Santa Barbara is known for having really good, really authentic tacos. The kind with no cheese on top, just onions and cilantro and very spicy salsa. If you're used to Americanized Mexican food, they almost seem... bare. The taquerias are hole in the wall, and they're always almost very cheap and have limited menus. But the tacos are so, so amazing.
Many tourists who visit Santa Barbara (and there are a lot), hear about the tacos and go to the one famous spot, La Super Rica, which is well known because Julia Child proclaimed her favorite tacos were there. While their tacos are very good (their homemade tortillas are to die for), there are dozens of other taquerias that are just as good, if not better, and with shorter lines. One national travel writer proclaimed La Super Rica the best taqueria in the United States... until he went to the taqueria a few doors down, and then decided those were the best tacos. Faced with so many choices, I did what any tacos lover would do: try them all.
I'm still working my way through my list (whenever I think I should be done, I find another with a stellar reputation that I just have to try), but I do have a few favorites. My number one, which is perhaps the second most popular after Super Rica, is Lilly's Taqueria. Their meat is perfectly seasoned, and for the more adventurous, they serve beef tongue and eyeballs. Another standout is El Sitio, who has amazing adobado and serves a taco and rice and beans special for $5. Ask any local, however, and they'll give you an earful on the best tacos in town... your stomach might give up before your taste buds do.
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