Tucked into a breezy little space on Carpinteria Avenue, Carp Kitchen & Grocery may seem unassuming, but their bold flavors, meticulous ingredient selection, and high-quality food speaks volumes.
“Everything you eat here — it exceeds your expectations,” Lark Cobb, a nurse who lives around the corner, eagerly told me almost as soon as I walked in the store. I didn’t fully comprehend her zeal until I tried the food. Now I want to return for lunch every day, just like Cobb, and profess my adoration publicly.
“I built this place for me, and I’m inviting everyone to this experience,” explained owner Deb Goldman. She’s crazy about everything they sell, from the black truffle chips, heirloom caprese, and compound garlic herb butter to rare French cheeses and organic Spanish and Portuguese wines. “There’s nothing in the shop that I haven’t tasted myself and said, ‘This is really good,’” Goldman said.