We visited Kin Bakeshop around 10:45 am on a Sunday fully expecting a long wait, but were…read morepleasantly surprised to find only a short line. From getting in line to receiving our entire order, it took about 15 minutes total. Parking is easy with a large plaza lot, although seating inside can be tougher. It was completely full when we arrived, but we got lucky and snagged a table as someone was leaving. We ordered the Osmanthus Matcha Cream, Hojicha Black Sesame, Pandan Coconut Matcha, Vietnamese Coffee, Cinnamon Sugar Mochi Donut, and Buko Pie Mochi Donut. They also served us complimentary barley tea when ordering. Everything was delicious and absolutely lived up to the hype! The Osmanthus Matcha Cream was easily the biggest surprise and highlight for us. It was creamy while somehow still tasting light and refreshing, and we've honestly never had anything quite like it. It's made in limited quantities and sold out just a few minutes after we ordered, so I'd definitely recommend getting it early if it's available. The Hojicha Black Sesame was another standout. I've tried this combination at a few other cafes, but Kin does it better than any version I've had. Both flavors came through really well without either overpowering the other. The Pandan Coconut Matcha was also great, although I've had similar drinks at quite a few cafes throughout California, so it was harder for this one to stand out as much. The Vietnamese Coffee was solid too, but a little sweet for my preference. Personally, I think their tea-based drinks are much more memorable. Their mochi donuts were incredible too and easily some of the best I've had. Both were SO soft with that slightly bouncy mochi texture. I especially loved the Cinnamon Sugar Mochi Donut because it genuinely tasted like a churro in mochi donut form. Service was amazing throughout our visit, and I also love that the menu is projected onto the wall and updated as items sell out. Overall, Kin Bakeshop absolutely lived up to the hype for me. There are already so many other things I want to try, and I'm definitely looking forward to coming back!

Searched for matcha joints and this highly-rated venue was tops... and now I know why! There will…read morebe a line, always. We got here Friday around 12n and there were a dozen high schoolers (from next door) in line. We got here on Sunday at 9:35am (they opened at 9:30) and there were approximately 20-24 people in line. I asked a woman who was just coming out and she said she got there at 8:45a and was first in line (45 minutes before opening)! We had wine-tasting in Los Olivas to attend so we timed our return for just-before-closing (4pm). We pulled in at 3:57pm and raced to the front door just as the manager was about to hang a "closed" sign up! On both days we ordered the black sesame matcha. These are $7 and only 8 oz but heavenly. They were out of most all food items on Sunday but on Friday I got a couple of their famed mochi donuts ($4). Imagine a donut (as you can see from the picture, they are round but slender with "knobs") but with a chewy mochi-like texture. Between their unique flavor combos and that amazing texture, these are worth the wait (and I generally never eat donuts because of their complete lack of nutritional value)! But that matcha -- they hand-pestle finish all of their matchas! There's a large window (albeit with a thinly weaved curtain drawn) where you can watch the kitchen in action). The black sesame cream is super thick and layered on the bottom first. The drink comes with a long (7 inch) wooden spoon and you are kindly instructed to draw that spoon out slowly and sample the sweet cream coated in matcha, before ultimately stirring the drink thoroughly. The experience along with the very-lightly-sweetened, softly nutty/sesame concoction are divine... and, yes, the whole reason we raced back on our last day in SB to grab one more taste.

The donuts are fresh and light, not overly glazed, and a huge variety to choose from. Some of the…read moreclassics and some you don't see everywhere. Pastries are enormous. But what I was surprised by were the bagels. Their goal is not perfectly round. What you get instead is an amazing crust that didn't require burning then. They have an airiness to them which makes for great chew-ability all around. Buy extra as they freeze well too given the low moisture. The everything bagels don't use the typical dusting of seasonings - you can actually see the garlic and taste the seeds. The staff placed two extra donut holes in the bag for my kids which is always a nice touch. Will be back.

This place was so awesome! We were in town for our friend's wedding, and stopped by here for…read morebreakfast the following morning. Although the wait was a bit long, you could tell everything was being made completely fresh. The menu was sooo extensive, including donuts, breakfast sandwiches, coffee, tea, lemonade, etc.! This is one of, if not the BEST bagel sandwiches I've ever had. I'm obsessed with breakfast and a huge foodie. Would 100% return again!

I'v never had Turkish delights but I do love baklava so much. Glad we came in to get Turkish…read moredesserts and tea to go. We stayed in downtown Santa Barbara so this store was 2 minutes walk from our Kimpton hotel. The store itself is very spacious and stylish. I picked assorted baklava, modern and traditional delights. The traditional ones are naturally gluten free. The Turkish iced tea was so delicious and strong. The desserts were amazingly tasty! I will have to order from their online store from time to time. The service was friendly and fast!

