bouchon santa barbara

the concept

I created bouchon to reflect my image of fine dining— the freshest ingredients, prepared with care. Excellent wines that reflect the quality and character of our region and work in concert with the cuisine. Warm, inviting ambience, service at a relaxed, leisurely pace.

the food

We source all of our ingredients using an ‘as-fresh-and-as-local-as-possible’ approach, with fish from the Santa Barbara Channel, produce from the surrounding countryside and meats and poultry from local micro-ranches. You’ll taste a difference.

the wine

We believe that Santa Barbara is producing some of the finest California Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah. Other locally produced varietals will surprise you with their quality, variety and approachability. On the last page of the wine list you will find a page of forty or so Santa Barbara wines that we feature by the glass. Please ask your server for recommendations on how any of them may match up with your dinner selections. Bon Appètit!

Mitchell Sjerven, Proprietor

r andom details:

Dinner Nightly from 5:30 pm
we gladly prepare vegetarian items
bouchon santa barbara opened Bastille Day 1998
a non-mandatory gratuity of 20% may be added to tables of 6 or more
private dining in the cork room available for groups of 10 – 20 pp
corkage is $25./750 ml (not permitted for groups of ten or more)
bouchon means wine cork in French
restaurant-quality catering for intimate dinner parties
we shop year-round at the Farmer’s Market

With wife, Amy, daughters Madeline and Caroline, Mitchell has been a Santa Barbara resident since 1985.

Brandon Hughes developed his passion for cooking as a result of growing up in a major metropolitan area. He was influenced by the restaurant culture, diversity and availability of excellent produce and interesting foods from around the world that a large city can offer. "My mom can definitely cook," says Chef Hughes, "but ours was a family that loved to dine out." Growing up in LA "any occasion at all was an excuse to try an exciting new restaurant or visit those we loved to frequent," says Hughes. Submerged in a society of 'foodies' and surrounded by family, Brandon says he "found himself inspired by, and gravitated towards, Chefs who pursued creative culinary trends while still 'respecting the essence of the ingredients' they used."

Hughes came to Santa Barbara in 2001 to attend Santa Barbara City College's School of Culinary Arts while simultaneously working in area restaurants. He honed his skills working with chefs Jeremy Tummel at Epiphany and then Wine Cask as well as Josh Brown at bouchon, where he worked as Sous Chef. Those four years at bouchon, in particular, allowed Hughes to develop relationships with local farmers and fisherman that continue to flourish as a result of bouchon's market-to-table approach.

Now, as leader of the team at bouchon since 2007, Chef Hughes carries on the tradition of wine country cuisine that bouchon pioneered in Santa Barbara in 1998. "I believe without question that the 'as-fresh-as-possible' approach we use at bouchon has led to the success of both this restaurant and my own development as a chef," Brandon states. "Our guests can tell the difference that sourcing fresh, local ingredients makes. And letting those ingredients speak for themselves allows me to create menus that are memorable, says Hughes. "My ultimate goal is to produce food guests crave."

As featured on ‘FoodNation’ with Bobby Flay (June 8, 2005)

Yield: 4 main dishes

White Beans

2 cups dried white beans, (soaked in 2 quarts water overnight)

½ cup white onion, diced

3 ea. cloves of garlic

to taste olive oil

to taste salt & pepper

to taste butter

Oven-roasted tomatoes

10 ea. Roma tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise

3 tbsp garlic, minced

2 tbsp parsley, Italian

2 tbsp olive oil

Preparation:

ä Making the Muscatel vinegar reduction: Reduce over medium heat until one cup remains.

ä Making the white bean purée: Cook soaked beans in simmering pot of water with onion and garlic until soft. Strain and let moisture drain out in a warm place. Blend in food processor until smooth, slowly adding butter & olive oil. Season to taste and keep warm until ready to serve.

ä Roasting the Tomatoes: Sprinkle garlic and parsley on top of halved Roma tomatoes. Drizzle with olive oil, place in oven and let roast on a low oven setting for approximately 3-4 hours around 140°.

