Appetizers

Here's some exciting news for the downtown restaurant scene: it keeps getting better. Now, there is a new entry coming into the mix, a promising place called Blackbird Kitchen & Bar.

For months, foodies have been keeping their eye on this nicely transformed building with the blackbird mural on 9th near J (right across from Temple Coffee), but restaurants almost never open on time (check out the coming in Feb. 2012 banner in the window of the still-working-on-it Firestone Public House at 16th and L). Check out Blackbird on Facebook.

I called Blackbird on Monday and got a recording, which stated the restaurant will be officially open Wednesday from 4-10 p.m., dinners only to start. The menu will be limited at first. I'm told Blackbird had a family-and-friends soft opening over the weekend to work out the kinks.

These folks look serious about being a significant player in the casual/fine dining category. We'll be stopping in soon for a look. Expect to see Blackbird in an upcoming "First Impressions" piece in The Bee.

I wish them well.

How many Sacramento chefs can you identify? Well, there's an impressive collection of photos on Facebook that will help put a face with the name -- and, perhaps, their food. Check them out here

Since I don't want to spoil it, here's a hint on the photo above: it's the new executive chef at one of the city's most elegant restaurants..

The photos are the work of Debbie Cunningham, a state employee who has become increasingly passionate about photography and manages to squeeze in assignments during her off hours.. She has routinely photographed special food-related events and has been invited to shoot candid behind-the-scenes action in some of the city's top kitchens.

Insight on Capital Public Radio recently took a look at the the Sacramento restaurant scene, interviewing Pajo Bruich, executive chef at Lounge ON20, and a member of a new group that aims to get Sacramento a higher profile on the statewide and national culinary scene. It's called Sactown Dining Collective.

Conducting the interview, in dulcet tones, I might add, is Rick Kushman, a lover of food and wine, and a former colleague we miss at The Bee.

Listen to the interview here. Bruich makes several excellent points and raises the ongoing questions many of us are asking: What's it going to take to enhance the city's reputation for restaurants. Do we have to do more? Or say more?

For more on the Sactown Dining Collective, go to the group's Facebook page.
If you want to read more about Bruich and company at Lounge ON20, check out what I said after their Valentine's dinner extravaganza by clicking here.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @blarob.

Magpie Café, which has quickly established itself as one of the city's consistently great dining experiences, will celebrate three years in business this weekend.

Anyone familiar with the restaurant world knows that getting that far means overcoming all kinds of hurdles - several of which can doom a restaurant sooner than later. We're talking about concept, staffing, the physical space, the lease, the menu, the food costs, and all the intangibles that happen behind the scenes.

Then, if you're good, you start to build a clientele. Magpie has gone way beyond that. It is now one of those foundational restaurants in Sacramento. It has helped redefine the city's restaurant landscape, has taught its legions of fans about clean, honest flavors and excellent technique, and it continues to showcase great food morning, noon and night.

One sign of a great restaurant is how impactful its food is. I can sincerely remember nearly everything I have eaten at Magpie during my dozens of visits - precisely where I was seated the first time I smelled the gnocchi with duck, how I felt when I tasted the rib eye steak with pan sauce, the iconic chicken for two, the risotto with duck egg, the breakfast sandwich, the simple salad with chicken and beautiful watermelon radishes, the trout sandwich, the pork five ways (pictured), the carrot cake cookie, the seared ahi with runner bean ragout, the crab Louie, all the soups. On and on. This is just off the top of my head.

>

Last year, I reviewed three of the new food trucks that had quickly made their mark in and around Sacramento.

But plenty has changed since then -- there are several new trucks, and it's only fitting that I take a look at what they are up to. As most foodies know by now, SactoMoFo is fast approaching (April 21).

Let us know in the comments section about some of your favorite new trucks, as well as some of the menu offerings you think we should try.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @blarob.

brobertson@sacbee.com

Stella, the well-respected restaurant at the Cedar House Sport Hotel in Truckee, is known for its fine cooking. But it also has a reputation for its cooking classes. I recently received an email detailing Stella's upcoming classes, and there seems to be something for everyone. I am especially interested in the class on salt. As some of you know, I wrote a story a few months back on the illuminating book, "Salted," by Mark Bitterman (not to be confused with Mark Bittman).

While looking at Stella's website this morning, I was impressed to see they are baking bread in a wood-fired oven and selling the loaves retail. That alone may be worth a road trip.

Below are the details about the upcoming classes, dubbed, "Dishing with Stella." Taking a class would be a nice way to spend a day in the Sierra. Even better, make it a part of a multi-day adventure.

Many folks tied to the Sacramento food scene have maintained a long-running, often appropriate and sometimes misguided discussion about the quality of the area's restaurants. Often, the discussion focuses on the lack of inspired, inventive and edgy meals (the definition of edgy is subjective and elastic, ranging from keeping the bones in the chicken breast all the way to, say, serving all those "gross" parts of animals, as well as vegetables you've never seen before).

The discussion and debate revolve around wooing customers without turning others off, food costs, and all kinds of other factors...like staying in business during a dreadful and persistent recession. In these times, is it best to play it safe or fire up the edgy ideas and invite people to be more adventurous eaters?

When I saw the rather stunning menu for an upcoming wine dinner at Maranello in Fair Oaks, I had hope. It would certainly be considered a highly adventurous - and possibly high-risk -- meal in Sacramento. We're talking veal carpaccio and lamb belly wrapped in lamb sweetbreads. Now that's edgy. It made me think of the kind of thing Mark Liberman is doing at AQ in San Francisco.

So I gave executive chef Gabriel Glasier a call and asked him to walk me through the menu, complete with his thoughts.

As noted in this space several weeks ago, Meadowood in St. Helena is a world-class restaurant that didn't stop trying to be great when it was awarded three Michelin stars. The restaurant closed this winter for several weeks to dramatically retool the kitchen, tweak the décor in the dining room and rethink its purpose moving forward.

Part of that thinking is off to a rocky start, inviting such labels as "elitist," "self-important" and "ostentatious." I'm referring to the $500 per person tasting menu that runs to 20 courses, includes exclusive seating at the "chef's counter" in the kitchen, and if you want wine pairings, it will set you back another $350 or so. Even if you're one of those heartless 1-percenters and you stiff the waiter, you're still looking at around $1,000 for a meal that, from the looks of it, will either thrill you or overwhelm your taste buds. An on-call priest to give last rites is an additional $350, not including tip (OK, I made that up). Locally, by comparison, I believe the priciest meal is the $125 prix fixe at The Kitchen Restaurant, followed by Ambience..

Juno, a beloved dog known to many in East Sacramento and foodie circles well beyond, might be getting a new notation on her canine report card: Doesn't play well with snakes.

Huh?

Juno is the dog that inspired the name of Mark Helms' highly regarded Juno's Kitchen and Delicatessen. Her face is resplendent on the restaurant's logo. She sleeps in the couple's bed. For a treat, she wolfs down Helms' incredible burgers.

Tuesday, however, was a tough one for Juno, Juno's, Helms and his wife, Sue.

Sue and Juno were out on a romp along a quiet stretch of the American River. Juno went for a swim, darted into a bush or two, then came hobbling back to Sue. There were two fang marks on Juno's leg and it was badly swollen.

That's when things got scary. Sue called Mark at the restaurant. Mark took stock and left the restaurant in the hands of a lone employee -- taking the orders and cooking the food while the owner/chef was racing to the emergency veterinarian on Bradshaw Road.

So many good spots for brunch, so little time. For the next few weeks, I will be searching high and low as we prepare a list of the best brunch restaurants in the Sacramento area.

If you have a favorite, please let us know. Shoot me an email or make a comment below. It can be a fancy special-occasion spot or a little hole-in-the-wall. Doesn't matter. We just want good food and a great brunch experience.

If you want an example of a place that knows how to make brunch, check out the photo above of the smoked salmon omelet with fire-roasted red pepper sauce I had recently at Maranello in Fair Oak. It was a thing of beauty -- cooked perfectly, without even a hint of browning -- and the flavors were intense and satisfying. Kudos to executive chef Gabriel Glasier and his kitchen staff. This kind of cooking demonstrates good technique and great attention to detail.

And I'm on the lookout for more great food like this.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @blarob.

Billy Zoellin's creative takes on simple cuisine while he was the chef at the Golden Bear attracted national attention and won him many new fans on the local food scene.

After a topsy-turvy year, Zoellin is getting ready to open his own place - a breakfast, lunch and espresso spot on 21st Street he's calling Bacon & Butter.

"It's really exciting. I've got a great opportunity," said the chef.

Many fans of the cooking and warm, friendly environment at Bistro La Petite France in Granite Bay have been upset to learn that their beloved restaurant has closed, albeit not for good.

But because of a issues regarding the lease, the husband-and-wife team of Christophe and Claudine Erhart were compelled to close the bistro and find a new location. By the first week in April or thereabouts - after plenty of heavy lifting, scrubbing and painting - the couple expect to reopen in Historic Old Folsom.

Explains Christophe: "We had been trying to renogiate the lease with our landlord. It just wasn't going anywhere. In order to continue to do what we wanted to do, it was just too difficult. Claudine and I are really hurt. We loved that place. This created a whole brouhaha in Granite Bay. Granite Bay is not happy about us leaving. We had people with tears in their eyes when we told them.

"We're turning away 12-15 reservations a day because people don't know we're closed."

Two of the best gourmet hamburgers on planet earth can both be found on J Street within a couple of blocks of one another in East Sacramento.

But life at the top isn't all it's cracked up to be. In fact, there's burger-centric controversy simmering at both restaurants - Juno's Kitchen and Delicatessen and Formoli's Bistro.

This isn't about a rivalry. Each "controversy" stands on its own, the only connection being the excellence of the burgers and the sometimes negative reaction from customers.

Let me explain, beginning with Juno's.

When I reviewed Lounge ON20 several months ago, I named its charcuterie plate as the best dish I had encountered in the past year. So, what happened since then? I stopped in at Lounge ON20 recently with that question in mind, wondering what the kitchen was doing with its already stellar charcuterie plate. The answer: to remain the best, you have to keep pushing forward.

That's what chef de cuisine Mike Ward is doing. We were already elated by his earlier charcuterie offerings, and this new one is superb, too. Take a look at the artistry and execution. As for flavors, there was so much going on here, such a lively and dynamic offering of tastes, colors, textures, surprises.

See if you can identify some of the following on the plate (click on the photo to make it larger):

• Duck prosciutto sprinkled with Jurassic salt
• Fermented black garlic puree
• Pickled red beet puree
• Pickled quail eggs
• Yellow romesco puree
• Cornichons
• Pickled ground cherries
• Virginia ham jowls
• Two kinds of mustard: minced chile mustard and traditional whole grain mustard
• Pickled shimeji mushrooms
• Burnt caramel gastrique
• Corned beef tongue with , next to dots of burnt eggplant (really sweet and caramel)
• Chorizo pate with Fresno chile gel
• Pickled cherries

Congratulations to Ward, executive chef Pajo Bruich and the rest of the hard-working crew at Lounge ON20. This kind of attitude is what helps inspire and challenge other chefs, resulting in more enterprising work and elevating our overall dining scene in the Sacramento region.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @blarob.

Several of our best restaurants are doing special foie gras dinners as the deadline for foie gras prohibition draws closer.

This March 29 dinner at Hawks, at $120 per person, looks amazing. This is not the time to address the issue of foie gras. We'll do that another time. What's noteworthy is the creative approaches the kitchen is taking for getting foie gras into every course, including dessert.

I tried to get a reservation, but it's all booked up. I guess I need better connections! Nevertheless, congratulations to Hawks on the sold-out dinner and the overall excellence of the dining experience here.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @blarob.

I am looking at a photograph published in the Wall Street Journal showing one of the greatest chef's of our generation. Grant Achatz's restaurant in Chicago, Alinea, was awarded three Michelin stars and it has been listed by some as the best restaurant in the United States, and by others as one of the best restaurants in the world (how anyone can know these things without actually visiting all of the contenders within days of one another is a topic for another time).

Achatz is slim. His shirt is untucked. But my eyes looking over his shoulder. Yikes! He has a microwave! And it's white! And it's over his range! It's one of those gawd-awful microwaves that doubles as an exhaust hood - the kind that we used to have, the one that couldn't exhaust anything to save its life. The range and oven are also white. I rubbed my eyes. Refocused. Still white.

For the past decade or so, whether it was on one HGTV show after another or in magazines dealing with style and design like "Dwell," we have been led to believe that anything but stainless steel appliances are the kitchen equivalent of a fashion faux pas. We were supposed to make our kitchens look more commercial, more rugged. Watch HGTV. "Househunters," for instance. The first thing folks say when they walk through and encounter white or black appliances is, "Oh, we'll have to upgrade those." There is a slight and recent trend to offer other appliance options, like hiding them behind cabinetry.

I thought the LA Times did a nice job on this piece about Thomas Keller and how he makes the perfect omelet.

As the visionary behind the French Laundry and Per Se points out, sometimes it's all about simple ingredients done with the proper technique. Keller does a couple of interesting things: he uses a blender and he uses relatively low heat with a non-stick pan. This is in contrast to the classic French technique of high heat with an untreated carbon steel pan, with clarified butter and two forks to stir vigorously.

Since it's always nice to learn a new approach, read the text, watch the video and give this a try. As Keller opines, the omelet is not just for breakfast -- he likes to eat his perfectly cooked eggs at night.

