More places to dine - Santa Barbara News-Press

Nine restaurants to open soon in Santa Barbara

**KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS**
**The Azul Cocina and Cantina is slated to open this month at 7 E. Anapamu S. It’s among nine new restaurants that the News-Press has confirmed are opening in the Santa Barbara area.**

Santa Barbara will soon have a lot more on its plate.

Nine new restaurants are coming to the area.

Among them is Azul Cocina and Cantina, a Mexican restaurant at 7 E. Anapamu St. It is set to open this month, according to its Instagram account.

The restaurant is co-owned by Executive Chef Manuel Diaz — well known in Southern California as Chef Manny — and Edgar Estrada.

**The sign hasn’t gone up yet for Bungalo805, which will be in the left building at 28 W. Figueroa St. in Santa Barbara,**

According to Azul’s website: “Executive Chef Manuel ‘Manny’ Diaz is an industry-recognized culinary innovator. With more than 40 years of experience and mastery, Diaz has worked in some of the most acclaimed kitchens in L.A. including DTLA’s Pacific Grille, Nicola, Nucleus Nuance, Rudolpho’s and the San Antonio Winery.”
The chef’s accolades include the Hero Award from the California State Assembly for inspiring people through his pursuit of the American Dream, according to the website. Chef Diaz, who’s from Durango, Mexico, was 16 when he emigrated to the U.S., where he started out as a dishwasher and rose through the ranks.

“Azul Cocina is my baby,” said Chef Manny in an instagram video posted to the restaurant’s account. “Being executive chef, it’s a lot of pressure, but I love what I do. With this amazing team we put together, we created this concept. It’s beautiful. It’s something unique here. I can’t wait for you guys to come and try.”

The menu includes a “Chef Manny Recommends” which is currently Duck con Mole: pan roasted duck breast, sweet potato, corn, organic quinoa, hazelnut mole for $28.

On its website, the restaurant promises “Mexican cuisine and mixology with the finest locally sourced ingredients from Santa Barbara County. Our mission is to deliver an exceptional authentic Mexican cuisine with a modern contemporary twist on flavors and traditions, led by Executive Chef Manny Diaz.”

Hours of operation are slated to be Mondays-Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sundays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

**The Dave’s Drip House food truck is parked in front of Dave’s Dogs Grill at the Turnpike Shopping Center in Goleta.**

To view the menu or make a reservation, go to azulcocinasb.com.

Other restaurants opening soon in the Santa Barbara area include the following.

DAVE’S DRIP HOUSE

Dave’s Drip House, an ice cream and cereal bar, at 199 S.Turnpike Road, Suite 104, Goleta, is set to have its grand opening on Feb. 16.

“We will have 16 base flavors that will rotate, based on the season. But better yet, you will be able to customize your ice cream to create thousand more flavors with the cereals and topping that we will have on hand. We plan on keeping your tastebuds and sweet tooth content,” according to its website.

Non-dairy options will be available as well. Employment applications are also available on the website: davesdriphouse.com.

“We will have lots of fun treats like funnel cakes. We were inspired by carnival-type foods,” Cynthia Reynoso of Dave’s Drip House told the News-Press in an email.

**The front entrance to the unmarked Rascal’s Vegan Food is on the left side of this building at 432 E. Haley St., in Santa Barbara.**

BUNGALO805

Bungalo805, 28 W. Figueroa St., is set to open on Feb. 1, according to its website. The restaurant will be open seven days a week, 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Bungalo805 is Santa Barbara’s “first littles’ lounge and social club for local families,” according to the website.

“Welcome to a sophisticated gathering place where Grown-Ups don’t have to compromise, and Littles can be themselves. Let’s thrive together,” according to the website.

To learn more, visit www.bungalo805.com.

GALA

Gala restaurant will open soon at 705 Anacapa St., according to its Instagram account, which didn’t give other details.

DAWN AND DUSK

The Drift mini-chain of hotels, whose flagship is in San José del Cabo, Mexico, has a location opening at 524 State St. The hotel will reportedly include a cafe, Dawn, and a tequila and tapas bar called Dusk.

You can book a room at the hotel now for dates beginning with early February. To do so, go to drifthotels.co/santabarbara.

RASCAL’S VEGAN FOOD

The pop-up will soon relocate to a permanent home at 432 E. Haley St. Owner Dalan Moreno started Rascal’s in 2018. He has recently signed the lease for his Haley Street location and has set up a GoFundMe to help with his business costs.

“When I started this project, people would say that a spot like this would do great in L.A.,” Mr. Moreno said in a YouTube video. “Maybe they’re right. But that’s not the point. I want to give back to Santa Barbara, the place that raised me. And I want it to be for everyone, the young kid like me looking for a vegan spot or someone just wanting to try something new.”

He has raised more than $13,000 toward his goal of $50,000. To donate go to gofundme.com/f/help-rascals-vegan-get-a-brick-and-mortar?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1

CHICK-FIL-A

Another Chick-fil-a is coming to Santa Barbara. This one will be at 4765 Calle Real.

“While we are still early in the process, Chick-fil-A is happy to share that we are actively pursuing a new location in Santa Barbara County,” Brownlee Hopkins, spokesperson for Chick-Fil-a, told the News-Press in an email. “We are working through the approval process with the county and look forward to continuing to serve the Santa Barbara area. Visit The Chicken Wire to learn more about our food, our people and the latest Chick-fil-A news.”

Dawn and Dusk establishments complement each other at 524 State St., Santa Barbara, as part of the new Drift hotel that will open there soon. The hotel is already taking bookings for dates starting in early February at drifthotels.co/santabarbara.

LAMA DOG

Lama Dog and Sama Sama are partnering to open a restaurant at 3435 State St. in the San Roque neighborhood.

“Although it’s still early on, we’re extremely excited to be partnering up in this new venture!” Lama Dog owner Peter Burnham told the News-Press in an email.

“This collaboration will have Asian-inspired pub food from Sama Sama and a large and varied beer/wine list plus bottle shop from Lama Dog,” Mr. Burnham said. “We’ll be very family friendly, with games, TVs and hopefully some ice cream or something similar. We’re hoping to be open in early fall of this year, and we’ll be working hard to make that happen,”

TEDDY’S ON STATE

Teddy’s by the Sea will be opening an outpost at 3102 State St.

“We are still in the planning stages, but are planning the same abundance of outdoor seating, favorite dishes from Teddy’s by the Sea and an expanded menu,” Sarah Dandona, owner of Teddy’s by the Sea, told the News-Press in an email. “We will be building out a larger kitchen, which will give us more space to expand our menu.

“We are planning on opening earlier at the State Street location and offering coffee and light breakfast options,” she said. “We’ve lived around the corner from the new location for years and have always thought the location would be a great spot for a full-service restaurant option and a great location for the neighborhood and Santa Barbara in general.

“We do not have an opening date yet, but are busy finalizing the architecture plans and going through the planning process with the city of Santa Barbara.”

email: kzehnder@newspress.com