I'll just cut to the case. Sama Sama is good. Very very good.
I got a heads up on this new restaurant- which skillfully fuses traditional Indonesian ingredients with familiar street food- via the always awesome Kenny Osehan + Chris Sewell ( purveyors of cool behind Shelter Social Club) and jumped on the chance to check it out. Osehan + Sewell get credit for designing the space (this year they'll be transforming the restaurant and bar area- including a new cocktail menu which I'll be all over with a group of friends in tow when it's set to go, likely by the end of this month.)
But... but, it's the culinary team of Ricardo Aguilar, Tyler Peer, Ryan Simorankir, and Kevin Hoover (photo below) who collectively made my taste buds and belly remarkably happy. Plus they were gracious and the service was very pleasant (thank you, Robin and Anna)... so, win-win.
They offer wonderful vegetarian options that were also so worth gazing at before I chowed down. Beauties...
The place was packed with a great diversity of incoming customers over the course of my visit. But I ended up snapping this shot of the space when they closed down after lunch. Light drenched and airy... lovely, isn't it?
And the back patio is a dream of a space for dinner parties...Can't wait to try it out at night. Can you imagine the atmosphere with the sky above, string lights, and candles glowing? Yes, please.
Did I mention that they have Rori's ice cream for dessert? A perfect end to an incredible meal.
Thanks, Sama Sama. You're pretty great.
Sama Sama Test Kitchen
1208 State St.
Santa Barbara, California
(805) 965-4566
