Kat Hitchcock, Kylie Cardenas, and Lesley & Kevin Hall at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Independent reporter Ryan P. Cruz and Jun Starkey at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Guests enjoy the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Contributor Rebecca Horrigan and Independent senior writer Matt Kettmann at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Los Agaves team member at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Guests enjoy the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Emily and Jerrry Lee at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Party fun at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Rusty’s Pizza represents at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Indy staffers Callie Fausey, Jean Yamamura and Xavier Pereyra at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Angel from Santo Mezcal at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Cheers to the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Revelers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Bartenders from the Good Lion at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Santo Mezcal served its winning cocktails at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
The sold-out 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
The sold-out 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
The Sunstone crew at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
The sold-out 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Hook and Press donuts at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Los Agaves’s salsa won Best Of bragging rights. | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Hook and Press donuts at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Los Agaves (Best Mexican Restaurant) at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Empty Bowl noodles at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
The Empty Bowl team at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
The sold-out 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Grassini winery at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Columnist Starshine Roshell at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Independent graphic designer Bianca Castro, left, and Katelin Ridenour at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
DJ Darla Bea at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest included, from left, Caitlin Fitch, Xavier Pereyra, Paul Wellman, and Victor Bryant | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Partygoers at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Lovebird Boutique owners at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Michael Montenegro and Indy staffer Tonea Songer at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom 
Flavor of India picks up their award at the 2024 Best Fest honoring the Best Of Santa Barbara winners, October 17, 2024 | Photo: Ingrid Bostrom
There was a whole lotta fun and a whole lot to celebrate at the 2024 Best Fest Celebration of the Best of Santa Barbara® party at the Santa Barbara Historical Museum last week! Not only could all of the winners rejoice in their victories, but our team had a well-earned celebration after “unleashing the beast” of a 164-page print issue — our largest edition in years!
From old friends to new ones, the sold-out event had several hundred of Santa Barbara’s finest folks enjoying sips and bites from many of the winning restaurants, wineries, and breweries featured in our Best of Santa Barbara® issue — all to the rocking beats of DJ Darla Bea, the nine-time winner of the Best Event DJ bragging rights!
