THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED El Cazador del Mar

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED El Cazador del Mar Restaurant Review:

In a city where one can’t throw a stone without hitting a Mexican restaurant, El Cazador del Mar---part of Lucky Gene Montesano’s Santa Barbara restaurant collection---stands out. The food is a step up from typical taqueria fare, but doesn’t stray so far into the vanguard as to be pretentious. Tacos are served as they would be in the homeland: seasoned and grilled meat piled unostentatiously atop a freshly made corn tortilla. For a more complex dish, try the Alaskan halibut, prepared with a Veracruz-style sauce of tomatoes, capers, olives, garlic, olive oil and white wine. Entrées are served with de la holla or refried beans and rice, and piquant salsas come on the side. Monthly tequila dinners are as big a draw as the food. Indeed, for many locals, tequila is the appeal, all 80-plus labels. The bar stocks everything from Sauza Plata to Chinaco Añejo, which runs $40 a shot. Montesano imbues all of his local restaurants with conviviality. And this is no exception. The Spanish-style courtyard evokes an idealized Old Santa Barbara of dashing dons and dark-eyed señoritas. Parking is at a premium around De la Guerra Plaza, which, given the tequila menu, may be a good thing: consider taking a cab.