Blue skies, swaying palm trees, and warm weather make our city the perfect setting for California Dreamin’, but diners can still find hearty winter dishes on the menus of many of Santa Barbara’s best eateries.  Game birds, root vegetables, chestnuts, truffles, and other seasonal ingredients are among the rich cornucopia of flavors awaiting diners. “You […]

Come see “An Evening with Nigella Lawson” on Saturday, November 12 at 7:30 pm at the Granada Theatre, as the global food icon converses with KCRW’s Evan Kleiman about her new cookbook and the meals, people, and experiences that shaped her life. I had the chance to recently chat with Kleiman about the upcoming event […]

It’s almost always happy hour somewhere in Santa Barbara. I love the tradition of getting together with friends, work colleagues, and neighbors to ponder a myriad of topics over food and drinks: “How’s the marijuana odor control in Carpinteria coming along?” “Do you think Southern California Edison will move the utility lines underground in Santa […]

Regenerative agriculture has the potential to provide meaningful work and living wages to farmers while feeding millions of people, sequestering large amounts of atmospheric carbon into the soil, building our freshwater resources, and improving wildlife habitat. Despite launching its tiny, 12-acre farm as a proving ground and site for community demonstration, learning, and teaching about […]

Step inside AMA Sushi, Rosewood Miramar’s new upscale dining room, and experience an homage to Edomae – a centuries-old Japanese culinary tradition that has resurfaced in recent years. Named for women who ventured into the ocean to collect seafood for their village, “ama” means “women of the sea.”  The team at this beachside resort is […]

Picture yourself on a cool summer evening sitting on a Mexican blanket listening to the sound of waves rushing across the sand. There’s a divine spread laid out, guests are lounging on oversized pillows and nibbling on homespun delicacies such as shredded chicken and bean taquitos and grapefruit, avocado, and walnut salad. There are a […]

One of the biggest wine and food events of the year happened after a two-year hiatus, at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History (SBMNH). Over 1,000 folks gathered on the 17-acre campus to stroll along the shaded banks of Mission Creek sampling the Central Coast’s best food, wine, and spirits from 80-plus purveyors. This […]

Warm summer breezes and longer days beckon diners outdoors to explore the city’s diverse culinary landscape. Although there has been a recent uptick in virus cases, restaurant owners and chefs tempt diners with their summer creations. Several local eateries continue to exercise the same safety protocols at the height of the pandemic. “Our doors to […]

Who remembers that cookbook How It All Vegan by Tanya Barnard and Sarah Kramer? If you do, congrats, you’re older than you think. If you don’t, well, who can blame you? It was a vegan cookbook published in 2002. Before vegan burgers started popping up at fast food chains, before walls were packed with specialty […]

Pitmaster Kristi Bean recently debuted her barbecue eatery, Beans BBQ, nestled on State Street, just steps away from Granada Theatre.  Bean said the eatery is the love child of Beans BBQ catering business, which she started in 2014, the same year she migrated to Santa Barbara. At the core of the success story that is […]