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Summerland
updated: May 21, 2011, 9:45 AM
By the dedicated staff
Nestled between Montecito and Carpinteria, with an ocean view from nearly every street, Summerland is a small piece of paradise with a rich oil town history.
Established in the 1880's by spiritualist developer H.L. Williams, the tiny town with tiny lots retains many of its original Victorian buildings, and has become a haven for antiquers, spa day visitors, and those seeking the perfect burger by the beach.
It also has a very nice county beach/park in Lookout Park, a bluff top playground and picnic area with a lovely sandy beach below.
Off the coast you gaze over the former drilling grounds for hundreds of oil wells, memorialized in a mural at the Summerland Post Office, an industry that may not be visible today but still seeps beneath the sea.
Here are a few fun reasons to visit Summerland:
 Shopping. The dedicated staff does not profess to be proficient in what makes a great antiquing experience, although we like cool old stuff just as much as anyone. But the fascination with bargains from a time gone by isn't our forte, so we thought we'd leave the assessment of the best places to pick up some great old pieces to our helpful Edhat commenters. Nevertheless, Summerland has the greatest concentration of antique shops in a very small, walkable area, with more than a half-dozen of them along Lillie Avenue. Several feature outdoor items, and others are filled with museum-quality pieces (some price tags are quite hefty!) sure to amuse and amaze. A new gallery focusing on American folk art has neat pieces outside and looks to be especially fun (it was closed the day we visited).
 A history of séances. Back in the 1880's, Williams sold the lots he plotted in Summerland to fellow spiritualists, and a community séance room, where residents could contact the dead, was developed. It was bulldozed in the 1950's when Highway 101 was built in its present form. But people still say the Big Yellow House, a once-grand (and very popular) restaurant, now gone by the wayside, is haunted, and you're sure to come across a ghost story or three if you chat with Summerland residents. If spiritualism isn't your cup of tea, the old houses are really nice to look at, and hiking up and down Summerland's steep hills is a pretty good way to get a workout and get ready for our next suggestion.
 Beachside burgers. It's pretty interesting that four of the best places around to get a beachside burger - Tinker's, the Summerland Beach Café, Stacky's, and the Nugget - are all within a block of one another in Summerland. All you have to choose is the degree of dining casualness you want, although they're all pretty bathing-suit and sandal friendly, as long as you have a shirt on. We honestly can't tell you which one to pick, because they're all good. Take some cues from our Food Reviews or ask a friend. Or, come back four times and try them all. For a vegetarian friendly, organic meal, you might try Café Luna (formerly the French Bulldog), owned by the French baker behind Renaud's in Santa Barbara. Live music is often featured on weekends.
The beach, tarballs and all. The photo of the Summerland post office mural shows what the beach looked like during the early 20th century, when it was the site of the world's very first offshore oil well. For a comprehensive history to oil in our area, see this excellent piece by local historian Neal Graffy.
Lots of onshore wells were built too, and made for an unlovely view. A plaque in Lookout Park commemorates the oil industry origins of the town. Production was ongoing in the area until 1940, when new wells were drilled up the coast in Gaviota. Offshore drilling continued much longer than that, and offshore production continues to this day. The oil seeps along the shore - are they natural and manmade? - are still a topic of discussion today. You might notice tar and a sulfur-y smell sometimes at the beach below Lookout Park, but it's just the natural process of oil coming up from below the sea. Regardless, this is one of Santa Barbara County's most beautiful beaches, absolutely perfect on a hot summer day.
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