As vegetarians, my family usually struggles to find decent offerings at Mexican restaurants,…read moreusually settling for bland bean-and-rice burritos, cheese enchiladas that clearly were made haphazardly (if not out-right cooked from the freezer), or calorie-bombed nachos. This is not the case at Dos Carlitos in Santa Ines! Yes, my kids split the order of nachos, but the ratio of black beans, tomatoes, and guacamole to cheese made this mother happy. The vegetable tostada was loaded with grilled vegetables and the freshly-made tortillas were incredible! Finally, the cheese enchiladas (we're creatures of habit) were freshly cooked, with more of those in-house tortillas, and they were, according to my husband, some of the most delicious that he's had in a long time. Service was courteous and prompt, and we were greeted by the host in a very pleasant manner. I have to give a shout-out to our busboy, who was fantastic, ready with water or chip refills before we even thought to ask (whatever his name was, he was working Thursday, July 23 at noon). In short, Dos Carlitos is a first-rate Mexican restaurant! We love how it is not loud or overfilled with patrons. One might balk at some of the high prices, but in general I have to say it was overall worth it!

Figured we would stop in and try this place. Very happy we did. The people are very nice and the…read morefood was fresh and excellent.

I ordered a chicken burrito and most places aren't very good. The first bite of this one and I was…read morevery impressed. It was not dry and it was full of flavor, perfect spice level. The red salsa that they have outside in the little kiosk area is very good! The wait was a little long, but we had a big group that came in before us, but the food is worth the wait. Finally food that's not boring and is full of flavor.

The whole purpose of us stopping here was to try some street tacos while out of town. Mission…read moreaccomplished. The carne asada and pastor was excellent and I really liked the style of tortilla used as it added a nice flavor. The lady taking the orders outside seemed to be in a bad mood because she was very short with her answers and made zero small talk and did not greet us when we walked up. We were the only customers so it wasn't because she was busy. It felt more like we were a nuisance. I even asked my wife "does she not want us here?" It was Tuesday but the price of 3 tacos was right at 12 dollars. The tacos were great but if I saw her taking orders again I would drive on by.

My friend and I were craving Mexican food while in Solvang and decided to try Don Nacho's Café…read moreafter finding it on Google and I'm glad we did! The food took a little while to come out, but it was definitely worth the wait. Everything tasted fresh, well-seasoned, and full of authentic Mexican flavor. You can tell care went into the dishes. The only thing to keep in mind is the portion size it's a bit small for a Latin restaurant, especially at around $20 per plate. Still, the quality makes up for it. Customer service was okay. Since you pay before eating, they didn't really come by our table to check in, which felt a bit impersonal. The place is very quiet, nice decor. Overall, I'd recommend it just know the portions are on the smaller side!

My visit was on August 29th. Honestly, I didn't know what to expect seeing that this was a mexican…read morerestaurant in Solvang. The restaurant was quite clean. It didn't have a public restroom. I decided to give it a chance. I'm really not sure what made this location a five star win. I ordered two jalapeno and cheese pupusas. I thought it was quite generous yet somewhat deceitful of the establishment to add 2 single papusas with a plate of rice and beans with the cabbage like sauce that's provided to go along with the papusas. I also ordered a chicken burrito along with the sparkling water. Through my reviews, it's obvious that mexican food is my go to dish. So I'm being quite fair when I say, it's a three star rating for me. The food alone came up to $29.90 and a sparkling water cost me $3.81. So from the total, I figured the food must be pretty good. However, the food was quite salty. The pupusas appeared to be prepared in a very sloppy way. I'm assuming those who dine in recieve better treatment according to the pictures featured in the reviews of others. Also I never experienced a freshly cooked burrito that's wrapped up in foil become soggy within minutes. Most Spanish restaurants ask you what you want on your burrito and if there is anything you don't want. I didn't get this treatment from this particular location and the burrito became soggy even faster because they put guacamole in it. I ended up throwing it away. That was a total waste of $30.

What a wonderful place! The ambience is impeccable, and the bartender made me a delicious mocktail…read more I came with a friend to celebrate her birthday and they gave her a delicious piece of olive oil cake. We had the special oysters, zucchini blossom and shrimp pasta! All were fantastic! We came on a Wednesday which was kind of slow but they had $10 cocktails and a fried chicken special. I will be back and can't wait to try more of their menu!