And if you're still looking for different, take a look at what I posted here a few weeks back -- poached scrambled eggs!

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @blarob.

The accolades and opportunities continue to pile up for Pajo Bruich, the talented executive chef at Lounge ON20 in midtown.

Hot off a Valentine's dinner that won raves, Bruich has been recruited to show off his modernist cuisine at a special event in Napa Valley this spring.

Bruich is slated to be a featured guest chef at one of the private estate dinners for this year's Napa Valley Wine Auction. It's a who's who of the food and wine folks in the Napa Valley, and it is quite an honor for Bruich to be invited, especially when you scan your eyes down the list of other chefs involved: Thomas Keller, Christopher Kostow, Cindy Pawlcyn and Gary Danko, among others.

I just heard back from Jenny Cavaliere, the farmer in Oregon House who owns and operates High Sierra Beef (see the original story here). She tells me the new farm store is in the process of being fully stocked and that the best time to visit is in early March. The store is open Saturdays and Sundays until 3 p.m. We're already planning a trip. If you're thinking of doing something similar, be sure to bring along an ice chest to pack the meat for the drive home (about 90 minutes). That way, you don't have to hurry to leave Oregon House and you don't have to worry about spoilage.

I wrote a story in Wednesday's Bee taking a look at the trend of buying meat in bulk from local farms. One of the subjects in the story, Joshua Lurie-Terrell, was pictured cooking up some very tasty-looking short ribs, which came from High Sierra Beef as part of bulk purchase with several families.

Lots of readers couldn't help themselves and were eager to fire up some short ribs, too. They called and emailed looking for the recipe. We didn't run it in the paper, so I asked Lurie-Terrell to weigh in. One of the signs of a true foodie is a willingness to share -- whether its ideas, leads on restaurants or recipes. He didn't hesitate and replied promptly with the recipe.

In the restaurant business, Valentine's Day is known as "amateur night." It's the night when a lot of folks new to fine dining go out looking for a little romance, some good food and a pleasant experience. Sure, they might fumble the ball on occasion, like ordering a Diet Coke with sweetbreads, tipping $3 on a $100 ticket because that's all the cash they had left, or leaving behind their doggie bag like half of restaurant diners always seem to do.

But Valentine's is also a valuable night for restaurants. Not only is it an immediate way to take in revenue, it's a big chance to win new and perhaps longtime customers. Those rubes drinking ice water with their meal? They may one day grow up to be true epicures and wine lovers.

Along those lines, I wondered which restaurant really got this. Many restaurants embrace Valentine's Day, but I haven't seen one do it any better than Lounge ON20.

Executive chef Pajo Bruich's concept and execution we're brilliant. He came up with a menu that had wit and charm, as well as creative cooking with his now-signature modernist style.

The 6-course prix fixe menu concept was a tour de force. The amuse bouche, for instance, was given the title "Blind date;" the soup was called "Spooning;" the charcuterie was titled "It's complicated;" followed by "the Break-up": hamachi tartare for her and lamb tartare for him; followed by "the Make-up," beautiful grass-fed rib eye; the dessert was a dark chocolate cremeux with peanut butter ice cream dubbed "the perfect match."

Just look at some of the photos here (credit: Donahue Photography), including the dazzling charcuterie plate (above) created by chef de cuisine Mike Ward, the steak at the top, and the dessert below.

Valentine's Day may be amateur night at some restaurants, but it was nothing but smart and professional at Lounge ON20. It look like a tremendous culinary achievement and, more than likely, a way to win plenty of loyal customers well into the future. Below is a shot of the actual menu.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @blarob.

Here's an update on the dust-up over a short but negative review of Fox & Goose in the Feb. Midtown Monthly. Social media is a powerful tool. Is this a good response from the pub?

Let's get one thing clear...we have NOT stopped distributing MidMo. If the (over)reactionaries would take a step back, then maybe they would appreciate seeing the whole picture. While the current issue in question has been removed (Honestly, do you think it is good business to have your customers reading a negative review while they are waiting for a table or their order to arrive? Think about it.) we fully expect to have the next excellent issue of MidMo on the rack (if they would like to return it). And YES we heard Ms. Singleton's message loud and clear. Inconsistency is not the hallmark of the F&G's success over the last 37 years. Clearly there is a disconnect when a single patron experiences three lackluster meals. Since our ill-fated review came out, we immediately addressed the issues of which Ms. Singleton spoke. We have conducted a kitchen meeting to address the food issues, addressed the floor staff to ensure food is delivered to the table prepared properly and we have hired Roxanne O'Brien, formerly of Mamzelle Catering, to indepently evaluate some of the menu items and recipes. Since our house made Corned Beef Hash is clearly one of our most popular menu items, we have to chalk that one up to execution. Our egg guys are the best in the business. Overcooked eggs should only be served if the customer has asked for them that way. Shepherd's Pie is also a signature dish which was recently added to the menu full time due to customer demand. Nevertheless, quality control was clearly lacking if it tasted "unseasoned" which, if prepared correctly, it is not. Look, we are not "that" place for seasonal, locally sourced, inventive food. We are a pub. As such, we serve pub food. Wholesome, hearty and, hopefully, delicious food, thoughtfully prepared, served with enthusiasm and in a great atmosphere...that is what we do. If the numbers of people who make it through our door day in and day out are any indication, we must be doing something right. Nevertheless, we want EVERYONE who comes through the door to have the best experience possible. Be assured, that is our goal and we're doing everything possible to see that it happens.

I never miss reading an issue of Midtown Monthly. The articles are informative, entertaining and earnest. There's a lot of personality and passion within its 52 pages.

Every month, I'm likely to read about an upcoming event I'd like to attend or encounter a piece of history I didn't know about. I look at the photos. I recognize some folks and learn about others.

One of the reasons I believe the writing is that the magazine does not come off as a mere vehicle for advertising dollars. In other words, it tells the truth. It asks the right questions.

There is criticism within the magazine. Much of it is positive.

Lately, however, the magazine affectionately known as MidMo, has rattled some cages and bruised some egos - so much so that the venerable watering hole and eatery, Fox & Goose, gave the magazine's circulation rack the heave-ho. It happened shortly after the February 2012 issue hit the stands - the issue in which Sarah Singleton raised questions about the quality of the pub's cooking.

Overcooked eggs, scorched onions and peppers on a dish that was still "somehow cold." That was Singleton's breakfast.

It didn't get better at dinner. The shepherd's pie was essentially unseasoned and "the sad little salad that it came with was overdressed and limp," she reported. Aren't those facts? And unless Singleton needs a new optician, it's hard not to know what burnt looks like.

That critique is part of a larger piece on "Pub Grub," in which the food-savvy Singleton explores places known for their pub fare. In that context, you cannot ignore the long-admired Fox & Goose at 10th and R. And if you can't ignore it, you can't overlook its shortcomings. It wouldn't be fair to every other place that makes the extra effort and tends to all the little details - and it wouldn't be good journalism.

I couldn't ignore the unsavory response. Or so I thought. It turns out., it's not as bad as it appears (after hearing back from owner Allyson Dalton).

Ever since I came across the technique in the January 2012 issue of "Food and Wine," I've been tinkering with a new way to make scrambled eggs.

I'm referring to the illuminating article about Coi's Daniel Patterson and Rene Redzepi of Noma, considered by many to be one of the greatest restaurants in the world. They recently spent time at Patterson's house in Oakland collaborating on ways to come up with new flavors.

This is something for which Redzepi is particularly renowned. His rather mesmerizing book, "Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine" has scores of recipes using ingredients plucked right from the land, sometimes while strolling through the woods, traipsing across a meadow or walking along the seashore.

This scrambled egg dish is much more accessible. And it's a pretty cool trick.

Partially fill a pot with water. The pot should have high walls because you'll be stirring the water very briskly. My first go-round, the water tumbled over the top, so I switched to a taller pot.

Once the water is boiling, take a large spoon and stir vigorously (but carefully), creating a vortex. You will have already beaten your eggs. Stop stirring and immediately pour the beaten eggs into the vortex. Quickly cover the pot, turn down the heat and cook for about 40 seconds (for four eggs, slightly less for two eggs).

Carefully pour out the water into the sink, holding back the eggs with a slotted spoon. Then pour the eggs into a colander or strainer. The magazine suggests straining for 10 seconds. I found it needed longer than that; otherwise, you'll have watery eggs.

In no time, you're looking at plump, perfectly cooked eggs - something between scrambled and an omelet. They're good enough to eat just like that, with a pinch of salt, maybe. But the Redezepi/Patterson article has a nice goat cheese sauce to add to the eggs.

You'll do this ahead of time: Take 4 ounces of fresh goat cheese and whisk with a ¼ cup of warm water. Then 2 ounces of shredded aged hard goat cheese (maybe gouda), 1 tablespoon of grated parmesan and stir into a pot with ¾ cup of simmering water. Stir until melted, then whisk in the fresh goat cheese mixture. Season with salt and pepper.

Spoon the eggs into bowls (1 or 2 eggs per bowl), then spoon the cheese mixture on top. Drizzle olive oil over that and adjust the seasonings to suit.

It's a great new dish. And an entertaining way to get there.

If you're looking for more advanced recipes from Redzepi, you'll certainly enjoy his book, which is loaded with beautiful photographs. On page 275, for instance, there's a poached egg recipe (but not scrambled and poached), that includes radishes and verbena sauce. The entire dish is then covered with heated sea lettuce, creating an opaque window over the eggs and radishes.

John Paul Khoury, the corporate chef for Preferred Meats, is one of the good guys in the business. He's smart, passionate, and committed to doing things the right way -- and the right way usually means a better, more flavorful product on your plate.

Khoury's main business is supplying high-end, sustainable proteins to some of the best restaurants around. But he's also a superb chef who often educates as he cooks. Usually, it's professional chefs. This time, it's the listeners for Capital Public Radio in a segment with the station's food journalist and author Elaine Corn.

Click here to learn a little about cooking a duck breast and making a sauce.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @blabrob.

Hot Italian, the popular midtown pizzeria, is opening a second location, entering the highly competitive Bay Area market.

It is expected to open in early spring in an Emeryville shopping center called the Public Market. The center is in the midst of a major renovation by TMG Partners out of San Francisco and it will be anchored by Urban Outfitters, Guitar Center, an artist collective, Peet's Coffee, along with Hot Italian in a 3,000 square-foot space (pictured here) - which is about half the size of the Sacramento location.

"It's a longtime coming," said Andrea Lepore, who partnered with Fabrizio Cercatore to start the business about three years ago. The plan was always to have multiple locations.

The two restaurateurs will be doing plenty of back-and-forth travel in the weeks ahead as they oversee the many facets of opening a new restaurant.

They will host a job fair Saturday. Lepore says there are openings for shift leaders, servers, and various kitchen positions. A job fair last Tuesday in Sacramento attracted 300 applicants - a sign of the times, perhaps. People are looking for a job --- or a second or third job.

Asked how Hot Italian will stack up to the competition in the Bay Area, Lepore said, "We've tried all the pizza places down there and think they're all great. Fabrizio was born and raised in Italy and has been doing this his entire adult life. He is the maestro pizzaiolo. It will be fun. It's a great market and people there really appreciate good food."

Folks in Sacramento appreciate good food, too. Business has been excellent at Hot Italian, even in this dreary economy.

"Sacramento has been awesome. We have so many repeat customers. We couldn't have done this expansion without that. It's really a testament to the support that we've gotten here," Lepore added.

Expect the new restaurant to have the same style as the Sacramento place - black and white, with plenty of cool touches, from the Illy coffee can lights to the giant fan from Bigassfans.com. The bike racks out front are the best in town, practically pieces of functional sculpture.

Sacramento's talented Mike Whisten of 12M Metal & Woodworks, will be doing plenty of work on the inside of the new restaurant. Many of his creative touches are featured at the first location, including the round communal table made of reclaimed wood, and the wood storage units affixed to the walls. Whisten has also done work for restaurants like Press Bistro and coffee shops like Old Soul at the Weatherstone.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twittter, @blarob.

In recent years, it has become commonplace to include every farm and farmer on restaurant menus. This was initially greeted as a good idea -- it taught us to appreciate where our food was coming from and, in doing so, it brought new attention to farmers who were doing things the right way.

At some point, avid restaurant-goers began to see it as overkill. They were reading about farms and farmers and small towns in far-off lands they had never heard of, and they didn't know what to make of all the names. Some restaurants began dialing it back, mentioning the source only when it really seemed to matter.

The Porch, the new restaurant that opened on K Street in midtown recently (in the building occupied for years by Celestin's) has an excellent way of showcasing its ingredients without shoehorning them onto the menu. A link on the restaurant's website called "Providers" goes into great detail about the origins of the food. For those into this kind of thing, it's quite informative.

The sandwich bread, for instance, is as local as you can imagine -- they get it at Old Soul Bakery, which is a block or two away. The cornmeal comes from Grass Valley Grains, "a small one man farming operation on a fifth generation farm in Wheatland."

The Porch is one of the few restaurants around serving grits. The website tells us: "Our grits are from Ridgecut Gristmill in Chico and from War Eagle Mill in Rogers, Ark. Due to the demand of white hominy corn (used for masa), we can't always get our grits from Chico."

Check out the link and learn a little about The Porch and its products. It's good reading. Further, it shows that this new restaurant, still finding its footing, is already conscientious about sourcing and meticulous about dealing with responsible and ethical farms.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @Blarob.

