The History of “Old Bossy” and the Live Oak Dairy Building
On the corner of Milpas St. and Canon Perdido, the Streamline Moderne building was designed by Alexander C. D’Alfonso in 1939, a noted builder and contracter in Santa Barbara, CA, and is a significant feature of the Milpas St. corridor.
The Live Oak Dairy was constructed during the last phase of Art Deco, when designers began to favor simpler, aerodynamic lines and forms. The Streamline Moderne is basically a machine aesthetic focused on smooth surfaces, horizontal lines, curved corners, and functional efficiency.
Owners Abbondio Bazzi, John Zocchi, and Innocente Mariani bought a plaster cow from Alfred Kuhn, a sculptor from Yukaipa, CA and placed it on the roof over the entrance. Parents would bring their children on Sundays to the soda fountain to see the cow, known as Old Bossy.
Bossie’s Kitchen Story
Embracing the cow, chefs Lauren Herman and Christina Olufson moved into the landmark corner and opened Bossie’s Kitchen in January 2019. Their combination of sweet and savory talents are focused on seasonal, farmer’s market and “everyday organic” menu offerings.
Lauren Herman, originally from La Cañada, CA, began her career in New York’s Zoë (closed in 2009 after 18 years), then headed back to California where she worked at The Water Grill with Chef David Lefevre (2007), and later moved on to Lucques with Chef Suzanne Goin (2008). Here with The Lucques Group, Lauren’s love of cooking led her to become the Chef de Cuisine of AOC, where she ran the kitchen for 5 years.
Christina Olufson grew up in Ventura County, CA and also landed at The Lucques Group in 2006. Beginning as an intern, she worked her way up to Pastry Chef of Lucques and AOC, and eventually became the Executive Pastry Chef of all the group’s restaurants and catering outlets. Olufson left the beloved Lucques Group to run the pastry department at Forage in Silverlake for two years, prior to the couple moving to Santa Barbara.
In 2023, Bossie’s Kitchen was featured on Food Network’s Diners, Drive Ins and Dives with Guy Fieri. Episode “Smoker, Stove and Skewer” showcased the restaurant’s home-made chicken pot pies, and grilled shrimp with lemongrass curry.
A note from the chefs
We would like to extend a heartfelt “thank you” to all of our family and friends that have made this dream come true--we could not have done it without your love and support. Jose Hurtado, Adam Guzman and Michael Matheson--the space is beautiful due to all of your hard work! We could not be more grateful to our Milpas neighbors, we are so humbled to be able to serve you everyday.
Thank you to our local farmers for the extreme amount of work and energy it takes to grow our food! We are committed to serving locally-grown produce by small family farms, without the use of pesticides and fertilizers. Earth Trine Farms, Carpinteria; Roots Organic Farm, Los Olivos; The Garden of, Los Olivos; Coleman Family Farms, Carpinteria; Chavez Family Farm, Santa Maria; John Givens Farm, Santa Barbara; Mud Creek Ranch, Santa Paula--and so many more!