We just kind of stumbled upon Pony Kitchen but what a happy accident, I think this was my favorite…read moremeal of our trip We were seated at a cozy outdoor table and service was personal and attentive. My husband and I both got the three course, prix fixe menu and were very pleased with our decision. The meal started with a hearts of romaine salad that was a perfect medley of tastes and textures and just the right size. Next up was steak frites - the best steak I've had in a long time and the shoestring fries were perfectly cooked and savory delicious. The meal ended with a slice of olive oil cake topped with mascarpone crema and blueberry compote. Outstanding meal from start to finish.

You can tell a lot simply by the chips and salsa. It was about noon on a Saturday and almost empty…read more(big red flag). The chips were from a metal heating bin that were thick and hard enough to cut your mouth up. The salsa is almost the equivalent as grocery store bought salsa and not the better stuff. I had the carne asada torta and my wife had 2 different tacos. All of it was dry and relatively flavorless. What is sad is that after I posted this review, it didn't show up. However it is working, this review hasn't shown up. They had 2 waitstaff and with 1 family and 1 person at the bar, they couldn't keep the water filled.

What a great spot! My husband and I wanted takeout to bring back to our hotel on a Tuesday evening…read more We ordered the Extreme Tacos with carne asada. Five tacos, filled with meat and salsa and bursting with flavor for just $21 - incredible! An the tortillas were divine! We placed our order online and it was quickly ready and pickup was a breeze. Parking is plentiful.

I was in town on a friend's trip and a local friend brought us to brothers. I would say this was…read moremy very favorite meal of the trip. It's a nicer restaurant than most, and very well plated. The atmosphere is 'fine dining' but with a more casual feel. The service was also incredibly attentive. There's a parking lot right out front, which makes it incredibly convenient. We were a large group and ordered a lot of items, but the ones that really stood out were the Salmon/Dill on Crostini, the Tuna Tartare and the Mushroom Soup...by far the best we had the whole trip. I look forward to coming back some day!

Indoor and outdoor seating options…read more Pros: -delicious food -great service -when we went, the outdoor seating had heaters and live music -complimentary birthday dessert Cons: -n/a

Fun place in Santa Ynez. There's a full bar and beer and wine. The place gets pretty lively at…read morenight. There's also a stage and entertainment many nights, including live music. If you're looking for something to do when the sun goes down, it's definitely worth checking out.

Dick's Last Resort is a restaurant chain on the East Coast that features rude service on purpose as…read morepart of the show. Is that the deal at Maverick Saloon? Because the bartender the other night was grumpy and grumped at me three times times in like half an hour. Once for ordering food at eight thirty when the kitchen closed at nine. Then for scanning the place with my smartphone. Third, for telling him about a woman from the east coast, who was visiting California for the first time Is that an act? Is that California country attitude pointed at a city dude? Should their slogan be "We put the hostility in hospitality?" The French Dip sandwich was good anyway. Curious about the Tex Pistols anyway.

Not sure why this place isn't 5 star. Not 4.9999 but 5. The…read morebest brisket and best chilly ... Review to come

We had an awesome experience here! First off, they have the option to sit outside on a nice sunny…read morepatio or inside where everything is accented in dark wood and metal, exactly like you'd expect a bbq place called Whiskey N Rye to look. The drink options were great and our server even suggested the perfect one for me based on other drinks I like. Now most importantly is the food...the serving sizes are large and everything is so flavorful. Make sure you get the elote corn side, it was incredible! I ordered pulled pork with beans on the side and my boyfriend ordered the full rack of ribs with the elote corn. Both were delicious. We were starving when we got there so we were disappointed when we found out his ribs were cold. We told the server and she replaced it immediately, including the full side of corn we ate in the meantime cause we were too hungry to wait! It was definitely the best service we got during our entire time in Solvang. Highly recommend this place!

This is a really good place to get an oak smoked steak right off of their Santa Maria Grill. The…read morefood here is good, and I absolutely love the taste of the oak that screams Central Coast. (If you sit in the middle of the easternmost dining room you'll have a great view of it.) I've had numerous steaks, their pork chops, lamb, and quail and it's all delicious. Right now I am absolutely in love with their duck. It's really good. The wines here are great as well. They make their own wines, and specialize in Pinot (their Big Circle Syrah is pretty good too). They really care about their wines and it's very apparent in their taste. The service here is excellent as well. This is an amazing place that we make sure to visit every time we're in town.

