Buena Onda Empanadas | Restaurant • Catering • Events — Restaurant in Santa Barbara

BEST EMPANADAS EVER ! We were up in Santa Barbara for a few days to celebrate my wife's birthday. The happy memories of our last visit here in Sept, 2020 were still strong.....staying overnight in a beautiful Casita at The Eagle Inn and enjoying fabulous fresh made empanadas from here while watching the World Series. DARN THEY WERE GOOD ! Not long after checking in at The Eagle Inn on Thursday we took a Lyft over here to have dinner. My wife and I arrived around 6.30pm...it was great to be back. In the last couple of years we have eaten dozens of empanadas but none have come close to the great flavors of Buena Onda Empanadas. YEAH BABY ! A very charming server / manager named Vanessa welcomed us at the service counter. We decided to go with 2 x 3 EMPI COMBOS ( choose any 3 empanadas w/side salad or chimi papas ). My wife went with 1 x HONGOS ( crimini mushrooms, organic spinach, caramelized red onions, mozzarella ) and 2 x SERRANO ( prosciutto ham, mozzarella, garlic, wild arugula ). While I selected 1 x CARNE ( surfed ranch grass-fed ground beef, onions, bell peppers, green olives and free-range hard boiled egg ), 1 x CAPRESE ( organic roma tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil and extra virgin olive oil ) and 1 x SERRANO ( prosciutto ham, mozzarella, garlic, wild arugula ). For our sides we both chose CHIMI PAPAS ( Chimichurri oven roasted red potatoes, spices, topped with aioli sauce ). I noticed they had a few beers on tap and ordered a Topa Topa "Chief Peak" IPA. Looking at their dessert selection in the display cabinet...we chose a variety pack of 3 custard filled BEIGNETS plus a MANZANITA ( green apples, figs, cinnamon, goat cheese ). We paid upfront, given a table number and headed out to find a table on the patio. There were a couple of groups of diners nearby....the heaters kept things comfortable for everyone. Before we knew it stuff started coming out to your table courtesy of a female food runner. BAM BAM BAM ! Beignets, Manzanita and lots of Empanadas. EVERYTHING LOOKED GREAT ! My wife loves mushrooms so the Hongos was her fav while I totally loved the Carne...very juicy ingredients. IT'S ALL GOOD ! All our empanadas tasted outstanding...quality ingredients and captivating flavors. The custard filled Beignets were a real treat...delicately delicious. And I savored the Manzanita...a sweet empanada filled with green apples, figs, cinnamon & goat cheese. Along the way I managed to drink most of my ice cold Chief Peak IPA. Before I left I met Franco the master chef and gave him a pat on the back for our fabulous empanadas. GREAT FOOD, TOP...

THE BEST EMPANADAS ! After our almost one week vacation in Cambria my wife and I decided to make a stopover in Santa Barbara on the way home. A good reason to have dinner and then breakfast at two of our fav spots. Soon after getting settled in our casita at The Eagle Inn we headed straight here to buy some delicious Empanadas.....the best Empanadas we have ever enjoyed ! No problem scoring a parking spot on their small private lot at around 6.30pm. A very pleasant cashier named Florencia helped us with our dinner order at the service counter. We both ordered COMBOS...2 Empanadas + side of choice and 3 Empanadas + side of choice. My wife chose 1 x Pollo ( Pulled free-range Mary's chicken, onions and bell peppers ), 1 x Serrano ( Prosciutto ham, mozzarella, garlic, wild arugula ) and a side of Chimi Papas ( Chimichurri oven roasted potatoes, spices, topped with aioli sauce ). I selected 1 x Carne ( Sunfed Ranch grass-fed ground beef, onions, bell peppers, green olives and free-range hard-boiled egg ), 1 x Serrano, 1 x Hongas ( Crimini mushrooms, organic spinach, caramelized red onions, mozzarella ) and a side of Chimi Papas. On any other day in warmer weather we probably would have dined here but it was getting late and the weather was pretty lousy. PRETTY QUICK ! There were a couple of walk-in pickups while we waited but apart from that it was pretty quiet. Florencia neatly packed our dinner order into take-out boxes and placed them on the counter. We paid and headed back to home base....The Eagle Inn. By 7pm we had it all ready to eat on the little table in our courtyard. Of course I brought my own beer to enjoy with dinner. WHAT CAN I SAY ! When you buy the best Empanadas you can't go wrong. I personally loved the Carne the best and the Serrano is always a winner but trust me they are all great. The delicious Chimi Papas with the provided side sauces tasted fabulous. VERY...

We have visited the majority of Argentinian places in Southern California, and there aren't many good ones. This is one we still hadn't visited, and now we wonder what took so long.

We came for lunch on a Saturday. When we got there, we were the first ones there, but shortly after, a couple showed up, and they were friendly.

The place itself has mostly outdoor seating, and it is beautiful and welcoming. The location is cute, and so is the ambiance.

The service we got from every was great, except we weren't brought (or offered to buy) any bread, or anything else, which is expected at Argentine seat down places.

Food wise, we got beef empanadas and the milanesa con papas. The empanadas were very good. The size was standard but pricey, though it is probably because of the location. At least they were very good. I liked the beef, which had tons of olives. What I liked was the flavor and the fact that the olives didn't overpower the flavor. I didn't like the milanesa, but my wife thought it was ok. The chimichurri was good, and my daughter and I liked that they carried a spicy version.

For dessert, my wife got one of the store bought flavor, but it did seem like they made their own, so we'll get one of those next time.

It was good enough that we will be back. We can't wait to come...