Steph C.
Yelp
We had breakfast at Alessia Patisserie & Cafe on the last Saturday of 2023. We went before 9:00 with a large, unwieldy party--six adults and four children under four. It was naive of us to think we might sit together, or even have an easy time sitting at all. The place was small and busy, with a line out the door when we arrived, even on a wet, gloomy day.
In retrospect, it might have been smart to send one or two parents to do a pick-up order, but since we were there, we decided to make the best of it. We had to split up, of course, each family finding its own perch. I'm not sure the cafe is set up for large parties even at less than full capacity. Our family messed up and waited in line to order pastries then sat down in the dining area to order off the menu and eat. Apparently the bakery and cafe are supposed to be separate, and we should have sat and ordered everything from our waiter. She was gracious about it, though, and we just kind of double tipped on our bakery items.
I didn't love the crowd and confusion, I guess, but the place was otherwise charming, and service was friendly and fast on both the bakery and cafe sides. There was no room for a high chair, unfortunately, but our baby did pretty well wedged between me and the corner of our little banquette table, especially when I kept him occupied with food.
He and I shared a tomato pesto danish and a salmon board, and we greatly enjoyed them both. I prefer savory food for breakfast, even when I'm eating pastries, and the danish was lovely. My husband and older son also liked their plain and chocolate croissants--Alessia does excellent pastries, hence that long line. The salmon board was also delicious, with smoked salmon, heirloom tomato, red onion, cornichons, capers, dill cream cheese, Maldon salt, and a Jack's everything bagel (I think it must have come from Jack's Bistro in Carpinteria).
I'd recommend Alessia if you want quality pastries and cafe fare in Santa Barbara. I'm sure we'll be back before long, though next time, we'll probably take our food to go.