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Mis-Matching
updated: Jan 16, 2013, 2:09 PM

By Edhat Subscriber

What unusual quirk or characteristic do you appreciate about a restaurant in the Santa Barbara area? There's one restaurant in town that I notice has mismatching plates. I like that, shows that they're confident and unpretentious enough to not worry about such matters.

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

COMMENT 364135	2013-01-16 02:32 PM
Just give me high quality food prepared well and good service. Why is that such a hard combiation to find in Santa Barbara. I will pay for quality. I will spend 20 to $50 a head on a meal if it's decent. Like a burger. I'll pay almost $20 for the Intermezzo burger or the pug burger at Hungry cat. The new restaurant Maggie's at State and A also serves an $18 burger. But they serve food service, soggy fries with the bottled chopped garlic (tasted rancid and the rosemary was overpowering), soggy bun, off tasting beef (was supposed to be Wagyu) an my mother had a quiche that looked like it came from a bad school cafeteria. I'll pay. Give me service and quality food.
COMMENT 364136	2013-01-16 02:33 PM
that the employees remember you when you come back-especially your name or what you like.
COMMENT 364141	2013-01-16 02:42 PM
I love a place that has a senior menu. I also appreciate knowing exactly what is in the dishes, because I have life-threatening allergies. Therefore I LOVE a wait staff who knows the menu, and is kind, courteous and understanding. A quiet place is also wonderful. (You asked WHAT, not WHERE, so I will save that for later.)
COMMENT 364142	2013-01-16 02:44 PM
Decent art on the walls, good service ( which unfortunately is now a quirk not the norm ), and real food ( no pink slime burgers or horsemeat ). Any restaurant that thinks they have to have a quirk to draw customers should remember what it's like to BE a customer. Just get the basics right and we'll be there at your restaurant. Forget the gimmicks. And a gimmick or other ploy will NOT cover up lousy service or bad food no matter how much lipstick you put on that pig.
REXOFSB	2013-01-16 02:45 PM
There's a kind of restaurant/bakery place which I'd probably better not name on downtown State Street whose owner practices what I'd guess you could call "creative pricing." There are no prices posted for the bakery items. If the owner likes you, she'll charge you one price; if she doesn't, the price for the same item goes way up. My sister-in-law, whom the owner, doesn't like, once got charged 50 cents more for the same roll or whatever that I bought an hour later. Since she likes me, I have no problem with this arrangement.
COMMENT 364155	2013-01-16 03:12 PM
That is actually called discrimination Rex and it is a big liability.
COMMENT 364156	2013-01-16 03:13 PM
I love that at Bouchon there are no vegetarian specific dishes on the menu. Their reasoning? Not every vegetarian is the same, so if you are vegetarian (like my wife), you tell the server what you like/want, and the chef will make whatever you ask for. My wife absolutely loves this, and I think its a unique approach.
COMMENT 364157P	2013-01-16 03:19 PM
135 - totally agree with you. Also, I love unpretentious restaurants. The pretentious ones in most instances are not really close to the quality of good restaurants in other cities. A "La Ti Da" environment does not make for good dining necessarily.
COMMENT 364159P	2013-01-16 03:21 PM
Senior or smaller sized portions are important to me. Most meals are way too big for me. Wish there were more restaurants that had smaller sized breakfasts, lunches and dinners.
COMMENT 364163P	2013-01-16 03:30 PM
155-Why is that discrimination? Our goverment does it with income taxes and it's called "paying your fair share".
COMMENT 364164P	2013-01-16 03:31 PM
OP here - if anyone is curious, the restaurant referred to is Garrett's at Mission and State Street. As I breakfast out a few times a week, I appreciate their reasonable prices, good breakfasts (Italian Sausage is good) and it doesn't matter if the plates don't always match. I'm not going to pay five dollars more for a cutesy restaurant with essentially a very similar breakfast.
