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For anyone craving burgers, fries and shakes while overlooking the Santa Barbara Harbor, there’s a new restaurant in town.
Owner Aaron Petersen opened Chomp on the Rocks a week ago at 113 Harbor Way. He owns a restaurant of the same name in Solvang.
“Either I am the dumbest guy in the world or the smartest,” Petersen told Noozhawk. “We won’t know for about two years.”
He also bought a boat and lives at the harbor part time.
“I am hoping that a Chomp experience works down here,” Petersen said. “Families, kids, friends. This is designed for families with kids.”
Petersen was born and raised in Solvang. He went to college and law school in Seattle. He is a former attorney and prosecutor for the U.S. government. For the past 20 years, however, he has been focused on running restaurants. He also owns Mortensen’s Bakery.
There’s a subtle but big difference between practicing law and running a restaurant.
“When you are an attorney, or in a normal job, it’s like running wind sprints; you run, and then the weekends come and you coast,” Petersen said. “This is like jogging. You don’t break a sweat, but it is all the time.”
The restaurant business also has its perks.
“I can solve anyone’s problem with a free glass of wine, a free milkshake, a root beer float,” he said. “It’s on the house. Everyone is happy.”
Visitors will have to look up to see one of the other cool features at the restaurant. On the ceiling are several Vans shoes.
One of his hostesses, Roxy MacNamara, was painting shoes, and Petersen ask her to paint more. So she painted a dozen, with milkshakes, hamburgers and happy faces on them, and he placed them on the ceiling.
“All of that is hand-painted detail,” he said, referring to the colorful shoes.
The restaurant features family-friendly foods such as burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, fish tacos, salads, bratwurst and vegan burgers. Its signature is its “ice creamery” sweets — handmade shakes, malts, floats, sundaes and an old fashioned banana split — all served in a retro-inspired, modern take on a diner with clean lines, black and white tiles, red leather booths and stool-tops, with additional seating at the shiny aluminum counter, according to a news release.
It’s the second restaurant Petersen has opened recently at the spot. Chomp occupies the bottom floor, but his other restaurant, Salty at the Beach, takes up the top level and features big-screen TVs and more beer, wine and drink offerings.
Mission Linen Supply Promotes Employees
Mission Linen Supply, a family-owned provider of linens, uniforms, laundry services and supplies, has promoted two of its employees.
Dave Pattison has been promoted to chief information officer and vice president of information technology. Austin French has been promoted to vice president of sales.
Pattison will be responsible for managing the IT department and implementing technology solutions. French will be responsible for overseeing all of Mission’s sales efforts, including both field and corporate sales.
Pattison began his career at Mission in 2001 as a contractor. He was then hired as the infrastructure manager and rose through the ranks to IT manager, then IT director, and now CIO and vice president of IT, according to a news release.
“I’ve always enjoyed developing technology solutions to support our customers and our business,” Pattison said. “I look forward to continuing to lead Mission’s IT department as we find new ways to leverage technology to make our customers’ live easier and help Mission grow.”
French joined Mission Linen in 2011 as a regional director of sales. He was then promoted to senior director of field sales before becoming vice president of sales.
“At Mission, I’ve seen us not only grow but also shift and pivot into new ancillary businesses,” French said. “I am proud to have been part of the company’s success, and I am excited to help Mission continue to evolve and reach new heights.”
Coffee Shop Pops Up Downtown
Golden Line Coffee is a new pop-up coffee shop on Saturdays and Sundays between 7:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. inside the Villa Wine Bar, 618 Anacapa St.
The shop features coffee and espresso by Equator Coffees, Japanese tea and matcha by Kettl, chai by Dona Chai and pastries by Bree’osh.
“Our goals are to provide modern, excellent coffees, teas and pastries, work toward supply chain equity and environmental sustainability, and offer a unique and inspiring place for our community and for visitors to Santa Barbara,” according to a news release.
The news release also stated that while coffee consumption is strong and growing, many people don’t realize that the coffee supply chain is in “dire need of disruption” and the coffee industry is on an unsustainable path.
“Most coffee farmers are forced to operate at very low margins, break even or, in many cases, at a loss due to suppressed prices paid for green, unroasted coffee beans,” the news release stated. “The situation is further aggravated by climate change.”
Breakaway Bike Powers Ahead
Santa Barbara-based Breakaway Industries has launched an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign.
Connor Nemetz of Santa Barbara, a tech sales employee and triathlete, designed the portable stationary Breakaway Bike so that he could take it with him wherever he traveled.
Nemetz said it was a challenge to fit in the bike training he needed to maintain and build his fitness while training for triathlons. He’s also a father of three.
The Breakaway Bike can be stored anywhere, allowing him to get training sessions in from the comfort of his room, according to a news release.
Nemetz partnered with John Stump, a crowdfunding veteran with 23 years of experience of product development and engineering.
The campaign had quickly raised nearly $304,000 as of Thursday evening.
— Noozhawk staff writer Joshua Molina can be reached at jmolina@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
