What this town needs is a classic diner/deli. A sit down, preferably in a booth, or at a counter, order a pastrami on rye with a large pickle and a cup of soup type of place. Where the menus are large, the food fresh and varied and the staff quick with the check. Like the great deli's and diners of LA and NY.
Instead we end up with more copies of mediocrity that will inevitably fail within a year.
How do you make a small fortune in the restaurant business? You start with a large fortune.
Bah bum bump
Erik: If you can see the film Taking Venice (it just ran at the SBIIF Riviera), it is an excellent adjunct to the Rauschenberg exhibit at SBMAA. It tells the story of the Venice Biennale in the early 1960's where Rauschenberg first became an international name. It has all sorts of behind the scenes art world skullduggery and is a fascinating story
Erik. So many restaurants are 'waiting on the city' (ALMA for 2+ years...enough already!!!!!) or 'working through the county's permit process' (Graham Duncan's place).... What is happening? You hear this all the time whether it be business or residential. Why is our city SO SLOW and (seemingly) anti business.????? The pandemic (the reason for the years of excuses is over...). Perhaps someone could do a deep dive into what is happening here with the permit office. We 'hear' some get through rather quickly while others just drone on....for months and years. We deserve better!!!
Frankly, I find the e-bike riders considerably less annoying than the traditional spandex-clad cyclists who have no qualms about riding 2+ wide in the road with cars, not obeying traffic rules or signals, and not using the designated bike lanes even when they exist. Up to this point, I’d wager that the vast majority of people killed or injured on a bicycle are riding a traditional bicycle not an e-bike.
It would be great if everybody would stop trying to control everybody else. If that’s something we just can’t do then perhaps it would be an equally good idea to start requiring physical driving tests for people who get into accidents and for people over a certain age. Vision, hearing, reflexes, and mental acuity are all affected by age.
I’m perplexed why local government leaders and the police seem to show little interest in these children and their parents. I’d like to see action before terrible accidents happen.
I'm a local. The food is quite good, if pricey. But the exteriors are ordinary, at best. If the buildings were in upstate New York I wouldn't be surprised to see a refrigerator on the porch.
The Lobero
Here's two incidents from yesterday morning. First was around 8am, I was driving down Anacapa, I turned right onto Gutierrez street where the right lane was coned off for construction of that gawd-awful five story building. At least ten cars in front of me when suddenly a guy on a Rad bike flies by me in the coned off lane! He was in the lane with the construction workers! I thought, "aren't traffic fines doubled in construction zones?" Where's a cop when you need one? The second was a few hours later and I'm on Cabrillo heading to the harbor, before I got to State street two guys on motocross e-bikes pass me on the right and stop for the red light, both were wearing regular motocross helmets. The light turns green and they take off, I caught up with them after a block as the front guy slowed down. I'm passing him, he's riding in the bike lane, and he pops a wheelie and continues to ride in the bike lane. (For a second I thought I could tap him with my truck since he did have a full motor cycle helmet on but of course I didn't.) I will admit that I drifted into the bike lane for the remainder to the red light at Castillo. I put on my turn signal to turn right and they did not try to pass me, I think they got the message that I might be a little cray-cray. . . And it's not just kids, I've had two encounters with old men on those big wheeled bikes as I walked on the sidewalk on Montecito street. I guess the bikes are too big to pass cars on the right so they take the sidewalk and come close to hitting me! Last, I own five bikes and one is a e-mountain bike. I hate it, don't ride it and should sell it.
Bike riders, whether electrically motorized or not, need to exercise basic etiquette: pass only on the left, and call it out verbally or with a bell. These obnoxious children growing up in a generation that no longer have physical conflicts with peers are graced by Santa Barbara motorists, who while not perfect (I'm not either) are among the most polite I've ever experienced as a cyclist. Note that children under the age of twenty nine on ebikes do not have a developed frontal cortex. No manners, no ebike. Amusing how they all ride the same type of bike, with the same helmets, all unbuckled the same, all with one fist wrapped around the iPhone, and my experience is there is no separation across gender which are the more rude and self-indulgent. Don't bother going to the parents to complain: the sociopathic child does not fall far from its tree. As for a solution, if the bike has a throttle, it should be licensed to someone a minimum twenty nine years of age. Separate subject, but, mountain bikers on Santa Barbara hiking trails, whether electrically motorized or not, whether adult or child, likewise lack basic frontal cortex function and etiquette. All motorized bikes should be prohibited from hiking trails in Santa Barbara County.
I feel that class 3 e-bikes with throttles should be banned for minors and licensed for all others.
