Plugs — Kelsey Brito

Ventura and Santa Barbara recs from The Dutchess' pastry chef extraordinaire

Plugs is The Angel’s recs column. Every Saturday, you’ll get six picks—a restaurant, a bar, a shop, an ingredient, a person, and a treat—from someone in Los Angeles who knows what they’re talking about. (Plugs are for paid subscribers of The Angel only. However, if you’re in the restaurant industry and want a free subscription, hit me up. :))

The Angel is staying in Ojai through the weekend, and so #19 is Kelsey Brito, the wonderfully skilled pastry chef and partner of The Dutchess. Before camping out to Ojai to open the all-day bakery and Burmese-Californian restaurant alongside Saw Naing and Zoe Nathan, Kelsey spent time at Tartine in San Francisco and oversaw baked goods at Milo + Olive. Her overflowing pastry case at The Dutchess is one of my my all-time favorites; it includes a sticky toffee date muffin that I dream about, a must-try quince butter and cream cheese pastelito, and truly excellent croissants. (If you go, grab a jar of her passionfruit marmalade, too.) There are many great places to eat and drink in the neighboring counties of Ventura and Santa Barbara, and since Kelsey is a local, she knows what’s up. Here are her Plugs!

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Restaurant — Tacos el Diablo & Back Bench Pizza

Consistency is one of my most appreciated factors in a good restaurant. Two things I never get sick of eating: pizza and tacos. I’m going to break the rules right from the jump and plug two places that never miss…

The first time I went to Tacos el Diablo and saw that they serve their tacos with limes, radish, pickled red onions, AND charred onions on the side with three different salsas, I knew. Walk-up situation, outdoor seating only. Literally everything is good.

Back Bench Pizza serves NY-style sourdough pies, small plates, beer, and wine. The playlist always hits, the cookies rock, and majority of the menu is adaptable to be (or already is) vegan friendly. Pro-tips: always try the special, grab a slice to take into the movie theater next door.

Back Bench Pizza. Photo by Kelsey Brito.