Sacramento Restaurants, Nightlife and Entertainment - Page 43

Grimnebulin · #**841** Posted **Jun 19, 2008, 1:25 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ozone

Lounge on 20 cool interior but last night my dinner party wanted to eat alfresco- so we went elsewhere. When are they goning to make use of the deck?

Did you try any of the special drinks and/or how was the wine list? I know I'm only 3 blocks from there but I haven't made it over yet...

Nawlijispower · #**842** Posted **Jun 20, 2008, 6:06 AM**

Has anybody heard any updates on Viva Rio?

wburg · #**843** Posted **Jun 20, 2008, 6:30 AM**

Saw an alcoholic beverage license application on a currently-vacant garage on O and 21st...something "Cantina," so I'm assuming Mexican restaurant/tequila bar. That part of 21st could use another restaurant or two, but there are plenty of bars in the neighborhood already...

Cynikal · #**844** Posted **Jun 20, 2008, 3:51 PM**

Antiqua Cantina and Grill is going in there if they can resolve thier parking issues. I'm sure won't be that hard to find a creative solution for them.

otnemarcaS · #**845** Posted **Jun 20, 2008, 4:12 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nawlijispower

Has anybody heard any updates on Viva Rio?

Last time I read about it in the Bee back in February, they said it was opening in Fall 2008.

Meanwhile, you can try Taste of Brazil on Madison Ave.

ozone · #**846** Posted **Jun 20, 2008, 4:20 PM**

I got that notice to residences within 500 feet in the mail yesterday. I always thought that building would be a great space for a new restaurant and it's been empty for a long time. I'm really glad to hear progress there.

I'm opposed to all parking requirements in the central city. And I don't think parking would be much of an issue since O street is pretty empty after 5:00 -except for the bums* who really like to hang out from the alley to O Street. It doesn't help that the methadone clinic and one of the worst dive bars in the city (we call it murder bar) are close by.

I really hope they succeed here. There's stuff going on at 21st and P, N and Capitol but O Street is kind of a downer and so it blocks the flow of pedestrians.

* bums -not politically correct, refers to those who are not simply homeless through a set of unfortunate circumstances but rather those who choose to live an antisocial lifestyle and have pissed on everyone and everything so that they have to live on the streets.

wburg · #**847** Posted **Jun 20, 2008, 6:37 PM**

Hopefully they can work out a parking sharing arrangement with CARES or another office with a nearby lot. There isn't a whole lot of street parking around there, but there is an abundance of business-lot parking that is vacant after 5:00. The second-best way to optimize parking in the central city without having to build more parking lots/parking structures is to make more efficient use of the lots we have.

The best way, of course, would be more public transit options, but that's a subject for another thread.

otnemarcaS · #**848** Posted **Jun 30, 2008, 6:59 PM**

This was in Twinsoup from last week. The vacant Gianni's and I Dragoni site didn't stay vacant for too long after closing at the end of May.

Coming Soon: Aura and Papi's Pizza in Sacramento

Classy California girl with a passion for fine wines, meets a scruffy New Yorker into pizza and skateboarding.

Sometimes opposites attract.

Watch the sparks fly when Aura Restaurant & Bar and Papi's Pizza by the Slice join in holy matrimony on J Street in midtown Sacramento!

Bachelorette Party: Enjoy a "upscale and loungy" ambiance while dining on California cuisine and sipping from an extensive wine menu at Aura.

Bachelor Party: Experience a casual vibe while enjoying a simple pizza by the slice menu and a "laid-back, skateboarding atmosphere" at Papi's Pizza.

Save The Date: Aura and Papi's request the honor or your presence at their Grand Opening on Saturday, July 12th during Second Saturday!

Aura Restaurant & Wine Bar and Papi's Pizza by the Slice will be located at: 28th and J Streets; 2724 J Street (former site of Gianni's Trattoria & Dragoni Pizzeria) in midtown Sacramento.

Phillip · #**849** Posted **Jul 1, 2008, 5:59 AM**

So Sacramento's getting an Aura after all!

goldcntry · #**850** Posted **Jul 1, 2008, 3:08 PM**

Yay! Can't wait for a slice of Papi! ...and I think I'll be kid-free that weekend too!

