The Timbers, a kind of ghost of Goleta’s past, is back.

Not that it ever actually left, but you’d be forgiven for thinking the historic restaurant built entirely from the wood of a pier off Ellwood had disappeared.

But soon, after a year and a half of restoration, it will open as what its owners believe will be the premier special events site in Goleta.

“It’s been reborn,” said Amir Arfaei, who oversaw the work and did the interior design. “I think it’s worth it to bring it back to life again. There’s nothing like it in Goleta.”

Afaei, the point man for the family enterprise, gutted the building and replaced virtually everything but the thick timber walls and massive fireplace. He installed air conditioning, designed new tiles for the floor, built a state-of-the-art kitchen, created a cozy bar, redesigned the dining room and even expanded and remodeled the restrooms.

“Except for the structure, everything was changed,” said Glenn Novack, the Timbers’ events coordinator.

The makeover, which began after the Afraei family bought the Timbers two years ago, seems to have reinvigorated the 43-year-old building. The decorating, which Arfaei calls a mix of European and Western styles, gives it a lightness that balances the structure’s massiveness.

“I love this place in the nighttime better than the daytime,” Arfaei said.

Novack and Antara Blasius, the production manager, plan to keep the place hopping.
In addition to a regular schedule of receptions, parties and corporate events, they see dinner theater, live music and more on the calendar.

The dining room, which is currently open for breakfast and lunch, will open in September for dinner. Novack and Blasius expect the main room to start hosting events soon after.

Afaei, who did the interior design for Fresco in the Five Points shopping center, has taken pains to create a place that appeals to both individual diners and those seeking a special events venue.

In the kitchen he created a large, fully equipped working space for caterers of private parties. The dining room, which can be used with the main hall for events up to 500, is airy yet intimate.

At home in the kitchen is chef Pino Castenetto, a 15-year veteran of the local restaurant scene. Pino, as he’s usually called, serves Mediterranean cuisine, with seafood a specialty.

Many of the ingredients come from the Timbers’ small organic farm behind the restaurant.

Tucked behind the Unocal gas station just off US 101 on Winchester Canyon Road, the Timbers would appear positioned to take advantage of Goleta’s westward growth. Its only real competition as an events site is Bacara Resort and Spa across the freeway, but Novack and Blasius see the Timbers as a more reasonably priced and comfortable venue.

“I feel like it’s the perfect place to have a California-style celebration.”
Contact the Timbers at 961-9342 or timbers@verizon.net.

PHOTOS BY JIM LOGAN / VALLEY VOICE