The freshly remodeled lobby of the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott includes 555 Lounge & Bar and a wonderful great room with a beautiful fireplace and several comfortable seating areas. 
The Chicken Mole Flatbread Pizza at 555 Lounge & Bar is a delicious choice. 
A signature drink is the Rancho San Carlos Blackberry Margarita. 
Alice and J. Willard Marriott in a 1957 photo. In 1959, the Marriotts opened the first hotel in what would become a namesake, international chain and one of the United States’ biggest companies.
I love good food and recently found a new place that will be a regular stop when I travel between Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo.
The Santa Ynez Valley Marriott, at 555 McMurray Road in Buellton, has undergone a recent remodel, and let me tell you … it is impressive.
I’m always happy when I discover a new restaurant where I can have a delicious meal in a relaxed environment. If you’re like me and you enjoy working outside of the office, you’re in luck because the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott is just such a spot.
To the rear of the main lobby is the 555 Lounge & Bar, which features a beautiful long bar with two big flat-screen TVs and a huge, stone wood-fired pizza oven. It is adjacent to an enormous great room with a majestic fireplace and several comfortable seating areas.
I ordered the Chicken Mole Flatbread Pizza. The grilled chicken — along with house-made mole sauce, Oaxaca cheese, toasted sesame seeds and cilantro — was baked to perfection. All of the dishes are made with fresh local ingredients. I highly recommend it; you’ll love it.
You’ve got to try some of the new signature cocktails, including the Rancho San Carlos Blackberry Margarita with Don Julio Tequila Blanco, Cointreau, fresh Santa Barbara blackberries, lime juice and a touch of soda water.
Because of the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott’s strategic location, roughly halfway between Santa Barbara County’s two population centers, Santa Barbara and Santa Maria, and easy access to nearby Highway 101, its conference facilities downstairs often host countywide business and political events.
Do you ever find that the back story makes you like a person or place even better? The history of the Marriott is fascinating. It’s a love story and the epitome of an American Dream-style success.
Chatting with Cynthia Guerrero, the hotel’s sales and marketing director, was enlightening.
“I enjoy working for a corporation (Marriott International) with such a rich history,” she shared. “The philosophy and corporate culture make the Marriott a great place to work, which makes me feel like I’m a part of the family.
“It’s pretty cool that young newlyweds worked together and went on to built a massive empire.”
Guerrero is talking about founder J. Willard Marriott and his wife, Alice.
Marriott was a born entrepreneur. In 1913, at age 13, he decided to grow lettuce on the family farm and had earned $2,000 by the end of the summer.
In 1927, at age 27, he was passing through Washington, D.C., on his Mormon mission and thought that the hot, muggy city could use a root beer stand. He and his business partner, Hugh Colton, later returned and bought an A&W Root Beer franchise. Soon after opening their first shop, he went back to Salt Lake City, where he married his college sweetheart, Alice Sheets, about a month later.
Alice Sheets Marriott was a strong partner personally, and she was very involved and quite instrumental in the growth of the family business, which soon became the Hot Shoppes restaurant chain. In 1959, they opened their first Marriott hotel, and the chain grew into one of America’s largest companies and is now an international business.
Can you believe that the Marriott empire started with a modest nine-stool root beer stand?
The success continues. Last year, Marriott International acquired Starwood Hotels & Resorts. The deal created the world’s largest hotel company with more than 5,700 properties, 1.1 million rooms and a portfolio of 30 brands in more than 100 countries. Many people don’t know that the Westin, Sheraton, St. Regis and W Hotels brands are all part of the family now.
Personally, I really like the Santa Ynez Valley and am there frequently. There are plenty of scenic hiking spots and nearby wineries. And new tasting rooms, breweries, restaurants and other great places are springing up all over the valley, adding even more to Buellton’s charm.
I forgot to ask … Does the Marriott serve root beer?
Click here for more information about the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott, or call 805.688.1000.
— Donna Polizzi is a regional travel expert and founder of Keys to the Coast, a free Central Coast travel resource providing honest recommendations on the best places that locals want to go. She can be contacted at news@noozhawk.com. Click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are her own.