Took a day trip to SB and wanted to try some interesting sweets. I like Turkish coffee, so I…read morefigured this would be an interesting option. They sell lots of flavors of Turkish coffee, and I was used to a sweetened and cardamon flavored version I had had in Egypt, Jordan and Israel, so I opted for the cardamon version. What they serve here was unsweetened, so I needed to add sugar, but it was good. On the sweets side, they have cheesecake, baklava... but the dominant sweet here is Turkish Delight. They have a myriad of flavors here, using various Middle Eastern nuts and spices as flavoring. They have the traditional cubed gelatin version, along with a rolled version that is a little softer and less chewy. It is all sold by weight, so you can mix and match.

Chocolate to die for! Excellent cappucino. Gorgeous macaroons. Loveley shady patio A moment in…read moreFrance right here in SB..

The apple tart was delish! The croissants were decent…read more The Macarons were a big disappointment especially considering this is a French bakery & cafe. It was the worst macarons I've had. The cappuccino came out as a latte so that's another thumbs down. Staff was great. Busy place, high rating probably from the cafe. Lots of parking in the plaza.

We decided to come back to this fantastic gluten free bakery and cafe. It was only 2 minutes walk…read morefrom the Kimpton hotel we stayed at. This store was packed the entire weekend when we came in. Store is big and spacious with two sections. One is sit down cafe, the other is bakery and take out area. It's all fast casual style though. They have a lot of varieties to choose from and great coffee and tea to go menu. They take reservations for weekend brunch too. I picked quite a few pastries to try. My favorites are lemon tart and lemon bar. Obviously I like lemon flavored pastries. The red velvet vegan cupcake and blueberry muffin were delicious as well. I am so jealous of this gluten free kitchen bakery and cafe. Wish we had something like this near my home! This is our must stop whenever we are in Santa Barbara!

We stopped in Lilac after walking through the Farmer's Market - which I must say was the best I've…read morebeen to. It's a bit overpriced but everything we had was very good. I ordered the Lilac breakfast and a honey lavender latte, which I loved. One of my friends had the salmon plate and the other ordered the Quiche Lorraine. We were all very happy with the food. The people working there were very friendly and the service was efficient. I thought it was a cute bakery and restaurant.

I finally visited Hook & Press and ate in the cute donut shop! It is decorated with a boho vibe and…read moreis really cute & welcoming. I even noticed how they have cute cat wallpaper in the bathroom. The employees were friendly and helpful! The display of donuts makes it really difficult to make a choice! There were so many flavors that sounded good so we decided to grab a few and have our friends grab a few and then split all of them so we could have a bite of a variety of flavors. There wasn't a donut that I didn't like. My favorite ones were the strawberry milkshake, s'mores, and the pineapple coconut one. Each donut had amazing flavor and tasted high quality and fresh. I love that they aren't greasy donuts that feel heavy in your gut. Honestly, you can't go wrong with their donuts! We also tried their G.O.A.T. breakfast sandwich. I loved the biscuit combined with the goat cheese mousse and bacon jam. I would come back for this fried egg sandwich! We also had their iced horchata latte. I liked it and appreciated that it wasn't overly sweet and that I could still taste the espresso. Overall, loved our visit to Hook & Press! Don't skip on this cute breakfast spot with amazing food!

Exceptional customer service, very friendly, helpful, and welcoming. The environment is nice,cute,…read moreand chill. The reason why I gave it a 3 stars the vanilla cold brew lacks flavors in vanilla and sweetness. This was from their seasonal menu. I do enjoy the environment and the customer service was great. Maybe I'll give them another try and try something from their regular menu.

This is a popular ice cream shop with plenty of heritage. It's located on the beautiful scenery…read moreState St next to the beach, making it an especially nice stop when visiting Santa Barbara. We're not locals like the original owners, but it's always a pleasure to grab a few bites of tasty treats whenever we are around town. As many patrons know, McConnell's Ice Creams uses simple ingredients and makes everything from scratch. The rich and dense texture and flavors are pure fine craftsmanship, showcasing the what nature offers at its finest. There can be quite a line here depending on the time of day, but if you come before noon, you're likely to be served right away. I recommend all their flavors, so the flight option is a great way to sample a few. And for what you get, it's a pretty healthy for your wallet too!

Came three times in a span of three days because it's that good…read more I love when the ice cream is smooth, creamy, and taste the way you expect the flavor to be. I am HUGE fan of their Santa Barbara strawberry which has large chunks of fresh strawberry and a strong strawberry flavor. Unlike other shops where the strawberry flavor is faint. I also love their chocolate chocolate which is closer to a dark chocolate ice cream with fun small bits of dark chocolate bits. When the line is out the door, it only takes about 10ish minutes to start trying samples so don't let the line deter you! I wish we had one of these in the Bay Area.

