I had been wanting to try this place out for years! When hubby & I came to dine here in 2020, the…read moreline was insane and the wait was super long. We decided to eat next door, which was sort of a mistake. Luckily, in Jan. 2026, we were able to grab seats at the counter inside. We got to watch the dishes being prepared a la minute! What a treat! They were busy, but each person knew what they were doing and they worked efficiently! Our primary objective was for me to taste a Santa Barbara Uni (Sea Urchin) while IN Santa Barbara! I've had lots of live S.B. Uni at restaurants in the Los Angeles area. We placed an order for the Uni. There were 6 pieces, served over a piece of scallop and placed on a slice of lime. Pretty yet simple presentation! I had to first sample an Uni all by itself. So rich and delicious! Then I ate the bit of scallop by itself as well. So good! I ate the rest of them as served. Loved them! We also got Lobster Bisque, Crab Cakes, and Lobster Tacos to share. Everything was good! Worth the trip to S.B. to eat here! There's usually a ton of people waiting outside. If you have the time and patience, you should eat here at least once!

We came to Santa Barbara Shellfish Company for the uni and oysters, which were both incredibly…read morefresh and delicious, but the real standout for us was the box crab. Absolutely a must-try if you visit. Sweet, fresh, and so flavorful -- easily our favorite thing we ordered. The seafood here really speaks for itself, and the casual waterfront atmosphere makes the experience even better. One tip: if it's a busy day, try to sit inside if you can. It made the experience much more enjoyable with less of the crowd and wind from outside. Definitely a spot worth visiting when in Santa Barbara.

Brophy Bros. is one of the best seafood restaurants in Santa Barbara hands down! My friend and I…read morewere there last in 2022. Couldn't miss the opportunity to go this trip, we went for lunch right when it opened. We hate waiting in lines. We sat at the bar. The bar and outside patio seating filled up quickly shortly after we arrived and we were there on a Wednesday for lunch. It seem like a lot of locals/regulars showed up as the bartender and shellfish shucker seemed to know them. My friend loves their Bloody Marys, so he ordered one and I had a beer. We had 1/2 dozen Oysters and Cherry Stone Clams, along with Garlic Baked Clams and a bowl of New England Clam Chowder. The seafood was amazing, the gentlemen that was shucking the oysters and clams was phonomenal ... not one piece of shell, so clean, so fresh. The baked clams and chowder are also amazing. Atmosphere: great on the dock restaurant feel with great views. Food: excellent. Service: excellent.

We came here for dinner. It was extremely busy. We were put on a waitlist, but we do get a message…read morewhen the table is ready. Meanwhile, we walked along the Harbor as we waited for the message. We got a seat on the outside to enjoy the views and breeze. I ordered the Seafood Pasta with the clam chowder. I was stuffed by the time I was finished. It was a good place with good food to enjoy with good friends. Only issue I had was that the server doesn't come by enough. They can just take a quick walk to see if anything is needed. It took a while for the check to come and for me to pay. I had to go up to someone else to take care of the check.

All of these stars are for the excellent taste and quality of the food. The service tonight was the…read moreworst ever. We have been coming here since it opened and were so disappointed. We sat for 20 minutes waiting to order our drinks and appetizers. We never got bread. The waiter took our forks when he took the appetizer plate and just dropped our food on the table and left so we had to go hunting for silverware as our food sat getting cold. What happened?

Wow! We live in SB and we are so impressed with the service we received today. Heather ( hostess)…read moreis amazing! Whoever hired her is a genius. She is so friendly, has a wonderful smile, and she is so Welcoming! Ben served us. He is also amazing! He is on point. He is friendly and informative about the menu and the food. Another amazing hire! It's so great to see these younger people doing such a great job. We will continue to return. And, btw, the food was on point. My husband, upon Ben's recommendation, had the spicy salmon sandwich. I had the ahi ceviche and the Parmesan potato cake. It was all very tasty. Highly recommend.

Last night was the first time in many years that I've eaten here…read more I cannot believe I waited so long to come back. Our food was phenomenal. Each dish had its own unique flavor. No dish seemed to have any crossed ingredients. Fortunately for us as well was that we were there at one of two times during the day when they have an entire restaurant participation sing along. Most Outstanding Dinner outing !!

The Palace Grill is a great spot to grab cajun food and share a meal. The service was amazing and…read morethey are dog friendly on their outdoor patio! That was a big plus in my book. The ambiance on the outdoor patio was cozy and gave New Orleans vibes. I absolutely loved the muffin sampler that they give as an appetizer. We had the hurricane margaritas, crawfish étouffée and redfish pontchatrain.

Came by a few months ago while I was in Santa Barbara. I had tried their oysters at smorgasburg LA…read morebut not the lobster roll or anything else so decided to try it. Everything was excellent! Their quality of seafood is really fresh and they use simple ingredients to really allow you to taste the freshness of the seafood. We ended up getting a lobster roll, the rockfish ceviche, and some oysters. Enjoyed all of them! They have great service as well. They gave us a good recommendation to get the ceviche. Love the interior of this location as well. It's inside of a little open area with lots of seating, a bathroom, and lovely decor. Good vibes overall.

Went to Santa Barbara for the weekend. I was excited to try this place out based on the reviews…read more The location is inside a bar so you can select other food options if you'd like. The bars offers food and there's a chicken place behind the bar. Sweet: The menu offers some variety of options if you're not looking to have seafood. My husband enjoyed his hot dog. The fries were probably the best item out of what we ordered. Sour: We also ordered a lobster roll and clam chowder. The lobster roll wasn't too bad but it wasn't that special. It was pretty small and it was only filled with claws. I wish the bread was crisp and the lobster had more flavor. It wasn't worth the price. The clam chowder wasn't so bad It was a little more of a broth based and not really creamy. It had the perfect amount of potato and clams but lacked flavor. Overall not a bad option but nothing out of the ordinary.

