I was really excited to take my husband blueberry picking--I've done it before with my family and…read morehad such a great time. The ladies at the register were super nice and gave us clear directions on where to go. Since it's probably the end of blueberry season, we really had to search for the big, good ones. Honestly, it was a humbling experience--we were both tired after just 30 minutes! We ended up with about a pound and a half, which felt like an accomplishment, and we were more than ready to get back to the AC. I also grabbed some blackberries and strawberries for the road, and the total came out super affordable. Overall, a fun and memorable outing!

A must stop on the way north! Depending on when you go there are amazing blueberries, raspberries…read moreand/or blackberries. We usually go early august and they have quite a few rows of raspberries and the BIGGEST blackberries ever! They are so sweet! When you arrive you get buckets for raspberries and separate buckets for blackberries. After picking they weight and are $11.50 a pound. A full bucket of raspberries is about a pound. The employees are always so nice! There is a sink to wash before your eat your berries, already picked ones if you would prefer that, drinks and ice cream and other yummies are available. There is a picnic table in the shade for a picnic.

Dittmar's apples are as fresh as they get and absolutely delicious…read more This little stand is located under a massive Valley Oak with easy parking alongside and the apple groves behind. The apple varieties offered change over the season as they become ripe. When out of season, the stand is closed. When the stand is open, an apple flag flies along Alamo Pintadato so you can see it as you drive along. Mr. Dittmar was not there last Friday, but thankfully the apples were. We picked up two large bags each of Pink Ladies and Granny Smiths. The large bags are $10, small bags $5. The barrel of seconds was empty. When Mr. Dittmar is not there, you pay by the honor system, dropping cash into a can. Many of the old farm stands and pick your own crops in the SYV are long gone. We are so grateful that Dittmar's hangs in there. The apples are so crisp and tasty, we usually eat one on the way home and so fresh that they last weeks in our refrigerator.

Amazing Find off the Beaten Path! Doug the Owner has been Farming Apples for 43 years. Fresh &…read moreTasty! 100% Organic.

There are a few places that make me giddy, and one is a cheese shop. This charming and delightful…read moreshop features a number of cheeses, and we should know, as we tried several! And who can resist bringing home...um...several slices? All wrapped snuggly in their paper blankets. The gentleman serving the group of us was friendly, knowledgeable, and generous with his time, as he patiently answered the questions we asked: where's this cheese from? Why does this one have a different color from this same kind? How does this Brie compare to this kind I'm familiar with? And so on. I can only imagine the amazing sandwiches and grilled cheeses that come from here. However this was dessert for me. In a town full of bakeries, that's saying something!

They have a wide variety of cheeses! But I wasn't sure what I would like because everything seemed…read moreunfamiliar to me and when I asked for help, and choosing some, the man behind the counter was not very helpful at all he literally just stared at me. The young man was very helpful. The cheese was delicious and fairly priced.

It was really fun visiting this garden shop. Entering the outdoor space feels like you are visiting…read moreyour eccentric aunt's cottage. Everywhere you look there are tables and shelves filled with every type of ornamentation you can think of - statues large and small, pots, holiday decor, wind chimes, signs, fountains, stakes, etc. etc. etc.! I found most of the pricing to be reasonable. I'm not sure how long we spent wandering around trying to take it all in. Highly recommend a visit to this whimsical, magical space whilst in Los Olivos.

If you want a cute funky garden store, this is your place. Just off to the side of town, there's…read morethis fun not so little magical haven. Right from the entrance, it's an overwhelming of garden trinkets and plant. As it was around Halloween when we visited, it was Halloween haven for your garden. Loads of picks for the garden, figurines, and such. But the main things they have, loads of succulents, water features of all sorts. Small to massive. It's probably easier to stay on the path as there's things everywhere. Just walking through the garden center, seeing all the cute fun corky things was great. The store is mainly outside but there's a cute little shop inside. It's a place where you can find a gift for anyone. Especially garden lovers. Even just for a quick stroll, you might end up finding something you like.

My husband and I come to Los Olivos, Santa Ynez area every few months to pick up our wine club…read moremembership order and we stay all day in town and visit our favorite spots. Today we added this orchard to our list. I'm assuming it's new since I have never noticed it before. What a nice find. Omg ... I didn't want to leave. It's beautiful. The farm stand had variety of apples, pomegranate, pumpkins, persimmons jam and honey. Everything freshly picked from the orchard. You can place orders for pies and sweets for future day pick up. The grounds are beautiful with a few picnic tables you can sit and enjoy the views of the orchard and the giant oak tree. What a beauty. I'm so happy I found this place. Now I'm thinking it might be a seasonal farm stand when apples are in season but I'm not sure. There was no one there to ask. But I will stop by again on my next trip here to check it out. What a wonderful place. Love it love it ... and yes I did purchase apples, jam and sage honey ....yummm

Been to this spot a couple times that we visit Solvang and honestly that's the reason why we came…read moreagain recently. But, the lady here is so... rude. She doesn't greet you and just stares at you like you're about to shoplift as you're browsing for ice cream flavors. Maybe a lack of customer service? The place wasn't too busy when we visited. The ice cream is decent but interaction inside the store was really weird. I think I'd try a different location for ice creams next time.