For the last 40 years, the Hitching Post has been a Buellton institution, serving oak grilled…read moresteaks "West Coast BBQ" style and their own wines. Like many people I heard about it because of the movie Sideways with Paul Giamatti. Despite its notoriety, this place feels authentic and hasn't been over taken by the fame monster...not in the slightest. They just offer great food, great service, and great wines. For all the hype, this place was better than I expected. The patio views out back were sweeping, and I highly recommend coming here when it's still light out (lunch or an early dinner) so you can see what I mean. The views were better than the scenery at some of the winery vineyards in the area. For lunch, I took the recommendation of the worker and got "the best thing on the menu" which was their steak and caramelized onion sandwich. I dont normally order this kind of thing but she convinced me of it and I am glad I listened to her. It was juicy and savory, and the steak was so nicely seasoned. Whenever I've gotten a steak or beef sandwich before usually you have to dip it in au jus bc it's on the dry side, but this was not the case at all here. There was no aioli or sauce to drown out or hide the quality of the meat. It was perfection. We also tried the grilled chicken sandwich which also was beautifully seasoned and slightly blackened and had the juiciest tomato with it. Overall: a very simple lunch but done extremely well, with the best outdoor views in town. As a bonus, birders may appreciate seeing the occasional hawk high overhead or the abundant Blue Jays on the patio. Ample parking on sight.

The Los Olivos Wine Merchant and Cafe has a name that seriously undersells what is happening…read moreinside. It sounds like a place where you buy a bottle, eat three responsible almonds, and leave. Instead, they are serving some of the most satisfying farm food in town while the name stands outside pretending this is all perfectly ordinary. The building feels old in the right way. Not fake old, where someone bought distressed wood last Tuesday and charged it with having memories. It feels like locals have been wandering in from nearby vineyards, ranches, farms, and homes for years, sitting down without needing to study the room first. The tourists discover it. The locals appear to already have a system. The focaccia arrived soft in the middle with a crisp little edge that made tearing into it far more entertaining than bread has any right to be. The olive oil tasted raw, green, and incredibly fresh, as though the olives had been pressed somewhere nearby and were still slightly annoyed about it. The vegetables come from the restaurant's own farm just down the road, and they looked almost suspiciously healthy. Bright, crunchy, colorful, and full of life. Most restaurant vegetables sit beside the meat like nervous witnesses. These had confidence, opinions, and possibly retirement plans. The burrata was creamy and uncomplicated, with excellent olive oil doing what excellent olive oil does, which is make you briefly consider whether bread, cheese, and oil might be enough to sustain human civilization. The skirt steak was beautifully cooked and full of flavor. Every cow only has one skirt, which seems like a design flaw considering how many people want to order it. The vegetables alongside it were not there to provide moral balance. They were good enough to start arguments over who got the last one. My mushroom ravioli was exactly right. No puddle of oil. No cream sauce trying to bury the evidence. No pasta cooked to the consistency of a damp envelope. It was rich, earthy, and satisfying, with every bite feeling complete rather than simply preparing you for the next one. The wine wall is practically a geography lesson with alcohol. Santa Ynez Valley, Los Olivos, Paso Robles, Napa, France, Italy, and enough local bottles to make you wonder whether every nearby hill has quietly started producing wine. The wines we tried were approachable and easygoing. They joined dinner politely instead of barging in and demanding we admire their résumé. We finished with crème brûlée, which remains one of the few desserts that begins with minor property damage. Cracking through the warm sugar into the cool butterscotch custard underneath is childish, elegant, and deeply satisfying. Marcos was upbeat, knowledgeable, and clearly knew the menu well enough to recommend it without sounding like he had memorized a hostage statement. The whole evening felt relaxed, local, and completely unforced. This is the kind of restaurant where you finish dinner, walk outside, and immediately start wondering what time they open tomorrow.

The Wine Merchant is a nice wine country restaurant on the main drag in Los Olivos. Had dinner here…read moreafter a day of tasting. The restaurant decor is nice, though nothing special, with a sizeable patio for outdoor dining. We started with a couple of local wines by the glass. The wine list here is heavily biased towards local wines as one would expect from a wine country restaurant. Kudos for the local focus! The menu here is wine country, farm-to-table and the restaurant even has their own organic farm a short distance away where they source ingredients. For dinner we started with the beet salad special served over a citrus yogurt. For main courses we had the grilled rack of lamb and a quinoa bowl with salmon. Every dish was expertly prepared and delicious. The fruits and veggies were exceptionally fresh being sourced directly. David was our server and coincidentally was our server at a wine tasting earlier in the day. His service and that from the supporting team were professional and friendly. I give this restaurant my highest recommendation!