Flavors of Argentina
Agustin Mallmann adds a South American touch to a Santa Barbara party
Agustin Mallmann adds a South American touch to a Santa Barbara party
Chef Agustin Mallmann.
Written by Joan Tapper
Photographs: Belen Sanguinetti
Mallmann in his element.
As the polo club welcomes its international players, Santa Barbara also heralds the arrival of up-and-coming chef Agustin Mallmann, who spends half the year in Argentina and half the year in Santa Barbara, where he was born. Trained under his uncle, famed South American TV culinary star Francis Mallmann, the 24-year-old went out on his own a couple of years ago.
“It was amazing to work in Francis’s kitchens for six years,” says Agustin, who has adapted his uncle’s wood-fired cooking to his own cuisine: He uses the plancha (a cast-iron griddle) heated over embers, and a wood-fired oven to create Argentine-flavored dinners that are uniquely suited to the Santa Barbara lifestyle. “The technique ties to polo-style events,” he says, often outdoors, a little rustic but with superb meat and fish served on fine plates with the best silver and glassware. “I try to buy everything at the farmers markets and get the fish at the Santa Barbara harbor,” while the meat sometimes comes from the clients’ own ranches.
Asado with chimichurri.
His ideal summer dinner, he says, starts with appetizers seared on the plancha—shrimp with portobello mushrooms and scallops with lemon zest, olive oil, and cilantro. He follows those with salmon cooked whole on the grill accompanied by basil aioli, and prime rib-eye prepared over embers and served with Argentine chimichurri sauce. The side dish features a criolla of chopped green peppers and red onion mixed with arugula and dressed with olive oil and red wine vinegar. What to drink? Begin with sangria or a caipiroska—a version of caipirinha made with vodka—and move on to a nice white and definitely a Malbec, which pairs well with the meat.
The plancha.
For dessert, there’s panqueque dulce de leche, a creamy caramel-filled crepe rolled on the plancha and served with vanilla ice cream and fresh mint. “The contrast of the warm crepe and cold ice cream is wonderful,” says Agustin.
Agustin created one such beachside party here last summer for polo player Paco de Narvaez and his wife, Rocio. “This summer,” he says, “I’m hoping to show more people what I have to offer. The food will be awesome—that’s a given. But people will enjoy the whole experience.” agustinmallmann.com
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Cottage Industry
A longtime fan of Santa Barbara, interior designer Madeline Stuart made her dream of having a weekend home here a reality
A longtime fan of Santa Barbara, interior designer Madeline Stuart made her dream of having a weekend home here a reality when she found a 1930s bungalow for sale in the hidden enclave of El Caserio, a storybook neighborhood near the Presidio. After buying the historic property, she transformed the one-bedroom cottage with lots of white paint and casual furnishings into a sophisticated yet simple Spanish-style retreat that serves as a welcome counterpoint to her weekday Hollywood Hills lifestyle. Says Stuart: “Within minutes of arrival, my anxieties have eased, my blood is no longer boiling, and I settle in for an all-too-short weekend of farmers market shopping, cooking, reading the New York Times, and engaging in slothlike behavior that wouldn’t be possible if I’d stayed in L.A.”
MADELINESTUART.COM – Jennifer Blaise Kramer
Madeline’s S.B. Must Do’s
Walking the beach with my husband, Steve Oney, and our Parson Russell terriers, Beatrice and Mr. Peabody.
Takeout from Lucky Penny, 805-284-0358, luckypennysb.com.
C’est Cheese, 805-965-0318, cestcheese.com, for Garrotxa cheese and marinated olives.
Helena Avenue Bakery, 805-880-3383, helenaavenuebakery.com, for sourdough and olive bread.
Brophy Bros., 805-966-4418, brophybros.com, for peel-and-eat shrimp.
Taqueria El Bajio, 805-884-1828, on Milpas for adobada tacos.
Driving Alameda Padre Serra just for the fun of it.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll Goaler
New York fashion branding exec turned Buellton transplant Sara Rotman turns heads and takes the reins for Darkhorse polo.
New York fashion branding exec turned Buellton transplant Sara Rotman turns heads and takes the reins for Darkhorse polo
Sara Rotman preps for a match with her Darkhorse polo team.
Written by Gina Tolleson
Photographs by David Lominska, Darryl Estrine, Walter Chin
THE PLAYER I live for competition, so normally I play the 12 and eight-goal tournaments at the club, but this year is going to be a little different for me. Having just purchased a ranch, I have been spending most of my available time with my husband converting it from a largely ignored parsley field to a viable horse facility. It’s been quite a labor of love and has come a long way—we currently have irrigated turnout available, an arena, and a track—but needs another six months or more to be a fully functioning polo facility. With all the time spent putting in fencing, a track, arena, polo field, and barns, my polo at the club will be limited to club chukkers and cheering on my friends.
THE LOOK My style is pretty much all-American classic with a rock ‘n’ roll twist. My daily uniform is a T-shirt and pair of cropped jeans made special with statement jewelry (one item only), stiletto pumps, and great jacket. I’ve favored Saint Laurent
this season as Hedi Slimane’s current tastes remind me of my East Village music scene days. I also love classic items like a French striped T-shirt and short shorts for Sunday polo, but I always pair the simple stuff with a great shoe. And only polo players should wear white jeans to a polo match. Just sayin’.
Must-Haves
Neutrogena Healthy Defense SPF 50. Put it on in the morning and reapply often. Nothing says rookie like a sunburned face and arms.
Darkhorse polo jeans ($145, darkhorse polo.com). If you can get your hands on a pair, buy ’em. You’ll thank me.
An ample supply of the 2011 Clos Pepe Pinot Noir Vigneron Select ($67, clospepe.com). Drink it often and with friends.
A new Ford F350 Dually to pull my polo trailer. Who knew big trucks could get me so excited?
SARA’S S.B. BLACK BOOK
…in her Manhattan MODCo office.
It’s hard to get a New Yorker to admit there’s good Italian food anywhere outside of NY, but I genuinely love S.Y. Kitchen, 805-691-9794, sykitchen.com, in Santa Ynez. It offers a casual, elegant atmosphere, amazingly fresh local produce/farm-to-table food, and wonderful local wines. • Les Marchands, 805-284-0380, lesmarchandswine.com, in the Funk Zone has become my second home. I’d like to say it’s because of its proximity to my branding company MODCo’s newest office location, but I think it has more to do with the great local and European wines by the glass. • The Channel Islands. Get there any way you can. Find a friend with a boat, grab a charter, or go whale watching in a big group, but get yourself to one of the most magical places on earth. My husband and I go fishing off the coast of Santa Rosa whenever we can and it always leaves me with a smile on my face for days. • Jenni Kayne, 805-309-0550, jennikayne.com. It’s a sophisticated store—classic, modern, and impeccable.