Context: Valentine's Day, I am a local surgical resident who works 100hrs/week. We are young couple, two kids we are a RN & MD and busy. We don't have much time to connect. We are believers in local business, and love my community in Carpinteria and support it whenever I can. We planned ahead and made reservations. Found a babysitter on Valentine's Day (not easy right?!?). I finished my call shift (30hrs) showered and with a very excited wife got out the door. The meal was nice. 1hr 40min into dinner the "manager" came over. She interrupted our in-depth conversation (rare in our world) to tell us "there is a party of 6 coming in with reservations, you need to move to the bar." Speechless and in silence, the manager (who didn't introduce herself as a manager) walked off. We were left embarrassed, awkwardly deciding what to do. I am upset at the total derailment of the evening, kindly asked the waitress to speak to the manager, and the same lady that told us to move to the bar (saying this time that she was the manager) comes back to the table. I explained the above narrative. The manager said "I don't understand, I would be fine to move to the bar"... dismissing the issue entirely. She offered nothing in way of solutions beyond her awkward silence. I didn't think about what the owner would say, but of all of the hard customer service / business issues to deal with, this problem would not have been difficult to appease with some grace... however there was none attempted. I paid my $130 tab and left, obviously bitter at the valentines night this establishment has taken from my relationship. I won't be back, sadly. read more

I love this place. They have so many different kinds of aioli! In addition, they have vegetarian options. Everything is always cooked perfectly. Whoever the chef was on 11/25--kudos to you. The atmosphere is great. I love sitting outside on the patio. read more

Stopped here for lunch on our way to LA, delicious food, great selection. The lobster roll was yummy and the rosemary parmesan fries were amazing, tacos were also very good. Would definitely return and recommend! read more

Sadly the only vegan food I could have was french fries. Big boo for a Californian restaurant. It's not hard or expensive to make delicious vegan food, I promise. However, I think my company enjoyed all of their meals. The wine was lovely though, and the atmosphere was nice as well. read more

Corktree Cellars is a great stop for glass of wine and a artisan cheese plate platter! Carpinteria has a fun flea market on the last Saturday of every month with lots of interesting items. We always stop at the Corktree Cellars for lunch and a glass of wine. I ordered a glass of Petite Syrah and a really fabulous cheese platter. The cheese platter had three different variations of delectable cheeses,fruit, and tasty jam. The Cheese platter was a perfect compliment to our Petite Syrah, which was bold with dark berry flavors. It had an amazing aroma with soft tannins. This is a coastal community and they provide comfy fuzzy blankets as well as heat lamps. I have been here previously and enjoyed my experience every time. The last time I left my daughter in law at the bar with the manager and he graciously entertained her while she sipped glasses of wine and talked his ears off. Needless to say, I will return. read more

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Really nice little wine bar. The service was very good. I asked if I could try some beers on tap and they allowed it. The food here is above average which was great! My wife ordered a veggie burger and I ordered a lobster salad melt (I especially liked the bread on it), both were very good. The crowd here is definitely older, but it is nice and intimate. read more

i had a great experience here. the food was great, i will defiantly be back. everyone was so nice, especially Brady and i can tell he works hard. keep up the good work!! read more

Real talk: this is the best restaurant in Carpinteria. I eat and drink here all the time and can honestly say I've never had a bad experience. Very friendly staff and good happy hour :) read more

The lobster bisque is some of the best I have ever had. Very filling, and the flavor leaves your taste buds dancing. The ambiance is great, very casual and the decor is welcoming. The wine list is good, but for a wine bar the selection is lacking. The service at the bar was adequate, but far from superb. read more

Visiting my girlfriend's kids in Carp. Went here for dinner since none of us had tried it before. What a find. Atmosphere and food were great. I had the pan seared salmon....excellent. Large wine list too. Had the apple/blk cherry bread pudding and decaf coffee for dessert....again...excellent. Attentive server. read more

This was a first time eating at the Corktree for a friend and me and wow what a shock from what we've ever experienced. The waitress, Erica, who never smiled or showed any emotion, was rude from the start. She helped us maybe twice and didn't ask us if we needed a refill or anything during our 40 minutes there. She did ask us as we were finished paying if we wanted a refill which we needed 25 minutes ago and we didn't even want to wait any longer and honestly just wanted to leave. The food was good but if you want real service, don't bother. read more

Absolutely amazing food, service, and atmosphere to to say the least. We sat outside and if we got cold, they had outside heater's.

