Tag archives: Belmond El Encanto

The Belmond El Encanto hosted a champagne-fueled bash for 150 guests to promote a forthcoming auction in connection with the One805Live concert at Oscar-winning actor Kevin Costner’s Carpinteria estate on Friday, Sept. 20. Star of the show was a Ferrari LaFerrari prototype, which has a reserve price of $2.1 million; safaris to South Africa, Botswana […]

After four years as manager of the tony 92-cottage Belmond El Encanto, Janis Clapoff, has passed the torch to new manager Pedro Dias, who is moving to our Eden by the Beach after running the hotel group’s 113-room Cap Juluca in Anguilla. Janis is taking over as manager of the historic California Club, founded in […]

After the holiday festivities and indulgences, it seems we head directly into healthy eating and activities in January. With that noted, the El Encanto – a Belmond Hotel in Santa Barbara – has their signature Botanica Afternoon Tea. What is intriguing about their afternoon tea service beyond the ritz, is that both the curated teas […]

After 30 years in the skin-care industry, Linda Ross Beverly Hills continues to hold court for her in-person treatments and skin care line, available by referral only. Her client list matches the red carpet, and she has appeared in Glamour, Who What Wear, New Beauty, Women’s Health, InStyle, and Lucky Magazine and on the Style […]

Spring has ushered in some unique wine selections and tasting opportunities from local wine experts. We checked in with a few for some fresh ideas on what to pour.  Before we dive headfirst into summer, and while many of us are at home preparing spring meals with family and close friends, I wanted to take […]

You can still experience the thrill of visiting a winery and taking part in its on-premise wine tasting with a handful of carefully curated wine programs offered locally. Since the onset of COVID-19, many wineries across the country have either suspended or limited in-person attendance at their tasting rooms. To compensate, some of our local […]

There’s a new chef and fresh burst of inspiration in Belmond El Encanto’s kitchen. The Old Hollywood glamour-style hotel, perched on the Riviera, gets its first major menu change in four years, thanks to Bruno Lopez. He’s the former executive chef at the Ritz-Carlton Rancho Mirage and Raffles L’Ermitage Hotel in Beverly Hills and is […]

It was a record turnout when the Santa Barbara Polo Club held its annual Belmond El Encanto Robert Skene Trophy final between undefeated BenSoleimani.com, last year’s runners up, and banker Henry Walker‘s FMB Too! Henry tied the game with only a few minutes of the hotly contested 16-goal match remaining. Just as overtime loomed, Felipe […]

The historic Riviera resort, the Belmond El Encanto, celebrated its 101st anniversary in grand style, with many of the 250 guests turning up in period costume to mark the boffo bash. The 92-room hotel, where a host of Hollywood stars including Clark Gable and Hedy Lamarr rested their heads, was purchased in 2004 from the […]

Belmond El Encanto, the hotel aerie on the Riviera, hosted a polo party with Texan promotional dynamo Charles Ward and yours truly, which also welcomed the tony hostelry’s new manager, Colleen Huther, and sales executive Rob Roche, who has moved to our Eden by the Beach from the Peninsula in Beverly Hills. A model of […]

The Belmond El Encanto, after an extensive search, has a new manager in Santa Barbara local resident Colleen Huther. Colleen, who replaces Aussie Shaun O’Bryan, who has returned to the antipodes, has more than three decades of luxury hotel experience with brands such as Marriott and Accor. She is joining the 92-room luxury Riviera hostelry […]

Montecito nun Pauline Krismanich, 88, who has lived at La Casa de Maria for 48 years, is retiring and moving to the Immaculate Heart Community center in Los Angeles. After being displaced by both the Thomas Fire and the mudslides, Pauline saw them as her sign to finally retire. She has been a figure around […]