I finally got hold of Timothy Newbold -- and no, it wasn't at the ICU.

Newbold, as you may recall, is the guy who wolfed down the double burger with bacon and cheese, along with the amazing "disco fries Ryan" at The Eatery. Just a fun little challenge for this West Sac restaurant.

Newbold not only rose to the challenge, he did it to make his brother proud and get the family name on the wall. The feat for all comers will now be known as the "Newbold Challenge."

Turns out, Newbold, 34, is a super nice guy, a stay-at-home dad who worked as an insurance broker for 10 years. He and his wife have four daughters.

He did the feat as sort of a last hurrah before going on a diet -- he wants to lose 140 pounds. Let's wish him well.

Tim was nice enough to answer a few questions I emailed him, but before we get to that, let me quickly address the topic of "gluttony," since I have been getting emails and voicemails about eating and overeating. This little challenge is just for fun. No one is putting a gun to anyone's head. Not only is the food of the highest quality, it is also priced reasonably. No one at The Eatery thinks a double burger and disco fries should be a part of anyone's daily diet.

Here's what Tim emailed me:

1. I took the challenge in response to the urging of my brother. He is amused by things bearing our names. Newbold is not a very common last name so its kind of novel I guess.

2. Honestly I have never done a challenge like this one and I was full after the burger was gone and I still had not touched the salad or Disco Fries Ryan. I just pushed forward. Seriously could have fed a small family with that much food.

3. I didn't eat for 30 hours after "the Challenge" I was not comfortable for the first few hours and by 10pm my blood sugar was 309...never that high before that I know of.

4. The food was awesome! I am kind of a burger junky, but only good burgers. This one destroys the field. I would say top three of those that I have tried, maybe number one (I will let you know next time when I have a chance to savor). Salad was made to order and SUPER fresh. What can I say about the fries...legendary.

5. As for the name thing...Awesome! That's why I did it. I really don't eat like that I have NEVER eaten that much food in my life. It was super fun. Thanks and Kudos to Jess and all of the staff at the Eatery!

Magpie Café puts out some of the best food in the city, night after night. If you go there, you can see the kitchen in action.

I recently heard Magpie was hiring. No, you won't be starting at the top if you land one of the jobs. Magpie is looking for cooks, not chefs.

Since the restaurant has been so well regarded for its quality food, I called co-owner and chef Ed Roehr to find out what kind of people he was hiring.

A couple of weeks earlier, I had read a piece about Rene Redzepi, the celebrated chef at Noma, the Copenhagen restaurant regarded by many as the greatest in the world. Redzepi was responding to a question about how an aspiring chef could be lucky enough to snag a non-paying job at Noma when he said: "We receive a truly humbling number of job applications [...] We don't necessarily look for the most impressive resume as, most of time, it's better to have someone who has cooked three-four years at a more modest restaurant rather than a chef who has hopped from one great kitchen to the other, only spending a year or less in each."

Not to compare Magpie to Noma, but I am interested in how quality places seek out and hire quality people. At the end of the day, it's the people who make or break a restaurant. Magpie put an ad on Craigslist looking for two or three line cooks.

Fresh off its review in The Bee, The Eatery is having some good-natured fun with some of its best -- and most notorious -- dishes.

If you're a big eater and a bon vivant, this is something you'll want to sink your teeth into.

During happy hour, The Eatery is offering its amazing "Disco Fries Ryan" (named after a culinary school classmate) for $5 (regularly $10). If you know what's on that massive plate -- two eggs, bacon, melted cheese, gravy and lots of fries -- you will realize what a bargain that is. And this is the good stuff -- top-notch ingredients presented in fun, delicious, decadent balance.

But that's not all. If you also order the double burger (with bacon and cheese) like the one I mentioned in the review, and you manage to finish the burger and the fries within an hour, the food is on the house and you get your photo on the wall of fame.

It's a great idea, and a scary one. Who would try such a thing?

Turns out, his name is Timothy Newbold, and he can really pack it away. Newbold wolfed down the food in 40 minutes. Not only will his picture hang on the wall, The Eatery is naming the challenge after him. Let's hope this doesn't come back to haunt him if he ever runs for president or is nominated to the Supreme Court.

The fame has apparently blindsided the area's newest celebrity. A message to his Facebook page requesting an interview has not been answered. Where is Timothy Newbold? Is he OK? Did his health insurer see The Eatery's Facebook page and promptly cancel his policy?

All we know is that Mr. Newbold is a gifted and determined eater. On The Eatery's Facebook page, Newbold left a couple of comments beneath the picture of his empty plates: "I am feeling it right now" and "no person should ever do this, but it was fun."

When he wakes from his food coma, we hope to land an exclusive with the man behind "the Newbold Challenge." Until then, let's see if any other eaters out there can make it onto the wall of fame. Even reasonable people will enjoy the food at The Eatery. Indeed, you don't have to overeat to eat well at this new and very fine restaurant.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @Blarob.

Kudos to Sacramento Magazine and Mari Tzikas for the cover story in the current issue, "15 Great Nights Out."

Lots of good ideas and they show just how much there is to do in our thriving city. The piece even mentions a new place, The Eatery, in West Sacramento. Just so happens, my review of The Eatery is coming this Sunday in The Bee.

Read Tzikas' entire piece here.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @Blarob.

In recent years, bacon has enjoyed something of a second act, thanks to restaurants and premium food markets that showcase the way it's really supposed to look and taste.

Now comes Baconfest, a three-day event that celebrates the greatness of bacon and has a little fun along the way.

The event is the brainchild of Brian Guido, who works at the California State Archives filming historical documents for preservation and security. Guido was aware of Baconfest events in Chicago and Des Moines, and he wanted to do something like that in Sacramento.

"It all started with a wild idea, a love for bacon and the desire to fill the void that a town like this has for events," Guido said.

In the past year, I started noticing some really nice photographs by Rik Keller on various websites. Since one of his many subjects is food, I lined up a Q&A to get to know him and his approach to photography a little better.

I also asked if we could run a few of his photos. They accompany the text. What follows is our exchange, in which Keller talks about his passion for photography, his advice for those looking to become better photographers, and, finally, we pin him down on a few fun things related to food:

1. Please provide some basic information about yourself: where you're from, your interests, career path, how you got your start in photography.

My interest in photography started almost 25 years ago in college with a fascination in studying art photography. Harry Callahan, Minor White, Bill Brandt, Aaron Siskind, Man Ray are some of the Modern masters that spring to mind. I started taking, developing, and printing my own black and white photos then. I am mostly self-taught from years and years of experience, darkroom work, and self-critique. A photographer has to be comfortable with a very high failure rate. And a willingness to learn from mistakes.

I started off in graduate school in architecture and ended up getting a Masters degree in city planning. Photography as a hobby has continued to feed the frustrated designer inside of me throughout my city planning career the last 15 or so years in the Sacramento area.

When it comes to New Year's Eve celebrations, you can go in all kinds of directions for tasty adult beverages. Champagne is always going to work, but there are plenty of other options.

Let us know what your favorites are - bonus points if you include a recipe in the comments below.

For now, here are a couple of simple ones:

1. "Appletini" (pun intended, from the iPad app "Cocktails HD")
1 ½ ounces vodka
½ ounce sour apple schnapps
1 ounce sweet and sour mix
1 maraschino cherry
Fill shaker halfway with ice. Add vodka, schnapps and sweet and sour mix. Shake vigorously for 10 seconds. Strain into chilled martini glass and garnish with the cherry.

2. "Thriller from Vanilla" (from "Difford's Encyclopedia of Cocktails")
¾ shot vanilla-infued Ketel One vodka
¾ shot Tanqueray London dry gin
½ Cointreau triple sec
2 shots freshly squeezed orange juice.
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass.

For those who might get carried away this New Year's Eve, see the blog post below about how to get a free ride home that doesn't involve the police, bail and an unflattering mug shot.

It's a little known fact that the last day of December is also known in some Western cultures as New Year's Eve, and on that day - which happens to be Saturday - people are known to enjoy a drink or two. For those who do, you should also know that AAA is offering a free "tipsy tow" to anyone who doesn't want to drink and drive. And by "anyone," I mean anyone who is smart enough to know that a DUI can ruin your life for the next several years. Yes, friends have told me as much.

AAA has a great deal. The catch, by the time you need their help you may A) forget how to spell it, B) be unable to pronounce it or C) forget where you jotted down the phone number.

If you can get past those hurdles, all you have to do is call 1-800-222-4357 or 800-AAA-HELP and say, "I need a tipsy tow." If you come up with something that sounds sorta like that, chances are you'll still get a tipsy tow.

Have fun, good luck, be safe, play smart and remember one thing when you start imbibing: if you have even the faintest designs on becoming a Supreme Court Justice, president of the United States or even a member of Congress, resist the urge to tweet how messed up you are or post dazed and confused photos of yourself on Facebook. Going shirtless and flexing won't go over well either. Just ask Anthony Weiner, the former Congressman who thought he was a Chippendales dancer.

Happy New Year. I've got the Champagne chilling in the fridge. We plan to ring in the New Year like pros - low-key, at home, out of earshot of guys who screech and holler when they have fun, with the car parked in the driveway.

Cowtown Eats doesn't sleep. Following up on my post about restaurants in hiring mode, here's a good one to add to the list: Selland's Market & Cafe. Looks like they're hiring for all kinds of positions.

Here's what I got over at Cowtown Eats: Selland's Market & Café is hiring for our new Eldorado Hills location. We have a job fair scheduled for Monday 1/2/12 and Tuesday 1/3/12 from 1 P.M. until 6 P.M. at the Town Center location (4370 Town Center Blvd. El Dorado Hills, CA 95762). We will conduct interviews for the following positions: cashier, counter staff, sous chefs, cooks, dishwashers, and externs. Please bring a current resume to the job fair.
Both Selland's locations are also hiring assistant general managers. We will be accepting resumes at our Hst location (5340 Hst Sacramento, CA 95819)for the management position only.

Speaking of Selland's, I happen to know they're looking for a new head chef to replace Kelly McCown at Ella Dining Room & Bar. McCown is returning to the Napa Valley to be a partner in a new restaurant.

Just a quick note for those of you out there who may be looking for a job (or maybe a second job). There's a new restaurant getting ready to open downtown early in the new year. It's called Blackbird Kitchen & Bar -- and there are lots of job openings.

Here's the notice from their Facebook page: "Blackbird is now recruiting talent. Looking for deft chefs, mixologists, and front of the house positions. Show time is very, very soon...
Please email resumes in an attachment to: blackbird.talent@gmail.com

If you haven't heard of Blackbird, here's a summary of the concept (again, from Facebook): "Blackbird will be featuring organic cuisine, highlighting seasonal produce from local farms such as Full Belly and fish from Passmore Ranch; a full bar emphasizing modern, unique cocktails, American craft beers, awesome whiskeys and badass tequilas; a rawbar with a changing selection of oysters, crustaceons and other shellfish; and house-made breads and pastas. During lunch, in addition to the usual suspects diners can expect a few signature egg dishes such as biscuits with lobster gravy, crabcake Benedict, and arguably the best quiche in Northern California. At dinner, the kitchen will be providing an elegant menu featuring smoked and brined fish, big bowls of beer-popped mussels with grilled bread, and aged steaks."

In addition to Blackbird, there is actually quite a bit of positive movement in the business right now. Qualified job seekers could also do well at The Porch and Monsoon, two new restaurants that just opened in midtown. The Mongolian BBQ place at 19th and J is getting ready to open and the Firestone Public House is going to open in a couple of months (the place is completely gutted at the moment and all of the California Pizza Kitchen decor is gone).

I didn't think much of it when I got the email from Meadowood, a restaurant in St. Helena that last year earned three Michelin stars. The notice said the restaurant would be closed for about 10 weeks beginning in January "to undergo an exciting renovation." Sure, it's a nice dining room but a little bit low-key, and it could use a splash of fresh color. Then I saw there will also be an extensive reworking of the kitchen to "allow for more space, better control of temperature, superior equipment and overall flow for service. The new kitchen will also include a Chef's Counter, which will seat up to 5 guests."

That's when I realized what I already suspected: Executive chef Christopher Kostow, though honored and humbled by all the recent praise of his food, wasn't satisfied with the greatness he has already achieved. If you've ever eaten at Meadowood, you can see the passion and inventiveness in Kostow's cooking. When I reviewed Meadowood more than a year ago, it was a Michelin 2-star restaurant, but it was pretty clear it was heading way, way up. I spoke extensively over the phone with Kostow, going over his thoughts on several dishes I had from the chef's tasting menu. I took note of Kostow's competitive fire, along with his humility. Months later, he was featured in "Art Culinaire," where he talked about creating dishes you won't find at any other restaurant. The very greatest dining experiences are like that. When we ate at Corton in New York City (in October), the chef's tasting menu contained course after course of food so unusual and edgy and complex that I took note of all the dishes I had neither seen nor tasted at any other restaurant. Chef Paul Liebrandt's mindset and ambition are similar to Kostow's. (Try to watch the documentary about Liebrandt if they re-run it on HBO; it's called "A Matter of Taste: Serving up Paul Liebrandt" and they follow his highs and lows for 10 years).

The recent Meadowood email directed me to click on a link to read Kostow's personal explanation for the temporary closure. It's an extraordinary example of what it takes to achieve excellence. Turns out, the temporary shutdown isn't solely about aesthetics in the dining room and functionality in the kitchen. It's about getting to the next level, even if there are no more Michelin stars to recognize that kind of achievement.

