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When driving up the California coast from Los Angeles to San Francisco, Santa Barbara makes for a great first stop. This beach town is just one hour north of the crowded boardwalks of Santa Monica, yet still definitively southern California with bright sun, blue skies, palm trees, and long stretches of warm beach.
Santa Barbara Shellfish Company, Stearns Wharf
Follow State Street from the downtown area and at the end of the historic wooden Stearns Wharf sits a modest grey house, the Santa Barbara Shellfish Company. Clearly designed with an appreciation for its extraordinary real estate footprint, the walls of the restaurant are filled with windows and the entire right half of the interior is lined with a counter that focuses all attention on the 11-acre West Beach just south of the Wharf. On the other side of the windows sit a few tables and benches, covered by the overhang of the roof to protect you from the bright sun. But before you get too excited, know that even during the off-season, this outdoor seating is so coveted that you should expect to wait at a least a few minutes for a table to open up. A clipboard posted outside manages the waitlist process and the friendly and unobtrusive service staff ensures that the process of seating parties is as democratic as possible.
The menu at the Santa Barbara Shellfish Company is filled with crab shack staples: New England clam chowder, shrimp cocktail, oyster shooters, and baked clams, but does not belie its proximity to Mexico and of course also includes the requisite taco option, in this case, shrimp and lobster tacos. The blackboard highlights seasonal specials which on this visit included Dungeness crab, red rock crab (cousin to the Dungeness), and lobster. Prices are reasonable, comparable to similar restaurant concepts and do not suggest a mark-up for the view.
Although I ate at the Santa Barbara Shellfish Company during brunch-qualifying hours, when dining at a restaurant with the word “Shellfish” in its name, I see no other way to start the meal than with a pair of oyster shooters.
Cocktail sauce, fresh squeezed lemon, horseradish, and shaved parmesan cheese are layered on top of a raw oyster in a shot glass. You can add a couple of ounces of the Korean distilled liquor soju for the true oyster “shooter” experience, but with another 11 hours on the road ahead of me, I opted to keep mine virgin; that said, were I to do it again, I would add the soju – it would have balanced the sharp flavor of the cheese against the acidic cocktail sauce.
Sans doute, the highlight of my meal was the steamed local red rock crab. Though it came with the requisite condiments of melted butter, lemon wedges, and cocktail sauce, and even had bonus garnishes of coleslaw and onion rings on the plate, it didn’t need any of those things. The steamed crab spoke for itself and would have benefitted from nothing more than perhaps a thin skewer to help pry the meat from the very tips of its legs. Perfectly cooked, seasonably sweet, and served just slightly cracked – requiring you to work to harvest the meat but without the frustration of having to get both hands completely drenched in the task – this local crab is a great reminder that when you start with a superior product, there is no need for fancy cooking technique or complicated seasonings.
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Santa Barbara Shellfish Company
230 Stearns Wharf, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
p. 805.966.6676; www.sbfishhouse.com
price range. Soups and Salads, $4 to $13; Shellfish, $2 to $19; Pastas $13 to $16; Fresh specials daily, prices as quoted
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