Grimnebulin · #**851** Posted **Jul 1, 2008, 3:34 PM**

I wonder who owns these places? Probably not Torza, right?

otnemarcaS · #**852** Posted **Jul 9, 2008, 5:52 AM**

Morton's steakhouse leaving Downtown Plaza

By Mike Dunne - [email protected]
Last Updated 12:10 pm PDT Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Sacramento's Westfield Downtown Plaza may be about to get a splashy giant LED screen but it looks to be losing one of its brighter lights. Morton's The Steakhouse, a fixture of the mall for 15 years, is on the verge of relocating to the new U.S. Bank Tower at 621 Capitol Mall.

According to an announcement this morning by Roger Drake, chief communications officer for Morton's The Steakhouse in Chicago, the chain's Sacramento branch is leaving Downtown Plaza to help make way for a proposed redevelopment of the mall.

"We have secured an alternate site ... at 621 Capitol Mall," Drake said. "A more formal announcement will be made once plans are finalized with respect to the ... mall," he added.

As Bee business columnist Bob Shallit reported last month, Downtown Plaza is to undergo an ambitious update next year. Plans call for a large guitar outside Hard Rock Cafe at Seventh and K streets to be relocated, plus a new indoor-outdoor dining area above the Hard Rock, a Target store, and a 20-foot-tall LED screen around the building housing the Hard Rock.

The U.S. Bank Tower where Morton's is to move also is big on LED displays. The 25-story office building is topped by one, called "Lumetric River," while the structure's atrium includes a second, called "The Rapids."

Officials of Downtown Plaza and David S. Taylor Interests, which developed U.S. Bank Tower, didn't immediately return phone calls for comment.

Grimnebulin · #**853** Posted **Jul 9, 2008, 3:31 PM**

MiniReview:

Went to Tuli Bistro again last night and we had another great meal. The Dayboat Scallops were perfectly seared, with the taste of black pepper, spicy cayenne, and pineapple juice - really amazing. They were set on pretty decent mashed potatoes and sauteed baby bok choy...I'm not a fan of any type of potatoes so I only had a bite but they were really good while the bok choy was fresh and tasty. Also had the Humboldt Pizza which had pesto, fresh mozzarella, and tomatoes. - it had a great thin crust and was very good too. Due to a misfire from the kitchen, our waitress gave us a serving of the halibut with grilled onions on top of green beans sauteed with smokey ham. Very good too. This place is quickly becoming one of my favorites downtown. Plus they are open until 10pm on weeknights - we got there at 8:45 and the place was almost fully packed, even outside (where they had the misters going).

BrianSac · #**854** Posted **Jul 10, 2008, 4:33 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grimnebulin

MiniReview:

Went to Tuli Bistro again last night and we had another great meal. The Dayboat Scallops were perfectly seared, with the taste of black pepper, spicy cayenne, and pineapple juice - really amazing. They were set on pretty decent mashed potatoes and sauteed baby bok choy...I'm not a fan of any type of potatoes so I only had a bite but they were really good while the bok choy was fresh and tasty. Also had the Humboldt Pizza which had pesto, fresh mozzarella, and tomatoes. - it had a great thin crust and was very good too. Due to a misfire from the kitchen, our waitress gave us a serving of the halibut with grilled onions on top of green beans sauteed with smokey ham. Very good too. This place is quickly becoming one of my favorites downtown. Plus they are open until 10pm on weeknights - we got there at 8:45 and the place was almost fully packed, even outside (where they had the misters going).

Thanks for the review. I really like this place a lot. Its been a few months since we've been there but I know I liked it a lot. Not a big fan of potatoes either.

tronblue · #**855** Posted **Jul 14, 2008, 5:57 AM**

Since most forumers here seem to adore the MARRS building, here is one more thing you can do there and plus you wont have to deal with 1000 staggering people between K and J on 20th street next weekend.