Great atmosphere and the food was delish! Went for happy hour and enjoyed both the lobster mac and cheese and their bruschetta. Hubby had the fish taco's and I enjoyed a cup of lobster bisque and a spinach salad topped with steak. If you are ever in Carpinteria I suggest you stop in! read more

Come here if you want great food! But if you expect friendly and knowledgable staff don't bother. I think my server kept confusing the words sweet and fruit forward. In the end after talking with her I came to the realization she didn't know wine even though she worked at a place called "cork tree". My meal was cooked to perfection but we were never asked how anything was or if we would want refills on our water, we were even ready to order a second bottle of wine but never had the opportunity because our server was no where to be seen on a slow Sunday evening. read more

Had the kale romain salad with blackened salmon. Very good. I asked for the salmon to be tender and cooked moist after reading a comment about fish being over cooked. The salmon was excellent. I'm not a wine snob or pro but I enjoyed what I had. It escapes me right now. Staff was friendly, and not pushy. read more

Service is so slow: It dulls the potentially good food and almost outstanding wines. read more

Corktree Cellars - Smooth ambiance. - New American Near Me - Carpinteria, California

I've been here on date nights with the hubby, happy hour with friends, and a work event - all great experiences!

I remember this place used to be good. They have changed the food & dessert menus. Food is not as tasty as it used to be. Probably won't be coming back for a while. read more

I love to go here every time I'm in town. I always feel comfortable sitting at the bar and can order an excellent small meal or an excellent large meal depending on my mood. Don't miss the mac 'n cheese with truffle read more

Another 5 star experience. The food...the service...the atmosphere. This is definitely the place to go. Briana took car of us this afternoon & she was fantastic. I have the lad several people about this spot. So awesome how it's off the beaten path but still reliable. Romantic date night place for sure. Can't wait to come back. I love come all the way from ventura! read more

It's a bummer the service here is terrible because the food and ambiance make for a perfect restaurant. Hire employees who aren't bothered by doing their job! read more

Loved this place. Don't know how I have been to Carpinteria soooo many times (3-4 times a year for the last 40 years!) and never tried it before. Service was great, wine selection was great, food that we tried was great, and loved the outside seating. I was there for 4 days last week, and went 3 times! read more

I've eaten here twice and the food has always been pretty good. Not the best food ever but overall a solid 4 stars.

Disappointed we could not experience this very cool-looking place. My guess is that most of the time it is fun with a great sophisticated atmosphere. But don't be put off by our brief encounter. It looks like it has the ingredients (no pun intended) for a fun evening, or relaxing daytime encounter. The two stars is for the two minutes we were there (and it did seem like a minute too long). I scoped out this place mid-afternoon on Friday, as a potential place to celebrate and wrap up our our anniversary week, and relax at the end of a busy week and drive up from LA. It looked very cool, suave and adult (as in for grownups). But..... i went back there later in the afternoon with my wife, and was stunned that the place had turned into a Gymboree. Bunches of kids were running rampant around the place, and pushing as aside as they ran in and out the front door, and moms with strollers and babies were in abundance. We tried to beat a hasty retreat, and all the while an enthusiastic greeter did all she could to get us to stay. I guess the atmosphere depends on timing, but for us at that time, it felt like a child-minding center or kids' party. Ever seen the Ben Stiller movie, "Greenberg", when he goes to a suburban BBQ with some friends, looks at the (similar) activity, and asks, "Is this a kids' party?" read more

Good food and drink. Warm, friendly service, especially from Anne. The interior looks nice, like dress-smart nice, but you won't feel out of place if you dress casual. Great hang out for the mature set. read more

Great little place. We went for Happy Hour with our 3 Huskies and since it was a little chilly we had the outdoor patio to ourselves. The bacon wrapped sausage bites were delicious. Service was good and everybody was very friendly to our "pack". Highly recommended to folks looking for a dog friendly place. read more

They usually deserve full cred. The Lobster Bisque is crazy good. But tonight was terrible. Another self-entitled husband and wife let their children literally run back and forth through the patio, make noise, play in planters, while they got wasted. I informed the manager, but by the time he did anything, the other couples were just as frustrated. Carp needs to set another ordinance: ban kids under 8. Jesus! Terrible experience tonight. People who say kids will be kids, might as well say I'm a shitty parent and don't know how to raise my kids. read more

Food and service is not consistent, experienced some nights good but mostly employees on their phones not helping customers

