Santa Barbara City College's JSB Cafe is back in business after sitting closed for six years, giving students in the school's culinary program a working kitchen again and giving the public a new lunch spot on the Cliff campus. The cafe, located at 721 Cliff Drive next to the John Dunn Gourmet Dining Room, is open Monday through Thursday from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., with Friday reserved for pizza made until it runs out.
The reopening was formally announced on Wednesday, with the college saying the JSB Cafe is now open and ready to serve students, faculty, staff, and members of the community, according to the Santa Barbara Independent. The cafe shut down during the COVID years and stayed closed through a remodel of the culinary department, as KEYT reported, and according to Edhat, the gap stretched a full six years before the doors opened again.
A Working Kitchen, Not Just a Lunch Counter
The cafe operates as both a restaurant and a training ground for students in SBCC's School of Culinary Arts, with direction from Chef Roberto Lopez Carrillo, per the Independent's reporting. KEYT notes the project is meant as a pathway to a career in the restaurant business, and students working the floor and line are expected to pick up real-life kitchen experience through their assigned stations and tasks, according to a report from the Channels, SBCC's student news outlet.
Getting back open wasn't simple. The Channels reported that some of the cafe's biggest challenges included being short-staffed in the culinary department, which slowed the hiring process needed to relaunch service. KEYT also reports that you don't have to be a student or a member of the staff to come into the JSB Cafe, meaning off-campus diners are just as welcome as anyone with a campus ID.
What's On the Menu
The JSB Cafe describes itself as a moderately priced, full-service cafe-style restaurant with a choice of indoor or outdoor dining, according to its own listing on the SBCC dining website. The menu leans on fresh, local ingredients and features a selection of freshly prepared sandwiches and salads, daily specials, and other entrees, per the same source.
Signature items include the Classic Caesar Salad, starting at $11.95, the Pacific Rim Chicken Salad with napa cabbage, snow peas, cashews, and mandarin oranges for $15.95, and the Chopped Salad, also $15.95. Salad dressing options run to ranch, sesame, and caesar. On the sandwich side, diners can order the Cali Club for $14.95, the El Cubano Panini, and the Chicken Pesto Panini, with sandwiches and burgers generally priced between $13.95 and $15.95 according to the SBCC menu page.
Burger fans can get the Classic JSB Burger or the Vaquero Burger, built with grass-fed beef, bacon, and caramelized onions, also listed at $15.95. All sandwiches and burgers come with Cajun-seasoned or garlic-rosemary fries, and customers may substitute fresh fruit, a cup of soup, or a side salad instead. The soup of the day runs $7.50, and sides range from $4 to $6.50.
Getting There and Placing an Order
Menu items and availability are subject to change, and guests are encouraged to ask about specific dietary needs, the Independent noted in its report. The cafe is not accepting phone orders at this time, per SBCC's own dining page, so walk-ins are the way to go for now.
SBCC parking is limited, and the college is asking community members to use sustainable means of travel such as carpooling, biking, walking, or Santa Barbara MTD. Looking further ahead, KEYT reports that the campus's John Dunn Gourmet Dining Room, also closed since 2020, is expected to be ready in February to serve two nights a week, though that timeline has not yet been confirmed as complete.
