacos and a beer for $15 and a round in the cage for $3 (20 pitches), bat and helmet available free. Fish tacos are kinda the way to go here — grilled, fried, or in poke form. Most are served with a finely chopped and seasoned house pico de Gallo and mildly spicy crema, and come with tortilla chips and a slow-burning orange salsa. There are about a hundred worse ways to spend an afternoon in Santa Barbara than this: *bite* *SWACK* *sip* *SWACK* and so on.
Shalhoob’s Funk Zone Patio
220 Gray Ave, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Shalhoob’s is a Santa Barbara meat supplier-gone-restaurant, and the Patio- sorry, the Funk Zone Patio, of course, is their latest evolution, a transformation of the exterior of their cutting room into a hyper-casual dining area. It’s got all the look (barrels) and feel (sunglass-sporting, backwards cap-wearing, pint glass-drinking patrons) of a brewery, but here the focus is on the food first and the drinks a distant second, with a California-BBQ menu that puts the spotlight on tri tip. It can get nuts on holidays and weekend evenings, but it makes a fun, easy stop for lunch or dinner most days of the week.
Dinner
Loquita
202 State St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
I’ve gotten big thumbs up (huge) from everyone I’ve sent to Loquita. The courtyard, resplendent with plants and a light-strung trellis over a tile floor, the tables candlelit and wine glasses reflecting in the evening, is itself at least half the reason to go. The other half is the food: Spanish, tapas-style, the plates satisfying though small and without exception delicious. There are bocaditos (little sandwiches) with charred oyster and chorizo butter, or dungeness crab with squid-ink aioli; standalone meats and cheeses, featuring the transparently sliced, melt-in-mouth jamon iberico, and aged manchego; and the tapas, with table staples patatas bravas, and a seaside focus on crudo, pulpo, and gambillas, most sourced from local suppliers. It’s a real dinner-dinner spot; a place to order in courses, to drink a fantastic bottle of wine, relax in the atmosphere, and enjoy it all with special company.
Bibi Ji
734 State St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Bibi Ji is a brash Indian restaurant dead in the center of downtown SB. Its atmosphere on busy nights (which are most nights, though less in the colder months) is electric, matching the shifting (not insufferable) pink-indigo lighting scheme. There’s a modest dining room all in black, with patios out front along busy State Street and in the back for a little more peace. The menu is familiar to all enjoyers of American-Indian cuisine — crispy cauliflower, butter chicken, saag panir, dal makhni, chicken tikka — but by many accounts some of the best versions of those visitors have had. The comprehensive wine & beer list features a wide variety of French and Spanish wines with a handful of local California varietals.
Don’t be put off by Bibi Ji’s somewhat tarnished ratings online (4.1 stars on Google) — I’ve run through a good number of them, and the common theme among one and two star reviewers is that they are almost entirely written by *ahem* “Entitled Assholes Who Didn’t Get Exactly What They Wanted Precisely When They Wanted It.”
Barbareño
205 W Canon Perdido St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Barbareño is where you go for a seriously Santa Barbara Santa Barbara (sic) dinner. A short menu with a handful of delectable share plates (mussels in smoked tomato broth, ricotta dumplings in strawberry masala, lamb al pastor with masa flatbread and goat gouda) and mains (acorn agnolotti with mushrooms and leeks, Santa Maria-bbq’d tri tip in garlic butter) keeps the table exciting, either on the spacious patio or in the homey interior. Barbareño is close to but slightly removed from downtown; enough to get a little air and still catch the distant sounds of waves crashing on the beach during breaths in conversation. It particularly makes for an excellent “last night” dinner for any visit.
Stella Mare’s
50 Los Patos Way, Santa Barbara, CA 93108
What’s not to love about a French bistro set in the former home of a 19th century captain? Stella Mare’s, located in Southeast Santa Barbara near the Santa Barbara Zoo, is one of the more adorable restaurants in town — if not in Southern California. There’s terrace seating outside in the warmer 10 months of the year, looking out over the pond and bird sanctuary just across the street. A gorgeous, cavernous greenhouse dining room seats most, while smaller tables are scattered elsewhere through the household. Appropo to the French bistro/country fare, prices are shockingly reasonable for what seems an exceptionally ‘grammable restaurant. Stick to the classics and pair with plenty of wine: grilled artichoke, moules frites, steak frites, coq au vin, sole meuniere, all prepared with respect to their humble origins.
Coffee & Snacks & More
Red Kettle Coffee
2275 #A, Ortega Hill Rd, Summerland, CA 93067
Red Kettle makes an excellent pit stop to or from Santa Barbara. Just off the 101 in sleepy Summerland (less sleepy in the summer), the homey coffee cottage exudes welcome with its bright, eclectic signage…and giant gnome. Inside there’s a snug single room with retail shelves full of Red Kettle and local merch, a tidy pastry box that nudges you towards the house empanadas, and just enough room for a barista and espresso machine. The backyard patio has a couple tables and garden chairs for catching a breath and soaking in a little sun before you continue on your way.
While you’re there, just around the corner and under the 101 overpass is Lookout Park, with benches and grills and pretty views of the ocean. It’s nice enough just to walk down there — but there’s also bocce and ping pong on hand for anyone who wants to play. A well-equipped public park? In California? It’s here.
Handlebar Coffee
2720 De La Vina St, Santa Barbara, CA 93105
Handlebar’s a cavernous roaster in north Santa Barbara by the Old Mission. There’s plenty of seating throughout and outside the space for parties of one or several, and good drinks on hand, plus a few solid pastries and toasts. It’s also conveniently close to Chubbies, if you need a java fix afterward to…help things along.
Lighthouse Coffee
711 Chapala St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Like Handlebar, Lighthouse is a totally reasonable quick coffee stop option. Busy on the weekends but pleasantly lazy during the week, the draw is the plethora of seating in their former garage, with the large door rolled up to let the breeze in. The coffee is also good — but you’re probably here to rest your weary feet, and it’s just right for that. (P.S. Writing from here — the wifi is public, fast, and reliable.)
Caje
1316 State St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Caje is a maximalist coffee experience; but not an unpleasant one. It’s a place to savor and enjoy your drink, and your surroundings, and take your time before whatever’s next. The drinks, thoughtfully crafted and nearly all topped with some sort of garnish, are worth relishing. It’s not your typical local roaster, Intelligentsia-wannabe, or ‘Bucks-like; it’s a more international style of cafe, less go-go-go and more stay-chat-stay. Appreciate accordingly.
Lost Horizon, The Book Den, Chaucer’s Books
Three great bookstores to putter around, for my fellow bookstore putterers. There’s not really another kind of store I like to putter around — local fashion, sometimes, but that’s really it. Anyway, Lost Horizon specializes in travel books, while Chaucer’s and Book Den are both independent, used-and-new bookstores with the right look and smell that you can happily, literarily bask in for longer than you realize.