SAMA SAMA KITCHEN: Inspired Southeast-Asian cuisine in Santa Barbara

By william tomickiJanuary 17, 2024

Santa Barbara has over 500 restaurants but there is only one Sama Sama Kitchen, where an energetic combination of Indonesian-inspired Southeast Asian cuisine and creative cocktails make for delicious fun.

Our recent visit was a delightful adventure. The restaurant is located downtown on State Street with good parking nearby. There is always a warm greeting for those who enter and one can sit at the lively full bar, at a scrubbed pine table overlooking the open kitchen or in the romantic back patio.

Count your blessings if Tony is your waiter—he is charming and efficient. He offered to bring us one of Sama Sama’s seasonal cocktails like the Buddha’s Hand Lemon Drop (hand-infused vodka, lemon and simple sugar) but we went for a signature cocktail from a very innovative list—The Nomad and the Elephant–combined ghost pepper tequila, mezcal, green chartreuse lemon and angostura. For those wanting less firepower, there are beers galore, sake and nicely-priced wines. Non-drinkers have their choice of mocktails and non-alcoholic drinks.

Tony pointed out a blackboard on the wall with dinner specials and we were tempted by yaniniku wagyu skewers or the seared wagyu Zabuton but the menu prevailed as it sang of so many time-honored traditional dishes we love.

So on to the wings we went, redolent of tamarind, soy bbq, cilantro and lime. Puffed garlic chips with peanut sauce and sambal oelek, marinated chicken satay and fried crispy Brussels sprouts followed as starters. All were wonderful.

A shaved bok choy and duck salad provided a cleansing intermezzo, a symphony of carrots, herbs, peanuts, grapes, celery, fried shallots and duck confit.

We could have dug into rice or noodles dishes but instead we dove into mains–a fried whole branzino with garlic, nam jim jeow and cilantro, “Naughty Nuri” spare ribs which were grilled and glazed to perfection with a side of potato wedges and a tangy garlic aioli. We had our choice of two rices—fragrant coconut rice or jasmine rice.

Be prepared for dishes to arrive as soon as the chef plates them to ensure they are hot and at optimum taste. This can result in an unexpected sequencing which, franky, was welcome as it invited sharing.

Sama Sama’s cooks obviously know what they are doing and they do it well. For those tired of Italian and Mexican cuisine that is so prevalent in Santa Barbara, this is a treasure of a discovery where relatively unfamiliar ingredients like anise, cinnamon, sesame, fish sauce, almonds, pickled red onion, cabbage, coconut sambal, lemongrass, turmeric, lime and dates integrate into marvelous tastes.

Sama Sama adds a 20% gratuity to all checks to provide the highest living wage for all employees, a move we applaud. Service is top notch and so is employee morale. The owners aim to break barriers and make memories, to make date nights romantic and to affirm you when it’s your day to treat yourself.