Melt in your mouth goodness!!! While visiting SB, we drove…read moreby this spot on the way to dinner. We said to ourselves, skip dessert at the restaurant , so we can save room for ice cream! Thursday evening and there was a line! We got double scoops and those were generous portions for sure, seemed like a pint of ice cream in each. We got Santa Barbara Strawberry, very strawberry, creamy and yummy! And Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate - as creamy chocolate as it gets, with bits of chocolate - yummo!!! Go get some goodness while in the area, we highly recommend !

While in Santa Barbara, I came across McConnell's Fine Ice Creams. I'm a creature of habit, so I'm…read morenot big on trying something different when I already know what I like. But I decided to step outside my comfort zone and give this place a try. When I walked in, the place was clean and busy. The employees were friendly and provided great customer service. They even let me sample a couple of flavors before I made my decision. I ended up getting Strawberry and Eureka Lemon & Marionberries. The Strawberry was good, but that Eureka Lemon & Marionberries... ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! If nothing else, I'll definitely be back just for that flavor. It was that good!

The service was amazing!…read more Churro fries 5/5 Funnel cake 5/5 Ice cream 5/5 Potato swirl 5/5 Fried Oreos 5/5 Such a cute place for a date! * Everything is fresh so plan ahead for churros, funeral cake, or fried Oreos.

Came for the chicken stayed for the ice cream. A lot of this review is similar. The vibe is very…read moreice cream shop and that's great. The staff worked their butts off but ultimately if felt like a third person or some better organization would help them out. But the reason we were here was ice cream and that was just kind of middle of the road. We didn't do all the fancy stuff and just for scoops so maybe we can try that next time (churros and ice cream looked bomb), but again the ice cream was just kind "meh".all the menu options they had were more interesting than something like baskin robbins but the ice cream was just one tick below in my opinion, and again not that it should be in the same category, but it wasn't as good as Roris. If I'm eating ice cream, I'd prefer to spend the extra and get the best.

I was on the hunt for a classic French omelet when I came across Alessia Patisserie & Cafe, and…read morethis place far exceeded my expectations in every way! As soon as I walked in, I was immediately drawn to the beautiful display of desserts. They have a huge selection of croissants, cookies, tarts, cakes, mini cheesecakes, and so much more--and everything is just as wonderful to look at as it is to eat. Even though I originally came here for the French omelet, there was no way I was leaving without trying some of the pastries. So I ended up getting the salted chocolate chip cookie and the lemon & raspberry tart, and I absolutely loved both! The salted chocolate chip cookie was soft and chewy in the center with just a slight crunch around the edges. The salt sprinkled on top really enhanced the chocolate flavor and gave it that perfect sweet-and-salty balance. But the lemon & raspberry tart was what I would call a nearly perfect dessert. It had just the right amount of tartness from the lemon and raspberry, while the light, fluffy meringue on top balanced everything out beautifully. Now for the savory food! I was so sure I was going to order the French omelet, but for some reason, the Blue Crab Crepe was calling my name. So I decided to go with that along with the Veggie Quiche, and I have absolutely no regrets about either choice. The Blue Crab Crepe came with two crepes generously stuffed with fresh-tasting blue crab and topped with lemon hollandaise and chives. The Veggie Quiche does take a little longer to come out, but it is absolutely worth the wait. Mine came with sun-dried tomatoes, Parmesan, and basil, and it was delicious. The breakfast entrées also come with your choice of house potatoes, fruit, or a side salad. One thing to note: you order everything at the counter first before finding yourself a seat, and there is also a self-serve water station. From the beautiful décor and relaxed café vibes to the sweet AND savory food, I loved everything about this place. I originally came in searching for a French omelet and somehow left without even ordering one--which I guess just gives me the perfect excuse to come back!

Wow. Can't say enough about this place. It is a must visit and I will definitely go back…read more The setting is delightful and gives French bakery, with a counter service and table service option. We arrived during a busy Saturday morning and were lucky to be seated right away. Our server Sidney was awesome. Arrived with a smile, patients made great recommendations, and very efficient. Props to Sterling, also her brother, and his excellent basing support as well as keeping our water glasses filled. We also had the opportunity to meet one of the co-owners who was humble and helpful! The food was some of the best I tasted! The pastries were amazing and sauces delectable. Everything was cooked to order and prepared with care. We were so happy with our food that we had to take some pastries to go. We will definitely be back to visit this charming place!