ä When ready to serve: Coat exterior of Ahi with herbs de Provençe and coarse salt mixture. On very hot skillet, in 3 tbsp oil, sear fish on all sides (approx. 30 seconds per side) by turning to ‘crust’ the exterior of the fish and yet keep the light purple center rare. Next, sauté some greens, asparagus or haricots verts to serve. Place mound of white bean purée just off-center on plate, slice albacore into slices and fan out around white bean puree. Add roasted tomatoes and drizzle muscatel reduction around plate and serve.

For the Sauvignon Blanc lover this dish presents wonderful possibilities. With an abundance of herbs, veggies and fish the Brander ‘Au Natural’ (Santa Ynez Valley) is a perfect match. Lots of acid, no oak and ready to take on this dish with zest. Those who go straight to Pinot Noir with fish these days, however, won’t be disappointed. Tuna is particularly well-suited to the earthy strains of Santa Barbara County pinots. Try the Fiddlehead, Clos Pepe or melville (Santa Rita Hills) for some wonderful wines that are earthy and fruity, but too ripe.

A simple, yet delicious recipe for mouth-watering chocolate cake. Because of the simplicity of this dish, the highest quality chocolate and farm fresh eggs, if at all possible, are desired.

Serve with coconut ice cream (or another that sounds good to you!) and sprinkle with crushed macadamia nuts.

If desired, individual cakes can be prepared in advance and refrigerated overnight. Bake 15 minutes if chilled. If you do not have individual china ramekins aluminum muffin tins will do.

4. Honey-Mustard marinated Santa Ynez Venison

§ Marinate venison: 24 hours in advance in 2 tablespoons honey, 3 cups port and 3 tablespoons whole grain mustard.

§ To make sauce: cook port until reduced by half, or until you have a thick, syrupy consistency. Then add beef stock and reduce again by ¾. Add cranberries to sauce to plump them. Finish sauce with honey and butter, set aside and keep warm until serving.

§ Simmer barley: 15 minutes in water. Drain and set aside. ‘Caramelize’ onions (sauté at very low temperature in olive oil) until translucent. Add to cooked barley. Set aside and keep warm.

§ Cooking Venison: Coat venison with kosher or coarse salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Sear venison evenly, rolling in pan one quarter per turn so to as preserve an even cooking temperature and a beautiful dark purple ‘eye’ in the center of the loin.

§ Plating: Place large mound of barley in the center of plate Cut venison against the grain in thin (¼-inch thick) slices, fanning out on top of barley mound. Drizzle sauce around mound, sprinkle crushed hazelnuts on green beans or legume of choice.

Note: You can order venison locally in the Santa Barbara area from Lazy Acres or Shalhoob Deli.

5. Tarte Tatin

Ingredients:

(when in season, feel free to substitute peaches— firm, so as to not add too much moisture-- or pears)

(Puff pastry often comes in standard 10” x 15” sheets. It can be purchased in the frozen food section, Pepperidge Farms is a widely available brand. You’ll need enough to cover either one 12” skillet or ten individual 3-4” molds)

Preparation:

q Make caramel in a medium-sized sauce pan, stirring sugar with a wooden spoon until it begins to caramelize. Carefully & slowly add red wine with a measuring cup avoiding steam. Stir until liquids are combined, then carefully and slowly add cream (adding cold liquid will create steam). Add butter a quarter at a time and continue to stir until caramel is brown and ‘pourable’. Will make enough for 10 individual ‘tarte tatin’ or a large one.

q Slice fruit into ¼”-thin wedges, set aside. Pour caramel into molds (individual ramekins or shallow china ‘cappuccino’ cups work very well) and set aside. When ready to bake, place apples on top of caramel and bake for approx 15 minutes at 350°.

q At the same time, use a ramekin as a ‘cookie cutter’ and create individual puff pastry ‘tops’.

Roasted Tri-color Beet & Baby Carrot Salad

Oregano vinaigrette:

Salad ingredients:

Muscatel Vinegar

4. Honey-Mustard marinated Santa Ynez Venison

Venison leg, boned (dinner for two)

5. Tarte Tatin

Ingredients:

Preparation: