I couldn't agree more.
115 W Canon Perdido
If not wanting to pay $200 for two to eat dinner (regardless of the type of cuisine) makes me a racist, I guess it makes Matt an elitist. I guess I’ll cross the street to Casa Comal instead to eat with the regular folk.
oh crap!
And your defense of a woman who broke the law in hopes of overturning an election says oodles about yours.
Careful... if you accuse Augie's of being pricey, then Matt Kettmann will call you a "whiner" and a "racist."
https://www.independent.com/2022/11/16/a-shotgun-blast-of-foodie-news/
Pooped?
First thing that pooped in my head- Hungry Cat. Meow!
Happy Cat reminds me of Hungry Cat. One of SB’s best restaurants. Wish it was still here.
Charlie is the real deal but will the place survive its poor location and steady stream of stingy regulars? Doubtful...
What we had for most of the last 20 years, was a steady stream of entrepreneur/ chefs who came to town to try and crack the code and build something new. What we have now is anything but... Chains, recycled food ideas - another pizza place, another cafe, another tequila bar in the same location that 3 others have failed... etc.
Whether or not you see SB as a destination or not, *(it is,) the city's overall appeal has gone from attracting lux vacationers to bargain hunter cruises and day tripper from LA. All the talent is going elsewhere and that's a problem. Look north for the new scene. SYV, Los Alamos, Paso and SLO are where the talent is headed and where the awards, the fans and the big tourist $ are following.
The new owners of Paseo said no to the rink. They also ousted a locally owned business to make room for some scammy face lotion business offering ti pay more. Macys will be used as a storage. The new Paseo owners are from out of town and do not care about what the city needs. They will try and make as much money as possible and then sell it in a few years once it’s full of unsuccessful and unwanted out of town businesses.
All of those traitors deserve every day in prison that they get. They should lose their right to vote too.
The rest of the pizzas seem kind of pricey, too (but no where near $65). Seems like SB's new restaurants are all skewed towards pricey meals (Augie's, Rare Society, etc). We need some more less pricey options.
I would both agree and disagree. Santa Barbara has never been big enough, and is too seasonal to truly be a "fine dining destination" like LA and SF. The proof is in the many fine dining restaurants that had perfect service, great food but couldn't survive the downtime during slow tourist months, and in any town, locals don't do fine dining enough to be their bread and butter. However, we've had Bouchon, Downey's, San Ysidro Ranch, El Encanto, Wine Cask and a few others for decades (granted, John Downey retired).
If anything I'd say there's been a resurgence of MORE fine dining establishments than we've ever had before: Toma, the numerous restaurants at Mirimar and Bacara, Rare Society, Olio E Limone, Bella Vista, Yoichi's, the list goes on.
I'm not sure why you mentioned taquerias and clothing. We have arguably some of the greatest Mexican food in California, period. Have you been to the newish "Casa Comal" on State St. for tacos? It's amazing. State Street also put several independent clothing designers on the map before rent was too high to make it work. Brian Lee and True Grit come to mind.
I agree with Elle, we've always had great food, fine dining has always been here if you want it, and currently there are more fine dining options than ever before. My only gripe is the quality of many restaurant's food once they establish themselves has greatly declined. Broad Street Oyster Co, Holdren's and especially Brophy's immediately come to mind.
Re: The Marge Dunlap fountain. Well I'm sure it has a great story behind it which I am unaware of it. Perhaps some brief background would be nice. Very funky and unique to be sure. Would be interesting to take a closer look when I'm there next time. However, the brick planter which delineates it (sort of) does not complement or enhance the fountain - at all, Also, generally does not seem to fit the Las Aves complex style very well, IMHO, which to me looks like understated Spanish Mission style architecture. Perhaps the most important parts can be relocated but if not, I think the containment planter below, oddly shaped and not complementary to the fountain, should be smaller and rounded. Everything is so linear in this complex it could add some needed relief to the sharp lines. The yellow and blue tile don't seem to correspond to anything in the stylized portions, the true art of the fountain, so maybe change that while you're at it. Whoops, now I'm part of the 'tell you what to do with your property cabal' in SB. I have to admit it's kind of fun :) But seriously, it's nice to preserve things that have been around a while. When someone comes in from out of town especially, they should be mindful of the locals and the shared history and memories people have who live here.
For sure there’s no question of why it’s so expensive. Let’s give it an award, or something.
Love your perspective on Palm Springs- it’s spot on. I always want the food to be better, but it’s come a long way from 10 years ago.
I take a short trip there with my mom every few years. We love the Desert Star - it’s a historic home made up of several apartments around a pool and located two blocks from the Ace in a residential nabe
https://www.desertstarpalmsprings.com/
Santa Barbara has never been a “fine dining destination”, ever. We have, in fact, always been know to have a dearth of good food. It’s always confounded me, considering the affluence here.
Re the apartment building, did anyone say what people are supposed to do with their cars? Garden St in front of the building is not only no parking it’s no stopping. Also one side of Gutierrez is the same, and much of Haley is red curb in the immediate area. There isn’t really any street parking for at least a couple of blocks, and existing residents are not going to want to have to compete with 33 new households for parking. Was any justification given for imposing on the existing neighborhood like that? Were ideas (however fanciful) offered for where 33-66 new cars will park? Preserving the architectural quality is all well and good but what about quality of life for the existing neighborhood? Was that addressed, if you know?
Dutch Garden sounds incredibly promising. They’re keeping the quirk, the charm, and the menu we all loved (with some nice additions). I can’t wait to patronize it!
I like Revolver too, but it's on westside, not within the three blocks of L'Antica, which is where all of the Italian restaurants I listed are located.
http://www.anvari.org/shortjoke/Access_Media_BBS/2012_the-belching-dragon-restaurant-menu-50-lbs-rice-with-every-order-free-can-soda-with-orders-over.html
Belching Dragon was a Mad Magazine spoof on a Chinese restaurant menu. Very very funny
2535 Anacapa is a beautiful house, don’t get me wrong. But every time I see that pic, it reminds me of a Feng Shui concept I heard once. It goes something like you shouldn’t have your doors situated this way because all of your prosperity and wealth will come in one door and exit right out the other. I remember when Feng Shui was popular around here. UCSB even had a class you could take.
