Summerland Buzz

A third-generation Californian, Leslie, currently resides in Carpinteria but called Summerland home for 30 years. The award-winning writer assists clients sell fine art, antiques and collectibles at auction houses around the globe. She can be reached at LeslieAWestbrook@gmail.com or www.auctionliaison.com

The Scoop from Rusty’s Pizza CEO Tyler Duncan

It may be the longest, most anticipated pizza parlor opening in

Summerland history: five years in the making. At long last Rusty’s Pizza is finally open in Summerland at the former Stacky’s Seaside spot on Lillie Avenue.

The day I spoke with Tyler Duncan, CEO of the family business launched by his parents in Isla Vista in 1969 – just a few years before he was a twinkle in his daddy’s eye – Duncan had just received news from the Health Department.

“Almost five years to the day!” Duncan said, over a phone conversation in the time of COVID, “and they just signed off!”

We spoke about pizzas (including his favorites), food delivery logistics, what foods travel well and which don’t (pizza is perfect delivery food) among other things, in the midst of a pandemic.

Rusty’s Pizza CEO Tyler Duncan

Sorry Summerland, don’t expect balloons, fireworks, pizza samples, a brass band and more for a big opening shindig. Some kind of celebration will hopefully take place later – when we can all gather again. However, the doors opened and the first Summerland delivery trucks rolled on Cinco de Mayo, so Duncan and the 9 th store in the Santa Barbara chain made

Rusty’s Pizza opens in Summerland – after a five-year wait (photo by Leslie A. Westbrook)

its target opening date.

“It’s an opportunity to do a soft opening, get used to the store and make sure everything is working properly from a staffing and operational perspective and clicking like it should,” said the CEO, who eats pizza two to three times a week. Although difficult to choose his favorite, he cited the pepperoni, olive, and pineapple combo for its sweet and salty flavors, as well as the fairly new Chile Verde pizza, a “not too spicy” green sauce pizza with marinated pulled pork.

“What took so long to open?” I asked.

“It’s very difficult to find anything for lease in Summerland that is a conforming restaurant. We bought Stacky’s, kept it open for a year and tried to run it as Stacky’s while we went through the permitting process, but it just didn’t work,” he said. “We used to have a small shop in the Vons Shopping Center in Montecito. We were trying to find the right spot to service Montecito, Summerland, and part of Carpinteria.”

Summerland fare is the same as all Rusty’s Pizza menus – the company just celebrated its fiftieth anniversary last year. Although the Summerland space is too tiny for Rusty’s popular salad bar, they will deliver premade salads. In addition to pizzas, hot wings, salads, and even gelato,

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