Eating Around Santa Barbara
We are here to tell you about all the places we ate on our most recent trip to Santa Barbara. Hopefully, this will help you out when visiting one of our favorite places on Earth.
Chad’s Cafe: Starting with one of the most popular spots in Santa Babara, Chad’s is a breakfast and lunch joint that usually has a crowd. We have found out that is for good reason! Its location is within walking distance to much of the lodging and it is just across the street from the beach. The most notable thing we have to say about Chad’s is that they bring FREE mini muffins to your table! Free mini muffins with a beach view? No wonder it is so popular! We ordered two eggs with bacon and the Corn Beef Hash Benedict. No complaints and we had great service.
Jeannine’s: This is another popular breakfast and lunch joint. Jeannine’s is very cute and very pink. We enjoyed their Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes, Biscuits and Gravy, and Famous Banana Kahlua French Toast. We didn’t grab any of their beautiful pastries but they did look amazing. It is located across from the pier which makes for a convenient stroll afterwards.
Finney’s Crafthouse: This was a bustling spot with a large menu and great service! Our waiter never let us run out of water and made sure we always had what we needed. We had the Loaded Tator Tots, Cajun 7-Spice Boneless Wings, and a burger. The loaded tots were the star of the show!
Saint Bibiana: A pizza run is necessary everywhere you go. This small pizza shop serves up sourdough pizza made with locally sourced ingredients. You can buy them whole or by-the-slice. We went with Margherita and Classic Pepperoni. It definitely hit our pizza craving.
Santo Mezcal: This densely packed modern Mexican restaurant served up some incredible salsa!
Joe’s Cafe: We went to Joe’s for a late dinner. Immediately, the atmosphere felt very fun. We had the Fried Chicken Sandwich and Roasted Turkey Sandwich. The Turkey Sandwich was amazing. It was like a plate of Thanksgiving with the roasted turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce. That had us stuffed but the pies they had on the counter did look enticing.
Cold Spring Tavern: This place is more than a restaurant, it is a whole experience. This old stagecoach stop is located outside the city in the mountains. On the property sits the tavern, Log Cabin Bar, Bunkhouse, Ojai Jail, Chinese Immigrant building, gardens, and the Blisshaven house. There are a variety of different seating options, indoors and out. You can have a casual meal during the day or reserve a more fine dining experience at night. The lunch menu is full of Western food and everything we sampled was delicious. We had the Chili Sampler (highly recommend), which includes their Cold Spring, Wild Game, and Chili Verde chilis as an appetizer. For mains, we had the Venison Steak Sandwich with onion rings and the Grilled Cheese with fries. We had to try the dessert so we took our kind waiter’s recommendation and had the Pecan Pie. We have only good things to say about this place and can’t wait to return.