Tag archives: local restaurants
Nearly two-and-a-half years after signing their lease in Montecito Country Mart, Bettina owners – and husband-and-wife team– Brendan Smith and Rachel Greenspan opened the doors to their Neapolitan-style pizza place on October 29. Following the success of their mobile pizza catering concept, Autostrada, Smith and Greenspan wanted to open a brick and mortar space to […]
Carlitos Cafe y Cantina, the popular State Street eatery, a tiara’s toss from the Arlington Theatre, is celebrating its 40th anniversary next month. The Mexican restaurant, owned by Montecito residents Carlos and Leslie Lopez-Hollis, is one of the longest-reigning businesses on the ritzy rue. “We saw great potential with the location and knew we could […]
French culture consistently impresses American culture with art, poetry, literature, theatre, fashion, and architecture; but the French take their sweets and pastries just as seriously as Monet took his paintings. Every four years, France holds a “craftsman competition” called Meilleur Ouvrier de France (“Best Worker in France”). The contest is open to pastry chefs who […]
One of downtown Santa Barbara’s most popular restaurants is coming to Montecito in 2019; Ca’ Dario owner Dario Furlati has signed a lease to take over the space currently occupied by Giovanni’s at 1187 Coast Village Road. Property owner Hank Hurst confirmed the news, saying he is looking forward to having Dario, his team, and […]
Opening to a warm welcome from the community, Renaud’s Patisserie & Bistro softly opened the doors to its newest location in Coast Village Plaza on August 15. Owner Renaud Gonthier sat down with us last week to discuss the new bistro and bakery, which is currently serving breakfast and lunch and will eventually serve dinner […]
Four months after opening for business in April, Frankland’s Crab & Co at the Montecito Inn is closed for modifications, and will reopen in a few weeks with a new concept: Chaplin’s Martini Bar. The new concept will offer guests staying at the hotel, as well as residents and visitors, a sleek lounge serving cocktails […]
The Hotel Californian was the site for the inaugural annual Santa Barbara hotel Olympics featuring a host of events including a bell cart race, culinary palate test, bike building, towel origami, and even cake wars. “After the terrible time we had at the start of the year with the devastating mudslides, we thought we needed […]
Major social gridlock took place when Montecito dynamic duo Mollie Ahlstrand and her son, Ali, opened their new Italian hotspot Mollie’s, the State Street eatery just a tiara’s toss from the venerable Granada. The tony twosome have long run their popular nosheteria Trattoria Mollie, on Coast Village Road, whose lease is up in the New […]
Okay, okay. Yes, most other media have already reported that Mollie Ahlstrand of Trattoria Mollie on Coast Village Road was planning to open a location on State Street next to the Granada, a space previously occupied by the once popular Tupelo Junction. Can I just tell you that I knew about this a couple months […]
After myriad delays Frankland’s Crab & Co, described as a modern American shell shack, opened its doors at the 90-year-old Montecito Inn, formerly owned by silent film star Charlie Chaplin. The bustling Coast Village Road nosheteria, part of the Los Angeles-based restaurant group Scratch Restaurants, is run by chef-owners Phillip Frankland Lee and Margarita Kallas-Lee, […]
Nearly a year-and-a-half after the closure of Montecito Café at the Montecito Inn, Los Angeles-based restaurant group Scratch Restaurants has announced the opening of the first of four concepts at the historic Coast Village Road hotel: Frankland’s Crab & Co will open its doors on Friday, April 6. Chef-owners Phillip Frankland Lee and Margarita Kallas-Lee […]
To the Bluewater Grill, the buzzing new seafood eatery just a tiara’s toss from Stearns Wharf. The restaurant, formerly Rusty’s Pizza Lighthouse and the Castagnola Lobster House, has been in business for 21 years after being established in Newport Beach by partners Rick Staunton and Jim Ulcickas, and now has branches in Redondo Beach, Coronado, […]
This weekend marks the 19th anniversary of Los Arroyos’s downtown location, just a week after owner Tony Arroyo was honored for his efforts in helping to feed first responders during the Thomas Fire. The Downtown Organization of Santa Barbara awarded Arroyo the Business Champion of the Year award at its annual breakfast event, held at […]
Within the last week, Montecito started to return to normal, with the gradual reopening of the upper village shops, the YMCA, Montecito Library, several preschools, and Montecito Union School. The shops and restaurants in the upper village were closed a significant portion of December, due to mandatory evacuations during the Thomas Fire. Reopened for […]
It was child’s play when Kids Helping Kids, the 10-year-old organization launched by students at San Marcos High School, raised a record $501,251 to help local children in need with two sold-out concerts at the Granada. The group, headed by economics teacher James DeVries, has raised more than $2.5 million since it started. Singer-songwriter Andy […]
If you are a regular reader of Montecito Journal, it won’t come as a surprise to learn that Trattoria Mollie is just about my favorite restaurant. And, there are at least three solid reasons for such devotion: 1) Mollie’s lasagna, featuring her hand-made pasta and a delicate cream-based tomato sauce reigns supreme; 2) Spaghetti with […]
