A day in Santa Barbara... The Santa Barbara Mission, Crushcakes Cafe and The Lucky Llama

Left alone in Santa Barbara for a couple of days, what're a Mom and daughter to do??  Why eat, shop and take in the local sights, of course!  Dropping my son at UCSB for orientation, Liv and I made the quaint Upham Hotel (see our review) our home base and took on the town.

Centrally located and just a block and a half off of State Street, the Upham allowed us to leave the car and simply get out and walk.  With camera in hand we set out for our first stop of the day, the Mission Santa Barbara.

The Queen of Missions - Santa Barbara

Growing up in California, all students learn about the 21 Missions that make up a series of religious and military outposts established by Spanish Catholics of the Franciscan Order between 1769 and 1823.  In 5th grade each student is assigned a single mission to study, and some 35 years ago the Mission Santa Barbara was my mission.

Making a field trip out of the project, my dad took me and my family from our Northern California home down to Santa Barbara so I could see my mission in person, and then we returned home to build a replica out of sugar cubes.

Today, more than 200 years after its establishment, the Santa Barbara Mission continues to be a cultural and historical site.  A beautiful church with a large and active parish, the mission also hosts a museum, gift shop, cemetery, mausoleum, and ten acres of beautifully landscaped gardens.  Known as the Queen of Missions, the Santa Barbara Mission is well worth a visit when you are in town.

For a complete history of the Mission visit the 

Santa Barbara Attractions Guide at SantaBarbara.com.

Hungry after our trek to and around the Mission, Liv surprised me with a restaurant suggestion.  Not one to usually research ahead of time, my interest piqued as she described a cafe "that I know you will love Mom... I read about organic salads and awesome wraps.  I think it's going to be great!".

After about a 10 minute walk through the lovely streets of Santa Barbara we found Liv's cafe suggestion.  Crushcakes Cafe, that is.  Now fully understanding her interest, I smiled at she explained she had seen Crushcakes on Foodnetwork's Cupcake Wars and it seemed to be a must try.  She was right.

Walking through the decadent cupcake shop we made our way to the cafe (lunch before dessert...), where Crushcakes features locally grown produce - indeed organic when possible.  Serving breakfast all day, the Peace, Love and Granola (vanilla bean yogurt topped with our homemade granola, sliced bananas, strawberries and honey drizzle) caught my eye, but so did the offerings of organic scrambles and breakfast burritos.

Crushcakes and Cafe (Get the coconut!!!)

The lunch menu covers soups, salads, grilled paninis, wraps and house specials like Chicken Ranch Quesadillas or Rosie's Tacos.  I'll admit I wish we had time for two meals, but as we had just finished a full breakfast, the Animal Lover Salad did the trick for me (mixed greens, roasted zucchini, caramelized onions, roasted peppers
toasted pumpkin seeds, portobello mushrooms, tomatoes, homemade vinaigrette) and Liv stuck with the Turkey Club Wrap and could only finish half before proclaiming herself beyond satiated.  After all, we needed to save room for cupcakes.

And save room we did.  Entering the bakery the names of the cupcakes alone made us want one of each (Strawberry Blush, anyone??  Or perhaps a Lemon Drop or Chocolate Bliss??), but we settled for one each - might I just interject here that the Coconut Cloud is one of the best cupcakes I've ever had - and took a set of 4 for the road.  Let's just say that Crushcakes has earned a rating of "must visit" when in Santa Barbara in our book.  #awesomeness

Our last adventure the next morning took us to Carpenteria... just about 10 minutes from Santa Barbara (South on the 101), Liv and I had a tip from one of her girlfriends about The Lucky Llama, and will most likely we'll be making this a regular stop as we hit the road back to San Deigo on future trips.

The Lucky Llama - Carpenteria, CA

Featuring Acai and Breakfast Bowls, the Lucky Llama also serves a fabulous line of coffee drinks that I'm certain is going to take a number of visits so I can try them all.

Choosing an Avocado Bowl (acai blended with avo and banana then topped with more banana, strawberries and some of the best granola I've ever had) and a Mango Bowl (same as avo only with mango - this one was our favorite), we found ourselves perfectly fueled to return trip to UCSB to pick up my son from orientation.

Mango and Avocado Acai Bowls to go...

While Liv has another few years before she needs to make her own college decision, our few days in Santa Barbara did a lot to make her feel at home in the town, and I have a feeling UCSB will be high on her college interest list.

A walk through the campus and visit to the bookstore gave her a taste of college life, then a trek into Isla Vista brought an even bigger surprise.  What was the first restaurant to catch here eye?  Why another Crushcakes Cafe, of course.  UCSB now seems like home.

