Intermezzo Bar + Cafe

My husband and I went in for an early dinner and I’m so glad we did. I’m pretty picky when it comes to certain salads and when they didn’t have anything I liked I was bummed but my husband ordered the house salad and it was delicious! Butter lettuce, peaches, pistachios and a light vinaigrette. One of the best salads I’ve ever had. We both ordered burgers and they were some of the best burgers ever. The meat was cooked to perfection, fresh ingredients and the pickle was awesome. The fries were really good and the service was great too. If we visit SB again were def coming back!

Drinks were good, food was not. We ordered a flatbread which was absolutely tasteless. The appetizers, i.e. waffels and onion rings, were just about average. Their wines and desserts are great though. Do try the bread pudding.

I’ve been coming to Intermezzo since its opening and I still love the ambiance and drinks. They’ve nailed causal elegance with dark wood accents, leather chairs, sharply dressed staff in all black and dim lighting. Service is usually spot on. Trevor — is a stand out employee. Whether he is behind the bar or working the floor he is attentive, personable and makes an exceptional cocktail. My go-​to drinks are the Bee’s Knees, Cucumber Martini, El Salud (fave), and Barney Shrubble. They also carry fabulous wines by the bottle or glass. Try the Margarum Rose on a hot day and be refreshed.
Where I feel Intermezzo can improve is the food. The quality and quantity has diminished over the years, while the prices have increased. A few years ago, I feel like they could get away with that before places like the Black Sheep, Good Lion, Lark, etc were around. But now, there are just too many options for great cocktails and great food to settle for Intermezzo. Santa Barbara can do better than this. On my most recent visit I was so disappointed in the Ahi Tartare which was once one of my favorite starters at Intermezzo. Unfortunately it had evolved into a tiny tablespoon of ahi, pressed into a circle standing about a centimeter tall with three flecks of taro chip to scoop with. Imagine a single tortilla chip broken into three pieces and stuck in the dish, that’s about the size of the taro flecks in my order. Oddly enough, as small as the taro pieces were it was nearly enough to scoop up all of the tuna because the portion was so small. Also disappointing was the Chicken Curry Salad. While I was entertained going on a scavenger hunt for actual chicken in the chicken salad, that did nothing to satisfy my appetite. There was more celery, mayo and lots of nutrient-​less iceberg lettuce than anything. I also would not recommend the Chicken & Waffles — dry, dry, dry with little flavor, Steak Bites — meh, Mussels — no longer on the menu (but they were wonderful when they were served in that garlic sauce with grilled bread — not so much when they changed it to Thai Green Curry Sauce.)
My final conclusion? Intermezzo provides a lovely atmosphere and fabulous drinks. It is excellent for a pre-​dinner libation or after dinner night cap. However, gone are the days where you can enjoy drinks and a fabulous meal. Just has the food took a turn for the worse in my experience, I’m sure it can easily u-​turn for the better with a little improvement on the menu. We’ll be back for drinks though not likely when we’re hungry unless we’re in the mood to roll the dice.

Intermezzo had my eyes on their 4.5 for weeks. I was waiting for a detailed review of their burgers to grant me visitation rights. As weeks turned into months I opted towards assigning myself the duty of helping myself.
The Spot
Shadowy, cozy and intimate. Yet casual enough to have Jordan’s and jeans go unnoticed.
Service
Trevor does a good job at adjusting to fit in at the table. His attention sprouted well through out my meal. His knowledge about the drinks should be respected.
THE BURGERS
Cask Burger: Grilled a little too far. As this was the case for both, I’m not sure if that’s their ideal medium? Burger wasn’t the greatest, although the caramelized onions would have complimented a better cooked burger nicely and the aioli was a positive as well. ³⁄₅
Riviera Burger: The bacon couldn’t do much here. Over cooked, 2.25÷5
THE FRIES
Truffle fries and the Intermezzo fries were both tried. The basic necessities won me over in the fry department, have them sprinkle the sea salt and parsley to accompany the cask burger for a decent burger/​fry pairing. 3.5÷5
Drinks
I tried two drinks here the one I’d have again is the «Bee’s knees», if mother nature had a drink, this would be it. ⁴⁄₅
Recommendation?
The atmosphere is nice and inviting, the uniqueness of the drinks makes this a decent bar stop, the burgers? Everyone has an off night, maybe share one with your love interest, it’s worth that risk but anything more is too much of one.