"overdose of two buck chuck at the 20th street gallery"

real title- "the ravens and annabel lee" oil on canvas 24x36

What is a Rivercat? · #**856** Posted **Jul 14, 2008, 3:56 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by sugit

If $$$ is no object. The Kitchen. $125 per person. 5 course meal with a Sushi/sashimi intermission. You can ask for 2nds, 3rds, 4ths of any course you want. You'll eat excellent food until you are stuffed and be thoroughly entertained the whole time. It's almost like a dinner and show.

Reservations are tough to get though. Probably need at least a month in advance

Here is the May menu for an example:
http://www.thekitchenrestaurant.com/menus/may.html

After than, I'm with Brian Waterboy and Mulvaney's are neck and neck for me.

If you want something more upscale and hip. Mason's has a very good menu as well with lots of meats and fished not found on many Sac menus. They are losing their Exec Chef though, so I'm not sure how things have been recently though.

Hasn't been to Ella's yet, but reviews are mixed. Some love it, some not so much.

We had our dinner at The Kitchen last night. I must say - absolutely extraordinary. It was perhaps the best meal I've ever had.

wburg · #**857** Posted **Jul 14, 2008, 5:15 PM**

The new all-ages venue, Luigi's Fun Garden, is also opening in MARRS on the following weekend. Interestingly enough, the first show there will feature a band called The Pizzas.

econgrad · #**858** Posted **Jul 15, 2008, 12:38 AM**

^ YEP! Finally an all ages venue again in DT! If your going to make this your haunt Wburg, we may finally get to meet in person.

wburg · #**859** Posted **Jul 21, 2008, 5:19 PM**

From today's Shallit column:

Quote:

Bob Shallit: Plan for wine-tasting room in downtown Sacramento dropped
By Bob Shallit - [email protected]
Published 12:00 am PDT Monday, July 21, 2008
Story appeared in BUSINESS section, Page D2

Plans to put a tourist-drawing wine tasting room in the heart of downtown have collapsed – the victim, apparently, of stringent state alcohol-control regulations.

The idea, proposed by Renwood Winery founder Robert Smerling, was to put a tasting room/wine bar/education center at the drab corner of 10th and L streets.

Locals would be enticed in for a before-dinner glass of wine or an after-show nip. Tourists could come in and learn about the region's wine history. And maybe walk out with a bottle of zin.

"We would have lit up that corner," says Smerling, whose award-winning Amador County winery has its headquarters here. "It would have helped make Sacramento a wine town instead of a cow town."

City officials worked with Smerling for almost a year to have him occupy the former Avid Reader space in the Capitol Garage.

But there was a big hitch: State rules prohibit pouring more than one ounce of wine at tasting rooms. That wouldn't have worked out economically, Smerling says.

A new law that goes into effect in January allows for sales by the glass at tasting rooms at wineries. But not at satellite facilities.

Smerling says he tried to get ABC authorization for his plan. Without luck.

Seeing no progress, city officials last month signed a deal with Grebitus & Sons Jewelers to go there.

The tasting room "was a great idea. I think it would have been successful," says Howard Chan, Sacramento's parking services manager, and the point man in the city's efforts to help Smerling.

But he says there was no way around the ABC regs.

"We spent a lot of time trying to skin that cat," he says.

For his part, Smerling is angry a deal couldn't get done to bring what he thinks would have been a destination entertainment site to downtown.

"I'm still fuming," he says.

Two interesting points: First, kinda neat that Grebitus & Sons are moving into the 10th & L Street space once they move out of the mall (they're in the part that is supposed to become a Target, assuming that that happens.) I noticed that a crew was working on the floor in there on Friday afternoon, so I guess they're planning on moving in soon.

Second point: What was the hitch with ABC? If they couldn't swing a tasting room, why not go for a regular beer & wine license? They're not that hard to get, especially considering all the new bars going in throughout the central city, and it's not like there are a lot of neighbors around 10th & L that would complain. If they can't get around the regs, why not just follow them? The quote above says "That wouldn't have worked out economically" but that doesn't say much.

Grimnebulin · #**860** Posted **Jul 21, 2008, 8:47 PM**

Don't know if anyone has posted this info up, but Streets of London is opening a third location - anyone want to guess where?