My friends and I stopped by Alisal Ice Cream on Sat, 3/11/2023 a little after 3:30PM…read more They had tons of flavors including the following: Vanilla Cream, Rocky Road, Pistachio Nut, Pecan Praline, Choc Chip Cookie Dough, Strawberry Cheesecake, Mocha Almond Fudge, Coconut Pineapple, Choc, Mint Chip, Cookies, Choc Chip, Bubble Gum, Spumoni, Butter Pecan, Coffee Bean, Cotton Candy, Black Cherry I ended up ordering: 1 Scoop Mint Chip w/ Waffle Cone - $6.41 (including tax, price as of 3/2023) - You cannot go wrong with Mint Chip, which is my go-to ice cream flavor. Quite yummy, one scoop comes out to be like two in your waffle cone. Definitely hit the spot, and was a little dessert after our lunch! Store Exterior: They have a cute little sign with their name in pink along with an ice cream cone. Would be cute to take pics outside and enjoy your cone! Customer Service: The lady who helped us was so nice and patient when we took a little bit of time deciding what flavor to get! She was so cheery and didn't rush us at all! I'd consider coming back next time I'm back in Solvang!

Solvang I've felt has always been lacking in terms of offering great artisan ice cream, so I was…read moreexcited to see this spot driving through town, next to the Little Mermaid fountain. After going inside and trying it out, I'm happy to say this is one of the best ice cream spots I've been to. There are an insane number of flavors (the sign says they have 31!), and the flavors are super unique. Even Baskin Robbins, the OG behind the 31-flavors concept, has so many basic flavors that it's just boring. The fact that SYV has so many flavors AND that they are ones you wont find elsewhere is just amazing. The regular ice cream is the star here, but they also offer soft serve (four pumps, eight flavors so you can swirl). We ordered both, and I found the soft serve was too icy for me and not creamy enough. The ice cream, which has an airy texture, is more robust with the flavor combos offered. Still I dont regret getting soft serve bc it's usually so hard to find that when I see it I have to order it. The vibes and branding are top notch as they embrace a cowboy theme here, with saddles, horses, horseshoes, etc and even a TV tuned to the Cowboy Channel! There was a newscast with two men in cowboy hats reporting on the latest rodeo news. Workers were friendly and helpful, letting us try flavors before deciding.

Tried The Creamery tonight. The staff could have been a little more friendly. The gal answered my…read morequestions but didn't say "thanks for coming in or come again". Mango Sherbert was okay. Would I go there again, probably not.

To say this is the best cake I have ever eaten is an understatement. A little backstory here…read more.. Last year, 4 of my friends and my 3 (cheapo) sons got together for my birthday and my friends told me all about Brandi at Jensen's Custom Cakery... and her "wonderful cakes." The way they described them was more of an experience than anything else... with intense flavors and wonderful textures... everything fresh and made to order... So I got all excited and then they went and got me a !*YTST cake from some other local (and well-known) bakery that turned out to be a flat suger bomb...bleh... all because they didn't get an order placed in time with Brandi... (that's a hint, order early as she gets booked up) - Anyway, I was pretty darn upset to say the least because - hey, life is too short to not eat great cake and now that I'm yelping - stand back! Oh well, they did get me some nice presents, and good wine, but still... there is no comparison... So this year, just to be sure, for my wine country birthday party, I went ahead and ordered my own darn cake - well in advance... (my friends can just bring me wine from now on - pay attention Lorraine :))! So I ordered what's called a Double Lemon Coconut and I gotta tell you it really was an absolutely amazing cake - and Brandi even delivered it to our weekend rental on the other side if the valley. So this 2 layer dream cake was so good that the first thing I did was hide away a piece from my hungry friends and family... and a good thing I did because they ate the whole thing... all of it! I have never seen a cake disappear so fast in all my years and birthday parties... but on this one, you can really taste the fresh coconut, the intense lemon, the cream... the tart in the lemon curd... (even her curd is fresh hand-made just for the specific cake - I know, I tried to buy more of it) and the bite assembly is nothing short of gourmet... You can really tell a lot of time was spent perfecting these flavors... and all I can say is WOW and now I'm really excited for my next birthday (but so sad right now because I am out of cake), I even ate my backup piece :(... Next time I'm going to order a carrot cake that my friend Nancy told me about last week and described as "cosmic and out of this world..." since I am a carrot cake junkie, I can't wait... I'll let you know how that one goes along with some pics when I figure out how to get them off my new phone... onto the Yelp machine.... until then, if you want a memorable cake and the absolute best you can get your mouth on, check out her site or give her a call... tell her Maggie sent ya!

We have been lucky to have had several different cakes made by Brandi.These are not your average…read morebakery cakes. All are absolutely delicious. She clearly spend lots of time and energy to make them special with the best ingredients she can find. I must say that the German chocolate cake is so good that I want to dive into it! It is amazing! This is a special treat for your guests.I would not hesitate to recommend her for your dessert needs.