I found this local pop up on Instagram (@soupherbsb) and gave them a shot. Totally worth it! I've…read morenever been a big soup person since it seems like the same soups are on every restaurant menu, but Lucas, Grace and team are a soup powerhouse!! They're ideas are just so unique I can't wait for each week. Ordering is super easy (and social distance friendly) and pick up is a breeze. The SoupHerb team is so friendly and easy going too. Very customer service oriented and accommodated a couple of our special orders with advance notice. They've only been open for 4 weeks, and we've ordered a pick up 3 of those weeks. We're hooked!! The soups are so filling and all come with a fun and interesting side dipper. This is how soup should be done!!

Situated in the Santa Barbara Farmers Market complex, Empty Bowl is an inviting space where you can…read moresit right at the bar and watch the wok action. Service is friendly and the food well prepared. Menu options are limited, but everything is delicious. Recommend going at happy hour. There's usually a special offer.

Located inside of Santa Barbara Public Market, Empty Bowl is located towards the center of the…read moremarket. They offer Thai dishes including noodle bowls, small plates, and handmade dumplings. We got the Northern Thailand Curry Noodles "Khao Soi" and the Tom Yum Noodles. The Khao Soi had egg noodles and chicken in a curry base broth with coconut milk, fish sauce, pickled mustard greens, cilantro, green onions, and housemade chili oil. They also give you crispy egg noodles to put on top. I appreciated that they wrapped this separately in foil, so they didn't get soggy right away! The chicken pieces were quite large, but overall the broth was tasty! I enjoyed the Tom Yum Noodles! For these, they use flat wheat noodles with Thai chili paste, bunashimeji mushrooms, white button mushrooms, fish sauce, red jalapeño, galangal herb, makrut lime leaves, lemongrass, cherry tomatoes, and cilantro. I chose chicken for my protein. The tom yum flavor really came through! They also give a pretty big portion! Since they are located in a food hall, you can sit at any of the tables. Empty Bowl will give you a pager, so you know when to return to the counter to pick up your food.

We were exploring Santa Barbara for the day, and by 9 PM we finally got hungry. We were looking for…read morea Thai restaurant, but by then they were no longer taking dine-in orders, so we couldn't eat there. Luckily, we found this ramen place nearby. It was the perfect meal for a quite windy night. The portions were generous, and the staff were very friendly! We're so glad we decided to eat at Craft Ramen. I would definitely recommend everyone to give it a try.

The team at SB Raman is friendly l, attentive and helpful. They are on point!…read more The ramen was tasty and very filling and I really enjoyed the pork belly. Great place to stop in for lunch if you are in Santa Barbara.

Well it appears that I have a new favorite restaurant in Santa Barbara! Came last night at the…read moresuggestion of a few locals and a few websites and was fully blown away. The menu is expertly curated, there's not many places where I legitimately want one (or two) of everything but Secret Bao made choosing a dinner for two very difficult. Everything we ate was incredible - the xiao long bao hands down the best I've had. Thick buns wrapped around a hearty and flavorful soup filling. The crispy rice was fantastic too, hot rice covered in cold bluefin tuna made for an excellent first course. Of course the bao were delicious as well, as it's right in the name of the restaurant. I liked the pork belly over the KFC only slightly more. Of course the Kalbi short ribs were perfect with crispy charred edges. The half pound was the perfect amount to split among two with other dishes. The carbonara noodles were an inventive and decadent centerpiece to tie everything together. Service was great, our young lady waiter was personable and gave great suggestions when I was truly overwhelmed by nothing but great options

The best food I had while visiting Santa Barbara! All the dishes were fantastic, can't go wrong. We…read moregot the kung pao cauliflower, beef bulgogi chow fun, and curry noodles to share with my friend. The cocktails were also delicious, my lychee-tini was great. Our server was very friendly and gave great recommendations. We sat outside and the outdoor seating was nice.

After a long absence from Shang Hai, my family returned and was incredibly pleased to find that…read moretheir quality of service and their vegetarian offerings were the same. The lemon soybean chicken, soybean beef with broccoli, orange soybean chicken, and sweet-and-sour soybean chicken did not suffer the fate of new, "improved" recipes that other restaurants have succumbed to in our past. Again, the service was friendly, attentive, and everything came to our table very soon after ordering. We really appreciate the quiet, relaxed atmosphere. I also love that they have a Lunch Special - for a family of four, it makes for an economical, while still delicious and satisfying, afternoon out. Thanks for being a reliable restaurant, Shang Hai!

We were in town for a show at the SB bowl and came across this spot. The owner greeted us and…read moreseated us walking in. She was super friendly and welcoming. We ordered some green tea and one peached flavored. It was so refreshing on a warm day. Beef and broccoli, Kung pao chicken, sautéed, fresh and hot. We also had a bowl of steamed rice. Everything tasted great, it really hit the spot. We will definitely be back!

