Santa Barbara

SoCal Skate Park Closed After Drug Use, Water Balloon Throwing

Aw. Little skater kids, so young and innocent, just looking for that next great ollie. How bad can they be? Very bad, says one Southern California city. So bad that such alleged skater behavior as threatening people, throwing water balloons into traffic and even drug use have prompted authorities t ... More >>

Now Open: AVA Santa Barbara's Wine Tasting Room A Great Place for Beachside Wine

Like a lead singer with a side solo project, AVA Santa Barbara is winemaker Seth Kunin's side gig. Because Kunin Wines is a well-established, Santa Barbara County-based brand -- known for its Rhone-style blend, syrah and zinfandel -- Kunin decided to create another label, AVA Santa Barbara, to explo ... More >>

The Hungry Cat: 99 Essential Restaurants 2013

5 Reasons to Drive to Santa Barbara for Film Feast

This week, movie folk -- both celebrities and cinephiles -- will flock 95 miles north to the 28th Annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival. Running in conjunction with the festival is Film Feast. In its third year, Film Feast is not your ordinary restaurant week. There's a catch: All of th ... More >>

Where the Ghosts Are

Beachwood BBQ Medals Twice at the 2012 GABF

DENVER -- On Saturday morning, Oct. 13, thousands of brewers, media and festival volunteers watched as Long Beach-based Beachwood BBQ and Brewing accepted two medals at the 2012 Great American Beer Festival. Winning gold and bronze for L.A. County, they were in good company with California brewers, ... More >>

33: Cauliflower T-Bone at Superba Snack Bar

Celebrating this year's Best of L.A. issue -- now out in print and online -- we're counting down, in no particular order, 100 of our favorite dishes. 33: Cauliflower T-Bone at Superba Snack Bar. It's not very often that, at an eatery with a meat-loving menu, the dish that reverberates through your ... More >>

Santa Barbara Never Tasted So Good: Epicure.sb in October

Two crates of Pinot Blanc grapes have arrived at Margerum Wine Company on Industrial Way in Buellton. Owner Doug Margerum and winemaker Jason Barrette are excited about the delivery; the lull between the white and red grape harvests has made it quieter than usual. A group of wine enthusiasts has tra ... More >>

L.A. Weekly Flickr Pool Reader Photo of the Day: Sorbet on the Beach

Today's L.A. Weekly Flickr pool photo of the day? Sorbet on the beach, two things that you'll probably be wanting in the next few days, as we prepare for another triple digit heat wave. The photograph is courtesy of frequent Flickr pool contributor R. E. ~. The sorbet in question is from Sugar and S ... More >>

Santa Monica Seafood: Go for the Spot Prawns, Stay for the Salt Water Taffy

The Santa Barbara Spot prawns we picked up recently at Santa Monica Seafood, inspired by Michael Cimarusti's salt cooking technique, set us back $13.95. For two. Not exactly a cost-cutting shopping stop, though they were fantastic (and our luck, still in season). The bargain consolation prize: A $4. ... More >>

Michael Joseph Holden: A Tale of Booze, Rape, Abortion & DNA From Aborted Fetus -- Cops

A 29-year-old woman says she was raped and indicated the suspect, who she hung out with at two Santa Barbara bars on the night of the alleged attack, drugged her, police said today. But this is where the story gets interesting: The victim says she realized what had happened when she discovered she ... More >>

81: White Anchovy, Tomato, and Fresno Chile Pizza at Pizzeria Mozza

Leading up to this year's Best of L.A. issue (due out Oct. 4), we'll be counting down, in no particular order, 100 of our favorite dishes. 81: White Anchovy, Tomato and Fresno Chile Pizza at Pizzeria Mozza. The mere mention of anchovies doesn't evoke pleasant memories for most people. Maybe someo ... More >>

86: Galbi Jjim at Soban

Leading up to this year's Best of L.A. issue (due out Oct. 4), we'll be counting down, in no particular order, 100 of our favorite dishes. 86: Galbi Jjim at Soban. Walk into any cozy Korean mom-and-pop restaurant, the kind with the old lacquered wood tables and weathered pictures of soups and stew ... More >>

Jorge Luis Diaz Kidnapped Victim, Raped Her in L.A., Drove Her Back to Santa Barbara -- Cops

