Dig In.

Make a beeline for cutting-edge restaurants while tasting wines that are breaking new ground.

FOR A LONG TIME, if you wanted to eat in the Santa Ynez Valley, the choices were slim. The Hitching Post II was pretty much the only place to be, thanks to a deep Santa Barbara wine list and steaks expertly grilled over red-hot oak coals. (Not coincidentally, that’s where the Sideways restaurant scenes were filmed.) But the dining scene has become much more diverse in recent years; everywhere you go, you’ll find restaurants embracing local produce, meats, and seafood. And even if you’ve been on a nonstop Pinot Noir kick since 2004 (no apologies necessary), you’ll be thrilled by the diversity of the wines on offer, from juicy Grenache to sparkling Grüner Veltliner.

Stay

In the heart of tasting room-saturated Los Olivos, Fess Parker Wine Country Inn (from $375; fess parkerinn.com) is one of the region’s enduring luxury stays. A refresh in 2012 brought the 19-room boutique hotel up to speed with sustainable wood and low-energy lighting, and its recently added onsite restaurant is pretty thrilling in its own right (see page TK).

Brunch