When it comes to food, Santa Barbara means business. This romantic Central Coast city is home to more than 400 restaurants, offering visitors the chance to experience very sort of regional flavor. The area’s laidback luxury style means that you can enjoy world-class dishes without the pomp and circumstance. (Read: Leave that tie at home). Thanks to plenty of rich farmland, the ocean’s fresh bounty, and exceptional wines growing on the surrounding hills, Santa Barbara offers incredible ingredients for its noteworthy restaurants.
Consider first Bouchon Santa Barbara (the product of celebrated restaurateur Mitchell Sjerven), where the motto is “as fresh and local as possible.” It’s a mantra you can see on the menu, highlighting fresh catch of the day from right off the coast, as well as produce and artisanal foods from local farms and food purveyors. Wine pairings featuring local vintages are highly recommended. The Palace Grill is another great choice for upscale dining; multiple presidents have enjoyed meals here.
Once frequented by Julia Child, La Super Rica Taqueria serves straightforward Mexican food in a bright little shop. Thanks to its cheffy reputation, a line starts forming right when the restaurant opens, with locals and tourists alike waiting for their taste the Especial. Just down the street sits one outpost of the family-owned local chain, Los Agaves. Try traditional Oaxacan there in a casual setting, or go upscale with the family’s sister eatery, Santo Mezcal, where you can sample the famous chile relleno in a hearty burrito.
A relative upstart of a neighborhood, Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone is packed with shops, tasting rooms, galleries, and restaurants. One of the best, The Lark, celebrates the Central Coast with New American–style inside of a stunningly beautiful converted fish market. For a less expensive but doughier affair, head to the neighboring Lucky Penny. Under the same restaurant group as The Lark, Lucky Penny slings charred-crust pizza out of its wood-fired oven and pours craft coffee morning, noon, and night.