Cops say a man kidnapped a acquaintance in Santa Barbara, drove her to an L.A. motel room, raped her, and drove her back. The suspect was ID'd by Santa Barbara police as 26-year-old Jorge Luis Diaz. Authorities say the 22-year-old victim had a restraining order against Diaz, a registered sex offend ... More >>

June at L.A. Farmers Markets: Your Virtual Grocery List

It's June at Los Angeles farmers markets, which means a surfeit of spectacular stone fruit -- cherries, peaches, apricots, pluots, nectarines, plums, one could go on -- plus artichokes and lettuces, citrus and berries, and the beginning of what will doubtless be many, many tomatoes. And because road ... More >>

89: Live Santa Barbara Spot Prawns at Providence

Leading up to this year's Best of L.A. issue (due out Oct. 4), we'll be counting down, in no particular order, 100 of our favorite dishes. 89: Live Santa Barbara Spot Prawns at Providence. Providence is the sort of place where you expect to be impressed, perhaps even astonished. Michael Cimarusti' ... More >>

Marijuana Being Shut Out of Santa Barbara After Feds' Medical Crackdown

Obama recently said it: "Big" marijuana business would not be immune from federal prosecution, even in medical weed states like California. Today the U.S. Attorney's Office in L.A. announced that the feds are walking that walk: They raided four pot operations, filed legal papers to seize the asse ... More >>

What's In Season at the Farmers Market: The Many Colors of Rhubarb

Rhubarb doesn't do well in L.A. gardens. The sleeping rhizomes that sit dormant underground in winter need many chilly days and nights in order to even think about poking above ground in spring. Freezing, chilly weather doesn't help either, as they are barely frost tolerant. Their ideal situation ... More >>

Santa Barbara Film Feast: Dinner and More Than 195 Movies

Santa Barbara's International Film Festival (SBIFF) echoes Cannes' famed film festival -- both are held in lovely seaside towns betwixt mountains and the ocean, stars come out in force and there is ample fresh local seafood. But unlike the French Riviera version, SBIFF prix fixe menus are deals: For ... More >>

Q & A with Chris Phelps and Zak Walters, Part 2: Favorite California Products Why No Dungeness Crab

Andrew FrougChris Phelps and Zak Walters at Salt's Cure​ In part one of our interview with chefs Chris Phelps and Zak Walters of West Hollywood's butcher-shop-turned-restaurant Salt's Cure, they explained that wet aging is hocus pocus and that the pigs they buy from Napa Valley live more glamo ... More >>

Your Local White Meat: Abalone

Kathy A. McDonaldAbalone and kelp thrive at The Cultured Abalone, Santa Barbara​Dining on sea snail may sound less than appetizing. Dining on abalone sounds luscious. But abalone's white, delicately flavored briny flesh is essentially that of a sea snail: a muscled mollusk, which consumes alga ... More >>

Your Memorial Day Weekend Wine Event Report

Flickr/Xipe Totec39wine glasses​ Beer and barbecue are definitely on the Memorial Day Weekend agenda but with three days to fill, make some room for a glass or two of wine. In Santa Barbara, one of the region's most illustrious winemakers Jim Clendenen opens a tasting room after decades in the ... More >>

Wine on Tap: Restaurants Get Into the Flow

Vinson PhotographyWine Cask Santa Barbara​ Wine has always been tapped from barrels. Rarely though, except at a winery, can you drink it that way. That is changing as more California winemakers are packaging wine in multi-gallon kegs and restaurants junk bottles for tap systems. Draft wine is ... More >>

Randy Quaid Housing Crisis Comes To A Head After Squatting Alleged In Santa Barbara County

​Los Angeles has one of the most intractable homeless populations in the nation. Its Skid Row is the Skid Row. In Venice, people have taken to living in RVs. The real estate crisis has put people on the streets, plain and simple. But who knew times were so hard that even Hollywood actors were ... More >>

Earthquake Weather? 4.0 Shakes Santa Monica Bay

​There are true believers in the concept of hot and dry earthquake weather. They got some fodder for their theory when a 4.0 struck the Santa Monica Bay Monday night. The quake centered three miles north-northeast of Santa Barbara Island struck at 10:42 p.m. according to the Southern Californ ... More >>

Municipal Winemakers: Bike Your Way To Free Wine Delivery, Or Just Join Club Awesome