Unfortunately because of the proliferation of e-bikes which many are just e motorcycles in disguise HELMETS need to be mandatory for all bike riders just like motorcycles. Law enforcement does not have the time to differentiate whether the bike rider is 17 or 23
Frequently seen around town, especially State St and the Mesa: 3 young kids (mostly girls) on a Rad Bike hauling a... All 3 texting, including the driver. No enforcement. We need bike police, especially in those areas. Parents need to be held responsible with hefty fines. And throttle bikes should be included in the Class B license, or maybe a new class created. Incredibly dangerous are dares that take kids through red lights and stop signs when they don't have the right of way. Not only deadly dangerous for the kids, but also very unfair and devastating to car drivers who may end up killing a child even when following all traffic rules.
Agree! Why does it matter if the motor is electric or gas?
One anwer fits all: Who is paying for the e-bikes? Who is enabling their minor children to buzz around on e-bikes? Who will be first in line to sue and demand action when their child is injured (or worse) in an accident involving an e-bike?
A few days back, I'm heading up Milpas. A kid on an ebikes, with 2 younger kids riding as passengers, rubs a red light, cuts me off and proceeds to zig and zag in traffic. No helmets on any of them. Tried to get away from them but it was as if they were taunting drivers and trying to get in an accident. So infuriating.
Please be aware that there are different types of e-bikes. The problems are coming from the Class 3 ebikes that have throttles and they are indeed just like mopeds. Class 1 ebikes are pedal assist only: no pedal, no power. There are no throttles and they are great for getting in shape as the rider is always trying to minimize battery consumption. Class 1 ebikes should not be targeted by regulations that go after the class 3 throttle bikes that terrorize State St.
I have a different take on these ebikes... the popularity of these bikes in recent years is something we should embrace as an alternative to our car-centric culture. I think it's great that kids (and us adults!) are able to get around town on their own without relying on cars - hopefully it's a habit that sticks into their adulthood. That said, I agree that cars and bikes do not mix. Education on the rules of the road can help, but what's missing are additional Class IV protected bike lanes (e.g. Cota St.) and Class I bike paths (e.g. Modoc Rd.) that can serve as obvious alternatives to sharing the road. Clearly there's demand for it and I think we can all agree the status quo isn't ideal - I'd just hate for the solution to be to continue to prioritize cars over healthier and more sustainable alternatives.
These are motorcycles. License them. And yes I am an avid motorcyclist and bicyclist. If is has a throttle its a moto.
I LOVE this blog situation! I just walked this route two days ago (my spouse and I come here every summer for six weeks), and it is one of my favorite routes. I have Spouse take me up Ladero, then I walk along that road, over to Romero Canyon Rd...Back and forth I go, trying not to miss an inch of this area. I am signing up for your newsletter for sure! Such a wonderful surprise to have found you/this!
I used to ride a regular bike every day here in Santa Barbara. Unfortunately I had too many near collisions with people passing me on the right on e-bikes (with no warning, and coming up at high speed). I got spooked and stopped riding. I miss it a lot and it was a big part of my life. Downtown, I definitely don't feel safe walking in the "promenade." We stick to the sidewalks. I think multiple kids will have to die before anything is done with regulating e-bikes and who rides them and where. There are dashcam videos that come up pretty frequently on Reddit from other SoCal communities like Irvine of kids blasting through red lights at massive intersections and nearly dying.
As a lifelong cyclist, and someone who has seen up close and personal what a car can do to someone on a bike, I seriously cringe every time I see a kid on an e-bike riding dangerously or with no helmet on. Even worse - the "helmet on, but not clipped" and "helmet hanging from my handlebars" look seems to be catching on. Someone needs to come up with the e-bike version of Red Asphalt and start showing it to kids. Alternately - the police need to start ticketing these kids. A moving violation on a bicycle is just as valid as one in a car, and can put points against a drivers license or a future one. Maybe the threat of not being able to drive a car would talk some sense into these kids. Ahhhh to be young and feel invincible...
Thank you, Jeff.
The Crane houseboat was beautiful. I bought my Cal 3-30, the "32," in the living room of that vessel.
If you like something because it makes you feel like you're in New York, when you are, in fact, in the most beautiful place in the world - Santa Barbara Harbor(!), Marina 3C(!) - you are wasting your life and should go back to New York my man.
-you don't surf-
Who ever wrote that nasty comment. Get a life. It’s not mandatory that you read Siteline.
Erik, what a spectacular jaunt around Paris! I'm inspired to go back...and buy a bunch of peonies from the flower market. Truly a dreamy two weeks you had. Thanks a million for sharing so thoughtfully.
Thanks for taking me on your tour of my favorite city. Your eye for detail is stellar and much appreciated!
Loved loved loved this article and pictures of Paris! My husband and I fell in love with Paris and returned often, renting apartments on Ils. St Louis and living the Parisian life while there. Our travel days are behind us now, so your virtual trip was especially appreciated and brought back so many fabulous memories! Well done...and thank you!
