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The venerated Fresco Cafe has found a new home, a new lease on life and new appreciation.
Owner Mark Brouillard has moved Fresco to 23 E. Canon Perdido St., next to the Lobero Theatre in Santa Barbara. He’s paying about $11,000 a month, half the rent of his longtime location inside the Five Points Shopping Center. Out-of-town mall owners raised the rent, and Brouillard decided it was time to move on.
He found commercial real estate broker Jason Jaeger and moved into the newly renovated El Centro Building. So far, it appears to be a match made in heaven.
“I love it,” Brouillard said. “It’s very vibrant down here.”
Brouillard spoke with Noozhawk on Thursday morning on the outdoor patio. He described being humbled by the outpouring of support. People from “the mayor’s office” recently showed up and employees of nearby offices have trickled in since his soft opening last week.
However, with a new location comes new feels.
Brouillard has a brand-new, modern kitchen, but at his Five Points restaurant, he had two. It means his crew cooks smaller amounts, more often. At the previous site, they could cook enough bacon for five days, he said, and now there just isn’t that kind of storage space.
“Right now, it’s so small our pastry chefs have to work in the middle of the night,” Brouillard said.
While the seating area is about the same, the kitchen is smaller, so he has eliminated some of the less popular food items, such as the egg salad.
“Believe it or not, ham doesn’t really sell, or roast beef, and people want turkey,” Brouillard said. “We kept all the wraps, club sandwiches, salads and soups.”
He even turned a popular special — the eggplant parmesan — into a regular menu item.
Now that the menu is leaner, Brouillard said he’s working more efficiently, adding that “when you have a lot of space, you fill a lot of space.”
“It’s given me more time to spend just looking at everything,” Brouillard said. “Now I can spend more time watching everything, doing more promotion, talking more with the people and I can pay more attention to the food.”
He also has new hours. Monday through Wednesday, Fresco is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. On Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, it is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. The restaurant is closed on Sundays.
The now spot has led to a Lobero Theatre catering contract, and Brouillard said he’s doing some lunches for some Santa Barbara Unified School District sites.
Brouillard also wanted the public to know that the Fresco Cafe website is down, but that he’s working on it and it will be back up soon.
“I love it here,” he said. “Every day has been sunny.”
Book Den Anniversary
Eric Kelley’s Book Den had a 120-year anniversary celebration on Thursday.
The bookstore, 15 E. Anapamu St., was founded in Oakland in 1902 and moved to its Santa Barbara location in 1933.
Kelley bought the store in 1979. The store has somehow survived the Amazon takeover, lasting longer than the chains that once occupied State Street.
“The Book Den has changed as well,” Kelley said in a news release. “The business is now a full-service bookstore carrying both new and used books. And we sell books worldwide through our own website and many other websites. But one thing has not changed. It is a real bookstore where people can browse a large and diverse inventory curated by an knowledgeable staff of book sellers.”
The five people who work at The Book Den have a total of 198 years of bookselling experience, Kelley said.
Oat Town Goleta
Everyone wants to be in the Goodland.
The latest business to target Goleta is Oat Bakery, which is looking to open a second location at 231 Magnolia Ave.
The company posted the news on its Instagram page.
“It’s been a long time coming, but we are finally ready to tell you what we’ve been working on these last 6 months. Another bakery!” the post states. “Our little bakery is growing! Same Oat, same menu but with more room to get creative and spread our wings! This means more bread, lunch menu, sandwiches and pop ups (pizza nights? Sunday bagels?).”
The post states that baking in a 400-square-foot kitchen for the past five years was a challenge.
“Now, we have a 1,700-square-foot kitchen! It’s almost overwhelming … what are we going to do with all that room?! We are so excited to create and grow alongside you guys. This is just the beginning … opening date (&party) coming SOON!”
World of Magic
This year, Forever 21 is Forever Halloween.
The World of Magic has opened inside the old Forever 21 building at 901 State St. in Santa Barbara.
Spider-Man, Batman and some serial killer are on display in the window.
The South Coast is down to one Halloween store. Planet Fitness in Goleta is now the home of the former Spirit Halloween store.
— 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.