Great service, incredible food. Get the brussel sprouts. Absolutely blew my mind with those things!

I wish we had more time to actually dine here — we just stopped by for a glass of wine, and loved the ambiance, service and food menu! Definitely on our booklist for next visit!

Intermezzo, the Wine Cask’s little sister is, as always, amazing. So why you ask, only 4 stars? Because of the sulphur tasting water they serve. I know water quality has degraded due to changing sources (no more Cachuma water for SB) but why not add a reverse osmosis with a carbon filter like most people have in their homes? PLEASE!

GREAT GREAT service! Great vibe! It is like eating with your family, who is really fun!

Excellent food, and excellent service. The drinks are awesome too. I got the Parmesan cauliflower, filet mignon steak bites, and the burger with Parmesan fries. The Barney shrubble drink is delicious, I had two. The atmosphere is very nice, good for a date night or girls night out (what I did) and Trevor is the best server! I would go back for sure.

Their truffle fries is amazing! And if you like meat and cheese, definitely get the charcuterie platter

I really wanted to like this place. Our server Trevor was great. Knew the menu very helpful.
The execution out of the kitchen was inconsistent. I had the calamari taste was ok the amount of garlic was more than i like. The aoli had a heavy mayonnaise taste that over powered everything else. It felt like it was called in.
The crispy chicken on the other hand was brilliant. The potatoes where smooth and creamy they added added something that I couldn’t figure out that just brought the dish together. The chicken was white meat that can go dry if you don’t watch how its cool. Moist to the last bite — but the skin on top was perfect. It had that signature crunch with a hint of seasoning. Perfect. The dinner entrée was clearly made with love and care.
I next had the apple tart. At this point the meal was trending up and doing it fast. Then the apple tart with ice cream. Not a successful dish. First the ice cream was either sherbet or icey ice cream. The apple puck on top of the pasty tasted like bad tasting apples. While they removed it from my bill — it was just bad. I took a couple of bites but just could not finish.
All in all i’d give this place other shot only because the dinner entrée was so good. Clearly brilliance can come out of the kitchen.

A hidden treasure and the über attentive Trevor was a great waiter. Very accommodating and fun! Cute date place, uncrowded, but intimate. A must try! Love the appetizers, the lilac crème brûlée and their specialty cocktails are fun, and not super sweet.
C’mon, walk off State Street to the next street over and check out Intermezzo! Someone called it «expensive,» it’s not. Moderate prices and GREAT service!

Great food!
Great drinks! Trevor is amazing!
Love the ambiance here… warm & intimate!

Glad they were open on a Monday!
I was looking forward to dining here as our last stop after wine tasting.
Great little tapas.
Great wine and beer. Didn’t try a cocktail but they looked awesome.
Sat by the fireplace with a lovely view of the patio, bar, and the whole restaurant.
We were definitely the youngest in here. Really an elderly crowd.
Expensive
Calamari– just alright
Burger– delish.
I would come happily come back.

My wife and I stopped in here to have a nice dinner. When we arrived, we were seated quickly, and quickly the waiter came over to get things started.
The atmosphere in here is great. It is the perfect wine/​tapas bar. We ordered a few things to share, and some drinks. The food was amazing. I’ve never had fries as good as they served (Parmesan truffled fries). There are no negatives on the food, only positives.
A really interesting thing they do is wine on tap. I laughed when I saw it on the menu, thinking it was a joke, but they actually have the wine on a tap. I found this unique, and the wine itself was quite good.
Overall I absolutely recommend this place. It can get pricey if you aren’t careful, but hey, the food is definitely worth it.