The chef says:

"The team and I continue to be humbled by the accolades and attention paid to The Restaurant since its inception.

I look forward to welcoming you back to The Restaurant.

The Restaurant at Meadowood will reopen March 12. It will be exciting -- and perhaps inspiring -- to see what the rethinking and retooling will bring us in the days that follow.

Blair Anthony Robertson is The Bee's restaurant critic. Follow him on Twitter, @Blarob.

Albert Villanueva is a foodie. He and his wife love going out to eat in their off hours.

When he's working? He's visiting restaurants, too. He insures them.

When I became aware of Villanueva and his specialized line of work, I contacted him for an interview. I didn't know there was an insurance company that focuses solely on restaurants, bars and nightclubs. Since he's also an avid restaurant-goer, I also wanted to get his impressions on the local food scene.

Villanueva, 33, lives with his wife and two kids in East Sacramento. He works for InsuRestaurants as a producer/marketing director, a job that has him visit 15 to 20 restaurants a week. He estimates his company insures 90 percent of the bars and nightclubs in the area, along with countless restaurants.

When you read in the newspaper about a mishap at a nightclub - a fight, a shooting, a death -- Villanueva is probably reading about a client.

"Anybody who has high alcohol sales tends to get more hostile patrons. Assault and battery coverage is extremely important. It covers any kind of fighting - incidents between patrons or between employees and patrons. It's one of the things that our company boasts we can do extremely well," he said.

Villanueva says a busy nightclub will likely be paying $12,000 to $18,000 a year for general liability, liquor law liability and assault and battery coverage.

Of course, our restaurant scene doesn't see a lot of fighting. Villanueva says restaurants often deal with mishaps like slips and falls, food-borne illnesses and injuries like a chipped tooth.

Like a lot of people who make sales calls, Villanueva relies on word-of-mouth referrals. He is selling a product these businesses are legally required to have, so he has to win them over with personal service, attention to detail and all the little things that prevent a chore from becoming a hassle.

"I love my job and I love helping people protect their livelihood.," he said.

Villanueva typically plans his work two weeks out, relying on his iPad and iPhone to stay organized.

"Google calendar runs my life. It's something I'm constantly organizing," he said.

Regarding the food scene in the Sacramento area, he has visited nearly every kind of restaurant imaginable since he began specializing in this realm in 2005.

"I've seen it mature drastically in the last three or four years, especially outside downtown in the greater Sacramento area," he said. "There are some great places in Roseville and Folsom. The dining scene is maturing and really getting there. I really think over the next three or four years there is going to be even more

"There are a lot of young, talented chefs and they're starting their own eateries. They're coming with a plethora of skills."

Then I asked Villanueva a few food-related questions just for fun.

Memorable meal: "The most recent one that comes to mind is the Ella tasting menu in September. I had my birthday meal there. It was really great."

Favorite dive: "I'd have to say JR's Texas BBQ. I like JR, I love the food. I take my kids there."

Guilty pleasure: "Probably an In-N-Out burger. I don't eat much fast food, but I probably go there once a quarter."

Food that cheers him up: "I'd say pizza. It's just one of those things. It's a family affair. We make our pizzas at home. It's something that would cheer me up for sure. We hand-roll our dough and go to the farmers market to buy all the ingredients."

Food he won't eat: "That's tough. I probably wouldn't eat those Hostess cupcakes."

Something he might be embarrassed to admit he eats: "A combination pizza from Roundtable."

Blair Anthony Robertson is the restaurant critic at The Bee. Follow him on Twitter, @Blarob.

Remember when coffeehouses were stimulating places full of intellectual rigor, lively conversations and, maybe, someone scribbling notes into a leather-bound journal or writing the next great short story?

OK, that coffeehouse was in Paris, and it never really existed on this side of the pond. Years ago, some of us would read about the so-called "Lost Generation," folks who traveled to Paris to absorb the culture, try their hand at a new way of living and maybe find some kind of artistic inspiration or stumble upon profundity. Eventually, they all seemed to pull up a chair at a little café, writing things in little notebooks before reconvening at Shakespeare and Co., the famous bookstore. Hemingway, Pound, Virginia Woolf, Fitzgerald. Even a bearded William Faulkner hit up Paris for a time. (A great book about this era, by the way, is by Morley Callaghan called "That Summer in Paris.")

Before the current wave - or third wave - of coffeehouses like Chocolate Fish, Old Soul, Temple, Naked and Broadacre, there was the ever-expanding empire called Starbucks. Before that? There was Weatherstone, Boulevard Coffee and Java City. Then it was left to Denny's and 7-Eleven, where you could give your java a jolt of "Irish cream" flavored creamer. I remember going to this great bookstore in Oxford, Miss., when I was attending a Faulkner confernence. It was called Square Books, and I thought it was so cool you could have a coffee and a pastry while sitting in a bookstore. Tattered Cover did the same thing in Denver. Then Barnes & Noble made it generic and widespread.

The new coffee joints generally have very good coffee, employees who are really into coffee and an ambience of stone-faced folks staring at their laptops or iPads. Books? What are those? Conversation? Ideas? That's so '80s. I have gone into coffeehouse after coffeehouse and noticed that no one was actually talking - or even enjoying coffee. Libraries are livelier, the waiting room at my dentist more fun.

That may be why I was encouraged by a recent story I read on the Sacramento Press site about a new locally owned business, Insight Coffee Roasters, at 8th and S. One of the owners, Ben Lance, actually addressed the issue when he said there were a limited number of power outlets for people to plug into:

"We don't want this to be a place where everyone is clicking away on their laptops and you're afraid to make a sound," Lance told Sac Press. "We want you to play a board game or sit and have a conversation."

I suppose wi-fi at this point is a deal with the devil. One shop somewhere provided free wi-fi, so folks with laptops went there, bought a coffee and surfed the web. The place got crowded. Others had to respond. So now nearly every coffee joint has free wi-fi. Who needs friends or conversation when you have wi-fi. Even Starbucks, which used to charge for it, gives it away. There's a guy at 15th and H who actually sits with his laptop on the sidewalk across the street from the Starbucks but within wi-fi range. At least that's interesting.

I suppose the stone-faced and hush-hush issue at coffee shops won't go away until wi-fi is everywhere. It would be nice to see these great places for coffee actually feel great when you're sitting there. I had a conversation at one once and had some hipster look at me like, "What are you doing? Talking? This is a coffeehouse."

My mistake.

I am a big fan of controversy. It's important, stimulating and essential. Controversy is often how we figure out who we are and where we stand. It's how we change our minds or reaffirm what we believe, whether we're talking about the Middle East, the presidential election or a plate of pasta. Reflection is a good thing, too. But there's a difference between controversy of the stimulating kind and controversy that takes an unfortunate turn - leading to insults, needlessly stirring up anger and, worst of all, missing the mark.

I am referring to Rick Mahan's reaction to my largely positive review of his restaurant, The Waterboy. I was quite surprised to hear about it. I thought I had been very generous in my praise, and my criticisms were largely quibbles. But based on the tone and the language of his reply on Facebook, I was left wondering: Did I write a restaurant review or call a foot fault on Serena Williams?

The other day, I ordered marrow bones from the meat counter at Taylor's Market, asking that these 8-10 inch behemoths be sliced lengthwise. Taylor's is old-school. You can watch them do the cutting on the well-worn band saw.

These were gourmet-caliber bones, and I neglected to tell the butcher they were not necessarily for human consumption. Among the places I've enjoyed roasted bone marrow in the past year or so are Red Lotus (now closed) and Ella (which is about to lose its well-regarded chef to St. Helena).

Oscar, a Rhodesian mix who would eat a tank if given the time, does not have what I would describe as a discriminating palate (ask me sometime about the dead salmon at the American River). He enjoyed his marrow without cooking or seasoning. But if you're so inclined and willing to be a bit adventurous, you can turn these into a side dish for an upcoming homo sapien meal .

I called John Paul Khoury, the corporate chef at Preferred Meats (which has supplied the bones to Ella, among others) and asked how he would prepare them. A couple of days ago, he posted a photo of his roasted bone marrow with flavors of tabbouleh. It looked fantastic, and I could practically smell it through the screen of my iPad.

More generally, JP suggests folks roast the bones at 450 degrees for 10-15 minutes, perhaps with salt and pepper and a little Dijon mustard. You'll also want an accompaniment to cut the richness of the marrow -- a popular side is a simple parsley salad with a lemon vinaigrette.

Good roasted marrow has a creamy mouthfeel, but there shouldn't be a greasy finish. And you can go in several directions with a wine selection -- a big and bold zin, maybe, or sauvignon blanc with nice acidity.

Try bone marrow in the kitchen, and if that doesn't work for you, there aren't many dogs who will turn down these bones (al fresco dining for the pooch recommended with this dish unless you are due for a carpet cleaning). For Oscar and me, it has been a bonding experience.

I wanted to clarify and correct a clumsy slip in Sunday's review, out of respect for Rick Mahan and the crew at The Waterboy, as well as our many eagle-eyed readers. In a short section about the dessert served at a special Thursday prix fixe dinner, I referred to carnaroli as a pasta rather than a rice. I apologize for getting it backwards.

To casual, non-foodie readers who happened to land here for something to read, that last paragraph must have sounded overly serious. Hey, I apologize for that, too!

As a writer, my obligations are many - to opine, to entertain, to inform --- but the most important fundamental is to be clear. Sometimes, the more you try - the more you stir and hone and fuss and fumble - the worse it gets. Throw in the whir and flurry of deadlines, one writer's effort to trim a line or two to fit the space and you end up calling rice pasta. I think.

It seems I have heard from every person who has ever made risotto, letting me know -- and gleefully chiding me -- that carnaroli is a rice. Thank you. I have that very rice in my pantry, purchased at Corti Brothers (if you're looking for it), and over the years I have made risotto that has ranged from dreadful to delicious.

Here's what I thought actually went down at The Waterboy that very pleasant Thursday evening. Toward the end of the meal, we chatted about dessert with our server, who informed us that they were using a plump Italian rice used for risotto. Every other course on the menu that night had a pasta component. During the give-and-take, our impression was that this rice was selected because it gave a pasta-like quality to the dessert. There was plenty of chatter, and it's possible we misunderstood our server's point, which may have been simply that the rice is Italian in origin. My minor - and it turns out clumsily realized quibble - was that the rice was just too firm for rice pudding (while our lasagna didn't seem firm enough). This was a small point and, in hindsight, wasn't really worth getting into.

For all those who felt CIA-superior for knowing your rice, you can thank me for the ego boost, especially on a chilly Monday morning. And for those who didn't notice and skimmed right over the error, let me reflect the spirit of my email in-box today: HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY BE SO DUMB?

Kelly McCown, the chef who took the already popular Ella Dining Room & Bar to new heights, is leaving the elegant K Street restaurant for a new opportunity in wine country.

Outspoken and passionate about his craft, McCown was also known as something of a provocateur in the local restaurant game during the 2 ½ years he was in town. Online or in person, the chef tried to urge fellow chefs to think bigger and aim higher in order to elevate the city's dining scene beyond the "safe and secure cuisine" label that is sometimes all too fitting.

McCown, 44, will return to the site of the once-acclaimed (it earned a Michelin star) and now-shuttered Martini House in St. Helena. It was there, beginning in 2002 as chef de cuisine under executive chef and partner Todd Humphries, that McCown continued to expand his impressive repertoire. The new restaurant in that location has a working name of Goose & Gander, and the style of food is believed to be along the lines of a "gastro-pub," a term McCown doesn't necessarily like. He will be a partner in the new restaurant.

You know her. You love her. But have you eaten her food?

If you're a fan of the fun and informative local food blog, Undercover Caterer, and/or you've been known to enjoy a good adult beverage at the legendary downtown bar Old Ironsides, AND if you like a really good bargain for dinner, I'm showing you the way to your perfect Monday night.

That's right, in a subtle stroke of ingenuity, Old Ironsides is having guest chef nights on Mondays to coincide with Monday Night Football. This Monday (Dec. 5), Sarah Singleton, aka the Undercover Caterer, is the chef. She's not a professional cook, but she is into food way, way more than most mortals. And she certainly knows her way around a kitchen. Her blog is loaded with recipes of all kinds, thoughts about cooking and food adventures.

The price of this dinner is a great deal -- $5. Dinner is expected to be served around halftime of the game -- about 6:30 or 7 p.m. No details yet on what Sarah will be cooking, but I'm sure it will be good -- and your $5 will go a long way. I don't think she could go wrong with her own recipe, "Baby back ribs with big cherry and Dr. Pepper sauce (pictured here)." Or maybe "Uncle Bobby's sausage burgers with peppers and onions (and marinated eggplant salad)." After I wrote this, Sarah, who actually has a real job, got back to me with some information about the dinner. She writes: "A prosperity sandwich, some sort of vegetable and gooey butter cake---all St Louis specialties. All designed to clog your arteries as well." Still, you won't have to sign a waiver before eating at Old I this Monday.

Sarah and I made an impromptu food swap a few months back -- a loaf of my sourdough for a jar of her homemade jam -- and it was a delicious deal for me. Her husband, Guido, is also quite the cook (and musician).

If you're not familiar with the venerable and beloved Old Ironsides, "Midtown Monthly" had a very informative piece on the bar a couple of years back. You can read it by clicking here.

