Best Californian Restaurants in Santa Ynez

We sat for 2.5 hrs, dinner, dessert and coffee. The mgr kept staring at us which was disrespectful as we overstayed our welcome. The hostess did ask us to leave as someone was waiting for the table. I’ve never been asked to ever leave a restaurant in my life, this was irritating 👎

The 5 course wine pairing was very good. I wish I had taken a picture of the Wines offered as they were all excellent and full pours. The food offerings were all very good, with the exception of the oysters. The cauliflower was our favorite and the sea bass was perfect. We were a little worried that the oysters were not quite right as they tasted mostly of sea water. We have had lots of oysters over the years and these were honestly just not good. But we didn’t get sick! LOL. We will for sure recommend this place for the dining experience and will return the next time we are in Solvang.

Everything was delicious at willows. I had the double pork chop, which was big and cooked perfectly. It came with broccolini and mashed potatoes. My wife had a grilled artichoke (best she’s ever had) and crab cakes. Chris was an excellent server.

One of my absolute favorite placed in Santa Barbara! If you care about what ingredients you put into your body this is the place for you! Homemade breads, dressings, sauces. Locally sourced. All the dishes are truly unique and special. They change the menu so currently my favorites are the Hamburger, lamb dish, persimmon salad. I do miss their smashed crispy potatoes so I DO HOPE they bring those back!!

We shared a caesar salad and requested a few anchovies as the dressing doesn't have anchovies in it. They served several white anchovies which I hadn't tasted before. The salad is a terrific choice and the white anchovies are very mild and not as salty as the usual anchovies I've had. We shared the flatbread which is the best I've ever had. I ordered the chicken cacciatore which we took home as I ate all of the flatbread. My wife had the carnitas tacos which were excellent as well. Not many people have caught on to the dinner offered Wednesday through Friday. It is really wonderful.