Blue Onion, Santa Barbara 1950s

The iconic, mid-century Blue Onion drive-ins in Santa Barbara, California, were owned and operated by Myron C ‘Bud’ Bledsoe. The first location of this car-hop chain opened in 1949 at State and Valerio, and three other locations soon followed. Breakfast, lunch and dinner could be delivered by uniformed carhops on trays that could be attached to car windows, or diners could park their automobiles and eat indoors. Deep dish pies, cream pies and strawberry shortcake were freshly baked in the onsite kitchens. Under Bledsoe’s direction, the business expanded in the 1960s to Las Vegas. This clever die-cut menu in the shape of an onion is dated in the 1950s and on the back was a detailed map of the Santa Barbara area, showing the locations of the four Blue Onions. NB: Blue Onions do exist. Red onions contain natural pigments called anthocyanins, a type of flavonoid (natural plant pigment) that gives fruits and vegetables their red, blue, and purple hues. When anthocyanins are exposed to alkaline substances such as egg whites, baking soda, beans, and certain minerals in water or cookware, they can change color from white to blue or blue-green. We believe all the Blue Onion drive-ins were gone by the 1970s. Gallery quality Giclée print on natural white, matte, 100% cotton rag, acid and lignin free archival paper using Epson Ultrachrome HD archival inks. Custom printed with border for matting and framing. Each order includes a print of the interior menu. All printed in USA.