Speaking of coffee, another of this city's premium coffee businesses, Temple Coffee, has announced its coffee class schedule. That's right, there's more to coffee than drinking it and jolting yourself awake on Monday morning.

The courses are quite diverse and range in price from $15 each for espresso tasting and latte art/milk chemistry to $130 for hands-on barrista training. The classes fill up quicky. Here's a link for more information: http://templecoffee.myshopify.com/collections/classes

I've written about Temple several times, including in 2010 when it earned an astounding 97 point rating from www.CoffeeReview.com for a small batch coffee called Guatemala Hunapu Antigua Bourbon (the rating meant the coffee sold out quickly, with buyers from across the nation). Most recently, Temple won more national acclaim when it was listed by CNN as one of the country's best small coffee makers. For a slide show related to this honor, go here.

If you want to get into coffee in a deeper way, and maybe enjoy it more, learning from the folks at Temple is a good way to go.

If I go too long without getting a "flat white" and an espresso from Chocolate Fish (at 3rd and Q), I get withdrawls. The coffee is that good -- top-quality product, meticulous work at the espresso bar.

When Lynn and I -- and the dogs -- stopped by recently for a coffee fix, along with some leisurely reading on the large patio, I was reminded of the product sourcing issue I addressed in this space a couple of weeks back.

After my rather glowing early assessment of the food at Juno's Kitchen & Delicatessen, I heard from several readers who were not exactly thrilled to learn that owner and chef Mark Helms was using grass-fed Wagyu beef from New Zealand. As I said at the time, sourcing is a complex issue, and, given that, I think it would be wrong for too many of us to establish some kind of local litmus test. As one of the commenters opined -- start with local, if possible, and move outward from there. That's a good, simple standard.

This time, I'm going to briefly address the coffee used at Hot Italian. The pizzeria at 16th and Q has been a leader on several fronts since it opened a few years back. It promotes bike culture with its artistic bike racks. It was a player in the formation of a composting program for area restaurants. Its building is LEED certified gold, meaning it is very green.

We recently called Chez Daniel to make a reservation on short notice. In Sacramento, we usually don't have much trouble if we call a few hours before we plan to dine.

But not this time. It was a Saturday, and the woman who answered the phone began with an apology. So sorry, she told us. We're all booked up.

That was bad for us but very good for the 72-year-old French chef, Daniel Pont, who is making a comeback after the briefest of retirements. He sold La Bonne Soupe Cafe last spring, but he couldn't stay away from the business that made him a local celebrity.

Last week, I wrote a story about the ongoing trend of eating out for dinner on Thanksgiving, how more and more restaurants are getting booked up for a holiday meal that was once a rock-solid, home-cooked tradition. Now, more than ever, folks are leaving the cooking and the serving to the pros.

We wanted to test this trend for ourselves -- and it went off without a hitch. We ate at the Pilothouse Restaurant on board the historic Delta King riverboat in Old Sacramento. It was a buffet-style dinner with a nice selection food and good cooking. What's more, the restaurant staff was excellent -- very friendly, attentive, and professional. I certainly appreciated that they were working on the holiday. I hope the many other patrons did, too -- and tipped accordingly.

We chose the Delta King because we were looking for something more intimate than the large hotel buffets we have experienced during previous Thanksgivings. Those hotels -- the Sheraton Grand and the Hyatt Regency downtown -- both have very good buffets. But they have become so popular that, even with reservations, there was plenty of waiting around before we actually got to our table. Last year, the Sheraton actually asked for our credit card before we were even shown to our table. There's something about paying and then standing around in a lobby for 35 minutes that rubbed us the wrong way.

If you're into design and baking, and you'd like to put your talents to work while helping a worthy cause, here's your chance.

The American Institute of Architects, Central Valley Chapter, and the Sacramento Self Help Housing are sponsoring an inaugural gingerbread house competition.

For avid home bakers, don't fret that you'll be pitted against the second coming of Frank Lloyd Wright or Gaston Lenotre. There are three separate categories:
*Professionals (architects or professional bakers, with a $25 entry fee)
*General public (you may or may not know what you're doing, but nobody pays you for it; no entry fee)
*kids 6 to 12 (also no entry fee).

To register, visit http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/210210 and select the appropriate category.

Take your house to AIA Central Valley office (1400 S St., Suite 100, Sacramento) on Nov. 30 or Dec. 1 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The entry must be edible and mounted on a base no larger than 20x20 inches. Other than that, creativity is encouraged.

Those interested in sponsoring the event as an underwriter are encouraged to call 916-444-3658.

Last Sunday, I wrote a little story about a holiday trend: more and more folks are going out to eat on Turkey Day. In that story, we provided a sampling of places serving Thanksgiving dinner, and I heard from plenty of restaurants the next day saying that they, too, will be open. The most noteworthy email was from an employee at Sam's Hof Brau who retired in 2009 after 40 years. So here's your reminder: Go to Sam's for good, honest food that won't break the bank.

I also heard from Evan's Kitchen in East Sac. They're already booked up, and people are practically pleading for a meal this Thursday. Here's what Laurette Elsberry writes about Evan's:

"Somehow, with all the bad things going on everywhere, people seem to be more upbeat this year about this special day. We have all time slots full, with a cancellation waiting list. One group of 4 was so disappointed that they couldn't get in that Evan is having them come in one half hour earlier than we planned to open so they could take a table that was not reserved until 3 - so they are coming in at 1:30."

I'm headed out for Thanksgiving, too. We booked our reservation about 10 days ago. Wish I could tell you where!

Spotted this morning on the Facebook page devoted to the lovable, free-range and freely roaming feral chickens in Old Fair Oaks Village, the following greeting -- and clarification: "Happy Thanksgiving. Keep in mind - we are NOT turkeys!"

I always like reading Michele Hebert's wine column in Midtown Monthly. It's informative, loaded with details and includes plenty of nuggets of information about particular wines and styles of wine. Plus, her recommendations are varied, well explained and much appreciated.

Hebert will be sharing some of her thoughts on wine on Sunday (Nov. 20) at 7 p.m., the latest in the Living Library series at Time Tested Books, 1124 21st St., Sacramento. I've enjoyed attending several of the Living Library events, even if the I can't get over the fact that there is no hyphen between "time" and "tested."

In the cozy surroundings of a well-stocked used and rare book store (that may or may not be punctuation-challenged), Hebert will be interviewed by Midtown Monthly's food and restaurant writer, Beck Grunewald, whose pieces in the magazine are also must-read missives for adventurous foodies on tight budgets.

The Living Library is a great thing and this event promises to be a lively-educational-entertaining-hyphen-free-free-for-all.

First, no NBA basketball at Power Balance Pavilion. But now, no food trucks? Is the world coming to an end? Is this the second sign of the apocalypse (the first being Cheez Whiz)? Fortunately, there is good news coming, and it doesn't involved lanky millionaires who claim to be exploited by chubby billionaires.

Yes, the SactoMofo food truck extravaganza didn't quite work out at Power Balance Pavilion (by the way, I recently started wearing one of their pricy wrist bands and instantly added 75 yards to my tee shots, and I can do jumping jacks and mini arm circles pain-free for the first time since Ms. Blimpky's junior high gym class).

Instead of canceling the event, the hard-working and unsung heroes at SactoMofo HQ have found another location, a lower admission fee (now it's free) and SactoMofo 3 is back on track to feed every last, ahem, mofo-loving person in attendance.

For those not in the know, SactoMofo stands for Sacramento Mobile Food, a volunteer organization composed of food enthusiasts who believe, as I do, that Sacramento needs more variety, more energy on its streets, more small start-ups, to complement the superb restaurant scene in the city.

Yes, it looks like this SactoMofo event is on track to be another big hit. The last mofo event I attended was at Fremont Park, and while the food was mostly amazing, the long lines and wait times prompted me to suggest that organizers insert the word "cluster" somewhere in the title.

But not this time. There will be more trucks, more food, more people who know how to count change and even more enthusiasm for the mofo movement.

The festivities will be on Dec. 3, a Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. under the freeway at 8th and W streets (the same location as the popular Sunday Farmers Market).

20 vendors are expected to attend, including all the popular rigs from Sacramento and several from the Bay Area. Thousands of foodies are likely to be there to celebrate the variety and creativity of the cooking. This is an outdoor event, though the freeway overpass shields the rain. Organizers suggest you dress warmly, bring small bills and a big appetite.

The Dec. 3 event will also serve as a food drive for the Sacramento Food Bank and the U.S. Marine Reserve's Toys for Tots. Those attending are encouraged to bring canned or packaged dry goods and new unwrapped toys to donate. Santa will also be on hand for photos.

Some readers expressed concern about product sourcing in my "First Impressions" piece on Juno's Kitchen & Delicatessen. Specifically, in this farm-to-table, local-first restaurant town, they were not thrilled that chef Mark Helms uses beef from New Zealand. I may have raved about his burger, but some wondered why he didn't get his beef from around here.

It's an excellent question - and a tough one.

Before I address it, let's begin with a digression. Way back in 2004, The Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op went through a red meat controversy (the Co-op wanted to carry red meat, while opponents didn't want anything more, animal-wise, than seafood and chicken in the store). After much debate, the very ethical store opted to carry organic beef from Prather Ranch in Klamath Falls, Ore. It seems so long ago, because well-sourced beef is such a big-seller at the Co-op now - and so mainstream. Back then, I went to Prather Ranch to check out what it was all about and learn why it met the Co-op's very stringent guidelines. I note that it was a five-hour drive, one-way, which meant I passed a lot of other beef ranches large and small just getting there.

K Street is getting more good news, with Estelle's Patisserie slated to open Dec. 1. Owned by self-taught baker Esther Son, Estelle's will specialize in French pastries. By opening day, the often beleaguered, and analyzed street will open to automobile traffic Saturday for the first time in years. There are already plenty of signs that K is in the middle of a comeback.

Estelle's will be at the high-visibility corner of 9th and K, site of Danielle's Creperie, which closed many months ago. Son is also the owner of Esther's Cupcakes, on Fair Oaks Boulevard.

"This has been my lifelong passion," Son told Sacpress, the online publication. "I've always dreamed of owning a bakery, ever since I was a little girl."

We will have more information on her and her new venture soon. In the meantime, read about Son's plans here at Sacpress.

It looks like Sacramento is about to be rich with French culinary touches. If you recall, The Bee's Bob Shallit reported in September that local restaurateur Trong Nguyen and his wife, Annie Ngo, will open a "French culinary showcase" at the former Cassidy's Family Restaurant at 51st Street and Folsom Boulevard in East Sacramento. Les Baux will sell pastries on one side of the building and offer sit-down meals on the other.

Now that Oliver Ridgeway has taken charge of the kitchen at the Citizen Hotel's Grange Restaurant downtown, I was curious about the so-called "national search" to fill the executive chef position after Michael Tuohy's departure.

Turns out, the Joie de Vivre Hotels, which owns the Citizen, spent plenty of time and money to find the right chef for the job. I had a lengthy chat recently with Morgan Plant, vice president of food and beverage for JdV, to get some of the details.

After Tuohy announced several months ago that he was leaving to pursue other opportunities (he landed, somewhat surprisingly, at Dean & Deluca in St. Helena, where I spotted him working behind the counter last weekend), Joie de Vivre decided to place detailed and extensive Craigslist ads in every major city in the country. They also used the website Hcareers.com, which specializes in the hospitality industry, as well as Starchef.com (Tuohy was once named a StarChef "rising star").

"We did a fair amount of incentivizing people we knew in the industry," Plant said. I think that means they asked around.

What do executive chefs make? That, of course, depends on the restaurant.

Here's the latest on Daniel Pont and Chez Daniel, his new restaurant in Folsom. If you missed my story a couple of days ago (it ran in the business section), the 72-year-old French chef is getting back in the professional kitchen, many months after selling his famed downtown lunch spot, La Bonne Soupe.

Pont called me at home (at 10:30 p.m.) Thursday and I could hear the excitement in his voice. After three months of work, including a month's worth of frustration with getting his fire alarm to pass muster with the Folsom Fire Department, the chef is ready and eager. I didn't mind the late hour. I was actually sipping a very nice glass of Cotes du Rhone, and I figured 10:30 to a Frenchman is like 7:30 to an American.

He said expects to be open Tuesday. But the man who became famous for his lunches will be open only for dinner, at least to start. Dinner will be served from 5-9 p.m.Tuesday to Saturday. The menu will feature food that is much more involved and sophisticated than the soups and sandwiches that won him such a devoted following downtown.

I love stories about how food connects us - to loved ones, to strangers, to our childhoods, to our memories. Thanks to the wonders of Facebook, I stumbled upon a poignant story about a man who happened to teach college speech classes and his father, who happened to be a man of few words - maybe too few.

What got Dad talking? It was honey. Simple as that.

In fact, Paul Duax started making honey because his dad used to be a beekeeper, and he figured that maybe he could get the old man to give him some pointers whenever he called to chat.

"Old guys don't like to talk on the phone," Paul told me.

So Paul got his hive started and, sure enough, father and son were talking up a storm about bees and hives and honey and all that goes with it. Paul would call his dad in Davenport, Iowa, ask something about beekeeping and it went from there.

"It worked like a charm," Paul said.

On Saturday, we hosted a small dinner party and stayed busy preparing all kinds of good food - a spicy and very tender beer-can chicken, beef and chorizo empanadas, a nicely balanced red sangria and a cinnamon-y horchata that one guest proclaimed was the best he'd ever tasted - and that was before all the booze was consumed.