Storke Tower... University of California at Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara Getaway - The Upham Hotel and Louie's Bistro

We all have friends with opinions and recommendations for hotels, restaurants, etc, and of those friends we know the ones we can trust, the ones with classy, impeccable taste.  For me, that friend is Marsha.  My muse when it comes to anything travel or food related, I trust implicity what she recommends, and when she suggested the quaint Upham Hotel in lieu of a run of the mill resort for our stay in Santa Barbara I simply picked up the phone and made a reservation.  Dropping my son at UCSB for Freshman Orientation, I'm happy to say I've found my home away from home for the next four years.

Breakfast or wine on the patio anyone??

Built in 1871, the Upham Hotel claims the title of the oldest continuously operating hotel in Southern California.  Offering some 50 rooms and suites located in one of several single and two story buildings, the hotel embraces its heritage, yet brings a completely modern facility.

Featuring a generous continental breakfast, an afternoon wine and cheese and evening milk and cookies, the hotel brings more of a bed and breakfast feel than a hotel.  From check-in to check-out, the staff did everything possible to make our stay even more comfortable, all with a personal touch.

Arriving after a four hour drive from San Diego with my 18-year old son at the wheel, I don't think I've ever looked forward to a glass of wine more than I did that night.  However, we arrived just after the evening wine and cheese event had been put away.  Describing the last four hours to the front desk, the man simply walked to the kitchen, brought me a glass of white, smiled and said, "I understand..."  I think he did.

With three of us in the room, our only option at the Upham was one of the Santa Barbara Double Queen Rooms located in the Hibiscus building.  A lovely two story structure surrounded by lush greenery and trees, Liv loved that our key was just that, an actual key.

With ample room for our party of three, we unloaded our bags into the spacious walk in closet and once again, Liv loved the "old fashioned" (her words... not mine!) touches.  Using a pull chain for the light in the closet, I had to smile realizing that in her 14 years she had never seen one.  Might I mention that the crystal door handles also brought a smile to her face.

Living in Southern California, we love to open our windows, and the shuttered windows in our room opened to provided a lovely evening breeze enhanced by our spinning ceiling fan.  No need for air conditioning on our early August stay - temps at night fell to the low 60's, days were high 70's.  While we did hear occasional guest walking to and from their cars, everyone hushed their children and we had no issues with noise.

Breakfast, while described as continental, was a delight.  Including steel cut oats with a choice of toppings (my choice included raisins and cinnamon), bagels, bread, muffins, pastries, cereal and milk, hard boiled eggs, fruit (bananas, apples and grapefruit), assorted juices, and coffee and tea, one has a wonderful start to the day, and the choice of patio dining becomes even more of a bonus.

Continental breakfast served 7am -11am

Tucked away on the bottom floor of the main part of the hotel, Liv and I found Louie's Bistro to be our choice for dinner.  Again, we chose patio dining and enjoyed the cool evening Southern California breeze as the sun set behind us.

In business for over 30 years, Louie's also came highly recommended and after a day of tourist walking adventures we eagerly anticipated our dinner.

While the wine list features wonderful Santa Barbara and Central Coast wines, I asked our server, Patrick, for a hearty IPA.  His suggestion of the SLO (San Luis Obispo) Brewing Company perfectly hit the spot, and our relaxing evening began.

Sharing the Pepper Shrimp with avocado and a fresh tomato salsa, Liv and I chatted about our day and proclaimed our dinner most likely far better than what her brother was getting at his first meal at the UCSB dining commons.

Patrick happily adjusted the pasta dish to my "I like it my way" requests and suggested the Chicken and Spinach Ravioli for Liv.  Again, both fabulous choices and we polished off both plates along with a basket of warm bread.  Inquiring about dessert Patrick just smiled and said "The Banana a la Louie, of course" (custard filled puffed pastry with caramelized bananas).  As the front desk had also gushed about the Banana dessert it seemed a done deal, and again a fabulous choice.

Pepper Shrimp with Avocado and Tomato Salsa

Banana a la Louie... custard filled puffed pastry with caramelized bananas and vanilla gelato

Satiated, tired and happy, my girl and I wandered through the quiet grounds and back to our room.  Texting my muse, Marsha, our thanks for her hotel suggestion, we know we've found our home away from home when when visiting Santa Barbara.

Liv Life Note:  Neither the Upham or Louie's knew we planned to write reviews... all thoughts and opinions are completely our own.

To Be Continued...

Click here to see also our last Santa Barbara post for more meal recommendations and a visit the State Street Farmer's Market!

Santa Barbara - dinner at Jane and the Santa Barbara Farmer's Market

Liv Life and Family set off on our California Summer Vacation last week with a long list of "to do's".  Cameras in hand and the iPad set on "maps" we departed San Diego and made our way north to the 405.  With plans to visit numerous Universities on our route, UCI (Irvine) became the first stop on the College Tour part of our itinerary.  A lovely, fairly new campus greeted us as we enjoyed the grounds nearly all to ourselves while exploring the college and my husband and I reminisced about college life.  Loading back into the car, our heading continued north to our final destination of the day, Santa Barbara.