Tried this spot for the fishwich and honestly--it might be the best fish sandwich I've ever had…read more The fish was perfectly cooked, crispy on the outside and super fresh and flaky inside, and everything just came together really well. I had to wait a bit since there was some issue with the deep fryer, but I'm glad I waited Definitely would recommend if you're a fan of a good fish sandwich.

I had the Korean salmon tacos and they were the standout for me. Super flavorful, great sauce and…read moreseasoning, and the homemade tortillas are always a big plus. The atmosphere is very casual with decent outdoor seating, which works well for this kind of spot. Service was fine and what you'd expect for a laid-back place like this, but the food is really what earned the positive rating. I'd definitely come back for the tacos.

Really fresh live sea urchin prepared upon order served on a tray of ice and some lemons. Santa…read moreBarbara Sea Urchins are known around the world as being sweet, buttery and bright golden orange as you can see in the photos. They were still moving when it was handed to us. You don't need anything else but just a spoon or chopsticks since they're so delicate. Price: $18.95 + tax per sea urchin. As of April 2026. Also try the prepacked halibut ceviche $18.95/lb or ahi poke salad $25.95/lb. You can just get a small container for like $8. Parking is $3.50/hour on the main harbor, in front of the water. If you're lucky you can score free parking right before entering the lot.

My friend and I popped into Santa Barbara Fish Market while on the Santa Barbara Harbor. It's a…read moresmall fish market with no seating inside so keep that in mind when going. We went specifically for fresh live uni, but unfortunately they did not get any in that day. So I would suggest calling first before heading over if you are very rigid in what you are ordering. The fresh uni is SO popular so best to double check first. However, if you do snag their fresh uni, it's more than $10 less than another place I won't mention on Stearns Wharf - that's a big win! We ended up getting a whole lot of cod to munch on instead. We got a whole pound's worth of smoked black cod - half candy flavored and half savory flavored for $32 with tax & tip. Absolutely loved them both and prices seemed great for such well flavored, fresh fish. We liked the candy a touch more than the savory but enjoyed both. Staff was pleasant enough, plus they have a bench outside that we sat at for a few minutes to eat. I'd love to go back in the future and try their acclaimed live uni~!

Can't say enough good things about this place. My husband and I love to go to the boiling crab to…read moreeat this but we drive an hour from home to eat that. Now we can go half way and to Santa Barbara for the same food but definitely more pricy. We had our usual shrimp and also tried the mussels which were good. The corn was good as well. We made one of them New Orleans style which Comes with sausage, corn and potato but we switched to no sausage We really enjoyed it and will definitely return!

It was our first time trying this place with my fam. We were looking for a seafood place that has…read morecajun, creole taste and this place didn't disappoint us. We ordered 2 lbs of shrimp - I think it's $25+/lb and 1 lb crawfish (can't recall how much maybe its $17+ /lb), 5 steamed rice, 1 large extra sauce (drunken crab mix - can't recall exact name) . Everything was really good - we did medium spice and it was spicy especially for my 12 yr old son but he still enjoyed it though. The service was good, but could've been better - staff are always by the bar are and just chatting, but someone will come check on us from time to time - its just that when we need their attention sometimes its hard because they had their back away from us and we ate at around 2:30ish so the restaurant was pretty empty - just 2-3 tables taken inside. The place is big, lots of seating and great for big groups. However, one of my disappoinment here is the ladies bathroom - its really dirty, trash overflowing and on the floor, etc, like its really dirty. I hope management can fix that issue with the staff. P.S I forgot to take photos because my kids were very hungry and didnt let me take pics...next time!

Such a delicious meal and our server was such a dear. Bridgette was super attentive and made sure…read moreeverything great. Would deffo recommend.

SB Boathouse Restaurant offers absolutely gorgeous ocean views and a wonderful atmosphere, which is…read morethe main reason I keep coming back. The setting is beautiful and relaxing, making it a great spot to enjoy the scenery. My favorite dish so far is the Oysters Rockefeller, and my favorite drink is the Lemon Drop. Unfortunately, some of the other drinks I tried were disappointing. I ordered a margarita cocktail that was much too acidic, and the cappuccino was terrible--it tasted like watered-down coffee with milk and was served boiling hot. While the food and drinks have been hit or miss for me, the stunning views and overall ambiance make the experience worthwhile. I'm looking forward to trying more dishes on future visits and hopefully finding more menu items that I enjoy.

Loved this place, loved that they had squash blossoms veggie options! Yum…read more When I'm not doing food reviews, I am posting videos about restaurants and cafes on tiktok @BayBitesNSips and when I'm not doing that, I am making handmade jewelry - I'd be so grateful if you visited my Etsy shop: MLEColorshop (or shared it with a friend who might enjoy my creations. )

My friend and I haven't been back to Santa Barbara since 2021. So here we are back in May 2026. My…read morefriend and I took a Santa Barbara Sunset Sailing tour. I knew we would arrive back late and there're not a lot of restaurants open past 9:00. We arrived back at the dock at 8:30PM. My friend was hungry and as we were walking back to our hotel, we saw Santo Mezcal still open YEAH! As we have seen in the past, the place is packed and super lively with diner finishing up. There were spots open at the bar we took. Edgar the bar tender (cocktail aficionado) was great! We ordered Cocktails, Espresso Martini and a Mezcal Paloma (so good) I ordered the Shrimp Empanadas. My friend ordered the King Fish Crudo and the Enchiladas Verdes. Even though they were ready to close our food came out hot, fresh, presentation great and tasting delicious. It was a great ending to our sunset cruise night. Atmosphere: fun lively. Service: excellent. Food: excellent.