Oh, and for dessert, we had paletas - lime pie paletas.

They were quite fun to make. The recipe for those, as well as for the delicious "horchata de arroz," were both in the new book "Paletas," by Fany Gerson. I was about to review the book anyway, so I thought I would test out a few of the recipes on unsuspecting guests - unsuspecting, as in, they probably had no idea I had never made either before.

While I handled the paletas, Lynn took the reins on the horchata concoction. As some of you may know, paletas as like popsicles, and horchata is a rice drink. Both are popular in Mexico, and they both have quite a following in Sacramento. My paletas were very creamy, as you will see.

I was tempted to say this is a cool new tip, but that would just be corny, although this is about chilling wine in a hurry. I just read it in Cook's Illustrated, which is always tackling geeky things to make our lives in the kitchen a little easier. Here it is:

To chill a bottle of wine, you can just pop it into the freezer, but it will take a while to cool down (in our tests, it took about an hour to bring a bottle of room-temperature wine to 50 degrees, the ideal drinking temperature). We've also recommended submerging the bottle in a salt/ice-water solution, which will chill it in about half that time. (When salt is added to ice water, its freezing point and temperature decrease to well below 32 degrees.)

Now we've discovered an equally effective (and less messy) technique for quick chilling: Simply wrap the bottle in a wet kitchen towel before placing it in the freezer. Since cooling occurs when heat is transferred away from an item, the water in the towel--a much more efficient conductor of heat than air--will quickly freeze, dropping the temperature of the wine to 50 degrees in only 30 minutes. (Note: Once the wine is fully chilled, the towel will be frozen solid. To release it from the bottle, just place it briefly under warm running water.)

The phrase "exciting restaurant news" and "Natomas" don't often appear in the same place, and that's too bad. No, the land of franchise eateries has had little to cheer about in the way of dynamic, locally owned food choices.

But that just might be changing, thanks to a new venture that pairs two of this region's most creative and ambitious chefs - Aimel Formoli (Formoli's Bistro) and Billy Ngo (Kru, and the recently closed Red Lotus) - to bring a new food experience to Natomas. I admire the work of both chefs, so I'm anticipating big things -- and ready to fire up Google Earth to chart out a decent bike route from downtown so we can visit soon!

I chatted with Formoli last night about plans for Pork Belly Grub Shack, which is expected to open in about a week. It will be at 4261 Truxel Rd., Suite A.

Formoli tells me the new venture will be casual and affordable, but that doesn't mean they will be cutting corners with ingredients or skimping on creativity. The food will have a farm-to-table approach that emphasizes sustainable, quality products and the menu "will have a little bit of everything."

Formoli and Ngo have developed quite the culinary partnership in recent times, joining forces to host periodic beer-centric dinners that have won raves from those lucky enough to attend. While their main gigs won't be neglected, Formoli and Ngo plan to rotate in and out of the Grub Shack, which also will have a dedicated head cook of its own to hold down the fort.

The menu has yet to be revealed, but I understand it will feature fresh takes on burgers, sandwiches, tacos and more - featuring pork belly and several other meats. A banh mi sandwich? That too.

"We don't want to be pigeonholed," said Formoli, whose wife, Suzanne Ricci, is also involved in the project. She is well known to regulars at Formoli's Bistro.

We'll have more on Pork Belly Grub Shack after it opens. Until then, keep up with them by searching for them on Facebook and Twitter.

If you're really into food, the new book "Salted" by Mark Bitterman (not Mark Bittman) is a must read. Here's my story in today's food section.

Recently, when my girlfriend and I traveled to New York, we stopped by The Meadow, Bitterman's shop in the West Village. The photo above is the wall of salt. Pretty amazing selection. The salt is also available online here.

Locally, the best places I have found for buying salt are the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op, Corti Brothers, and Taylor's Market.

Zagat, the restaurant guidebook publisher known for its use-generated content, released its annual book on the best restaurants in the U.S., including several from the Sacramento area.

Among those scoring exceptionally high ratings for food - 29 out of 30 - are Ambience in Carmichael, Taste in Plymouth, and Mulvaney's and The Kitchen in Sacramento. Then there's the shocker, Sunflower Drive-in in Fair Oaks, a vegetarian restaurant that is apparently destined for the kind of cult status once reserved for La Bonne Soupe, whose popular owner, Daniel Pont, sold the small, beloved downtown cafe earlier this year. Under new ownership, La Bonne Soupe has struggled to find its footing and, once at the top of Zagat's list in the food category, is no longer included in the national guidebook.

That 29 rating, by the way, is the same as the French Laundry in Yountville and one point higher than Meadowwood in St. Helena, both of which have been awarded three Michelin stars and are considered world-class dining destinations.

Sunflower didn't do nearly as well in the "décor" category, scoring just nine out of 30. That's because it is a walk-up eatery in which you order at the window, often accompanied by one or more of the famous feral chickens that roam through the Fair Oaks village. Ella, by comparison, scored 27 for décor.

The book, 'Zagat: America's Top Restaurants," is 348 pages and costs $15.95.

Here's another food-related event for Saturday that features a great cause, great food and the makings of a spirited, high-caliber chefs challenge.

The event, organized by Betsy Hite of Elegant and Easy Gourmet Catering, is Saturday (Oct. 8) from 5-10 p.m. at Project R.I.D.E headquarters, 8840 Souuthside Ave., Elk Grove. Tickets for the unlimited tasting are $35 per person, with several other group ticket options available. For more information, visit the website here.

The chefs challenge includes quite a culinary line-up: Bret Bohlmann of Boulevard Bistro, David Hill of The Chef's Table, Ian MacBride of Lucca, Billy Ngo of Kru, Adam Pechal of Tuli and Thir13en, and Alwin Santiago of Clark's Corner. I have eaten at and enjoyed the food at every one of these restaurants, so I can only imagine the entries these talented chefs will put forth Saturday night.

After executive chef Michael Tuohy left Grange in May, there was plenty of speculation about what would become of the Citizen Hotel's highly regarded downtown restaurant. After less than three years in town, the personable Tuohy had developed a reputation as a force in the farm-to-table movement, showcasing the area's bounty on his menus and leading groups of foodies on frequent tours of the nearby farmers market. At the end of May, Tuohy moved on, perhaps surprisingly, to Dean & DeLuca in the Napa Valley.

Grange didn't rush the quest to land a replacement. After a national search and more than 100 applications from throughout the United States and internationally, Grange has hired Oliver Ridgeway, a British citizen. Classically trained in French cooking, Ridgeway's experience includes a stint as sous chef at The Carlyle, the renowned New York Hotel, and most recently, and as executive chef at at the Inn of the Anasazi in Santa Fe. His professional resume extends to restaurants in the U.S., Australia and the United Kingdom. He began working in the kitchen as a young boy in Horsham, England, where his father owned a restaurant.

"Chef Ridgeway is known for his passion for seasonal cuisine and a fresh modern approach to ingredients. Grange's dedication to the local farm-to-table platform remains unwavering, and Chef Ridgeway will shepherd Grange in a way that stays true to its original concept and vision while bringing a fresh energy to the restaurant," according to Lori Lincoln, director of public relations for Joie de Vivre Hotels, the Citizen's parent company.

Saturday promises to be crisp, cool and sunny, and what better way to spend it than watching a bunch of firefighters go toe to toe in the "1st Annual Firefighter Chili Cook Off" from noon to 4 p.m.

The firefighters are from Sac Metro, Sac City, Folsom, Roseville and Consumnes. The event will feature celebrity judges, October 8 - The 1st Annual Firefighter Chili Cook Off.

This looks the start of something big. It's no secret that firefighters take their cooking very seriously and there are plenty of talented firehouse cooks around town. Indeed, I've heard from several of them, active and retired, in recent years. So this event, complete with celebrity judges, promises to be highly competitive -- and highly delicious.

The cookoff takes place at Safetyville, Attendance is $5, and kids 8 and under get in free. There will also be fire demonstrations, interactive events, door prizes and raffles.
Join firefighters from Sac Metro, Sac City, Folsom, Roseville, and Consumnes for a chili cook off featuring celebrity judges, fire demos, interactive events, and door prizes and raffles. The event takes place at Safetyville USA, 3909 Bradshaw Rd.

For more information about the cookoff and other events there, click here.

Elaine Corn just filed a really good piece at zesterdaily.com on what to do if you're lucky enough to be saddled with too many cherry tomatoes. The award-winning cookbook author, public radio reporter and gardener must not live close enough to me, since I haven't tasted a single one of those incredible little Sweet 100s she's writing about (that's her photo above). Nevertheless, I am including her story and recipes here for your edification. With this cold, rainy weather we're having, it'll be more fun to be in the kitchen than out in the garden.

Corn insists she'll be picking her cherry tomatoes until Thanksgiving. I'm assuming she doesn't mean Canadian Thanksgiving, which means I'll have plenty of time to improve my schmoozing (posting a link to her story is a start!) and maybe get my hands on a few of those Sweet 100s. I'm eager to make that sauce and those cherry tomato "raisins" myself.

There were plenty of activities from which to choose this weekend, from a bike tour sponsored by Slow Food Sacramento to a wine tasting event in Curtis Park and movies in Freemont Park sponsored by Hot Italian.

But I was looking for something a little new and different, so on Saturday afternoon we made the short drive to the little Delta town of Clarksburg, traveled to the outskirts along roads with fields of grapes for as far as the eye could see, then turned into the driveway of Heringer Estates. Yes, we were there to taste wine, but we were also excited about the main event - the release of two owls into the wild.

The weather was perfect - cool and clear and not a stitch of wind -- when we arrived around 5 p.m. The crowds were just getting there and the event was to be picnic style in the lovely backyard of the Heringer family home. All around us: fields of wine grapes.

We bought two glasses of wine - a chardonnay and a viognier - and began to mingle. Staff members from the Sacramento-based Wildlife Care Association were on hand to talk about the owls, the many other wild animals it helps, and the non-profit group's mission. Along the way, they showed off some very inspiring owls, including a 20-year-old great-horned owl (second photo) living in captivity because of a wing/shoulder injury, a screech owl (top photo) that is blind in one eye and a little burrowing owl with a damaged wing.

Recently, I wrote a post here about the line of sausages Preferred Meats was working on. When I tried them, Preferred's corporate chef, John Paul Khoury, was making the rounds and getting chefs to taste the product. I got to taste the sausages, too, and was impressed.

All in all, the response was very enthusiastic and Preferred Meats, one of the premier suppliers of meat to top restaurants in Northern California, decided to go into production. It would produce its own line of sausages, bringing out a breakfast sausage and two versions of Italian sausage (mild and hot).

Then I noticed a post of the Facebook page of The Eatery, the hot new bistro in West Sacramento that is seems to be making all the right moves:

A brief explanation on why no sausage for brunch yet; Preferred Meats, our exclusive meat provider, is rolling out a truly artisanal line of sausage. It takes about 4 weeks for the USDA to approve the packaging. They obviously need to take a tip from the city of West Sac on efficiency. Until then, please enjoy our Eden farms bacon and black forest ham. And thank you for your patience. It will pay off. This is great sausage.

Curious about the bureaucratic process, I called Khoury and asked him about it. Turns out, making sausage is the easy part. Going through all the channels at the U.S. Department of Agriculture is another thing altogether. The lag time now is about the label that will go on the sausage packages. It has to include the ingredients and other information -- and it has to be approved by folks in Washington.

Khoury told me the main ingredients are listed (pork, water, salt), but that the exact mix of spices is not on the label, only the percentage of spices in the overall recipe. Interestingly, paprika is a spice that has to be listed separately, Khoury explained, because it will change the color of the meat. Paprika is in the hot Italian sausage, but not the mild or the breakfast sausages.

Unlike a lot of the sausage you get at grocery stores, this sausage is raw. As soon as the sausage is made, it is frozen.

"It's like flash-freezing shrimp on a boat once it's caught. It's often fresher," Khoury said.

Approval of the label will take 2-4 weeks. Foodies might be interested to know that the label is known to industry insiders as the "USDA bug." The bug is what goes on the packaging.

Once the bug is approved, Preferred will embark on an aggressive marketing campaign. And yes, The Eatery in West Sacramento will finally start serving some excellent sausage.

Note: Although Preferred Meats primarily sells to restaurants, home cooks will be able to order the sausages and other products by visiting the retail link here.

It was startling -- but in a good way -- when the newly re-imagined restaurant at Lounge ON20 was cited by Gayot as one of the Top-10 restaurants in the U.S. featuring molecular gastronomy cooking techniques. Startling because the hot new restaurant's kitchen, headed by executive chef Pajo Bruich, is in some pretty amazing company. Alinea and WD-50 are ranked on another list -- S. Pellegrino's -- as two of the best 50 restaurants in the world. I ate at WD-50 (in New York City) last September, and the meal was a tour de force of creative cooking, including a deconstructed eggs Benedict I'll remember for years to come.

What's all the fuss about locally? Just check out the cheese and charcuterie plate at Lounge ON20 (pictured above). It's a thing of beauty, complete with plenty of avant garde and classical technique. I contacted Bruich after running across this photo (again, it was Facebook that got me!).

