Gino's Sicilian Express has been feeding Downtown Santa Barbara since 1978, when founder Gino Milano opened the shop after time spent cooking and traveling between Italy, Canada, and the States. The menu leans Sicilian and New York in style — pizza, paninis, wings, and salads — made with dough prepared fresh daily and mozzarella grated in house.
Co-owner Loren Manser has carried the shop forward alongside Milano, keeping the operation a family-run, locally rooted business on Figueroa Street. Regulars point to the pizza and panini as the standouts, and the counter staff have built a reputation for friendliness, even if service can run inconsistent on busier nights.
The restaurant has stayed close to its neighborhood identity over the decades, positioning itself as a local institution rather than a chain outpost, with a focus on straightforward, made-to-order Italian-American cooking.
Co-owner Loren Manser has carried the shop forward alongside Milano, keeping the operation a family-run, locally rooted business on Figueroa Street. Regulars point to the pizza and panini as the standouts, and the counter staff have built a reputation for friendliness, even if service can run inconsistent on busier nights.
The restaurant has stayed close to its neighborhood identity over the decades, positioning itself as a local institution rather than a chain outpost, with a focus on straightforward, made-to-order Italian-American cooking.