For years I would rhetorically ask anyone that would listen, why live in California, especially expensive Marin County, if you are not going to venture out and explore the amazing landscapes of this great and left-leaning state?
And it is not just the scenery. California has some amazing food!
One could travel the Golden State just for its tacos. Yet on a recent road trip, we limited that experience to just one place, and after two nights in Pismo Beach and a few good but forgettable meals, we found one of merit further south, Lilly’s Taqueria on Chapala Street in downtown Santa Barbara. We were checking out of our hotel in Pismo when we asked the front desk if they were familiar with any “famous” taco joints in Santa Barbara, which was our next destination, and one of the women told us about Lilly’s. I was asking out of earnestness – we really did want to eat great tacos, but I was also fishing around because I couldn’t remember the name of the better known taqueria in that well-heeled town where mountains meet the sea. I got the name when we checked into our Santa Barbara hotel later that day, when I asked the gal at the front desk what was her favorite taco joint in town. She said Lilly’s, because it is authentic and the lady that runs it makes handmade tortillas from masa, or the raw corn grain that makes maize dough that probably goes back to Aztec and Mayan times in Mexico.
As soon as the young lady at our Santa Barbara hotel told us Lilly’s, her colleague asked, you may also want to try La Super-Rica Taqueria on Milpas Street, which is known for its fish tacos, tamales and more. That was the place I was thinking of and had eaten there years earlier with my family. For a second we thought of going to La Super-Rica but would have had to get back in the car, whereas Lilly’s was a short walk. We found the place easily enough, and a no-frills taqueria it is! No Chips. No Salsa! Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat? You order your food and drinks at one station and pick up your plates of tacos moments later from a stainless steel shelf with warming lights above it, 10 feet from where you place the food order. There were two condiment stands inside with the fixings, as they say. Chopped up cilantro, lime wedges, chopped white onions, and multiple salsas including one that was dark and almost mole-dark in its coloration. It looked spicy hot and it was. My traveling companion and I ordered the same thing – one chicken, one pork, each of which came with two small corn tortillas.
The food came in minutes and we were so hungry I jumped in without taking a picture! What kind of food blogger am I, you ask? No kidding.
We were only in Santa Barbara for one night. After Lilly’s we went up to a botanical garden and also walked around a city park across from the Mission that had many, many roses bushes.
Walking around these two venues was an excellent way to walk off the tacos, which were indeed delicious. That evening, without specific food plans, we did what tourists are supposed to do in beach towns, and walked the four blocks or so to the beach and then did another thing tourists are supposed to do when there is a pier at the beach, we walked to the end of the pier for gorgeous sunset views of Santa Barbara. From the end of the pier looking toward the land and hills spotted with beautiful homes, one can understand the allure, and the price of real estate, in this town.
The setting sun made us thirsty and hungry and we headed back. As we retreated from the pier’s end and got closer to the beach we would see what looked like several eateries clustered together on East Cabrillo Blvd., which is the street that runs north and south and fronts the coastline. We were right as there were three restaurants side-by-side and we stopped at the Japanese restaurant. The door was open and two women were at a small hostess stand, and directly behind them was the bar. I spotted two or three vodkas that I like and that was that. We would have Japanese tonight. What we didn’t know going in, is that we had stumbled upon Santa Barbara’s premier waterfront restaurant and one that served Asian-fusion cuisine and craft cocktails in a stylish setting. Oku.
Oku is right there with Nobu (pick one, they are all good-to-great) and the one of a kind Raku in Las Vegas.
I would say that it is unfortunate that I apparently can no longer eat uncooked fish, as the last few times – oysters, sushi and even ceviche, made my tummy more than angry – more like a full-blown revolt, but it is not unfortunate because instead of eating raw fish, I get to eat so many cooked dishes that I previously passed over when in Japanese restaurants.
Take tempura for example. The vegetable mix at Oku, including Shishito Peppers, was just a fabulous starter. We had the Miso Black Cod after that, which is as good as Nobu’s, and then to go back to something crispy, the Tempura Soft Shell Crab. The vodkas and soda waters NFL were going down nicely with these excellent dishes.
We saved the best for last, and would recommend the reader travel to Santa Barbara to not only go to Oku but eat this irresistible dish and hand roll, no kidding, called Crazy Rich Asians!
It was the most expensive hand roll I’ve ever ordered, and worth every dime, as it is made with certified A5 Miyazaki Wagyu beef (impressive detail right?) wrapped around rice, avocado, truffle and Oku special sauce. It’s not even listed with a price, other than MP, market price of course, and the night we ate this I don’t recall the price.
Hats off to locals and veterans of the Santa Barbara food scene, Co-Owners Ted Ellis and Tina Takaya – the latter of which is the longtime owner of Opal Restaurant and Bar on State Street in Santa Barbara. Oku is a true jewel by the sea.
After a business night in Los Angeles, we made our way to the furthest point south on this trip, to Laguna Beach.
In Laguna, we went to this beach town’s most popular steakhouse with one of my sisters and one of my nephews, and ordered steaks! I have to admit I threw a bit of a hissy fit and was bitching quite loudly about the undercooked steaks, to the embarrassment of my girlfriend and sister. My nephew thought it was funny and we fist-pumped when I calmed down. Three of us order our steaks medium rare, and I was careful to ask our server if that meant rare as in purple and rubbery or medium rare, as in pinkish red on the side but tender and actually cooked. Oh no, he said, the chef cooks steaks true medium rare for guests that like their meat that way. We should have ordered them cooked ‘medium’ and had to send the steaks back. When they returned, my girlfriend’s steak was still under-cooked. At which point I snapped and asked the server, in a not-so-friendly tone, if I could go in the kitchen and show the cooks how to grill a steak. Third time was a charm. I was so clearly aggravate by the service that the restaurant comped the bottle of wine and one of the entrees. I won’t go back there and this was my third time for me at this popular eatery, but first since the pandemic.
We made it up at breakfast.
Laguna is home to the iconic Urth Caffe. Well that is one of 10 of them anyway, with more likely to come based on the restaurant’s success. This European-style café offers healthy cooked and baked goods and it is my go-to spot when staying in Laguna. The Eggs Bene and Smoked Salmon Toast are heavenly. Like Oku, I could eat here several times per month.
After a week+ on the road and three nights in Laguna, we turned the car north on I-5 and beat it home back to Sonoma County.
