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Rare Society - Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA

Rare Society - Santa Barbara

4.6 (18)
$50 and over
Steakhouse
214 State St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Make a reservation

2 people
10:00 PM
Booked 16 times today

About this restaurant

  • Good for special occasions
  • Great for creative cocktails
  • Fancy
Sink your teeth into Rare Society - a modern homage to the golden age of the American steakhouse. Chef and owner Brad Wise reimagines vintage upscale dining with a bold, contemporary edge: a wood-fired grill fueled by red oak, an in-house dry-aging program, sustainably sourced seafood, and a progressive cocktail menu that nods to the classics while pushing boundaries. The space hums with energy - smoke curling from the grill, the scent of fire and flavor wafting through the air. It’s easy to picture a Rat Pack-era dinner party in full swing: elegant, indulgent, just a little unruly. Rare Society doesn’t just pay tribute to steakhouse tradition - it revives it, reinvents it, and serves it with just a little bit of swagger.

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Elegant
  • Price
    $50 and over
  • Cuisines
    Steakhouse
  • Hours of operation
    Happy Hour Mon, Wed–Sun 4:00 pm–6:00 pm Dinner Mon, Wed, Thu, Sun 5:00 pm–9:00 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–10:00 pm
  • Phone number
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Smart Casual
  • Executive chef
    Brad Wise
  • Neighborhood
    Santa Barbara
  • Cross street
    Yanonali Street
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Full Bar, Happy Hour, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Wine

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What 18 people are saying

Rare Society - Santa Barbara reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.6
4.6 based on recent ratings
  • 4.5Food
  • 4.7Service
  • 4.6Ambience
  • 4.1Value

NoiseModerate

Loved For

  • California Central Coast

    Hot spot

  • California Central Coast

    Good for special occasions

  • California Central Coast

    Steakhouse

  • Santa Barbara

    Good for groups

  • Santa Barbara

    Hot spot

  • Santa Barbara

    Good for special occasions

  • Santa Barbara

    Lively

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Rare Society in Santa Barbara offers a "great dinner" experience with "amazing food, staff, and atmosphere." The steaks and seafood, such as the grilled artichoke and shrimp scampi, are "delicious," complemented by "phenomenal" desserts like the bananas foster cheesecake. Despite some parking challenges, the attentive service and vibrant decor enhance the dining experience.
18 Reviews
  1. Ron VIP

    Los Angeles10 reviews

    5.0

    Dined 1 day ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Everything was amazing. Maybe the best steakhouse I’ve ever been to. The only thing that surpassed our food was the server and the service. All top notch.

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  2. Armando

    Los Angeles1 review

    5.0

    Dined 3 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Very nice staff and food was cooked perfectly!!!!!

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  3. Libby

    San Francisco Bay Area1 review

    2.0

    Dined 7 days ago

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 1
    Absolutely nothing special about this restaurant. Typical overpriced steak house with friendly but inconsistent service, average food, disco-like setting. Really? No wonder they had reservations for 6 graduation weekend.

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  4. Robert

    California Central Coast1 review

    4.0

    Dined 7 days ago

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 3
    Good food. Good service. Salmon was requested medium but was rare in the middle. Needed Old Bay seasoning in the blue crab dip. Very expensive. Even the second tray of baguette for the crab dip was extra $.

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  5. Geniya

    Unspecified5 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on June 15, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Fabulous food selection and attentive staff. We had a great time celebrating son’s graduation. Definitely coming back.

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  6. Priscella

    Unspecified1 review

    5.0

    Dined on May 31, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Amazing food, staff, and atmosphere! The rolls, executive, and mashed potatoes were absolutely delicious!

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  7. Eric

    California Central Coast56 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on May 22, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Great service from all the team that came into our dinner. Dinner was well executed and tasted great. From steaks to fish very tasty.

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  8. Karla Iris

    Orange County3 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on May 19, 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Food was delicious, servers were great and attentive even though they were short staffed our service was great. The only thing that I will suggest is that the rare society website update the parking situation, it wasn’t until we got there that we had to deal with it, the parking lot in the back is very small so if you find a spot you are lucky, we didn’t find any so we went to the front expecting the other parking lot that was empty to be okay but that parking lot ended being the next door restaurant parking lot so we had to go find parking at the train station after asking the host were else could we park. It took us 15-20 minutes to end up parking, it would be helpful to list that on the website. Also I didn’t see online that the reservations for dinner start at 5 and if you get there a couple minutes early you have to go to the bar until 5 in the dot, I don’t really mind but I think these details should be listed on the website. Everything else was amazing!

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  9. Greg VIP

    Los Angeles76 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on May 17, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Great food, but rather expensive. They had some gluten-free options. The best was lobster mash.

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  10. Jennie VIP

    Los Angeles37 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on May 16, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    great dinner and great service ! thank you we had such a great time celebrating my birthday. We ordered so many things. Our favorite was the grilled artichoke and the desserts were phenomenal. We ordered three different kinds! We ordered the banana fosters cheesecake, the crème brûlée, and also had the yummy butter cake. The steaks were delicious and the shrimp scampi was amazing! We look forward to coming back.

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FAQs

Rare Society - Santa Barbara is rated 4.6 stars by 18 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

  1. Home
  2. United States
  3. California Central Coast
  4. Santa Barbara
  5. Santa Barbara

Make a reservation

2 people
10:00 PM
Booked 16 times today
Google Map for Rare Society - Santa Barbara

214 State St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Additional information

  • Cross street
    Yanonali Street
  • Neighborhood
    Santa Barbara
  • Hours of operation
    Happy Hour Mon, Wed–Sun 4:00 pm–6:00 pm Dinner Mon, Wed, Thu, Sun 5:00 pm–9:00 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–10:00 pm
  • Price
    $50 and over
  • Cuisines
    Steakhouse
  • Dining style
    Casual Elegant
  • Dress code
    Smart Casual
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive chef
    Brad Wise
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Full Bar, Happy Hour, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Wine
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