MACSCIDOR	2013-01-16 03:39 PM
I prefer to order food and drink at a walk-up counter, pay, get an order-number to place on the table, and have the food brought to me. Utensils can already be on the table, or, located at a special counter for self-service. (Yes, I tip the full amount.) I prefer not to be 'waited on' -- but my brother likes the wait-person interactions and engages nicely with all staff.
COMMENT 364166P	2013-01-16 03:42 PM
Remember the restaurant that would just play Frank Sinatra music? That was different.
COMMENT 364167	2013-01-16 03:49 PM
OK, I admit I am not a foodie, but I don't think there is any better, fresher food served in the *most* unpretentious atmosphere than at the NATURAL on State St. There are so many choices on the menu, one could eat there daily for two months without eating the same thing twice and they are all healthy, delicious AND affordable. I just LOVE that place!!
COMMENT 364182P	2013-01-16 04:09 PM
A quirk or characteristic that is no longer and that I miss is the Santa Barbara styled McDonald's downtown when it first opened. Local Doug Bartoli designed it. Unique; it felt good seeing a Santa Barbara styled McDonald's. There've been a few remodels since then.... oh well, there are a lot more serious issues to lament. Remember it?
COMMENT 364188P	2013-01-16 04:13 PM
Characteristics: 1) I love the ones with lovely, quiet outside patios. We have such nice weather so much of the time, that is is wonderful to be able to be outside and enjoy it while enjoying your meal. 2) I also like those that serve fresh, mostly locally sourced food. It is particularly welcomed when it's locally caught seafood, or local farm produce.
COMMENT 364191	2013-01-16 04:19 PM
I like any quirk that means that unlike 90% of the rest of the places in SB, it's got actually good food, prepared and served well. We have some great places in town to rave about, but they are few and far between for a city of this size.
COMMENT 364192	2013-01-16 04:19 PM
I love the quirky 'feel like you're in rural Italy' bocci ball court and outdoor space at Arnoldi's!
COMMENT 364193	2013-01-16 04:22 PM
Great atmosphere, yummy reasonable food, friendly staff that remembers your name..... Gosh, that's the Nugget!
COMMENT 364196P	2013-01-16 04:28 PM
Are we in Florida? There are a few restaurants in town that are quirky in that the average of age of diners is like 73 years old. They're ok restaurants - hey my Mom and Dad probably ate there.
REXOFSB	2013-01-16 04:30 PM
@155: Right you are, it's discrimination. But just try to prove intent. I also get this crazy feeling that tourists are charged more then locals, but again, I can't prove it.
COMMENT 364198	2013-01-16 04:35 PM
I love that at Norton's Pastrami, you can order your sandwich, tell them you'll be right back cuz you are going next door to Sportsman to get a drink, and the guy will say "no problem, we'll bring it over to you". It's the little things...
GREG	2013-01-16 04:37 PM
Santa Barbara has become a lot more sophisticated in its seamless pretty restaurants. "Quirky" restaurants of yore brings me to the image of Frank at Frank's Rice Bowl when I asked for milk. He brought out a half gallon carton of milk to the table, shook it, and said "No milk."
COMMENT 364202P	2013-01-16 04:39 PM
It's quirky to me that one can rarely find good pumpernickel bread in local restaurants. What with all the people from LA who have moved here, how is it that we don't have a top quality deli, like Nate and Al's?
COMMENT 364204P	2013-01-16 04:45 PM
Quirky (and back in the day), what was the name of the tiny luncheonette on the first block of West Anapamu that had only maybe five stools and a couple, small tables? That was unusual that one'd not see these days.
COMMENT 364208	2013-01-16 05:06 PM
hugs from the lady at Red Pepper!
COMMENT 364211	2013-01-16 05:14 PM
No one mentioned the Palace? With singing and magic?
COMMENT 364230	2013-01-16 05:54 PM
I love the hugs from the owner of the red pepper!