I contacted Bruich and asked him to tell me what we're looking at. He says the plate is available by special request for $20 and includes the following: pate de campagne cooked sous vide, guanciale lasso, lard, andouille sausage, porchetta stackers, winchester super aged Gouda, house made ricotta, fiscalini aged cheddar, crater lake blue cheese, chevre-fig cheesecake and a whole lot of house made extras! Everything done in house, all of it, the bread, jams sauces.... served with fleur de sel crackers by (pastry chef) Elaine (Baker)

Congratulations to the Lounge ON20 crew, including chef de cuisine Mike Ward, for the fine work on this plate and for the national recognition.

Note to self: I really shouldn't check out Magpie Cafe's Facebook page while I'm trying to work. My eyes locked onto the photo above and now I can't concentrate. I had a different version of Magpie's halibut several months ago and can highly recommend it. Maybe I'll have to rearrange my dinner plans for tonight so I can have some closure with this photo!

If I were to make a list of things that I absolutely would not do without - and would accept no substitutes - coffee would be right up near the top. After oxygen and water. Just check out these coffees we had Sunday when the GF and I rode our bikes to Chocolate Fish to enjoy some coffee, some reading and plenty of relaxing on the front patio. It was sublime.

Yes, we coffee lovers want the best, we're willing to pay for it and, well, we've noticed that the prices have gone through the roof over the past year or so, thanks to volatility in the commodities markets, among other things. When I recently visited Chocolate Fish at Q and 3rd, I noticed a binder containing articles explaining the rising coffee prices. Chocolate Fish just raised its prices last week by about 13 percent, the first jump since 2009, according to co-owner Andy Baker. A 12-ounce brewed coffee, for instance, went from $1.85 to $2.15. At Temple Coffee, another top coffeehouse in town, owner Sean Komescher says he has had to raise prices twice in the past year - each time by 25 cents, for a total of 50 cents.

Mark Helms, the highly regarded chef who made Ravenous Café a destination for discriminating food lovers in the Pocket area, sold the restaurant a couple of months ago. But he wasn't sitting still or staying out of the kitchen.

What's Helms up to? We're about to find out as early as next Wednesday, when Helms promises to have his new enterprise up and running - in East Sacramento, just three blocks from his home. I spoke with Helms this morning and he told me he is putting the final touches on Juno's Kitchen & Delicatessen at 36th and J. The space is small and seating will be limited, so Helms says he will focus on takeout meals. If his track record is any indication, this won't be a run-of-the-mill deli.

Just as he did at Ravenous, Helms will combine top-notch ingredients with creative approaches to the cooking and presentation, with an overall emphasis on the kind of farm-to-table cuisine that showcases what's local, sustainable, and humane.

Following up on yesterday's entry, which touched on getting out and seeing the city (with a little grub in there somewhere), this morning I walked the dogs over to Old Soul, the coffee shop, roaster, and bakery in the alley between L and Capitol (between 17th and 18th). Alleys in Sacramento are often an afterthought, if not an eyesore, but this alley is something to behold, including Old Soul, a new development idea of three adjoined homes facing the alley called the Stitch project, and next to Old Soul, a business called Edible Pedal. Making alleys more inviting for residences and businesses alike is a new and exciting opportunity.

My little outing for coffee allowed me to absorb more of what is cool and right about our city. As I often say, a big part of city living is traveling on foot or by bike, where you encounter people and things at a slower pace and in a different way. When you walk, you run into others who walk, and you eventually notice that people tend to be friendlier on foot than those you may encounter in cars on four-lane suburban roads. When's the last time a pedestrian called a fellow pedestrian an "idiot" or gave someone the middle finger for some minor slight or misstep (this does not include Tea Party rallies or 49ers/Raiders parking lot encounters)? So, I love getting out and walking, finding ways to fold some errands into my day without making it seem like a chore.

Walking around Sacramento helps you see its potential and what is already great. Yes, there are flaws, including the fact that motorists almost never stop at crosswalks when I'm standing in one.

First stop Friday morning was for a cappuccino, which I ordered as the dogs hung out in the alley. As I waited, I noticed several framed photos of bicycles on the wall. Old Soul tends to rotate the art monthly, giving photographers and artists a chance to display and sell their work. Right now, the photos on display are from the bicycle website Eco Velo, which is produced locally but has a large national (and international) following.

I then took the cappuccino next door to Edible Pedal and sat on the sofa as the dogs settled down on the cool concrete floor. The shop is loaded with bikes, accessories and bike-related gear such as bags, clothing, even jewelry made of bike stuff -- I bought a yellow bracelet (for $15) that is made of bike chain links. It's very cool.

Edible Pedal is also very cool and it's always worth stopping in to see what bikes are for sale and what new bike-related events are upcoming. For instance, Edible Pedal has been leading rides to area farms and has begun co-sponsoring an overnight ride up the bike trail to Folsom (the last ride featured a camp cooking lesson by Chef Rick Mahan, a cycling advocate who owns Waterboy and OneSpeed). Edible Pedal started as a business owned by John Boyer, a longtime waiter who wanted to show folks that the bicycle could be used as a work vehicle. His company uses bikes to make food deliveries at select restaurants. It has evolved to become a bike shop and, down the road it is poised to offer bike touring opportunities. To find out more, click here.

For me, this was a low-key Friday morning and yet another opportunity to share what's right about our city when you explore it on foot.

So, the next time folks who live outside the grid come to midtown or downtown to visit a restaurant, don't fret about the parking. Instead, look at as an opportunity to explore. Find the restaurant you want, then decide to park six blocks away. That will take away the pressure of hunting for a space, and it will give you a chance to see the city in a different way. You'll probably encounter others out there walking, and I bet most of them will be pretty pleasant.

P.S. A reader (thanks Stephanie) just sent me an amusing comic about pedestrian versus motorist behavior. The language is a little racy, so check it out here if you're over the age of 7: The Oatmeal.

It was a perfect day to venture outside for lunch and join in with downtown residents and workers alike as they soaked up the sights and sounds and, yes, the flavors of our city.

On Thursday, we managed to multitask at midday - a walk with the dogs, a terrific little lunch, some people-watching, and a little browsing and buying at the curbside farmers market along the east end of Capitol Park.

From home, the GF and I - and two out of the three dogs (it was too hot and too far for the old golden) walked to GoGi's Korean BBQ at the corner of 15th and L, where you order at a walk-up window. This little joint combines Korean BBQ with tacos and burritos, along with a street-food immediacy that has become a bustling addition to the lunch options downtown.

I recently received an email from a reader who wanted to know a couple of my favorite places to get a good steak. I cut right to the chase: Walk to the back of Corti Brothers, peer through the glass at the various cuts of beef, and pick out something called the "Cowboy Steak." You won't have to look hard -- it's humongous. If you cook that thing properly, all two pounds of it, it will blow your mind. Covered wagon, Gatling gun and open flame are optional.

John Paul Khoury, the corporate chef for Preferred Meats, stopped by the house today to cook up some sausages and give me a chance to sample three products the company hopes to make available soon.

Known to chefs at some of the area's finer restaurants, Preferred is a boutique company that supplies top-shelf meat with an emphasis on sustainable agriculture. I have done several tastings with JP, most focusing on steak or pork, and find these sessions to be helpful. I try to keep up with the latest and best products out there, and I find that comparing different meat from various sources helps me appreciate the often subtle differences..

Now, Preferred is making its own sausage, with a proprietary blend of Berkshire and Duroc pork in a thin lamb casing. JP cooked up three kinds of sausage in my trusty cast iron pan: a breakfast sausage and two kinds of Italian -- mild and hot. In addition to this tasting, JP was making the rounds Friday to several restaurants.The sausage is not yet being sold, so he was simply looking for feedback from chefs. This is part of the business the public often doesn't get to see. Good chefs are constantly on the lookout for products new and great. The taste has to be there, and the price has to make sense. Then there's the all-important logistical component: can you get it to us whenever we need it? If the answer is no or maybe, a chef may pass on it.

After he does enough sausage tastings with chefs, taking notes along the way, JP may tweak the recipes slightly to arrive at a finished product that enough chefs will want to put on their menus.

The next stop for JP on Friday was to see Chef Pajo Bruich at Lounge ON20. I called Pajo later and asked for his impressions.

He said: "I appreciate what JP is doing getting input from myself and other chefs around town and it's nice to think we will have a hand in the finished product
I thought the sausage was very well made. From my perspective it seemed to be 100 percent about the quality of the meat they are putting into the sausage. The meat was fantastic."

Pajo and I agreed that, if anything, the overall flavor profile was straightforward and perhaps one-dimensional. But when you are using high-quality meat, the chef pointed out, you don't want it to be overshadowed by a plethora of seasonings.

I thought the quality of the sausage was very good, and especially I enjoyed the spicy heat of the breakfast sausage, which was seasoned with sage, garlic and chili flake. JP said some of the feedback from chefs was that there might be too much heat for a breakfast sausage. I could go either way on that, but I grew up putting Tobasco on my eggs, so I enjoy the heat.

In a matter of weeks, these sausages -- tweaked recipes or not, high heat or a version toned down a tad -- will likely land on several menus in the area,

The next tasting on JP's schedule Friday was with Chef Pajo Bruich at Lounge ON20. I called Pajo later to get his impressions.

"I appreciate what JP is doing getting input from myself and other chefs around town and it's great to think we will have a hand in the finished product.
I thought the sausage was very well made. From my perspective it seemed to be 100 percent about the quality of the meat they are putting into the sausage. The meat was fantastic."

He said:Pajo and I differed a little on the seasonings -- he thought the Italian sausage needed more coriander and fennel, while I could have been happier with a bit less. But we agreed that, if anything, the overall flavor profile was straightforward, even one-dimensional. But when you are using high quality meat, the chef noted, you don't want it to be overshadowed by a plethora of seasonings.

If you're a fan of Sampino's Towne Foods, as I am, here's something new you might want to jump on. The Italian deli and eatery best known for its great sandwiches at lunch, is about to start a series of weekly family-style dinners. From the looks of things, it's a six-course affair for $25, which is quite a bargain. The meal sounds quite ambitious, especially the two kinds of risotto. The first dinner is tonight (Friday).

Last I checked, there were still some openings. Sampino's, which is in a small shopping center at 16th and F streets, is taking names from its email list to fill slots of the dinner, but if you want to get a last-minute spot for tonight, give them a call ASAP: 916-441-2372. And if you want to know about future dinners, ask to be included on their email list. Sampino's is at 1607 F St. Unfortunately, Sampino's did not include the time of the dinner. (We will update once we find out.)

Here's a rundown of the menu I received via email:

Fresh Baked Bread
Foccacia, Italian Loaf, Fennel Balsamic Vinaigrette

Antipasti
Assorted Olives, Giardinara, Pepperoncini

Zuppa
Tomato Mozzarella Cream Bisque
Primi
Timbale
Puff Pastry, Penne Pasta, Meatballs, Hardboiled Quail Eggs, Salami, Mushroom,
Marinara, Parmesan Granna Padano

Risotti
Sicilian Fennel Sausage w/Porcini & Salmon Mousse, Clam & Shrimp.

Secondi
Chicken Cacciatore
Braised Chicken Thigh w/ House Cacciatore Sauce
with/Tapenade Rubbed Artichokes, Creole Sauce
or
Wild Salmon Roulade
Spinach, Sundried Tomatoes, Pesto, & Asiago Cheese
with/Tapenade Rubbed Artichokes, Creole Sauce

Insalta
Mixed Green Salad
Diced Tomato, Parmesan Reggiano, Organic Farm Fresh Tomatoes
Italian Herb Vinaigrette

Dolce
Lemon Sorbeto w/Strawberry Mint Tartar

My phone has been ringing off the hook (remember when we put phones on hooks?) since word got out that Good Eats closed for good on Saturday.

My reaction? What took so long? This was a wounded, flailing dodo bird that just wouldn't die.

It was a big-budget eatery and gourmet grocery on Folsom Boulevard run by Mike and Julie Teel, of the family that owns Raley's grocery stores. It was eagerly anticipated, clumsily announced (remember the Corti Brother brouhaha?), awkwardly unveiled and, finally, it operated with a mix of chaos and confusion. Holding it all together? That's right, mediocre food.

Garlic is everywhere, so much so that we tend to overlook the details of where it comes from, how fresh it is and how it should taste.

Here is a new report I just heard on Capital Public Radio by Elaine Corn, who recently returned to the airwaves after a break. Corn interviewed 84-year-old Woodland farmer Perry Skinner. It's nice to hear her enlightening segments again.

Click here to read and listen.

These vignettes from Zagat about bad people behaving badly at restaurants were amusing -- and recognizable, though I have not encountered a blow-up doll.

Blair's last three posts:

A Matter of Price: Is the Lounge ON20 menu revision cause for concern?

From the test kitchen: Biba's Bologna-style ragu

Dine and dash: Our governor's french fry problem

Lately, this blog's subtitle could be: "Bad News about Food and Wine." Yes, we've hit a rough patch with restaurant closings, but there are still plenty of restaurants doing well. As restaurant critic for The Bee, I tend to look in restaurant windows when I pass by - not because I enjoy seeing people talk with their mouths full but because I like to know how the restaurants are doing. I can't sift through the books, but I can look at the seats.

But somewhere between the closures and the thriving restaurants like Magpie, Mulvaney's, Waterboy, Ella, Formoli's, Lucca, New Canton, OneSpeed and others, is the restaurant that is compelled to change its menu and cut its prices in an effort to fill more seats and sell more food. In this case, I'm referring to Chris Macias' report last week about the new version of Lounge ON20, the one serving up creative, modernist, and high-end food the likes of which we don't get to see here often enough. This is actually the new-new version, as Lounge ON20 went through a major revamping a few months back by showcasing cooking that touched on the avant garde.

