Al Fresco Picnic

Stop for lunch here if you’re between Santa Barbara and SLO! You won’t be disappointed! The Italian sandwich I ordered was just wonderful! The bread was soft and chewy, the meats were fresh and flavorful! One downside, it was a rather small 5 or 6 inch sandwich, Had I known I would’ve ordered at least two.

$ 25 for two sandwiches and an Arnold Palmer is pretty high even for this area. For that cost we were honestly expecting decent food and decent service, of which we received neither.
We came in at 1pm on a Tuesday with no one in the restaurant except (who I assume to be) the owner working the front. Friendly enough, and placing our order went quickly. The Arnold-​Palmer we ordered was «off». It just didn’t taste very good but I wrote it off as being the style they serve here.
While we were sitting two other people came in and ordered, which was when we realized the man that was working was the only one working the counter AND making the food. As the minutes ticked by we became more and more annoyed. It is a sandwich place… not a fancy restaurant. There is no reason why food should take longer than 10 minutes to get to our table. It was 20 minutes before we actually got our food. The owner was apologetic but the excuse of «it is hectic» didn’t make any sense. If three customers is «hectic» then its time to hire someone to work the front so you can make the food.
Regarding the food: My wife said the salad tasted gross, but my side of chips were fine. The sandwich were decent but pretty lacking for the price. The portion was fine for a meal but it really didn’t match the price. Basically it was enough for lunch but not enough to have any leftovers. They were slathered in dijon and mayo (as in way to much) and relatively bland. Basically they tasted like something I could have easily have made myself.
Overall we were extremely disappointed in this place especially given the good reviews on here. I know numerous places that charge a lot less for a lot more.

This place is so Rad. Amazing Tri tip sandwich! Cool little stop while heading up the 101, the staff was super nice to

I gotta tell EVERYONE who lives in the Valley and all our visitors, Al Fresco rocks! I had only enjoyed their food at events in the past out of their food service trailer and was always more than satisfied with their delicious offerings!
Today, I was nextdoor at one of the last Radio Shacks on the planet getting a aux cable for my rental car and I decided that I needed lunch. I went into Al Fresco and ordered a Ham & Cheese on Rye & it was just outstanding. I’ll be back soon to have a burger with cheese and Bacon JAM! Wow can’t wait!

Ordered the bacon salad and it was absolutely delicious! Hubby had the pastrami and loved it more than his favorite place in SLO. We will definitely go back if we’re in the area during the week. Sadly, this place is closed on the weekend because they have a gourmet lunch truck.

Just happened to find this gem on our route home from Paso Robles to So Cal… Everything my entire family had was delicious! From the juicy Cheeseburger where you can add your own toppings, to the Pastrami sandwich on fresh rye bread to my BLTA sandwich with fresh local heirloom tomatoes we loved it all. We come up this way a couple times a year and will back back when we do.

Great lunch to go. We had two subs, one pastrami & huge salad. Everyone loved their food & very happy with our choice for lunch. Grabbed Lunch and headed for a beautiful vineyard to sit down & enjoy lunch.

Been here twice and no Tri Tip or brisket available. Had the pastrami, delicious for a second choice. Small but serious about their food!

Good food. My only complaint is the person working there handled my money and then went and made sandwiches without putting gloves on or washing his hands.

I love the food and the owners are super nice well worth the money spend may I recommend the tri tip sandwich so so good

$ 20 to get this «farm to picnic» lunch… Most of what they had was clearly from costco, and we all know that’s NOT farm fresh — especially the salad,… Not so fresh. Bummer because the first time we came it was great– pops made everything up front– this time someone else was making it and kept going in the back– I’m assuming to disguise the lack of farm fresh ingredients. I always love to support local business and mom and pop establishments but they are clearly cutting some corners now– and that’s when I get afraid to eat there again. Sorry guys– just being honest. Also– they may wanna consider another employee cuz it was pretty messy.

Great sandwiches! We stopped here on our way to our favorite winery and ordered
the Italian sub to enjoy with our wine. It was delish! Will definitely stop here again on our next trip!