Municipal WinemakersWill Bike For Wine​Before you commit to a lifetime of padded bike shorts after watching Alberto Contador win the Tour de France on Sunday, we suggest you start with a leisurely ride to Municipal Winemakers' Santa Barbara tasting room (only 100 miles, versus this year's 2,26 ... More >>

Protecting Southern California Toad Would Cost $789 Million

​According to a study by U.S. Fish and Wildlife, the cost to protect the endangered arroyo toad in Southern California could amount to $789 million over 25 years. The study looked at a proposal to protect more than 112,000 acres of critical habitat for the toad in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, ... More >>

Gulf Oil Spill Prompts Guv to Drop Offshore Plan

Dept. of Energy (via TPM)​For the last couple years, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has lobbied to boost state revenues by allowing expanded drilling off Santa Barbara.The Tranquillon Ridge plan accounted for $100 million in the governor's proposed budget.Well, so much for that. In view of the vast an ... More >>

HEY BATTER!

Q & A With Remi Lauvand: Berkshire Pigs, Michel Richard with a Cigar & the Santa Barbara Food World

Fran CollinChef Remi Lauvand​Chef Rémi Lauvand does not have a pop up restaurant, but he's been popping up a lot in the last few years. Before he came to rest at his current home, Café Pierre in Manhattan Beach, Lauvand popped up in BreadBar last fall as part of the Hatchi series. Before tha ... More >>

Good Head: Eating Barbacoa at Lilly's Taqueria

For decades, Angelenos have been making the 90-mile drive up to La Super Rica, the Santa Barbara taco shack that is invariably identified as Julia Child's favorite Mexican restaurant. The food was like nothing in Los Angeles. And while many of us began to realize that the gorditas, alambres and ques ... More >>

In Plane Sight: Scenes from the Piper Freeway Landing

​​Nothing like a tailgating motorist to ruin the perfect freeway landing of your private plane. Last Sunday's textbook touchdown of a vintage Piper Comanche two-seater on the 101 Freeway outside Santa Barbara is a good example of why drivers should always allow one plane-length for every 10 mile ... More >>

The Theory of Relativity as it Relates to California Pinot Noir: How Much is 'Best Ever' Worth to You?

Blame it on the Rain. The current issue of Wine Spectator has the phrase "BEST EVER California Pinot Noir" splashed across the front page. The editors are referring not only to Sonoma, but as far north as Anderson Valley in Mendocino County and as close to home as Santa Barbara. The reason? Near per ... More >>

Weekend Agenda: Wine Festivals, Champers Galore, Sunday in the Park with Gauls

'Tis the weekend of competing wine events and food festivals. The mega LA Wine Fest happens at Raleigh Studios Hollywood on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, with hundreds of wineries representing, and special educational seminars ($55 one-day pass, $100 weekend pass). The Wine House's Santa Barbara W ... More >>

Morning Sixpack: A News Roundup

Not in My Back Sky The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has blocked Santa Monica's ban of fast private jets from its municipal airport -- until an FAA review of the proposed restrictions is finished. L.A. TimesPorts o' No Call L.A.'s twin harbors can expect a 13.5 percent drop in traffic this yea ... More >>

Road Trip Agenda: California Weekend Wine Fests

If you're willing to spend a long day on the road and splurge for a food-and-slosh fest, then the second-annual Pebble Beach Food & Wine gathering held April 16-19 merits the effort. Consider: 250 wineries. 50 major chefs. Tastings. Demos. Meals. Names on the roster that are near and dear to Angele ... More >>

Today in Photographs: March 13, 1969

Goo Goo Muck:  Santa Monica Beachgoer Roslyn Leone and lifeguard Tom Johnson play in the black ooze that spewed from the Union Oil Company platform off the coast of Santa Barbara, more than 100 miles north. Photo: L.A. Times/UCLA CollectionClick image to enlarge

Beat the Press

And Hoopla: harrumph, hurrah

Wendy's Posse

High-paid yes men and women guide newspaper owner McCaw further into the mire

10 Emerging Artists

A Little Night Music

Loud and Proud

Remembering an American icon

Style Style

One Mojito, Two Mojito, Three Mojito, Floor

Island of Bliss

Poetry in Locomotion

Bump, Set, Spike

South Bay Volleyball with the Best of ’em

Game Over

An interminable time-out at Santa Barbara Plaza

Handel, With Care

The Accidental Populist

Magic Johnson gives some back