santa barbara shellfish company

santa barbara uni (sea urchin) is def one of my fave things to eat, so we took a drive to santa barbara for some live uni. on the way to santa barbara we stopped by malibu pier heading to santa barbara we arrived at santa barbara fish market. we got some live uni, too bad there were only 2 left. they clean out the uni for you. dont eat the uni out of the shell because it would take very salty. you have to rinse out all the seawater first. probably one of the best unis ive ever had. they were heavenly!!! so amazing! super fresh, very sweet, rich, creamy, melts in your mouth. daymn i wish they had more! santa barbara fish market 117 harbor way ste 7 santa barbara, ca 93109 get directions phone number (805) 965-9564 sbfish.com heading to another pier santa barbarashellfishcompany we got a 3lb spider crab as recommended, but it wasnt good at all. didnt taste all that fresh. the meat wasnt tender and flavorful. santa barbarashellfishcompany 230 stearns wharf santa barbara, ca 93101 get

seafood in santa barbara – that’s the deal.  it’s not that san diego and other places on the west coast don’t have good seafood, but there’s something about santa barbara that seems to make it taste a littler fresher and brighter.  the santa barbarashellfishcompany at the end of stearn’s wharf is a must visit if only for the experience of having a 5 lb. cooked to order spider crab placed in front of you. with other fresh out of the live tank options such as sea urchin, dungeness and rock crab, depending on the season, there’s plenty to enjoy here.

they also consistently have some of the best and briny oysters i’ve had south of san francisco.  get there early, they open at 11:00.  by 12:00, expect a wait of 15-20 minutes for a seat.  all of the seafood is prepared fresh, so at peak hours expect to spend a couple of hours between waiting and eating.  totally worth it.

local local. while any restaurant on the wharf has to be expensive to cover the cost of being on the wharf, theshellfishcompany is a local treasure. theshellfishis alive in the tanks before they cook it. eating what is local and in season is a plus. unless you want alcohol, walk up to the window, order your food, and eat on the picnic tables along the wharf. the views are stunning and the food is really, really good.

santa barbarashellfishcompany (seafood). this restaurant is up there with the best i've ever been to for seafood. the decorations are great, and the fresh seafood is to die for. service is very speedy, and an overcrowded restaurant yields little wait. but back to the food. warm bread and melted butter greets customers in the form of an appetizer. half shell oysters followed that on my trip. they were delicious and perfectly done. then came a fresh rock crab. it was a little less flavorful than it's dungeness cousin, but, again, was well prepared. the scenery outside just adds to the charm of this santa barbara jewel.

rating: 8.2/10