••• Alessia Patisserie & Cafe invited me for a friends-and-family meal. As you can see above, the space looks fantastic, with a takeout counter on one side and table service on the other. I had the breakfast sandwich, which was extremely satisfying; not pictured is the accompanying side of smashed fingerlings. (I nearly skipped lunch.) The restaurant opens tomorrow at 7 a.m. for pastries and coffee; breakfast and lunch follow from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Dinner service will kick off soon. As with any new restaurant, be patient if you visit during the first few days.
••• The folks behind The Good Plow, the farm-to-table fast-casual restaurant in the former Fosters Freeze in Carp, are hoping to raise $48,000: “We are so close to opening our doors at the Good Plow and need your help for this final push! Our community is chomping at the bit for us to open but until we can finish the patio, buy the remainder of tables, supplies, and stock the restaurant with inventory we just can’t make it happen.” Nearly $23,000 has been pledged via the Kickstarter drive.
••• Popular Solvang restaurant Peasants Feast says it’s in the “very early stages” of opening Peasants Deli.
••• The hotel under construction at 524 State Street (Ortega/Haley) has a liquor-license application posted on it. The applicant is 524 State Investors LP/Drift Santa Barbara F&B LLC, but there’s little info in the application, other than the restaurant appears to be an in-house project. Of note: the same folks also have an LLC called Drift Santa Barbara (with no “F&B”), which leads me to believe Drift will be the name of the hotel. It’s the property for which the Anacapa architectural firm was “soliciting submissions from local artists and makers to provide art, furnishings, and fabrication” back in January.
••• Next door to the hotel is Institution Ale’s new patio, which seems just about ready.
••• Twenty-Four Blackbirds has a new cacao fruit drink: “The fruit of the cacao tree is actually not chocolaty at all, but rather is packed with tart and jammy tropical fruit flavors similar to lychee, pineapple, and pear—there is nothing like it! And we think in the world of cacao drinks there’s nothing like our new drink. This nonalcoholic sipper pours like a beer, is refreshingly carbonated, and is bursting with sweet and tart tropical flavors perfect for hot summer days or as a cocktail mixer for nights on the town.”
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I am so curious why a family with no restaurant experience would take such a big risk? And at the same time asking the community for help in the process. The restaurant business is very risky when you have experience. I can’t imagine putting my life savings at risk trying to open a restaurant when my experience is being a farmer.
Either way I wish them luck and I hope the make it.
D.
Agreed; I find it rather audacious to use Kickstarter to launch their restaurant.
I was born and raised in Carpinteria and as a Carp local I am insulted that this for profit business is asking for community help. Thanks what banks are for! Or are you planning on donating part or all of your profits? That’s what’s wrong with this generation. They think their issues/problems are everyone else’s and they should get help just because they need it. Grow up and work a few more years and save enough money to take this project on yourself! Jeeez!
Carp local out.
To be fair, Kickstarter donations above $10 get something for their money. I’m not saying there isn’t a donation element, but it’s not pure charity.
Please do read up on Solvang’s infamous BACON & BRINE. What a crappy experience it was for most donaters- nobody got their promised “level of commitment” reward. Ended in flames -the restaurant did- I will NEVER donate to a budiness start up after watching friends try to redeem their donated funds issuance.
I was one of the poor fools that donated $500 and never was able to redeem my private dinner for 6.
Why do you care so much?
If nothing else the Good Plows Kickstarter campaign is a clever way to raise awareness. I now know that they will have ice cream, a patio, vegetables and that I’ll be able to have sit down meals and it’s not just a deli! Sometimes these sorts of campaigns are for brand awareness rather than pure fundraising. This is a modern way for businesses to ask for help. I hope they are successful and open soon.
Nothing clever about their request for donations
I am in need of an additional 50k to complete a 20% down payment on a house i would like to buy. Should I do a Kickstarter ? If I need it people should do their part and help me buy my house.