WHAT: Finch & Fork

WHERE: Santa Barbara, CA – on the ground floor of The Canary Hotel

WHEN: Breakfast, Lunch, Brunch, Drinks…we were there celebrating our girl Michele’s bachelorette party so we obvi did brunch (with unlimited $1 mimosa refills, how could we not?)

WHAT TO ORDER: Short Rib and Sweet Potato Hash ($16). Unique and delish, it was a fav at the table. Also, would highly recommend the Mule Kick ($11), their brunch-time version of the moscow mule with organic vodka (healthy, right?) and fresh apple juice fever tree ginger beer.

WHAT TO SKIP: The housemade Chai ($5). We’re all for a place making their own spices, but the chai just tasted off and funky. Maybe we’re too used to the overly processed Starbucks version but whatever the reason, steer clear.

WHAT TO KNOW: They have a fully stocked build-your-own Bloody Mary bar.  Time to get creative!  Love a place that lets you prepare something just the way you want it (even if it means putting yourself to work).

WHERE TO SIT: For brunch, there’s a beautiful and bright room [to the right when you walk in] with indoor plants, a Moroccan tiled wall, and low hanging oversized lamp shades — perfect for an impromptu photoshoot too (we clearly took advantage as demonstrated in the above gallery).  For drinks or dinner, the bar area seems best to mix & mingle (we always love some good bar seating — so conducive to making new friends). Sexy one-night rendezvous? Possibly– just sneak over to the concierge and book a room upstairs.

WHO YOU’LL SEE: Out-of-towners staying at the hotel and/or locals just looking for some good food with a pretty ambiance (and maybe to meet those out-of-towners).

WHO TO BRING:  Great for family get-togethers, dates, friends…really though…you can bring anyone. They even let us push most of the tables together in that first room to accommodate our large group of party people. We kind of took over. Oops.

 

EDDR LIFE LESSON:  If the hotel is on-point, the hotel bar/restaurant should be in your rotation.  You never know who you’ll see indulging in a staycay, spa day or sneaking in/out after a night of partying.  For example: at Chateau Marmont – we’ll happily spend the extra $$ to take advantage of that terrace and do some people watching.

A² FINAL THOUGHT:  Book yourself a weekend getaway (you know you need one), and get yourself to The Canary Hotel stat.  Beautiful ambiance in all aspects of your life, you’re sure to leave feeling refreshed and happily full. Oh, and did we mention it’s in the perfect location just a few blocks from State Street with all of that shopping you promised yourself you wouldn’t do. Santa Barbara is one of the most beautiful cities in CA and only 2 hours away… it doesn’t get more convincing than that…

 

Can we come back yet,

A²