Breakfast with the Locals at Garrett's in Santa Barbara

If you're ever in Santa Barbara and find yourself in the mood for a good, hearty neighborhood diner breakfast, then make sure you stop by Garrett's Old Fashioned Restaurant at the corner of State Street and Mission.

My good friend, and Bite Me TV contributing photographer, Ernie Uy first introduced me to Garrett's years ago when he was finishing up his degree at U.C. Santa Barbara.  Garrett's was this little local joint that drew a constant crowd of loyal regulars for breakfast and lunch, and all these years later the same is true today.  The place is small, often crowded, and serves up some excellent grub.

During my recent visit, it seemed like the folks running the place knew about every third or fourth customer who walked in the door.  The two cooks above were rocking and rolling in the tiny kitchen area, preparing eggs, pancakes and the rest for a diner full of hungry folks.

Garrett's is open from 6am-3pm on weekdays and 7am-3pm on weekends, so don't show up looking for dinner.  This is a breakfast, brunch and lunch outfit.  And don't expect a fancy menu of gourmet treats.  Garrett's serves quality diner food...honest and simple fare.

The blueberry pancakes are my favorite, hands down.  Garrett's might just serve up the best pancakes in town, and their blueberry pancakes are bursting with fresh fruit flavor.  I just couldn't get enough of them.

Garrett's Old Fashioned Restaurant is located at 2001 State Street, just north of downtown Santa Barbara.

Cheers!
Druu

Gimmee My Coffee at Fullerton's Steamers Jazz Club

Steamers Jazz Club and Cafe in Downtown Fullerton is one of the best places in Orange County (or all of Southern California, for that matter) to hang out and listen to live jazz. It's an intimate joint where you can listen to live jazz every night, have a bite to eat, have a drink or three, sit right up next to the stage or just hang out cafe-style out front on the sidewalk. All sorts of acts play there, from local big bands to big names like Grammy-winner Poncho Sanchez (he seems to play there about once a month).

But there's another side of Steamers that only the locals really know about. It's a pretty cool place to kick back in the morning for some coffee and breakfast. Their breakfast bagel sandwiches are yummy and fairly priced, they're never crowded in the morning so you can stretch out and read the paper, they play video recordings of previous live jazz sets at a low volume so you still get the jazz vibe, and they make a pretty damn good cafe mocha.

Steamers is located at 138 W. Commonwealth, just west of Harbor Blvd.

Cheers!
Druu

Upscale Cafe Breakfast at Andersen's in Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara has a number of yummy eateries to tempt your tastebuds.  It can get a little pricey if you're not careful, but that's what you get in an upscale resort-ish town like SB.  For a European-style cafe experience, try Andersen's on State Street, Santa Barbara's main drag.  It's a Danish bakery and restaurant/cafe that serves some crazy-good pastries and some fine cafe fare.

Check out these pastries.  Just looking at their offerings can get your mouth watering.  One local favorite is their apple strudel, but these French waffles really caught my eye.

I was there for breakfast, and I noticed a croissant French toast on the menu.  Oh yeah, I HAD to try that!  It was delicious, and looked great too.  The fresh berries really took it over the top.

And not only do they make the perfect looking cappucino, but their cafe mocha is some serious chocolaty goodness.

Andersen's is at 1106 State Street in Santa Barbara and on the web at andersenssantabarbara.com.