Late-Night S.B.

As promised in Part One, this is me hollering “Late-Night Bites!” from the rooftops.

So, it’s past 10 p.m. again. Santa Barbara’s early-bird reputation is going strong. Craving steak, oysters, ice cream? Not ready to go home and tuck in for the night? Fear not; there is a second wave of late-night spots that have you covered.

Below, you may find a few more entries to the ongoing list of where to eat after it’s past Santa Barbara’s bedtime.

One of the most enthusiastic responses to the first article came from Erin Khod, owner of Santa Barbara Pizza House. “As someone who’s spent plenty of nights searching for a good bite after hours, I couldn’t agree more,” she wrote. “We’re open until 1:30 a.m. on weekends (and later if it’s busy)!” That’s the kind of commitment we need.

Some places aren’t new, but they’ve been doing late-night right for years. Harry’s Plaza Café — tucked into Loreto Plaza like a boozy time capsule — runs until 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday and ’til midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Tee-Off is another one that often flies under the radar. Their tagline is “Old-School Steakhouse & Bar,” and they mean it. Friday and Saturday? They’re open until 11 p.m. Expect dark booths and food that sticks to your ribs.

Georges Bitar, who co-owns Milk & Honey alongside his wife, Nichole Bitar, has intentionally expanded the spot’s hours to better serve the late-night crowd. The tapas joint now stays open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, with a reverse happy hour that runs from 11 p.m. to 12 a.m.

“We used to close at 11,” Bitar said. “But we started seeing a crowd forming around that time, so we extended. It’s fun, affordable, and there aren’t a lot of late-night options in that part of town.” The vibe? Loungy yet playful; kudos to the cartoons being projected onto the wall above the dark bar.

With a $10 late-night happy hour menu featuring crowd favorites such as pollo con crema tacos and sweet potato fries, “We pack it in,” he added. “Lots of young people, lots of energy.”

As for those craving a sweet treat, rejoice! Haas’s Fine Ice Cream in Five Points is doing the Lord’s work. Haas stays open until 11 p.m. on weeknights and has been experimenting with midnight closings on weekends. “It’s working really well,” said Far Rahimian, the managing owner. “We’re one of the few still open, and people find us through Google, DoorDash, and even just driving by. The locals are loving it.”

Haas also has a partnership with McConnell’s Fine Ice Cream. Meaning? You can still get your McConnell’s, just an hour later, and from Haas.

Now, we have to do our part to keep the late-night spots buzzing. Four of us from the Indy (shoutout to Richelle, Maya, and Callie) recently hit a few of the best-known after-dark spots: Dom’s Taverna, Milk & Honey, Roy, and the Pickle Room. We ordered a Basque glizzy, oysters, bacon-wrapped dates, ravioli, fried pickles — the works. When asked about Roy restaurant’s late-night go-tos, our bartender stated proudly, “People order steak at midnight!” Sounds like my kind of people.

Closing Thoughts (Again)

The late-night food scene in Santa Barbara is still small, but it’s growing, joyfully, jubilantly, jovially. We are not quite into the wee hours of the morning, but we are starting to wrap up around the time Cinderella turns into a pumpkin, so to that I say — progress!

We’ll keep updating this list as we find more spots that believe in feeding the hungry masses post–10 p.m. Until then, send us your tips, your pizza haunts, and your fried pickles.

Long live the midnight snacks. And long live the people ordering steak at midnight.