Santa Maria Sun

10/03/2026

W**emaker John Alban and his wife, Lorraine, attend the 49th annual San Francisco W**e Auction at The Palace Hotel, where Alban was celebrated as the 2026 W**emaker of the Year by The Guardsmen, a nonprofit that raises funds to help at-risk youth.

Taste it yourselfTo connect with Alban Vineyards or learn more about its educational tastings and seminars, visit albanvineyards.com or rakedranch.com. The only way to taste is to attend one of the w**ery’s Private Tasting Series dates, which are scheduled for April 10 and 17 and May 1, 2027. Chec...

10/02/2026

Patrick (left) and Dawn (right) Farrier own and operate The Creation Station in Buellton, selling fabric and sewing kits. They worked harder than ever to keep the store open through the pandemic and lived to tell the tale.

Cozy slippers shuffling across tile flooring. Pillows cushioning the seats of chairs. A T-shirt reading: Sorry. Can’t. Quilting. Bye. It’s the sight that Linda Papenfus rolled up to at The Creation Station Fabric and Quilt Shop after a tiresome, traffic-riddled drive from Folsom. She carried a s...

10/01/2026

Your feedback helps decide the winners! Voting ends Monday October 26th at 5pm. Join us at the NTMA's November 13th at The Rock SLO to find out the winner!

10/01/2026

“We’re already 90 percent done," developer Ed St. George said. "If we were 40 percent done, I would be willing to tear it down."

More than a year after Solvang red-tagged his unfinished hotel, Ed St. George said he has no intention of raising a white flag over the dormant development. “We’re already 90 percent done. If we were 40 percent done, I would be willing to tear it down. But we are literally 90 percent done,” th...

09/26/2026

Roberta (left) and Kevin (right) Skidmore were the grand marshals during this year’s Danish Days parade. They’ve lived in the valley for almost five decades, and Roberta has consistently made dresses for the Danish Days maids since 2002.

Witnesses to Roberta Skidmore’s creativity have learned to trust her process. Even the dressmaker’s husband, Kevin. “You see this pile of material, and you go, ‘How are they going to do anything with this?’” Kevin told the Sun. “And then she finishes it, and you go, ‘Oh my God!’”...

09/25/2026

Anthony Ruiz owns Canela Café with his brother Frankie, serving coffees, matcha drinks, and aguas frescas with a focus on exceptional customer service.

TikTok led Marisa Gomez to discover a Mexican coffee shop located roughly an hour from where she lives. She, along with many others, travels great distances to the rinconcito for colorful sweet breads, elaborate latte flavors, and the café’s signature aesthetic cups.  It’s all very Instagramma...

09/24/2026

“My job is very quiet. You don’t notice it. But their job,” engineering technician Cole Phillips said, pointing at some of his peers protesting steps away from the Solvang Park gazebo, “if they’re not out here doing things, you will notice it right away. Things will stop working.”

Not long after showing up to his cubicle for an 8 a.m. shift on Sept. 15, engineering technician Cole Phillips hit the pavement with around 30 other unionized Solvang employees to participate in the first labor strike of its kind in city history. Before heading out that morning to protest the City C...

09/21/2026

This special edition of both New Times and The Sun will be dedicated to the pets and animals we all love and will feature the winners of our 4th Annual Pet Photo Contest, sponsored by Lemos Feed & Pet Supply!
Publication Date: October 22, 2026
Book your ad by: October 16, 2026
Want to be part of this special issue? Contact us today!
New Times: (805) 546-8208
The Sun: (805) 347-1968 See less

09/19/2026

Birthday parties for 30, corporate lunches for 50, or weddings for 300. Meraz Catering is happy to provide the grub for it all.

Planning and adapting are two of the most important skills in Amy Meraz’s industry. “You have to be good at pivoting and knowing that if something falls off the wagon, if something changes, there’s nothing you can do other than keep going with the changes,” she told the Sun. Call for caterin...

09/18/2026

Local and visiting comedians take the stage at Giavanni’s Pizza for weekly open mic nights and monthly featured shows, known as Giafunni’s.

Ezra Paco had no choice but to kick-start his comedy career from a less-than-ideal launch point: Zoom.  “It was really awkward,” Paco told the Sun. “The Zoom rooms were really weird because, just like with all things during the pandemic, you were at the mercy of what was going on in each pers...