FOOD VENDOR APPLICATION FORM
Important Notice: A mandatory meeting will be held Tuesday the 8th of July, 2025. The meeting will occur at the Palm Park Beach House at 236 E. Cabrillo Blvd at 5:30pm.
¡Viva la Fiesta!
Mercado De La Guerra 2025 will take place on:
Wednesday, July 30th – Saturday August 2, 2025
Hours of Operation: 11:00am to 10:00pm
We are excited to celebrate the 101st Anniversary of Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara with you this year! Thank you for taking the time to apply to join us as a food and beverage vendor!
Instructions:
Mercado De La Guerra Food and Beverage Vendor Application
Please read the application carefully and fill it out completely even if you are a returning vendor. Please complete the registration and make your payment online.
Please do not bring payment into the office. This site is set up to take payments online.
This application window will close on Saturday, July 12, 2025. No exceptions will be made. The sooner you apply the better your location will be.
Non-Profit Affiliation
All food and beverage vendors must be an active Santa Barbara County non-profit or be affiliated with an active Santa Barbara County non-profit.
For-profit booths donating to an active non-profit must provide a contact name, phone number, tax ID #, copy of IRS 501(c)3 letter and donation amount to their non-profit.
If you are not affiliated with a non-profit, Old Spanish Days becomes your default non-profit.
Food and Beverage Product List
Below, please list at least three products you will sell.
Please be specific when listing menu items. Example: “Beef and Cheese Burritos” means one burrito containing both beef and cheese, not beef burritos and cheese burritos. Please list individual items separately and fill in the ingredients. Thank you!
Please consider supporting Old Spanish Days’ long standing local sponsor, Jordano's, Jordano's Foodservice by purchasing their products for your food, beverage and other supply needs during Old Spanish Days Fiesta.
Business License
The City of Santa Barbara Finance office has discontinued the “One Day Vendors License” that used to be issued for out of area vendors participating in Special Events. Moving forward all commercial, merchandise and food/beverage vendors participating in Special Events are instead required to have a City of Santa Barbara Business Tax Certificate (business license). Click here for the application: Business License
The State Board of Equalization requires all vendors selling taxable items to have a valid Seller’s Permit number. No vendor selling taxable items will be allowed to sell at Fiesta without a valid seller’s permit. Any questions regarding exemption must go through the State Board of Equalization.
If you will be claiming exemption, you will need to fill out, sign and return the form BOE-410-D Rev 6 available on the BOE website. CDTFA-410-D REV. 9 (3-23) SWAP MEETS, FLEA MARKETS, OR SPECIAL EVENTS CERTIFICATION TO OPERATOR Please contact the Old Spanish Days office (805 962 8101) if you have any trouble retrieving this form.
Insurance Requirement
To participate in the Old Spanish Days Mercados you must have adequate Commercial General Liability insurance with minimum coverage of $1,000,000 each occurrence/$2,000,000 aggregate including Products and Completed operations. Policies must be written on an “occurrence” basis and not on a “claims made” policy.
Old Spanish Days and the City of Santa Barbara must be named as Additional Insureds. The address for Old Spanish Days is P.O. Box 21557, Santa Barbara, CA 93121-1557. The address for the City of Santa Barbara is P.O. Box 1990, Santa Barbara, CA 93102-1990.
We encourage you to utilize your own resources for obtaining the required liability policy from your own insurance agent. However, you can purchase coverage under our insurance program for $98.00.
If you procure your own Insurance Coverage:
You must provide 2 forms: 1) A Certificate of Insurance and an 2) Additional Insured Endorsement. Both forms should name “Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara Inc., its officers, employees and agents and the City of Santa Barbara, its officers, employees and agents” as additional insureds.
City of Santa Barbara Parking Lots
The City of Santa Barbara Downtown Parking handles vendor parking for Mercado De la Guerra. Closer to the event, they will mail out parking permit information and applications to all De la Guerra vendors.
Parking in the City Lot is optional but if you would like a pass at a discounted rate you will need to purchase it from Downtown Parking directly. OSD does not handle parking permit purchases.
Passes for loading and unloading in Mercado De La Guerra will be mailed by Old Spanish Days in mid-July. All unloading passes from OSD cannot be used as parking passes; they are not recognized by police or parking attendants.
City of Santa Barbara Utilities
The City of Santa Barbara provides natural gas, water, and grey water (sewer) facilities throughout De La Guerra Plaza at various locations. These utilities are to be used and shared by all food and beverage vendors as needed and you agree to be accommodating in allowing your neighboring vendors access to these utilities.
