“I finally decided where I wanted to settle,” Chef Efe Onoglu explained of his reasoning for opening his new Mediterranean restaurant, Aegean, tucked behind Longoria Wines off State Street. Entering the cozy spot on De la Guerra, and nestling into a table on the sprawling mountain-view back patio or the candlelit dining room, you’ll certainly want to settle there too. Surrounded by tables overflowing with fresh pita and hummus, flavorful kebabs, and warming desserts, I felt as if I had stumbled upon a cozy hole in the wall on a little Greek island with the authentic food and warm service I remember from my trip to Mykonos.
Onoglu is an engineer-turned-chef, whose passion for cooking was ignited helping out in the kitchen with family in Turkey. He has honed and shared his culinary prowess in many different places, but it’s Santa Barbara where he hopes to grow his roots and fulfill his dreams.
“S.B. needs lots of education on traditional Middle Eastern food, and they are really willing to do that,” Onoglu said. He’s had a receptive audience for his lessons since starting his Aegean Street Food pop-ups at Draughtsman Brewery during the pandemic. With that momentum, he was also able to find an outlet for his fine dining talents by arranging sofras (communal shared multi-course meals) once a month out of his Eastside kitchen.