COMMENT 364231P	2013-01-16 05:54 PM
There are a lot of wonderful eateries here and many within walking distance of home. The very few that I avoid are the ones that you can't have a conversation in without talking really loud, the steakhouse where the older lady hostess ignores you while she's having a hilarious, long-winded conversation with a friend, or the one that can't seem to keep one particular condiment off the top of an entree. Dying on the floor of a restaurant is not how I'd like to make my exit. As far as one with a quirk that I find refreshing is the no-nonsense Greek House Cafe. It has a eat-it-and-beat-it atmosphere which is fine by me and the gyros are delicious.
COMMENT 364238P	2013-01-16 06:12 PM
Is the Red Pepper still infusing everything with grand portions of MSG? Frank's Rice Bowl. I miss Frank. He loved us and treated us like royalty. His brand of quirkiness is long gone. What is nice, I think, is when the server treats you right and earns a good tip. Doesn't qualify as quirky, but I appreciate that some people take pride in making your dining experience a pleasant one.
COMMENT 364247P	2013-01-16 06:34 PM
TAP Thai Restaurant, a new favorite, is quirky in several ways: 1. The decor is unlike most (local) Thai restaurants - cool. (2) What local Thai restaurant has an appetizer of "corn cakes, " which are like a fritter? Very, very good. (3) Who expects calamari in a Thai restaurant? They are surprisingly yummy. (4) This is one of the few Thai restaurants I've been in without a little shrine to the King of Thailand. TAP Thai is across from the Chicken Ranch on De La Vina where I was headed one night and decided to follow my doctor's suggestion of doing at least one thing different every week.
COMMENT 364262	2013-01-16 06:52 PM
I like Cody's - the waitstaff there are nice to me. I dine alone and they give me a table near the window with good lighting so that I can read. The food is basic but they are flexible with it - they let you customize. It's fresh and it tastes good. Not bad on the wallet either. I like places where the service is kind and they are just good people over there.
COMMENT 364279P	2013-01-16 07:27 PM
Quirky - does anyone have a picture of the - is it Blue Onion or Frimple's with the wallabies? That'd be a picture we'd like to see.
COMMENT 364284	2013-01-16 07:29 PM
I like that you can wear flip-flops to 90% of the restaurants in SB.
COMMENT 364286P	2013-01-16 07:34 PM
Flip flops in Santa Barbara - yes, and to 100% of the restaurants nearby, outside the city limits.
COMMENT 364287	2013-01-16 07:40 PM
Ohmigod, yes! The Palace! Not just great food, but on Fridays the best entertainment in SB ~ the magician! He, alone, is worth going to see! We've gone there for years just to see him! I think that's kind of quirky.
COMMENT 364289P	2013-01-16 07:45 PM
Yes, the Palace - local institution we're lucky to have. Haven't had the chocolate souffle in many years, one of the best desserts in town. Quirky restaurant with the magician and good food.
COMMENT 364291P	2013-01-16 07:47 PM
Interesting point - originality in a dining atmosphere; something which is unusual, not often found these days.
NATURE BOY	2013-01-16 07:55 PM
198: Agreed about Norton's. I used to work there and would regularly deliver our yummy sandwiches to the bar-flies over at the Sportsman!
COMMENT 364360P	2013-01-17 06:04 AM
I love Taffy's pizza with the back fireplace room and video game room, plus they have incredible food and they still bring it to your table! :) Also the tin roof at Dutch Gardens is interesting in the rain and the food is totally unique, def a SB must do is to have the banana stuffed chicken breast! The Palace is good, although loud, and same with Pascucci, and Palazzio mmm! But El Paseo holds a special place in my heart, the ambiance can't be beat and it is still the same as it was when I was a little kid.
COMMENT 364364	2013-01-17 06:13 AM
Getting insulted by the manager bartender at the T-off! always quirky
COMMENT 364367	2013-01-17 06:32 AM
Pascucci's on State Street has some really great indoor architecture, an interior designer's wet dream.
