On the Menu

October 17, 2024

Everything I ate on my 31-hour Amtrak journey

By Rosalia D'Acquisto

Yes, you read that correctly, 31 whole hours on a train! I discovered Amtrak’s Coastal Starlight route via TikTok and I was instantly intrigued. My roommate Sophia is originally from Seattle and she invited me to come ...

October 17, 2024

Maria’s Tacos: bringing authentic Mexican flavors and community to Isla Vista

By Nina Timofeyeva

Since opening in June 2023, Maria’s Tacos has been serving authentic and affordable dishes hailing from Mexico to locals and visitors of Isla Vista. The owner, Maria Mayo, shared insights about the restaurant’s origi...

October 10, 2024

Sustainability can start with your morning coffee

By Rosalia D'Acquisto

As one of Isla Vista’s first California Certified Green Businesses, KOZY Coffee sets a fantastic example to other I.V. businesses in considering a sustainable lens within their business environment.

October 10, 2024

Your new favorite fall drink: Café de Olla

By Pihu Jain

The weather recently in Isla Vista has been the harbinger of spooky season: foggy, eerie, the windshields misted with cold, gray air that blankets all, every corner dark and menacing, always looking over your shoulder. A...

October 3, 2024

Summer diaries: bites from the Big Apple

By Rosalia D'Acquisto

As a Type A itinerary girl, I love finding all the best cafes, restaurants and late night bites ahead of traveling. So, if you find yourself wanting to take a bite of the Big Apple, I have the ultimate list for you. 

October 3, 2024

AI in the kitchen

By Nina Timofeyeva

ChatGPT is known for its abilities to give you (mostly) accurate information about nearly everything or to write emails and papers that you don’t want to do yourself. But apart from functioning as your personal secreta...

September 19, 2024

The (Non)Dairy Decision

By Nina Timofeyeva

You’ve entered a cafe for your morning coffee or tea, determined to change your regular order and try something new and spontaneous. But the options overwhelm you like waves in the ocean, and you realize that perhaps y...

September 19, 2024

Sunny San Diego’s rise to national foodie fame

By Rosalia D'Acquisto

I may sound a bit biased when I say that San Diego is truly “America’s Finest City,” as someone who was born and raised there. San Diego is home to 17 miles of breathtaking coastline, sunshine nearly all year round...

August 30, 2024

Getting your greens in: Brat x Kamala cookies at I.V. Drip

By Rosalia D'Acquisto

If you just took a two-month social media cleanse, you are probably quite confused at the “Kamala Brat Summer” videos flooding your TikTok “For You” page. On June 7, 2024, British pop singer Charli XCX released h...

August 30, 2024

Your Next Best Meal is at Poke Theory

By Nina Timofeyeva

In Isla Vista, the most popular restaurants include Woodstock’s, Freebirds, Wingstop and more, which are located in prime, eye-catching spots. Perhaps you’re familiar with these spots already, or maybe there’s a sp...

August 3, 2024

Sunshine, summer and smoothies

By Nina Timofeyeva

It’s sweltering outside and you’re in need of something that will cool you, not only from the outside but the inside as well. There is one solution that remains not only manageable but actually improves the situation...

July 18, 2024

Strawberry Avocado Toast: A Summer Delight

By Pihu Jain

  Whenever I wake to the sweet smell of coffee and a ruckus in the kitchen, it only means one thing: dad is cooking. My father has a flair for the dramatic. Though he is a quiet man, he certainly makes his presence ...

May 30, 2024

Signing off the menu: a reflection of my experience in food journalism

By Abigail Monti

Like any 2020 high school graduate will tell you, trying to find my niche in college was far from easy. As a student athlete, I was lucky enough to live on campus freshman year despite remote instruction, but I still fel...

May 23, 2024

California Strawberry Festival

By Pihu Jain

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of attending the California Strawberry Festival, located in the Ventura County Fairgrounds not more than 45 minutes from UCSB. The festival’s roots can be traced back to 1983, when...

May 23, 2024

Recent food news you may have missed

By Nina Timofeyeva

When I open Apple News+, I often see suspiciously frequent discoveries of new planets and asteroids, what Kim Kardashian wore to her pilates class, and the random actions of Florida men. What I don’t see are the update...

May 16, 2024

Great grub, great taste: Maria’s Tacos has it all!

By Josh Rhodes

To the left of the Chase Bank and the now abandoned building that once housed the famous Study Hall bar on Pardall Road sits Maria’s Tacos: a quiet, underground restaurant in Isla Vista. Typically not busy because of i...