Alma Fonda Fina is a modern Mexican culinary gem in the Montecito area. They have a nice interior…read moreinside and additional seating outside on their patio as well. Wifey and I got a spread consisting of the Suadero, Mushroom, Norteno, Octopus, Wagyu Ribeye, and the Pork Belly Carnitas tacos. Every bite was as delicious as the last and we thoroughly enjoyed our date. All of the staff here are super welcoming and accommodating. Definitely stop by and book your next reservation here!

Well the service here was a mess when we went, not sure what was going on, but the food and…read moreambiance are fire! Montecito has some great mexican food in Alma Fonda Fina, and the Carajillos will keep you going while you dine in! The tuna tostada is great, not sure why it took 30 minutes to get one, and the guac is really fantastic, especially with their homemade salsas. Cocktails are on point, I would say Carajillos first, but everything was good, and the burritos amazing! I don't know what you're doing if you're not stopping by here for a visit, just know that it's unlikely to be quick due to the service issues that appear to plague this spot.

The food, service and ambiance are superb. Ironically we were going to another taco place but it…read morewas closed today. My husband and I were delighted to experience such a clean, fresh restaurant. The prices are right as well. Highly recommend!

Los Agaves On De Lavina St. -- A Rare Review from Someone Who Hates Writing Reviews…read moreI spent 25 years owning a business. I know what good service looks like, and I know what entitled looks like. I never write reviews -- I watched Yelp destroy good people over bad nights, and I swore I'd stay out of it. Tonight changed that. I sat at the bar. It took the bartender over five minutes to acknowledge I existed. Another five to ten to deliver a Coke. I ordered dinner and waited forty minutes -- which I might have forgiven, except getting his attention was nearly impossible the entire night. No eye contact. Body language that made clear I was an inconvenience, not a guest. Every interaction felt like I was interrupting something more important. When I finally got him to check on my order, he went to the computer and discovered he'd never placed it. I walked out. I noticed the people around me weren't faring much better. The slowness wasn't just my experience -- it was the room. Los Agaves appears to be a popular place, and maybe on another night with another bartender it earns that reputation. But entitlement has a way of spreading when nobody checks it. I hope management is paying attention -- because a beautiful restaurant dies one invisible guest at a time.

I had such a great meal here! The ceviche verde is made with halibut and super fresh and sweet,…read moreit's also the most massive portion. The pulpo tacos are a MUST and I don't even usually like octopus. It has such a nice smoky grilled flavor and it doesn't have that chewy texture. Service is really great and friendly as well, and their outdoor patio is perfect people watching!

Service: very good Shrimp tostadas: super bland…read moreHalibut ceviche: very good Chips and salsa: very good and flavorful Tacos (ribeye and crab/chorizo) were all kinda meh Chicken mole was really good 3.5/5

Good food best tacos in all of Santa Barbara friendly and place is clean friendly employees and…read morevery kind

Very authentic food that caters to both Hispanic communities as well as those that are looking for…read moregreat Mexican food

We sat at the bar and Brian N. made our drinks and served us. 10/10 margarita & made special shots…read morefor our anniversary! Brian is super friendly, charismatic, and clearly very skilled as he whipped out tons of drink orders for all the tables too. The food was delicious and came out fast, very hot and fresh. We had attentive service, in a great restaurant atmosphere. This is one of our favorite restaurants in all Santa Barbara county.

First time coming to this location. Usually go to the one on Milpas but they are temporarily…read moreclosed. Restaurant is bigger and has better parking. However I received awful service from Angela B this evening. You would think that after paying over $90 for food that I'd atleast be able to get a water cup. I was denied a water cup. Afterwards the customer who ordered after me was given a water cup without asking. He seemed to be a regular as he was greeting all the staff. Seemed very biased! Then my order was sitting for a while after it was prepared and bagged. Took them a while call my order.