COMMENT 364373P	2013-01-17 06:58 AM
T- Off - good food, quirky decor left over from 1980's or is it from another nearby decade? Decor is so out, it's kind of in. No nonsense good food, nothing influenced by trendy, recent foodie cuteness. Quirky regulars, not many tourists there. Which restaurant in town has the longest running employee staff?
COMMENT 364376P	2013-01-17 07:05 AM
Metropolus Deli on E. Yanolani has a funny, very large black and white photograph of the owner's grandmothers over the cash register. One grandmother is Italian and the other Greek - one can easily guess which one is the Greek grannie. She's clutching her purse. Good food; try the gyros on Friday or any day pick up their kefaloteri to take home and hugely enhance any pasta, egg dish, casserole. The Pastitsio, Spanokopita and Moussaka are good without paying the exorbitant prices of downtown's Petros.
COMMENT 364381	2013-01-17 07:16 AM
Pascucci food variable and service sucks. A little quirky and small portions are Al Rojas' Alcazar on the Mesa and Milk and Honey on W. Anapamu. Try the bacon wrapped dates
COMMENT 364383	2013-01-17 07:19 AM
The neon sign and el flechador at Paradise Cafe.
HEATHER	2013-01-17 07:42 AM
The VERY unusual art and lovely Mexican shrines out at Del Pueblo in the Magnolia shopping center. Food is great and so is the service.
DIRTYHARRY	2013-01-17 07:49 AM
I would like to comment in particular on the Rose Cafe on the Mesa. Over the years the family that owns the Rose have continued to enhance the decor, both inside and outside the restaurant. The food was always quite good and the service and personality of the people who have been there for many, many years is always very warm and inviting. To me, the environment and atmosphere of a restaurant has a big effect on the taste of the food as well as the overall experience. When I go to the Rose today, the colorful tiles and the beautiful interior truly make me feel as if I have taken a small vacation to Mexico. If you want a vacation but don't have the time or money to get on an airplane you might try the Rose Cafe on the Mesa. Beautiful place, beautiful food, beautiful people.
COMMENT 364398P	2013-01-17 07:49 AM
what restaurants have fireplaces? Chucks at the harbor, Boathouse, Jill's Place... others? I like going to the Shellfish Co at the end of the pier during a big storm! :o)
COMMENT 364408P	2013-01-17 08:12 AM
The Scarlet Begonia often surprises you with delicious little scrumptious bites before your meal arrives!
COMMENT 364411	2013-01-17 08:18 AM
Another vote for Del Peublo Cafe's food and decor! I have been a dedicated patron there since 1999. However, I have to say that their choice of utensils does the food no favors...the metal is so thin and the fork or knife feels sharp and cheap in the hand. I really wish that they would realize how this detracts from the whole dining experience.
COMMENT 364416P	2013-01-17 08:22 AM
Cody's and Del Pueblo both great service and friendly people with good food.
COMMENT 364441P	2013-01-17 09:00 AM
Cody's and del Pueblo are outside the tourist zone and outside Santa Barbara City. They have survived in parking lots because they provide honest food to locals who come back. Almost all the known restaurants are tourist driven (and young crowd bar scene driven) so they have a consistent track record of really bad service and ordinary food. Back in the day a few local establishments had developed a style and feel that made them fun and unique--Josie's el Cielito had bad food but good drinks; Pascual's was reliable basic stuff with a lot of locals; Mom's was bad food but good folks. Perhaps the best kept local secret quality restaurant now is Petit Valentine which really does good food and good service.
COMMENT 364471	2013-01-17 09:51 AM
I love trying out different restaurants in town. Not just to try out the new food they have to offer, but definitely for the atmostphere they have to offer. To name a couple of places that are unique, of course will be, Cold Springs Tavern, whether you're going to the bar or the restaurant or the Sunday Tri Tip! Always great food, people and music! The Dutch Garden on Upper State is so charming inside with all of their German and Dutch knick knacks. As well as a delicious selection of beer! If i had to choose one more I would say, Lilly's Tacos! Where else can you stand in a line a half a block down and be eating your tacos just a couple minutes later! Even though i don't take advantage myself they have every selection of that cow you could choose! Regualr beef, Eyes, Cheek, Tongue, Lip, Head
SBROCKS	2013-01-17 09:58 AM
I need table cloths! I can't stand sticky bare tables. Love Cafe de Sol. Good food not over done and sensible servings. Great bar and staff is like family.