Intermezzo is a *wonderful* little spot located in downtown Santa Barbara, about a block down from State Street right across from the Post Office.
I’ve been dying to give this place a try since I read Kry K’s great Unilocal about it. When the wife and I made plans to have a mini-​vacation a week or so ago in SB, this spot was on our list of must-try’s. Let me start by saying this: I completely agree with Kry K in that I almost didn’t want to post a review because I kinda don’t want it to get so popular that it gets crowded; but still, singing its praises is the right thing to do.
They have both indoor and outdoor seating as well as a full bar inside, along with an attached wine tasting room next door. Seating both in and out is comfy. We took our dinner outside to enjoy the balmy SB The wife ordered a dinner sized chicken club sandwich and I ordered their Cask Burger with Swiss instead of cheddar along with a salad. Our dining companion, a fellow Unilocaler from the SB area, ordered a dinner salad with a cerviche-​like ahi poke appetizer. We paired our meals with glasses of local wine.
Our meals were wonderful! Wifey and companion loved their food and I simply adored my burger. Thick, juicy, perfectly cooked and seasoned on a soft bun. Eat bite was a ticket on the Yumtrain to Yumville! The salads were great too. A lovely mix of greens with a light balsamic dressing. Wife and I actually devoured it all as opposed to just grazing.
The service was great. Our server, Tyler, was polite, attentive and very helpful in his suggestions. He helped make our experience that much more enjoyable.
When our dinner ended, our dining companion parted from our company and wifey and I decided to go inside to enjoy a drink and some dessert. Within we found an inviting dining space. It’s intimate without being crowded; with room to socialize and enjoy the lovely ambiance. There’s even a fireplace to add to the place’s.
We sat at the rather spacious bar and wifey had a Lemon Drop while we both shared a chocolate lava cookie. Both were incredible!
As far as prices go; I thought it was quite reasonable. Yes, it’s a little pricey but not by SB standards by any means and what’s important is you get the quality you pay for. It’s no more expensive than a nice night out anywhere else. Their menu isn’t extensive but their selection of salads, burgers, flatbreads and unique creations make dining here a fun experience that we look forward to experiencing each time we’re in town. As a side note… just being a block down from State Street really makes a difference to the «vibe» of the area; close enough to be in the middle of it all but detached enough to be away from the main hustle and bustle of downtown.
Needless to say… the wife and I have found a new favorite spot to chill at in the «US Riviera».

Love this place. One half has more formal tables, the other has big leather couches.
We chilled on the couches and ordered the coconut milk mussels, Italian meatballs, calamari, truffle fries and three desserts — the awesome apple tart, the standard warm choc chip cookie and the original pnut butter n jelly lava cake.
Everything was superb. Not surprising as the owners also own Bouchon.
Service was top notch.

We were in SB for a wedding and wanted to get lunch on State street. Our Über driver recommended this place and I’m so glad she did because it was a perfect meal.
We knew we were in for a weekend of wine so we decided on local beers by fig mtn and Telegraph. For lunch, we shared the heirloom salad and Riviera burger.
The heirloom salad was a treat for any tomato lover with the tomato done three ways. The consommé was served in a little shot glass to sip on in between bites. The riviera burger was made with wagyu beef and I was so delighted when I saw that it was actually medium rare!
The bartender was great and knew his stuff. He steered us in the way of a few wine tasting bars next door!

Intermezzo has been a favorite of mine for years.
Upscale, elegant and intimate. A full service bar featuring temperature-​controlled wines on tap, a cozy fireplace setting, a common table and plush outdoor seating.
The menu hosts a plethora of small plates, flatbreads and cheese/​charcuterie which are prepared in the kitchen shared with the Wine Cask. Most of what I have tried was beautifully presented and unique in preparation/​flavor.
This is an establishment that spends a lot of care in their sourcing of ingredients and employment of them. The kitchen is very accommodating and encourages feedback.
This ends up being an after-​dinner dessert spot for me mostly… because of the Butterscotch Pudding. I highly recommend you try this.

Came here for dinner with my boyfriend and was mildly unimpressed.
Service — we walked in and stood unattended to for at least 5 minutes while hostesses/​waitresses passed by without a word. When we finally got seated, we were asked different times by different people whether we had gotten menus, drinks, etc. I don’t think there was enough communication between the servers about who was supposed to be attending our table.
Food — the small plates/​appetizers were pretty interesting. We got ratatouille, which was not the way I pictured it on the Disney movie, but was delicious nevertheless: grilled vegetables seasoned with oil and pepper. Boyfriend got the Thai chicken pizza which he liked and a beer. I got the bone marrow, which I enjoyed but was a little on the oily side.
All in all, mediocre service and decent food that was sadly overpriced. Not sure if I’ll be returning.