Reasons to Eat Out for Heather Mattoon on September 8

1) Community Spirit: A little more than a month ago, Heather Mattoon, one of Santa Barbara’s brightest rising artistic stars, came crashing back to earth in a spine-cracking fall from her third-story apartment. Though her fall from grace was only momentary, the repercussions remain-Heather is currently paralyzed from her belly button to her toes. With no health insurance and a daily mountain of rehabilitation to climb, the road ahead promises to be riddled with challenges for the young painter. Hoping to offset some of these hardships, many restaurants have offered to donate 5 percent of their proceeds from Saturday, September 8 to Heather’s cause.

2) Karma Is Real: A longtime all-star waitress at several of S.B.’s finest eateries, such as the Wine Cask and Lucky’s, there is a good chance that Heather’s smiling face and finely honed East Coast wit was an instrumental part of a memorable meal from your past. It’s rare you need added incentive to enjoy the top-notch cuisine of places like Elements and bouchon, but when you figure that 5 percent of your bill will go toward Heather’s comeback cause, then the decision to dine in or out becomes a no-brainer. Other restaurants participating include Piranha, Quantum, Sevilla, Olio y Limone, Emilio’s, A Capella, Indochine, and Hungry Cat.

3) Keep Her Art Alive: By simply eating, drinking, and being merry, you are helping ensure that one of our finest young artists will be able to continue her craft: Her art was a celebrated highlight of last year’s Off-Axis show at 10 East Figueroa. By dining out, you can help bring Mattoon’s kindness and support of the arts full circle and deliver it back to her.