We were lucky to have had our wedding reception at El Paseo in June of 2021. Troy and his team were beyond amazing, and we are so grateful to them for making our day so spectacular.

Troy and Alex, the lead chef, planned out our entire evening - and everything was perfect. The decor was stunning, the food was absolutely fantastic, and all staff members were kind + FUN. They truly went above and beyond.

We genuinely cannot recommend El Paseo enough, and we look forward to returning for many, many future dinners.

When looking for a venue my husband and I without a doubt new we wanted to be married in Santa Barbara. We toured almost every venue throughout the city. El Paseo Restaurant was a hidden gem. I stumbled across it on a Pinterest post. I scheduled an appointment right away. We were greeted by Chef Alex. His personality captured us right away. As soon as we walked in we new we wanted to be married there. The courtyard feel and the open ceiling was beautiful. The ambiance was so intimate and had the exact Santa Barbara style we were looking for. Shortly after we met with the Manager Tyr who was so detailed and patient with us. We knew we were in good hands. The day of the wedding they took care of all our vendors and assisted them in setting up. Tyr went above and beyond and made sure before we walked in for the first time that we tried all the appetizers that were served at cocktail hour. I mention that detail because with running the whole show he still made sure we experienced everything we were paying for. My guests still talk about the food. The food was amazing! Everything was so good. We also went with late night bites around 9:00 and those were delicious too. Overall great experience at El Paseo Restaurant.

Choosing to host our wedding at El Paseo was the best decision we could have made! It is a great venue and they are true professionals at hosting events – Tyr is great to work with and he and his team do all of the heavy lifting. I never felt like Tyr was trying to upsell me, they gave me honest and helpful direction in the planning details. I didn’t hire a planner and I really don’t think you need to if you’re throwing your wedding at El Paseo. So many things are included in the venue (tables, chairs, linens, catering, wait staff, bartenders) that reduce the stress of planning, but you can customize the event in a number of ways to make it feel like your own. The food was outstanding – we had a Mexican menu, and even had them cater desserts (delicious churros, crème brulee, etc) instead of having a cake. It’s much better food than the standard restaurant fare they serve. The morning of the wedding, we dropped off our décor with some instructions and when we appeared everything was set up perfectly! We had 100 people at our wedding and I was a little worried it would be too big of a space but they set it up in a way that felt full. At the end of the day, Tyr and his team are total pros at throwing a great party. I think it’s the best value in town, with an amazing very-SB vibe, great food, and they just make it so easy and fun to plan for the wedding there.

We got married at Santa Barbara Courthouse. Then we walked down to the restaurant! The walk was 2 blocks away it was our choice to walk and it was a beautiful day. Tyr the manger was extremely helpful. He handle everything literally everything we didn’t worry stress nothing it was all taken care of by him and the amazing staff. The food 🤤 the most delicious! We had kid plates vegetarian choices etc.. the guest still talk about how great the food was. The restaurant itself we BEAUTIFUL!! We barely had to decorate. It is so cost effective and made wedding planning so easy! I couldn’t of ask for a more beautiful place to have a wedding reception!

Tyr and his team at El Paseo were the best! Super easy to communicate with, flexible, and great value for the space.

I seriously loved every minute, don't think twice about booking with him!

The food here is out of this world! If you're a foodie or just want some amazing Mexican food for your reception, this is the place for you! Chef Alex was very excited when we met and basically told us he'd cook whatever we wanted, even if it wasn't on the online menu or a regular dish. Tyr, the coordinator, was a pleasure to work with. He set our minds completely at ease from day one that everything at the restaurant, from the time we arrived to the time we left, would be taken care of, and he delivered. For the incredible food and service this place provides - not to mention the historic and beautiful setting that captures Santa Barbara so completely - El Paseo is an absolute steal at their asking price.

Our reception was so much fun! El Paseo's aesthetic provides a great foundation for the perfect wedding ambiance.

Tyr, the Events Manager, is a top notch, experienced professional. I highly recommend considering El Paseo, especially if you are planning your own wedding, like I did.

Tyr is a clear communicator, and very patient. I'm pretty sure I asked him the same questions multiple times as I went through the planning process and he was always amiable in answering. The venue comes with almost everything you will need for your special day, including choices of table cloths/napkins, a sound system, twinkly lights etc.

The food prepared for events is off menu from El Paseo's standard fare and was noticeably tastier and unique.

The staff will set up all of the tables, acclimate other vendors that drop off stuff or arrive before the reception (think cake delivery and DJ/MC) so you don't have to worry about those things the day of.

The service the day of was great. Our guests had a fabulous time. The only oddity was that the staff mixed up some name cards and tables. We left them a map and clear guide so I'm not sure how this happened. Close family members were put at a table with business colleagues, a few name cards were never brought out, but it ended up that friends were made at the mixed up tables so I suppose it happened for good reason, in the end!

We can't say enough about how amazing our wedding reception was, thanks in large part to El Paseo. Tyr, the manager, is so warm and genuine, very helpful and knowledgeable (he has done a million wedding receptions and tons of other events), and is really responsive. Alex, the incredible chef, has cooked for three presidents, is so friendly and very talented. Because I'm celiac, they made everything minus a couple of desserts gluten free and provided meat and vegetarian options that were all so delicious! We had so much fun at the tasting, and Alex was so nice to come out and talk to us during it. Everything was perfect at our wedding, and people kept coming up to us saying how much they loved the food. We also decided to have them provide our dessert since we wanted creme brulée instead of cake. So they gave us a packaged deal of 4 desserts so that people could choose between creme brulée, cheesecake, churros (fun for kids), or chocolate mousse. The best part: for our sweetheart table, they delivered some of everything for us so we didn't even have to choose! In addition to the food is the perfect downtown SB location and beautiful atmosphere of El Paseo. It's like a little enclosed courtyard with a magical glow from the white lights that come on at night. The Spanish mission style adds to the aesthetics, as does the fountain and the title in the built in bar area. It was the perfect amount of space for our group of about 100. I could go on but I'll just end with this: book this place - you will be thrilled that you did!

We recently hosted our wedding reception at El Paseo and we cannot recommend it enough! We hosted 130 guests for a formal plated dinner and everything was perfect - the food, the service, the space, the lighting, the sound system, the dance floor, the bar, the price, and on and on! We worked with the manager Tyr and head chef Alex and both did a fantastic job making the food and service at our reception outstanding. Tyr and his crew set up for us and made sure the service was impeccable and the night went smoothly. Chef Alex did an excellent job with the food and created a custom appetizer from one of my husband's original recipes. We were also told by multiple guests that it was the best food they had ever had at a wedding! We agree! El Paseo feels like it was made to host wedding receptions. I don't think you can beat El Paseo for the value you get as a wedding reception spot. Thank you to Tyr, Chef Alex, and the entire staff at El Paseo for such wonderful memories!

We considered El Paseo Restaurant as the venue for our wedding reception

because it was more convenient than renting a site and then having to get a caterer,

party/event rentals, etc. We also considered it because of the positive reviews we had

seen on various websites. We met with the manager, Tyr, and knew, at that first meeting

with him, that this was the venue for us. Tyr, in his quiet, efficient, professional manner,

explained everything to us at those initial meetings (like 10-11 months ahead of the

wedding date), and everything went exactly according to what he told us. No unpleasant

surprises and we ended up saving a lot of money doing it here. Guests loved the venue

with its historical and architectural significance and, of course, its Santa Barbara charm.

And they also raved about the food that Chef Alex prepared—even our very discerning

Persian relatives from Brentwood! We are soooo happy we chose this beautiful, quaint

spot for our wedding reception.