Daniel Kim, a veteran of restaurants including the Restaurant at Meadowood, Providence, and Hibi, has turned his attention to the Central Coast with Monte’s, a Korean- and California-influenced restaurant in Montecito. Situated in the bungalow overlooking
Coast Village Road that used to house Bar Lou, the restaurant feels lived-in with fresh flower–adorned tables, rich brown banquettes, and a roaring fire pit at the center of the garden-like patio. Endwell Hospitality, the group behind Monte’s, also operates regenerative farm Rincon Hill, which guides the restaurant’s menu. Kim’s fine dining background comes through as he transforms microseasonal produce into dishes such as bluefin tuna and sungold tomatoes bathed in shiro dashi and tomato water to scoop into crispy nori chips and itachi cucumber bedded on perilla yogurt that plays like a Korean tzatziki. At just a few months old, Monte’s already feels established in what it hopes to grow into: a neighborhood restaurant that explores both its Korean and California identities with a sharp eye for layering flavors and a welcoming dining room just as appropriate for special occasions as it is for family dinners with kids.
What to order
- Itachi cucumbers from Rincon Hill Farm nestle onto a bed of yogurt dotted with peppery perilla and a drizzle of acidic kimchi vinaigrette. The combination feels like a rush of cool air on a breathlessly hot day: herbaceous yogurt dip clings to the refreshing, crisp cucumber. If you somehow have any yogurt left after finishing the cucumber, add an order of Oat Bakery sourdough to scoop up the remnants.
- Crudo often feels overplayed on California menus, but Monte’s rendition takes a novel approach to the ubiquitous and frequently uninspired dish. Hunks of ruby bluefin tuna swim in a saline shiro dashi and tomato water broth. A side of crinkled nori chips gives the effect of eating ceviche with salty tostadas.
- The corn pancake makes the most of sweet summer corn: a crispy fried fritter studded with yellow kernels gets a dusting of kimchi powder that leaves a trail of bright-red flakes. The result? A touch of acidity and pleasantly fermented funk.
- Monte’s must have heard 2026 is the year of the cabbage. Smoked shiitake XO, an umami-heavy spin on the Hong Kong sauce, crowns coal-roasted cone cabbage, which absorbs the smoky flavor. A creamy bed of tofu puree rests beneath it, while hazelnuts add a slightly sweet crunch that complements fall-apart-tender layers of cabbage.
- Pork katsu, coated in light-as-air puffed rice, is worth the trip to Monte’s alone. A slab of tender fried pork arrives golden brown, topped with a tangle of cone cabbage slaw and a pleasantly bittersweet Korean mustard sauce. A smear of verdant wasabina, a mustard green, sits on the plate for those who want an extra spicy vegetal kick.
- Grilled short rib gets served like a steak with a dark-brown crust and pink interior. A selection of ssam, including local lettuces and perilla leaves, accompanies the meat, plus a shallow bowl of well-fermented, salty ssamjang that you will come back to with every bite.
- Mushroom bibimbap — made with Rincon Hill mushrooms — makes an ideal side for any of the mains: meaty mushrooms and gochujang rest on a bed of sticky koshihikari rice.
- Monte’s doesn’t have a written dessert menu but serves a handful of options. Recently, the restaurant has served carrot cake, sourdough beignets, and a melon sorbet, the latter of which tastes like the reprieve of an ice-cold Melona bar on the hottest day of summer.
To drink
Monte’s serves a generous selection of wine by the bottle from regions including Burgundy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, the Willamette Valley, and Santa Barbara, plus a handful of sparkling, chilled red, and whites by the glass. Prices per five-ounce glass range from $14 to $22, while an eight-ounce carafe starts at $21. A Pence chilled pinot noir and gamay blend from the Santa Rita Hills was a favorite on a recent visit for its balanced, juicy body that didn’t overwhelm the food. For cocktails, the Garden Party, a take on a martini, tastes like biting into a sungold tomato at peak ripeness.
Insider tip
Monte’s hosts a farmers market on its patio every Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. with produce from Rincon Hill Farm.
The takeaway
Farm-to-table cooking — which was initially popularized by Alice Waters’ Chez Panisse in the 1970s as a rebellious pushback against industrialized farming and, by the early 2000s, defined a generation of restaurants — feels like it’s lost its meaning in many ways. What once signaled more intentional thinking about seasonality and local produce has become a marketing tagline for restaurants and a siren song for a certain type of hipster hangout in the aughts. Monte’s feels like a return to its origins: a menu built around a direct connection to a farm that transforms produce into thoughtful dishes with a resounding point of view.