Liv at the Santa Barbara Mission

Always a charming, lovely town, the weather was a bit warm for the area and we soaked up the high 70 degree temps and the Southern California sun.  Stopping at my husband's alma mater, UCSB, my husband gave us a full on tour while pointing out the many changes that have occurred in the last few years.  The campus, being right on the coast with surfers riding the small waves down below and a fairly relaxed pace, was immediately appealing to my son.  Kids in shorts and flip flops wandered the campus moving from class to class as groups of parents and freshmen attended orientation.

Catching my eye, I watched a family of four with the parents and younger sister hugging the older sister as she turned and walked away, waving over her shoulder as she left - all of it a sight that made the experience all too real for this mom.  It seems only yesterday that my little boy was running around playing Buzz Lightyear or begging me for a Light Saber fight like Darth Vader.  Now he's more interested in golf and surfing, and not particularly in doing any of it with me.  I plan to hold on to these last few years as tightly as I can, knowing that the inevitable is on its way, and that in no time at all that mom standing on the corner watching her child walk away will be me...

In any case, this trip was not about letting go (yet!) and as we settled ourselves into our State Street hotel I was beyond thrilled to see the block just outside closed off for the weekly Farmer's Market.  How could I get so lucky??

Leaving the kids to rest up, my husband and I quickly changed and headed out to see what we could see.  A full two blocks of Lower State Street were blocked off for the event where tables lining the streets were filled with fruits and vegetables of all kinds.  Flower stalls were interspersed along with additional tables overflowing with local honeys and jams while musicians played varying instruments along the way.

Purchasing a few of my favorite extraordinarily fragrant tuberoses I moved on to the berry table.  Brilliantly hued baskets of organic raspberries, blueberries and blackberries made their way into my bag along with a jar of low-sugar strawberry/raspberry jam for my mom.

Another table filled with corn and most interestingly, eggplant colored bell peppers had me almost wishing I was home so I could load up and cook with these gorgeous fresh ingredients.  Then came the herb table... an entire table filled with nearly every herb you could think of lending a beautiful fragrance to the air and sending even more ideas into my head of all the wonderful recipes I could use them in.

With our stomachs rumbling, dinnertime was upon us.  Gathering the kids we made our way down State Street to a recommended restaurant and within moments after arriving we were certain we had made the correct choice in dining venues.  Jane, located at 1311 State Street, offers inside dining as well as an adorable 2nd level balcony with views of the State Street below.  We did not have reservations, but luckily had arrived early enough to be seated immediately and were promptly endowed with perfectly sweetened Fresh Squeezed Lemonade for the kids and an ideally fruited White Wine Sangria for the adults. (Dining early we had no trouble without a reservation, however by 7 PM the restaurant was packed, I would recommend reserving if your dining plans have you eating at peak dinner hour.)

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade on the left, White Wine Sangria on the right

As lunch had become a distant memory, the Grilled Pasilla Chiles stuffed with Swiss Cheese, Fresh Cilantro & Tomato Vinaigrette appetizer nearly jumped off the menu and had our appetites appeased in no time.  Liv's entree, reminiscent of her last fillet in Las Vegas, had her eagerly cutting into the perfectly cooked medium-rare fillet and once again groaning with pleasure as she asked why I can't make steaks "this good at home".  

My husband joined her with a fillet of his own, though he enjoyed the oyster mushroom cream sauce over the top rather than on the side.  My son and I both chose the Grilled Marinated Skirt Steak with Roasted Onion, Cracked Pepper & Madeira with me making it to nearly three bites before I proclaimed the tender beef one of my best meals ever.  A side of gratined potatoes, both extraordinarily tender and flavorful yet still retaining a nice firmness (in other words, perfectly cooked!), along with steamed vegetables rounded out our plates bringing smiles all around.

After reading reviews online I had little doubt that the Coconut Cake would be my dessert of choice as Liv quickly jumped at the Vanilla Creme Brulee.  Both desserts lived up to our expectations and we were frankly thrilled that the boys were too full for sweets.  Shortly Liv and I were holding our full stomachs as well, and my son enjoyed the rest of my cake later in the evening when the teenage late night hunger pangs set in.

Jane leaped on my short list of all time favorite restaurants and will be my dining destination of choice when I return to the lovely town of Santa Barbara.  From the upscale yet casual decor to the friendly, spot on service to the beautifully prepared food, Jane has it all going on.  And best of all?  Jane, herself.  Greeting us with a smile as we walked in she had us seated in no time and checked on us throughout the meal.  Jane, thank you for a wonderful evening!