Ordered the birria tacos with cilantro and onion along with the consommé. There is also a salsa bar…read morewhich was a great addition to the meal. Would highly recommend this place for anyone visiting the area

This spot has to be serving some of my favorite tacos on this side of town. Credit goes to my…read morefriend Leslie, who has been raving about this place for ages. I finally stopped in for lunch and left already planning my next visit, it was that good! The restaurant is small, cozy, and filled with locals. It's the kind of place that has me dusting off my Spanish when it's time to order (which is usually a pretty good sign). The staff is incredibly friendly and despite my lack of fluency in a language I really should have mastered by now....we always make it work. If I had to make a simple recommendation, come for the tacos. The homemade tortillas are some of the freshest I've had around town and make every protein shine. On my visit, I tried the carnitas and al pastor tacos and while both were excellent, the carnitas were the standout for me. I'd happily come back for those alone. A solid carnitas tacos with their classic toppings and again, the fresh tortilla is what makes this spot standout from the others nearby.

We had a fantastic dining experience at Augie's! One of the dishes we ordered was the Pollo San…read moreMiguel, and it was absolutely delicious. I also had the steak and enchilada combination, which I believe was called La Norteña, and it was excellent. A special thank you to Hector, who greeted us warmly and made us feel welcome from the moment we arrived. He took the time to explain the menu, answer our questions, and provide recommendations. We ended up ordering exactly what he suggested, and every recommendation was spot-on. To top it all off, Hector surprised us with a complimentary dessert--a churro filled with chocolate, served with vanilla ice cream. It was absolutely incredible and the perfect ending to a wonderful meal. The food was outstanding, the service was exceptional, and the atmosphere was warm and inviting. Hector's hospitality truly made our visit memorable. We will definitely be back and highly recommend Augie's to anyone looking for great food, excellent service, and a memorable dining experience!

Well presented Mexican food in a buzzy restaurant on State Street. The food is delicious and…read moreservice at the bar was friendly and attentive. Even the owner came by to greet us. The bar is fully stocked, and probably has the biggest collection of tequilas and mezcals I've ever seen in one place! In addition to the usual Mexican mixed drinks, all typical cocktails are available too. The ambiance is busy but in a good way.

Please please do away with the consistently egregiously sh** music. For the love of all that is…read moreholy, Stop! Food is delightful. Beautifully presented and always wonderful. Service is great and we love this place. We would be here a lot more as we live less than1m away, if it were not for the god awful 'country music'. Please just shut it off. Your chef clearly has attention to detail and is a prodigy. We loved the tortillas and butter you previously served, but the freshly fried tortilla chips, fresh homemade salsa and sauces were delightful and a much appreciated prelude to our lovely meal. We love the speakeasy. The bartender is absolutely wonderful. Best cocktails I've ever had. I would argue he is the best in the county. Frankly I love to just request 'dealers choice' and he makes the most amazing drinks I've ever had. Fun way to spend a weekend evening. Can I please just say one more time, get rid of this horrific noise. We love the DJ in the speakeasy! So cool, and great music in there. Even if we are not completely vibing with it, it's curated and inoffensive. Can I say, what a joy to have Beso in our neighborhood. We love this place (just NOT this 'music'). We come in for breakfast/brunch or dinner and the music is so annoying/uncomfortable/noxious, that we leave before ordering desert, etc. would hang out longer, would be in more frequently if not for that one big adversity. It takes a month or more to extinct the unpleasantness of the 'music' , we come in and there it is, all over again and we are reminded of why we don't visit more. Please fix this!!

We drove 10 miles yesterday to eat lunch at what we thought was Beso Cocina, but were unpleasantly…read moresurprised when we saw that it is now labelled Blast & Brew. The menu now includes only a few generic Mexican dishes and a single Margarita, apparently to keep folks like us from just turning around and going home (I was very tempted). They don't even have anything like the broad beer selection like that at the Arroyo Grande Blast & Brew, which has many of their own very good brews. We got the Chile Verde nachos, but it was tough to find much Chile Verde. They nicely split the order into two plates without our asking, apparently because we indicated that we would be sharing and charged $5 for that useless "improvement". Adding two tiny containers of dipping sauces for the Truffle Fries added $1.50 each (no one mentioned that they were "extra"). We don't care about the added cost, but this seems like a sleazy attempt to squeeze as much revenue as possible from patrons. We certainly will never go back.