I spend a lot of time in Carpinteria visiting family and this spot is our "Cheers." Wait staff recognize us, smile and wave when we arrive and (until recently) the manager knew our regular orders, would bring us free items on special occasions and was just so wonderful to talk to. Well, that manager has left, but thankfully Corktree Cellars is still our favorite spot in town. Service seemed a little off the last time we were in (as-in perhaps they haven't found a new manager to keep things running smoothly in the front and back of house), but we still enjoyed ourselves. As far as the food and wine goes, the flights are great fun for a first visit or a fiftieth visit. My favorite is the "Drawing a Blanc" assortment of three different Sauv Blancs. My husband always enjoys a glass of the Snolqualmie Syrah. It should be noted that you can purchase a bottle from their wall (at the retail price) and enjoy it with your meal (a great deal!). The charcuterie (meat plate) is awesome--tasty ham and proscioutto, just spicy enough andouille and a decent salami. Coupled with spiced pecans (YUM), olives and a fig jam (my dad and husband LOVE this stuff). Family faves on the rest of the menu include the Murph panini, the veggie ratatouille, the Wild West Burger (only on the lunch menu, but can be ordered at dinner if you ask), steak frites (tasty chimichurri sauce), and pizzas. I have taken to customizing the Margherita by adding bacon to it and love it, they use high quality bacon. The restaurant is not especially large and can be busy during the summer months, especially on Friday and Saturday nights. I'd recommend a reservation. If I lived in Carp I would definitely come out for First Fridays (happy hour all night!). I love this place, plain and simple. Is it the best restaurant I've ever been to? No. But it's a great independently owned thriving spot in my favorite sleepy little beach town. Highly recommended next time you are in Carpinteria. read more

Nice place - cozy, good food and a nice bar in the back. Located along the idyllic Carpinteria strip.

My chicken sandwich was described as hot-but the cheese was slightly warm and not very drippy soft/hot-also meat tasted very processed-weird? My friends pizza flat bread came out slightly warm-not toasty hot-not super delicious. Sadly it seems that every time they "change the menu" - the food comes out a little less special/overall quality of food is waaaayyyyyyyyy down from 8 months ago-however the prices are just as high. Disappointing! Can you say "bait and switch"?? My girlfriend and I had 2 meals and 2 drinks and our bill was over $100 (after tax and tip) and we left feeling ripped off! If the quality was still high -we would not have minded paying that price! Outdoor chairs are metal-so your butt hurts and they r very cold! Maybe they could put some cushiness on the chairs to soften the blow of being ripped off?? Torture us and rip us off?!? Thanks! Inside seating-is uneven- so you're sitting much higher then your friend (I sat on the bench seat with tied up pillows and she was across me in the hard wooden chair that sat much lower then her! I felt bad looking down at my friend while she ate her overpriced cold hard pizza bread! Just go for drinks! Ask for a blanket to place on your cold mettle chairs-if you sit outside or your butt will pay the price! Don't order food or you'll pay $100 after tax and tip for a $45-$50 dinning experience! read more

Such a fun atmosphere and the food was delicious! I got the steak salad and syrah wine flight, yum!

Good ambiance, nice choice of wines and beers, I had the crab melt which was pretty good, everyone at the table enjoyed their food, though nothing seemed to jump out as amazing. I would go back if I was in the area. read more

Excellent service and food! Kobe burger with the sweet potato fries are amazing. This is a great lunch spot!

Friendly service, mellow atmosphere and really yummy food. My uncle did the artwork on the walls so it's very peaceful to come in and enjoy memories with a glass of wine and appetizers. read more

Not a great dining experience. Service was good enough but food was mediocre at best. The sea food cakes tasted like all filler and the flatbread pizza was not good. Maybe I ordered the wrong items but it was dissapointing. read more

I am a Carp local and I used to consider this place an excellent choice for a meal. Recently however they completely blitzed their menu and removed many of our family favorites. Insult to injury, the menu has lower quality ingredients for an equally high price as the old menu. What was once a gourmet and truly delicious menu is now un-tasty and expensive. I had a underwhelming, sparsely populated, tasteless entree salad and it cost me $14 bucks, while it left me hungry. Fail. read more

We are local Carpinteria residents, we like / LOVE this place at the beginning,,,, in time they change their menu, , we still went few more time, sadly with each time the experience was worse, today, WOW REALLY bad, service ok, Food,,,, I can not believe they can serve meat that horrible, after I let the staff know, all they said was....... Sorry, but I don't recommend this place for food, they have a good wine selection, so if you go, bring your own food. read more

First time dining at Corktree on 1/10/18. My brother in law suggested a wine. We asked the waiter for that wine and the price. He said that they had it and that it was $35-38. We were good with that. He promptly served our wine and we never saw him again for at least 20 min. In the meantime a couple was seated across from us. The couple across from us had their wine served and order taken before our waiter returned. In fact, they had eaten their dinner, paid their check and left before our food was served. When we paid our check, to our surprise, there was a corkage fee of $20! The wine was $25 w/o corkage. Now mention by the waiter of the corkage fee. read more

Really cool atmosphere, great food ! We loved it. Will be back ! this is our new favorite restaurant in Carpinteria . We had great vege burger, steak sandwich, taco, chicken. All the fries were really good ; sweet potato, truffle, parm garlic. Nice service ! read more