Road Trip - Loquita Santa Barbara

After lunch at Bell's we headed back to the hotel and took a short nap. Upon waking, the Missus was ready to go once again. What She had in mind was taking JJ for a "walk" to the Mission Santa Barbara, which we had visited before. I had some reservations about this; first, yes we had walked to the Mission before but were a lot closer. This time, it would be a 2 1/2 mile walk each way and I was worried about how JJ would handle things. Well, I should have known better.....he was a total champ!

We headed under the 101 and up familiar State Street. But from there it was unfamiliar territory, where we hadn't visited before. Thru lovely and quite peaceful...at least on this day, Alameda Park.

Before getting to the Mission.

Where J enjoyed lying in the cool grass. It was still February when we took this road trip, so the rose garden wasn't in bloom, but JJ seemed to enjoy himself. As for the Missus, well once we arrived, it was "mission accomplished" and time to head back.

We enjoyed looking at the historic homes on Garden Street as we made our way back. Though it wasn't quite as diverse and fun as what we had enjoyed in Pacific Grove. We did make a nice stop at Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden which is right next to Alameda Park. Lovely trees and ponds, JJ was especially fascinated by the turtles.

Before heading down on Garden, then on State, ducking under the 101, to get back to our hotel to freshen up.

Our destination for dinner was basically two buildings down from the Moxy. I had tried to make reservations for Loquita the night before, but none were available. This was because Loquita was one of the places closed for Employee Appreciation night on Super Bowl Sunday. We saw folks dancing and having a great time when we passed on the way back from Shalhoob's! It seemed like a fun place and was dog friendly, so JJ could hang out.

We had a table in the lovely outdoor patio.

The Missus started with a Sangria and I had one of the specialty Gin and Tonics; the "Costa Blanca" which had kaffir line infused gin; it was quite refreshing. JJ got a nice bowl of water.

Loquita features Spanish influenced dishes. It had been a while since we'd had some of these dishes, so it was fun ordering.

We started with the Jamon Tasting ($35) which featured Jamon Serrano, Jamon Iberico, Iberico de Chorizo, and Pan con Tomate.

While we would usually enjoy the Jamon Iberico (especially if it's Jamon Iberico Pata Negra), this time the "white pigs" (i.e. Jamon Serrano) won out as it was more tender.

And was also cut thinner, so we enjoyed the texture of the Serrano more, even though the Iberico was more marbled, it was quite chewy. The Missus loves Spanish Chorizo, so that goes without saying. The Pan con Tomate was served on pan de cristal, the traditional bread and was quite good, even if it wasn't quite as honeycombed as what we had in Barcelona.

The tomato still had that wonderful "flavor of sunshine"! Sweet-acidity, with a touch of tartness, the olive oil lifting the flavors.

The Missus, always the egg lover, really enjoyed the Tortilla Espanola ($22).

Lots of flavor in this one; from the smoked tomatoes to the garlic aioli foam. Very tender, especially the potatoes. 

Our least favorite item of the night was the Pulpo ala Gallega ($28).

The pulpo was really tough, they really laid on the aioli, which had strong sour tones that we didn't enjoy.

At first glance, I thought the Gambas al Ajillo ($24) was over sauced. But we ended up really enjoying the acidic-sweetness, a nice amount of garlic, along with some sneaky spiciness of the dish.

The shrimp were sweet and tender and in spite of the assertive sauce, you could still taste them. They even bought us extra bread for sopping up that sauce.

The service was friendly and effcient; very nice folks here. Before doing this post, I found out that Loquita was designated as a Bib Gourmand restaurant by Michelin, so good for them.

Loquita Santa Barbara
202 State St.
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

We then returned to the Moxy. I have mixed feelings about the Moxy Santa Barbara. The staff was great, love the funkiness, the rooms were a bit small, but comfortable, but of course the freeway noise and if you needed a fridge you'd have to use the one in the shared kitchen.  Good thing we have a portable freezer for JJ's food. I believe they serve pastries and I do know there coffee in the lobby which I had before we left the next morning.

I read that the Moxy brand is directly aiming for Gen Z customers and I could tell by the decor.

I'm probably the wrong target audience! 

Like many boutique hotels these days; the check in counter doubles as a pseudo "bar" of sorts. And as a bonus, upon check-in you receive a token for a free cocktail from a list. After our nice dinner, I took JJ out to the lobby and had a decent Gin and Tonic.

It was the quiet time of the year in Santa Barbara, so it was relaxing to hang in the playfully designed lobby with JJ. A nice way to spend our last evening in Santa Barbara.

Moxy Santa Barbara
12 East Montecito St.
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Yes, I was learning to take time to "stop and smell the flowers".......

Thanks for stopping by!

Comments

[Dereck]

We get up to SB every few months and Loquita is going on the agenda as we all love Spanish food. I will say that after having hundreds of dishes of pulpo from 2018-2022, we have pretty much just stopped ordering it.

[Mar]

I really enjoyed Loquita when I visited SB. I liked the way they did their patatas bravas at the time (years back), it was not traditional and more of a sliced fried potato cake. Looks like they've since changed how they prepare the dish, but I would still go back!

[Kirk]

Hope you enjoy Loquita Dereck, we sure did!

Yes, Loquita was quite enjoyable Mar!

[kat]

looks like a great tripg

[Kirk]

JJ enjoyed it Kat!