Empty Bowls 2021

Annual Empty Bowls Celebration Looks Different This Year (full press release with links attached)

The Foodbank’s annual soup fundraisers in Santa Maria and Santa Barbara are still happening this fall, but with some changes due to the ongoing pandemic.

(Santa Barbara County, CA) — The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County is holding Santa Maria and Santa Barbara Empty Bowls events this fall, with Lompoc Empty Bowls scheduled for March 2022. In past years, Empty Bowls was a sit-down event, with soup served in handmade bowls that each attendee got to bring home after the event. Local restaurants and businesses donated soup, bread and raffle items for the event, and ticket sales went toward supporting those facing food insecurity in Santa Barbara County.

This year, Santa Maria Empty Bowls will be a drive-thru event. It will take place on November 3, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Santa Maria Fairpark. Tickets are available in half-hour time slots, and attendees will drive through the parking lot to receive a to-go container with soup as well as a handmade bowl. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased at FoodbankSBC.org/EBSM2021. Large groups can also purchase Party Packs, which include 10 tickets and a delivery of soup and bowls to an address of your choice.

Santa Barbara Empty Bowls will be an in-person event. It will occur on December

5 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. The event will take place outside at the Santa Barbara Foodbank Warehouse. In order to promote social distancing, tickets will be available in half-hour time slots, with four different entry times for the event. Attendees will receive a handmade bowl and soup in a to-go container. There will also be raffle items at the event, as well as coupon books for local restaurants. Tickets for this event will go on sale in October, so stay tuned!