Booths located where a utility landscape box is present shall remit a security deposit of $500 to ensure the return of the gas and water valves, connectors and hoses located within these utility boxes. This fee is required by the City of Santa Barbara whether the vendor uses these utilities and is required solely to ensure the proper return of the valves, connectors, and hoses provided by the City of Santa Barbara.
You must submit a separate $500 check for the Utility Deposit. This check will be held and returned to you in full after the city inspector has verified all items have been returned.
Make sure to physically return all utility components to an OSD committee member at breakdown. All components (hoses, valves, connectors, etc.) supplied will be verified and documented as received. Failure to return components will result in forfeiture of this deposit and may affect your invitation to participate in the future.
City of Santa Barbara Electrical Compliance
The City of Santa Barbara provides electricity for De La Guerra Plaza and the distribution is accomplished by the efforts of Old Spanish Days. The extension cords, distribution boxes, and connectors are provided by Old Spanish Days and your assistance in ensuring their return is required. Electricity is to be used and shared by all food and beverage vendors as needed and you agree to be accommodating in allowing your neighboring vendors access to these utilities.
12 GA ONLY or larger (smaller the gauge number the larger and safer the wire is). Anything under 12 GA may cause electrical shortages that will affect all booths. Only commercial grade/rated appliances allowed. Each vendor will only have access to four each 20 amp., 120 VAC circuits to run their equipment and should plan accordingly. No household appliances allowed; commercial grade equipment/appliances ONLY (subject to inspection at any time throughout the event.)
Old Spanish Days Procedures, Expectations and Code of Conduct
By filling out this form you agree to comply with Old Spanish Days standards and rules as set forth by the Mercado De La Guerra Committee, the Board of Directors of Old Spanish Days, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department, and the City of Santa Barbara Code of Conduct. Click here for more information: City of Santa Barbara Code of Conduct
You further understand that Mercado De la Guerra is an invitation only event and the committee reserves the right to refuse participation of any person or organization at any time for any reason.
Health Department Compliance
As a food vendor for Old Spanish Days Fiesta, you are required to meet all the requirements of the Santa Barbara County Health Department.
California law requires the vendor to obtain a permit from Environmental Health. Additionally, all vendors (both for-profit and non-profit) authorized to be at the event must have a Health Permit issued from Santa Barbara County Health Department.
Please review the Temporary Food Facility (TFF) Guidelines, Temporary Food Facility (TFF) Guidelines
Santa Barbara County Health Department. will assist food vendors in providing safe food to the public by meeting the minimum standards of the State Health Code.
Please complete the Temporary Food Facility (TFF) Posted Notice
For more information on the Santa Barbara County Health requirements Temporary Food Facility (TFF) Info and the, Temporary Food Facility (TFF) Application
Please upload the completed TFF to the registration site no latter than Friday, July 18, 2025. The vendor must cooperate with their inspections as requested. Failure to do so could result in the temporary or permanent shutdown by the County Health Department of your booth and may affect your invitation to return in the future.
A mandatory meeting will be held Tuesday the 8th of July, 2025. The meeting will occur at the Palm Park Beach House at 236 E. Cabrillo Blvd at 5:30pm. A Health Department Representative will give a complete presentation regarding rules, requirements, updates, and any concerns from previous years as well as answer any questions you might have. Mercado Committee members will also be present to answer any questions.
In the case of cancellation, OSD will provide a refund of any paid booth space fees, or it may be retained on file for Fiesta 2026. OSD is not responsible for any fees incurred to participate in the Mercado De La Guerra.
Release of Liability
The undersigned is aware and understands that participation in the events, venues and activities of Old Spanish Days Fiesta may carry risks of injury and/or harm, and voluntarily assumes the risks of harm arising out of, or connected with, participation in Old Spanish Days Fiesta.
By selecting "YES" the undersigned agrees to obtain a signed Release and Hold Harmless form from each participant/volunteer prior to allowing the individual to participate in Old Spanish Days Fiesta, and return the signed form(s) to the event chair.
The undersigned hereby releases Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara, Inc., a California corporation, its employees, agents, directors and/or officers, their heirs, executors and/or administrators, and any and all other persons and associations of Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara, Inc., from any and all liability of every nature, known or unknown, from all claims and causes of action that may result by reason of injury to the undersigned or my child, and from any and all damages to property belonging to the undersigned that may result because of his or her participation in Old Spanish Days Fiesta.
The undersigned also agrees to indemnify and hold harmless Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara, Inc. from any and all claims and demands for injury and damage to any other person(s), including but not limited to, other Old Spanish Days Fiesta participants or spectators.
