PROJECT.PURPOSE.LIFE
SANTA BARBARA​
Duration: 2 Days/1 Night
With travel restrictions still on going, it's not easy to take a vacation any where you want. I am still being cautious with the whole pandemic but I truly miss traveling! In order to take some type of getaway, I've been doing it by car to which ever city is possible to visit with no a lot of drive time. In a way, this situation has encouraged me to visit like someone from out of state. I've lived in California my whole life but there are places that I still have not visited.
Living within the LA area, it's been awhile since I've visited Santa Barbara and the last time I was there I was passing by so I didn't really get to take the city in and explore. This time around I just needed a little break from being inside the house day in day out and was able to search some great spots for an overnight trip to Santa Barbara. Below is some information on the local spots I was able to visit. In addition, I created a little video clip to provide a glimpse of all these great places!
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THE RITZ-CARLTON, BACARA
Absolutely love this Ritz-Carlton. Everyone was so kind and welcoming. I loved the architecture and interior of the hotel, the room with the gorgeous full ocean view, and the pool. I wish I could have stayed more than one night at this location to be able to venture out and see the entire property and the areas around it. Overall my time here was worth every penny. I was able to relax, take a breath, let go of the day to day routine, and really put time into self-care.
As a Marriott Titanium member I also received a welcome gift which was a pretty box of chocolate covered almonds and other yummy items. Since the pandemic is still on going, they took all the necessary safety precautious. Social distancing and masks are enforced. Their rooms were were nice and clean and house keeping was very kind as well. I highly recommend staying at this hotel if you are able to and enjoy the view, people, and property.
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8301 Hollister Ave.,
Santa Barbara, CA 93117
@ritzcarltonbacarasb
https://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/hotels/california/santa-barbara
For Marriott Elite Status Members
DAY 1: STATE STREET (DOWNTOWN SB)
There are many places to visit within the downtown area of Santa Barbara. With the limited time I had for this day, I was able to visit just enough spots to enjoy a late lunch, snack, drinks, and dessert.
STOP 1: YONA REDZ
FOOD:
YONA REDZ is the first and currently the only BIRRIA de Res (beef) spot located in Santa Barbara. Just a little bit of background as to what Birria is. Birria is a dish that consist of a meat stew traditionally made from goat meat; however, occasionally it is made from beef as well which brings me back to YONA REDZ. Absolutely delicious. I've tried Birria at a place located in Whittier and this one blows that place out of the water. I ordered the YONA REDZ special which consists of (3) quesotacos + consome (soup) + drink for $15.00. TOTALLY WORTH IT! Their meat is tender, full of flavor, and just a burst of amazing in every bite. I highly recommend visiting this place when you're in this area and trying this special recipe made by the owner YONA.
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AMBIENCE/SERVICE:
Since we are currently still experiencing the pandemic, there is no inside seating but they have a nice setup for their outdoor dining. Each table is spaced apart and socially distanced. I felt comfortable removing my mask and enjoying my meal outside of their restaurant.
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Service was great. The person at the front who took the order was very kind and helpful in answering some of the questions I had. When dining outside, they will bring your order to your table when it's ready.
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532 State St.,
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
@YONA_REDZ
STOP 2: MOSAIC LOCALE
Mosaic Locale is a great little place where you can grab empanadas, beers on tap, and donuts. Unfortunately, by the time I got here the donut shop Hook & Press Donuts was already closed. So if you would like to try these, make sure to get here before their closing time 2:30PM. I passed by mosaic locale to initially grab some empanadas from Buena Onda. However, I ended grabbing a couple of beers from Draughtsmen as well.
They have an array of choices so it was difficult to choose but I ordered a half dozen and tried the following:
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Carne Picada: Sunfed Ranch grass-fed ground beef, onions, bell peppers, green olives, and free-range hard-boiled egg
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Pollo: Pulled free-range Mary's chicken, onions and bell peppers
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Hongos:Crimini mushrooms, organic spinach, caramelized red onions, and mozzarella
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Out of the three flavors I chose, the Hongos was my favorite. It was packed with so much flavor and came with what seemed to be a olive oil balsamic sauce that you can dip into. I would definitely come back to place and order a box of Hongos to go. When ordering you can purchase them cold or they will gladly warm them up for you to enjoy right away.
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Draughtsmen Aleworks
A great place to grab beer on tap. They also have a large variety of choices and you can choose to bottle your beer to go in a crowler or squealer; however, the choices are limited to do this at the Mosaic locale location. The other location in Goleta is where they bottle all of their beers. Definitely check out there website if you'd like to see the different beers they have. The two beers that I purchased and tried were the following:
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Mas Macho (Mexican Amber Lager): Lightly toasted malt & caramel aroma. Mild herbaceous hop flavor. Honeysuckle. Almonds. Smooth. Balanced
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Awesome Possum (IPA): Brewed with lots of tasty, pricey hops. Aromatic and hop forward. Flavors reminiscent of oranges. Apricots. Pine. Nectarines. Hibiscus flowers.Tropical fruit. Dry and long finishing.
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1131 State St.,
Santa Barbara, CA 9310
https://www.santabarbaraempanadas.com|| @buenaondasb
https://www.draughtsmenaleworks.com|| @draughtsmen
http://www.mosaiclocale.com
STOP 3: MCCONELL'S ICE CREAM
McConnell's Fine Ice Cream was founded by husband and wife Gordon "Mac" and Ernesteen McConnell in Santa Barbara in 1949. For 70 years they've used a few simple ingredients. What I loved about this place is the fact that they use raw milk and cream, eggs from cage-free hens, and pure cane sugar. They have an amazing amount of ice cream flavors that will make you want to try EVERYTHING! I didn't go crazy at all and ordered a cup of Santa Barbara Strawberry Ice Cream. I loved how the ice cream was creamy, refreshing, and I was able to taste real strawberries in the ice cream. This was a great way to end the night after all the great food and beers. Just an FYI, there are multiple locations around the Santa Barbara/Los Angles Area, can also sell their ice cream in selected grocery stores.
728 State St.,
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
https://mcconnells.com/
@mcconnellsicecreams
DAY 2: CHROMATIC GATE
