The 500 block of State Street is mostly empty during the coronavirus pandemic on Friday night.
The 500 block of State Street is mostly empty during the coronavirus pandemic on Friday night. (Brooke Holland / Noozhawk photo)
  • Institution Ale in downtown Santa Barbara is temporarily shut down, as seen on Friday night, when it would typically be full of people inside and on the State Street patio.
  • Scooter riders on State Street Saturday afternoon remind everyone to stay 6 feet apart for social distancing.
  • Pedestrians and bicyclists enjoy the Santa Barbara waterfront path on Saturday.
  • A man wearing a protective mask rollerblades on the busy bike path along the Santa Barbara waterfront during the stay-at-home order on Saturday afternoon.
  • Deep Sea Tasting Room on Santa Barbara’s Stearns Wharf sits empty on Monday afternoon.
  • Visitors soak up the warm temperatures on Santa Barbara’s Stearns Wharf on Monday afternoon.
  • Few cars and pedestrians head to Stearns Wharf Monday afternoon.
  • Santa Barbara’s iconic courthouse tower is closed to members of the public.
  • The 500 block of State Street in Santa Barbara sits empty Friday night, with bars and dine-in restaurants temporarily closed.
  • Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone is known for its tasting rooms, bars and restaurants, and has been unusually empty during the stay-at-home order. Corks n’ Crowns, seen here at sunset Friday, is offering to-go wine and beer in the meantime.
  • Handmade hearts hang from the ceiling inside the 121 E. Yanonali St. establishment in Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone. The shop is a shared space with Tyger Tyger, Monkey Shine and Dart Coffee Co.
  • Some Funk Zone tasting rooms are offering to-go beverages during the temporary closures.
  • Some Funk Zone tasting rooms are offering to-go beverages during the temporary closures.
  • A man walks by Shaker Mill & Cubaneo on the 400 block of State Street in Santa Barbara on Saturday afternoon. The cocktail bar and eatery has closed seating areas and is offering delivery or curbside pick up, as many other restaurants are.
  • Portable bathrooms and handwashing stations have been placed around downtown Santa Barbara, including the 400 block of State Street, as a response to the novel coronavirus epidemic.

On a warm Friday evening, Santa Barbara's Funk Zone typically is bustling with people heading to the bars, tasting rooms and restaurants.

But last week, the nightlife hot spot was nearly deserted, roads were mostly empty, and there were very few pedestrians in sight.

The statewide stay-at-home order has shuttered most of those businesses, or reduced them to curbside pickup and delivery service. 

The downtown and waterfront shuttles are out of service — another sign of the pandemic's toll on the city.

A lone red car was parked nearby the East Cabrillo Boulevard and Anacapa Street intersections, but no people were in sight.

Tourists weren't posing for photos in front of the mural that decorates the large wall along the 100 block of Santa Barbara Street.

A few blocks away, the normally buzzing downtown corridor was a similar eerily quiet scene. 

Pretty much no one was out and about.

The 500 block of State Street — part of the city’s bar scene pre-pandemic — was mostly dark and looked like a ghost town around 8 p.m.

The lights were out and signs were posted at closed wineries, eateries and taverns, with overturned chairs stacked on top of tables.

There was no dining out at restaurants, no outdoor tables and chairs, and several businesses had limited hours.

In restaurant areas, there were occasional delivery drivers and masked customers waiting for curbside orders. People were handed food and zipped off.

Three vehicles were temporarily parked side by side on lower State Street shortly before 8:45 p.m., and the majority of bike racks in the immediate area were bare.

The crosswalk on a stretch of State Street went for a long period of time without a pedestrian.

Just a handful of drivers had nighttime excursions along stretches of usually busy road.

It all made for a rather surreal scene, and what follows is a visual snapshot of what Santa Barbara was like on Friday, Saturday and Monday during the coronavirus pandemic.

Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.