COMMENT 364479	2013-01-17 10:00 AM
Another vote for the Palace! That magician on Friday nights is INSANE! Sooooo goooood! And did you know that not even half of their menu is spicy? Huge variety, and I think, the best service in town, seriously. I also love Garrett's, I LOVE their mismatched plates! And a new amazing place on North Milpas called The Shop has the best pricing in town for trendy delicious quasi-gourmet food & the nicest staff.
COMMENT 364511	2013-01-17 10:54 AM
Mexican sushi chefs. Plus, half size sushi rolls for half price. Maybe that's why it's called Something's Fishy. Gotta love Rose Cafe on the Mesa. Great people and great food. And better tortilla chips than I've had in all of my trips south of the border.
COMMENT 364512	2013-01-17 10:59 AM
I like the decor at Jack in the Box - their employees are really helpful and knowledgeable about the menu - worth every penny
COMMENT 364517	2013-01-17 11:22 AM
Totally agree with Cold Springs Taven for a cold beer and a Tri Tip sandwich!! Yummy, yum, yum!!!
COMMENT 364522P	2013-01-17 11:31 AM
Quirky restaurant that is still missed - La Tolteca when it was a full tortilla factory, as well as a restaurant. Those hard shell beef tacos sooo good and nowhere to be found now. When's the last time you saw a combined factory/restaurant?
COMMENT 364540	2013-01-17 12:23 PM
Farmer Boy. Walking in the door is like stepping back in time. I miss the waitress with the beehive hairdo, but I think she still works at Harry's.
COMMENT 364548P	2013-01-17 12:30 PM
Farmer Boy definitely has quirky aspects, a blast from the past, am told. Dunno why in 40 years of living here, I've never been inside that restaurant.
COMMENT 364564	2013-01-17 01:12 PM
Many of the above comments mention things I enjoy. I don't eat out much these days but MY quirky quirk that I don't enjoy is eating with the staff when they are getting off duty, elbows on the table/bar, talking shop with server-friend and discussing their schedules and other details of the work place with total disregard to the idea that I am even present and that I pay full price for the meal and that includes a little atmosphere.
COMMENT 364628P	2013-01-17 03:12 PM
564 - good point. There was an expensive restaurant atop the Santa Barbara Inn years ago which had a hostess who chewed gum and another time when we were there for an early dinner an employee meeting was held within 10 feet of us. Quirky bad business. (It was not Fresco.)
DRBUD	2013-01-17 05:34 PM
soft background music
COMMENT 364691	2013-01-17 06:38 PM
I used to LOVE The Nugget in Summerland. Second only to The Chase in Santa Barbara for the best Caesar salads, and would go once a week or more to get it for take-out. But since it's been under new management, the salads are about half the size, the dressing and everything is different. Watered down, not good. I don't go there anymore. Not in town, but close enough, in Ventura there's a great little place that boasts having the best fish tacos in the world. I haven't traveled the world, but I have to say their fish tacos are delish! Fresh grilled fish, yellow and red bell peppers and a creamy sauce I'd pay to buy. Maybe they are the world's best. They are great! Friendly staff, too. One or two days a week, the fish tacos are only something like $2.50, between Happy Hour types of hours. Definitely worth getting if you're down that way. Wish I could remember the name of the place, but Google will get you there.
COMMENT 364733P	2013-01-17 10:43 PM
Many Edhat readers are foodies, one would think a restaurant would advertise on this site, maybe offering a 10% off coupon or free cuppa.

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