The Boathouse is located at Hendry’s Beach, northwest of Downtown in the Mesa neighborhood. The parking lot is normally packed with cars, which is sort of confusing given the beach isn’t all that great — you’re guaranteed to leave with tar spots on your feet. The Boathouse is your typical beachfront place, serving your typical surf ‘n turf fare. But we’re here to say it’s not just for tourists — although, 6 weeks into our stay here, we probably still qualify as such.
From glancing at Yelp, it looks like breakfast is a great move, but we opted for Happy Hour since we live for those. We went on a Tuesday at 4:00pm (HH is from 3-6, Sunday-Thursday, and Friday from 8pm-close). We had to wait about 20 minutes for a table, which we easily passed with a barefoot stroll along the beach (which is how we can confirm: tar spots guaranteed). We were eventually seated in a tall-top near the parking lot, but every table still has ocean views. The happy hour menu has a lot to offer: standard beer (and hard kombucha!), several cocktails ranging from $6-8, and wine starting at $5. At a place like this, you might expect the house cocktails to be sickly sweet, but the blood orange margarita — complete with salted rim and jalapeño — was one of the best HH cocktails we’ve had anywhere. And we seek out HH cocktails, so that’s saying something.
As for the food, again, it was as you’d expect from such a place – seafood, burgers, lots of fried starters – but the portions were great, and the happy hour prices negated any tourist trap mark-up. We tried the steamed clams, double cheese burger, baja fish tacos, and lobster mac and cheese. Did we need four entrees for two people? No, but that’s what happy hour does to you. Standouts were the burger, which was massive and juicy, complete with delicious grilled onions. People in Santa Barbara might rave about Mesa Burger, but this burger was just as good, bigger, and half the price. I also loved the clams, which rang in at $8.95 for a huge bowl.
But why am I talking about price here, when I should be talking about location? The boathouse is right on the beach. You can see the waves crashing from your table. Even with a shitty cocktail, it’d be worth it. With a $6 blood orange margarita, it’s a must-do.
Oh, and there’s hand sanitizer on every table, which is almost as appreciated as cheap booze these days.
http://www.boathousesb.com/
2981 Cliff Dr, Santa Barbara