Oak grilled burger with caramelized onion, blue cheese and house bacon — Photo courtesy of Aron Ives

If you want to know not only what you're eating but also where it comes from...book a table at Anchor Woodfire Kitchen.

If you don't care what you're eating, you just want it to taste good...book a table at Anchor Woodfire Kitchen.

If you want to taste the local flavors of Santa Barbara...make a reservation at Anchor Woodfire Kitchen.

Do you see where this is going?

Chef Tuley prepping the daily wood-grilled whole fish special — Photo courtesy of Aron Ives

Opened in late 2012, Anchor Woodfire Kitchen is a testament to chef Jason Tuley's passion for local flavors and ingredients. Santa Barbara signatures like chanterelle mushrooms, sea urchin and ridge back shrimp dominate the constantly changing daily menus. Also popular are Tuley's house-made charcuterie, ricotta and pickles. And you can't miss the pizza - a wood-burning stove near the center of the restaurant delivers crisp, irregularly shaped pies with a nice, wood-fired flavor.

You can ask any of the staff where your food came from; they'll be happy to tell you. The Anchor website even has a page that lists their purveyors, with categories for farmers, seafood and dairy and meats.

Eggs benedict with local rock crab. Anchor serves locally roasted Handlebar Coffee Roasters coffee — Photo courtesy of Aron Ives

Anchor Woodfire Kitchen is attached to the Hotel Indigo just blocks away from the beach, at the border of Santa Barbara's Funk Zone. Anchor serves breakfast, lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday. Brunch and dinner is served on Sundays. Menus change with the season.

Visit their website to see current offerings (and plan your order). The restaurant tends to be pretty packed in the evenings - even on Mondays - so call ahead or go online for reservations unless you want to wait for a seat at the bar. 

Oh yeah, did we mention there's a bar? Stocked with Santa Barbara wines and premium spirits. How could we forget?