With one of the loveliest patio spaces in Montecito, adding lunch to Monte’s already popular Coast Village Road digs seems like a no-brainer. As Matt Kettmann outlined when the restaurant opened in the old Bar Lou space in May, the restaurant is part of Endwell Hospitality’s first endeavor in the area, with the majority of its produce from its very own nearby Rincon Hill Farm, an eight-acre regenerative farm in Carpinteria, which I had the pleasure of visiting this summer.
This group is also working on the ambitious reopening of The Palms in Carpinteria, making the iconic spot into a three-story dining destination, including three concepts within: a casual, DIY grilling spot (like the original Palms’ DIY steak model); a fine-dining, Michelin star–aimed restaurant; and an ocean-view rooftop bar.
While that project is still a work in progress, lunch at Monte’s is happily up and running and I had the pleasure of checking out the new menu last week. Executive Chef Daniel Kim explained that in adding lunch to Monte’s offerings, he focused on the same Korean-Californian culinary vision and ingredient-driven philosophy that defines the restaurant’s dinner service — but leaned into his Korean heritage–driven flavors a little more.
For example, the Korean Fried Chicken Sandwich with savoy cabbage kimchi slaw had a lovely light batter on the chicken and a perfectly pillowy bun, which paired perfectly with the tangy sour kick of the kimchi. The Chicken Bulgogi Rice Bowl with ginger-scallion sauce, seasonal vegetables from Rincon Hill farm, and Koshihikari rice was a tasty riff on the standard chicken and rice. They also had a vegetable-forward Rincon Hill Farm Mushroom Rice Bowl with soy mushroom seasoning on offer if meat’s not your thing…