10/10. The chicken pho was delicious and was genuinely the best I've ever had, and I'm a pho…read moreexpert. It's family owned and everyone there is so kind, service was amazing, prices weren't bad, the portion for the small was perfect and the outdoor seating area was very cute. Will definitely be coming back all of the time.

SB Pho was an okay experience overall, but unfortunately nothing that really stood out to me. The…read moresetup is casual straightforward where you order at the front first and then find a seat. They also have a cute little outdoor courtyard area, which is a nice option if you want to enjoy your meal outside. I ordered the Pho and a Strawberry Boba. The pho was probably the weakest part of the meal for me. The broth tasted a bit bland and was lacking some of the depth and richness I look for in a bowl of yummy pho. The meat was also a little chewy. One interesting difference was the instead of the usual bean sprouts, they served shredded cabbage with the pho. I thought that it was a fun variation and gave the bowl a different texture. I also tried the fresh rolls, they seemed a little bit dried out, and the rice paper had become somewhat hard and too chewy. The dipping sauce, however, was really yummy and helped make them more enjoyable. Surprisingly, my favorite part was the strawberry boba. I wasn't expecting too much, but I was really enjoying it! This spot is more casual, the service was nice, but the food didn't quite wow me. If I was in the area, I would want to try their other offerings like the Bahn Mi.

I got a side salad that was great and the tomato bisque soup. Very good! Good for vegans too!read more

We could hear live Blues playing down the street which meant there was life. We had just left the…read moreSanta Barbara Bowl and wanted something to eat after the show ended at 9pm. Not much was open which is how we ended up here. The place was super hot so we decided to order our food to go and there was a super annoying drunk guy ahead of us in line. I felt bad for the 17 yo employee stuck interacting with them. We ordered a sandwich with shrimp in it. L said it was good but the title shouldn't mention shrimp as they were super teeny tiny and basically non existent. I got the gluten free fried rice bowl with chicken spicy. It was not spicy at all, and the chicken was a bit dry, however I could taste the flavor of the chicken and the meal was bland enough that I knew I would be okay. Earlier in the day before the bowl we went to a winery and I had a headache, so this food for me last night worked especially since we picked it up to go and had it at our Air BnB.

Great restaurant! Conveniently located downtown, there's plenty of street parking and you can go…read morewalk Paseo Nuevo after dinning at Saigon. I really enjoy the variety of ramen bowls. They're all delicious. I like ordering the spicy ones. They have a great happy hour menu! It's worth ordering one of everything on the happy hour list. Try them all. The service is phenomenal. We were well taken care of the weight. Staff is very attentive. The ambience is great. They have nice colorful umbrellas hanging from the ceiling.

Went to this place because of the good reviews however left feeling a bit underwhelmed and…read moredisappointed. The vegetable tempura and it was crispy however I've never had bell pepper in tempura so that really threw me off. We also go the spicy edamame which was a bit too sweet and saucy. The udon noodles were cooked well but also the stir fry was heavy in sauce. We also got a shrimp tempura rice bowl, which again tempura was great but the ratio with rice was way off. Overall food was okay. Service was great but not sure we would be returning.

After work, I decided to stop by Nikka Ramen for some lunch. It was a weekday around 1:30pm so it…read morewasn't too busy and I was seated right away. I knew I wanted a rice bowl but wasn't sure what I wanted on top. When I saw the half and half option with tuna and salmon, it was the perfect combination! The order only took a few minutes before coming out. It was delicious and very filling. There was a good combination of textures and flavors that made it a well rounded bowl. I had an efficient but delicious lunch experience at Nikka Ramen. I'd definitely come back!

Cute place. I loved the California Roll, the crab salad in…read morethe roll was delicious. I got Veggie Ramen. It was good. Very creamy. Tofu was nice . Husband got spicy ramen. He liked the ramen but he also like the tofu more than the chicken. It was very busy and they had tons of delivery pick ups. I didn't get a dessert but they had trendy desserts like the peach ice cream. All if the servers were very helpful and nice.

One of my favorite spots when I'm craving a beef bulgogi bowl! I've always been so happy to have…read moresuch incredible and flavorful food near where I live. The staff are incredibly nice and they were very attentive to us when we arrived. We were able to enjoy an outdoor table and the food blew us away! I had their beef bulgogi bowl and I was floored by the flavor of the beef and the how fluffy the rice was. I want to try everything on the menu so I'll be visiting again very soon.

Just for background about me, I have experienced a bit of a learning curve. Today's lunch, however…read morewas like I struck gold. I had the chicken soup definitely hit the spot. Not only was the [cornish game chicken] whole and stuffed with rice - and other yummy stuff - but it was Gluten-free. I have made the dish myself mostly from ingredients found at the store: including ginseng and another root I couidn't identify. I've heard Korean food consummately used many types of roots. This was a treat foremost because I could sit outside. I AM NOT 100%. I got some of the furikaki rice seasoning that is gluten-free, for my rice. Lastly, i want to appreciate Choi's for the intact wishbone in my soup. It was nice to feel nurtured by the mom-and-pop store. Will be back!