I love this place! I stopped in here once while passing through Buellton, and I keep coming back! The owner, John, is very personable and takes great pride in what he does. The cheeses and salamis are awesome and not ones I usually see.
I saw the review about the Italian sub and had to try it because I’ve never had anything bad here, and it was GREAT! The ingredients were fresh and I actually had to take it home to finish it. I’m back and forth from Lompoc a lot, and this is my favorite pitstop in-​between. Oh, and they make awesome picnic cheese plates that perfect for sharing with my girlfriend when we go wine tasting!

Found this little gem of a deli during a pitstop in Buelton. What a find! Loved the Al Fresco burger with angus beef, homemade dressing, fresh baby arugula. Be sure to get the bacon jam made in house on it. We also had the special Gianni panini filled with pepper jack, cappocola, salami, mortadella and chose the pasta salad of penne, basil and kalamata olives. The owner was so nice and accommodating, too. It will be a place we will frequent whenever we are in the area for sure.

I was thoroughly unimpressed with this place. It was completely empty when I went in which I would have imagined would have garnered a warm welcome from (what appeared to be) the owner. He seemed to care less that I was bothering to eat there and the place looked like e was running it out if his garage. I understand in a small business, startup funds can be short but this place was a joke. I had a BLt salad which consisted of cheap romaine lettuce, maybe 4 strips of chopped up bacon and the most flavorless tomatoes ever. Totally in satisfying and it was like $ 11 or $ 12. I will not be back.

Had the Cuban sandwich. Very tasty indeed. Next time I’m up this way I’ll try
Something else.

Driving through on the way to Paso Robles and found this great little family owned deli thanks to Unilocal.Great service and AWESOME sandwiches!!! We had the Cuban, which was really good, and the tri-​tip which was OUTSTANDING!!! They smoke or roast all of their meats, the sides are fresh and delicious, and the owner was so nice. I would DEFINITELY recommend this place! The place is a little hard to find because they only have a little sign on the window, but its in the first little strip mall on the right once you turn down Mcmurry Rd.

If you are looking for a really good deli sandwich in the West Santa Ynez Valley, this is a great place. While the service isn’t speedy, the quality and selection of meats and cheeses makes up for it. The owner runs this business and takes great pride in what he creates. I’ve never been disappointed. If you are doing a picnic lunch, take advantage if this one-​stop shop.

Worst place to get a sandwich in Santa Ynez Valley. .
I got a «Cuban» sandwich for $ 9.99 and my lady got an «Italian» sandwich for $ 8.99.
Both of these pathetic sandwiches had next to nothing on them!
The «Italian» was the worst! The lettuce was shredded, old and wilted. You could actually SEE through the cheese! The salami was super commercial too. INEDIBLE!
Not only was there barely any of the dry, tasteless, tough pork on this «Cuban» but it was definitely not Cuban in style with some cheap ham that was just GROSS! I asked for extra cheese on the «Cuban» and I couldn’t see ANY on it!
When ordering, the guy didn’t ask us if we wanted a special type of bread or side.
I randomly won a gift certificate here otherwise I would be PISSED to pay close to $ 22 for some Costco products with stale kettle-​style chips. Only one guy there and he took 20 minutes to make our sandwiches.
Maybe I’ll just use the rest of my gift certificate to get some bulk cheese from this place because I don’t think anything else here is worth it…

If you are headed up to wine country in Solvang and want a perfect picnic lunch delivered to your hotel call Al Fresco Picnic! It is the perfect amount of delicious food to take to your favorite winery after a tasting. When you are done find the perfect picnic spot and break out the food. If you are a party of two try the «Wine Country Picnic». It is perfect blend of deli meats, cheese, olives, nuts and fruit. This will fill you up because it also comes with two mini baguettes. If you need a little more substance I would suggest adding a sandwich from the menu and sharing. This is the perfect amount of food topped off with a bottle of your favorite wine from the winery.
So convenient… So delicious… So perfect!