I love Santa Barbara. I love Goleta. I love Isla Vista. This weekend, a group of us went up to Santa Barbara for a bachelor party, and it was incredibly fun. There was golf, there was the beach, there was food, there was a lot of drinking, there was [censored]… there were stories that can not be repeated outside of the group, which is the sign of a really, really good weekend.

As my blog-compatriot Tony Pierce will also attest, Isla Vista is just as laid-back and awesome as when I used to live there. It suffers greatly from the loss of the single best burriot joint on the West Coast, T.A.’s; but, Woodstocks is still there to hold up the average. In the hour or two we were hanging out, rockets blasted into the air over DP, and hundreds of bikers careened through the streets with the blaring of air horns, screams, and the waving of 6-packs on their way to jump off the pier. There was a marooned pirate skulking down Embarcadero, leering at young college girls, and Aaaargh’ing for all he was worth. Without even thinking, we walked down the middle of the street as always, the sidewalks in IV being the cleanest, most pristine, and most un-used in the world.

It was a truly beautiful thing.

Also, for the record: Tommy’s (in LA), though worthy of some measure of respect and admiration, holds nary a candle to the majesty of The Habit in Goleta. I ate lunch there almost every Sunday for 3 years, and it still reigns supreme. Always a line, always a local favorite, always worth going off your diet (if applicable) for. Though now a moderate chain, the original is still where you must go.

.: Lesser known movie prequels. My favorite? Four Bachelorette Parties and a Friend in the Hospital