MONTECITO: 13) THE UPPER VILLAGE

Old Montecito's Refuge

Most visitors to Montecito don’t even know about an Upper Village.

A blessing.

The Upper Village is a pastoral merchant zone where old-time natives gather and either opine or lament the existence of new-time residents.

It has a post office, a hardware store, an independent bookstore, a chocolaterie; an Italian restaurant that’s been around a half-century, a wine & cheese shop that doubles as a sandwich deli—and Pierre Lafond, a gourmet grocery and upstairs boutique set around a quaint patio with a fountain—with a town square beyond.

Add an old fashioned gas station that provides full (human) service—remember that?

And, tucked way back, Village Automotive, for vehicle service and repair.

Plus an independent pharmacy (remember those?) attached to a breakfast/lunch diner—The Montecito Coffee Shop—where Robert Mitchum and Stewart Granger held court (circa 1978-93) and shot the breeze with Don Ameche, Buddy Ebsen, and David Niven—remember them?

And where, into the next century, “national treasure”/comedian Jonathan Winters delivered trance-like comedic monologs to anyone in his path.

And where the finest filter-brewed mug of Joe (remember that?) continues to be served.

If you want to understand Montecito—not the headlines, not the newcomers, not the real estate brochures—start in the Upper Village. Because the Upper Village is where residents are served the amenities they need—and where Montecito remembers who it is.

Where function, not fashion, is fulfilled.

Errands happen here. Conversations linger. The rhythm is calm and unhurried. Impatience does not exist. The tone is understated.

Back to the San Ysidro Pharmacy, which has been around a century.

In the 1940s through the 1960s, its simple seats were regularly occupied by a rotating cast of Hollywood expatriates enjoying the rarity Montecito offered: privacy.

Among them were Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, Alan Ladd, Bing Crosby (passing through after golf or polo), and James Stewart, a frequent visitor to the region.

Actors, ranchers, and retirees sharing trading gossip, telling stories, and reading the morning paper.

No press agents. No photographers. No fuss.

Just coffee.

For half-a-century the Upper Village was presided over by the Pierre Lafond, who arrived in the 1960s and pioneered wine culture and wine-making in Santa Barbara County—long before the region became known as a wine destination.

Pierre cut a taciturn figure: tall and slim, a full head of gray hair into his 90s, never without chinos, pale blue button-downs, sometimes a navy V-neck sweater.

Always present, hands-on; in charge with quiet authority.

Pierre did not command attention. He earned it.

Under his stewardship, the eponymous Pierre Lafond Market & Deli stocked European foods before specialty imports were common. Ultimately, the comfort zone he created became a social hub—a space where people could sit and linger whether they purchased a beverage, a sandwich, or nothing at all.

A place where time slowed.

It remains so today—albeit (sadly) without Pierre presiding.

But it remains.

At least for now.

Montecitans would be well advised to keep a watchful eye on any future plan of a developer—think Rick Caruso—to gobble it all up and transform a genuine community village into a faux shopping mall disguised as one.

Because once a treasure like the Upper Village is gone, it does not come back.