Biba Caggiano has a nice new book, "Spaghetti Sauces," 129 pages of spaghetti sauce recipes of all kinds, from basic butter sauces ready in 10 minutes to seafood sauces and and meat sauces like the one I have simmering right now -- simmering for 2-plus hours.

The latter recipe is for Bologna-style ragu. Bologna is the city in Northern Italy where Caggiano was born and raised. She then moved to the U.S. and eventually opened one of Sacramento's most respected restaurants. Click on the pictures to make them bigger; apologies, but there is no aroma feature with this software.

This sauce builds flavor slowly, beginning with melting butter and then cooking minced carrots, celery and onion.

Then you add ground beef, pork and veal, along with small cubes of pancetta. This cooks at high heat for about 10 minutes.

Next, I poured in a cup of red wine and cooked that down until most of the wine had evaporated. More flavor (and the kitchen smells great).

Then comes time for the classic ingredient -- a 28-ounce can of San Marzano tomatoes. The book says to puree them in a blender. But I went with doing it by hand the way they do in Italy -- squeezing the tomatoes until they were pretty much liquefied. Then the tomatoes are added to the pot and simmered -- and simmered -- for two-and-a-half hours.

It thickens and the flavor deepens over that time. I will be writing a short story on the book, along with a few recipes in the upcoming Food and Wine section on Wednesday

I have good sources on the streets of Sacramento. One of the most reliable told me about Gov. Jerry Brown's visit to a certain midtown restaurant. The gossipy details suggest that in some ways he's just like the rest of us - he steals other people's french fries. And in other ways he's not at all like us -- the guy who drove him to the restaurant was behind the wheel of a black SUV with dark windows and with a rifle perched between the two front seats.

That's how the governor rolls these days. He's older now and married, and he's busy trying to save this broken-down state from going completely broke. The governor no longer rents a modest apartment at the corner of 14th and N Streets like in the old days. Instead, he lives in a swanky, pricey loft at the corner of 16th and J, just two blocks from the old governor's mansion his dad, Pat, occupied in the 60s. And you won't find the more mature governor tooling around the grid in that Plymouth Satellite he had when he was the 34th governor of California from 1975 to 1983.

These days, it's a tricked-out SUV. When he's ready to leave a restaurant like Cafeteria 15L, as he did the other night, his driver turns on the flashing emergency lights, blocks traffic in the right lane on 15th Street until the governor is safely inside, and then makes the lengthy drive home - um, that would be three blocks, not counting the one-way streets that make the drive a cumbersome six blocks. Still, his security detail is seemingly lighter than his predecessor's. Once, when the GF and I were shopping at Mike's Bikes at 14th and I, we noticed six guys in suits walk in. All had earpieces. The Schwarzenegger walks in wearing a tan summer suit and ask, "Where are the bike shorts?" We didn't stick around to watch him try them on!

I digress. It's what my source told me about Brown's arrival a couple of nights ago that was the best tidbit. It seems that when the governor walked up to the restaurant, he spotted someone he knew dining a table on the patio, which is separated from the sidewalk by a wooden wall about four feet high. Brown reached over the wall and snatched some fries. Then he snatched a few more, apparently proclaiming them worthy. He then went inside and had dinner. I have no intel on what kind of tipper he is.

Disclaimer: The fries in this picture are not from Cafeteria 15L. They are used merely to show what french fries look like and are in no way intended to represent themselves as the fries Gov. Brown snatched from an unsuspecting diner at the restaurant in question, which did not make these fries.

When you dream of becoming a chef and change your life to chase down that dream, it's supposed to go something like this:

You kiss your lousy job and your miserable boss goodbye, you immerse yourself in culinary school, and you show all your instructors that you have a knack for cooking that just might revolutionize the restaurant world. You do an internship at a top-flight restaurant, where the staff compares your palate to Mozart's ear. You graduate, and you sift through all the offers, settling for the one that brings in the most money at a joint with the most Michelin stars. The TV gig, the three-book deal and the Lamborghini are just around the corner.

The reality, of course, is something else, and Scott Fenner -- talented and determined as he is -- recently got a heaping dose when he gave notice at Ella Dining Room & Bar. He went back to his former world of working construction.

It wasn't because he couldn't cook.

He just couldn't make ends meet.

Every once in awhile, I go into a restaurant or store and am so impressed by something - the food, the service, the selection of groceries or some intangible - that I will find myself thinking: I wish a place like this could be located within walking distance of where I live.

It has happened with Café Luna in Placerville, with Taste Restaurant in Plymouth and Ambience in Carmichael. I wish Corti Brothers were across the street, so I could scuttle over there for a bottle of wine and some pasta. I wish Taylor's Market was around the corner. I can ride my bike to both, but walking is a stretch. We were in Newcastle riding our bikes this Saturday and we dropped by Newcastle Produce. I wish there were a Newcastle Produce II somewhere downtown. Great little store.

"It's all about the food. Even a fleeting visit to Thailand can leave you no doubt of this. Walking down the street - almost any street in Thailand - you can only be struck by the variety of stalls (sometimes literally) and amazed at the variety of food. Thais are obsessed by food, talking and thinking about it, then ordering and eating it. Markets brim with produce and snacks. Streets often seem more like busy restaurant corridors than major thoroughfares for traffic."

So begins the beautiful and inspiring coffee table-sized book, "Thai Street Food: Authentic Recipes, Vibrant Traditions," by David Thompson.

This book not only offers 371 pages of vivid photographs of meals and inspiring stories about the daily Thai quest for a great meal, it offers a blueprint, perhaps, of what is missing with regard to Thai cuisine in the Sacramento area. As I noted in my review Sunday of the impressive and consistent cooking at Thai Cottage, we rarely seem to encounter Thai restaurants offering a menu that reflects the amazing regional variety of food in Thailand. Obsession with food? It doesn't really translate to what we see in America.

I took a little coffee break this afternoon and enjoyed a thin slice of the cake I made yesterday for my girlfriend's birthday. She is finally old enough to rent a car, I am happy to report. The cake is very moist and the crumb quite tender.

I have been a paying member of the Cook's Illustrated website for at least 7 or 8 years. It's about $35 annually and well worth it if you A) like to cook and B) like to understand why your cooking either succeeds or fails.

I have been eating so much food truck grub lately that I haven't done much cooking at home. But after having my umpteenth grilled sandwich from Drewski's, I thought it was time to make my own. Here's a version of my favorite. Generally, I use my own sourdough bread that I make at home, but I was out, so I used some nice whole wheat bread. Don't underestimate the importance of the bread. If it's not substantial enough, the sandwich won't be as good as it could be.

The cheese is a matter of preference. This time, it was equal amounts sharp cheddar and medium-sharp cheddar, all shredded. The shredded cheese gives some volume and lift, and it seems to allow more uniform melting.

I have been using raw (yes, raw unpasteurized) butter lately and it is pretty impressive. Look for it at the Sunday farmers market or at the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op. The smell alone is wonderful -- like a grassy field. The flavor is deep and almost like a cheese. I coat the outsides of the bread with the raw butter as I heat up the old cast iron pan.

On the inside of the bread, I spread some coarse grain spicy mustard and top it with ground pepper. This seems to complement the flavor of the cheese and gives the sandwich a little zing. Then I add the shredded cheese. Sometimes, I do a double-decker and include a third piece of bread in the middle, with cheese on both sides of it. But I wanted my pants to fit tomorrow, so I went with the traditional two slices.

After the cheese comes the best part -- a smattering of sliced (pickled) jalapenos. I like jalapenos on my cheeseburgers and I like jalapenos on my grilled cheese.

The pan needs to be medium hot -- too hot and you burn the bread before the cheese melts. To help the cheese along, use a lid to trap some of the heat. The raw butter actually seems to burn slower and has a higher smoke point than regular butter, but I'm not sure why.

Grill it up to a golden brown and, voila! Five minutes to make it and about a minute to eat it. It's not going to make me forget about Drewski's and its braised beef (or, for that matter, those battered and deep-fried mac and cheese balls!), but this was good in a pinch.

When I reviewed the much-admired Italian restaurant Biba several weeks back, I withheld a rating for the "ambience" category. Biba Caggiano had told me prior to publication that she planned to close the restaurant for a week and remodel.

The restaurant has closed, reopened and the remodel is complete - there is new art on the walls and those walls have been given new life. In the bar area, which is what customers encounter when they walk in the front door, paneling has been added and the paint gives the room a darker overall clubby feel. Beforehand, the bar had lots of mirrors and brass fixtures that suggested you were entering a themed restaurant called "Ode to the '80s."

In my review this Sunday, I took a look at the three new food trucks that have made a mark on the Sacramento area food scene in recent months. Drewski's, Mini Burger and Mama Kim on the Go. Throw in Chando's (whose taqueria I reviewed a few months back) and a new contender, Wicked Wich, and we have the makings of a movement.

That's not a lot. But these are the pioneers, and they're leading the way in a trend that is sweeping the country. Why are food trucks the new hot thing? For one, they are thriving in some cities we look to as trendsetters: New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Portland. We look to those cities for guidance and we envision a scene in Sacramento in which you can stroll along the city's streets, stop for a quick bite of good food and be on your way.

Due to the timing of my vacation, I'm late telling you about a pretty cool event this weekend that combines a few of my favorite things: riding bikes, the American River bike trail and, of course, cooking great food.

It's too late to sign up for this event, unfortunately, but it's worth knowing about it. Don Bybee of Transpocycle and John Boyer of Edible Pedal have put together a bike ride and overnight camping adventure that highlights what a great area we live in for bikes. It's a 22-mile ride on Saturday from midtown up to the camp site at Negro Bar State Park along Lake Natoma, with a return ride on Sunday.

The Sacramento food and dining scene has been credited with bringing new energy to Sacramento's urban core. Just think of all the restaurants that did not exist a decade ago and just recall how easy it was to find a parking spot in midtown or downtown back then.

Now comes the ripple effect, and it, too, is bringing positive energy to neighborhoods - and there's plenty of potential and opportunity ahead. One of the best examples of this is a new business called Local Roots Food Tours operated by Lisa Armstrong, a former private chef who moved to the area from Indiana 12 years ago. The tours are not only drawing great crowds, they're a positive force in the downtown neighborhoods of Alkali Flats and Mansion Flats.

Just a couple of things to add to my review of Taqueria Jalisco, which ran Sunday. First of all, Kudos to the 8,000 or so eagle-eyed readers who pointed out that, yes, it's usually spelled "tostada," not "tostado," as I wrote it (twice!). I think I looked at that word 20 times while I was writing the review and simply looked right over the ending. Any way you spell it, the tostadas are quite good at Taqueria Jalisco.

Cooking has many components. You have to understand your ingredients. You must acquire certain skills, some of which take years to master. Then you have to manage things, time and temperature among them. It's a lifelong pursuit that includes plenty of rewards, lots of great meals, a few heartbreaking learning experiences and the chance to buy all kinds of gadgets for your kitchen.

But if the world of cooking seems daunting and if you're unsure how best to begin, I can't think of a better solution than taking a three-week cooking class for beginners, taught by author and distinguished Sacramento food journalist Elaine Corn.

The class meets on three successive Saturdays in July (the 16th, 23rd and 30th) from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The cost is $300, which includes a copy of Corn's book, "Now You're Cooking: Everything a Beginner Needs to Know to Start Cooking Today."

Don't consider yourself a beginner? Even if you know your way around a kitchen, it's always a good idea to brush up on the fundamentals and sharpen the skills you already have. Corn knows what she's talking about. Topics include: pro-level chopping skills, the proper use of salt, knowing when meat and fish are done, and how to time the courses of a meal.

You'll also learn how to bake, boil, steam and sauté "in a positive, completely hands-on environment," according to information on Corn's Facebook page, which goes on to say, "Here's a guarantee: After the first week, you'll be mincing herbs like a TV chef. By the end of the series, you'll be cooking for yourself, family and friends."

For more information, contact Maryellen Burns, (916) 768-6077, or foodtalk@me.com. For those interested in paying online, the class is expected to soon be listed on www.Brownpapertickets.com.

Thanks to a link on Facebook, I recently read a short essay by local chef Mark Liberman about the "farm to table" movement, along with the "even worse newly anointed locavore movement."

Huh?

Yes, the backlash is at hand, thanks to people who seem a little too happy with themselves for buying locally grown food and looking down their noses at those who dare to eat something imported.

(If you have an opinion about the politics and/or glorification of eating locally, please give your two cents in the comments section).

Ginger Elizabeth Chocolates has earned a national reputation for its handcrafted, luxurious chocolates and small desserts such as the gianduja cake and the café cremeaux.

Once you visit the small shop on L Street, it's easy to understand why. Quality. Consistency. Premium ingredients. Time-tested technique.

So, when I finally got around to trying the ice cream sandwiches, available seasonally from May through October, I had great expectations. I bought all three flavors ($5.50 each), took them home and planned how I would taste them - one per day, each neatly sliced in half, and then savored as slowly as possible. The lemon, then the pistachio and, finally, the salted caramel.

As I write this, I have at my side a copy of "Italy al Dente," by Biba Caggiano, an excellent cookbook published in 1998. As I look back at yesterday's review and the visits to Biba the restaurant in the weeks prior, I am reminded of Caggiano's passion for Italy, Italian food and, as much as anything, good, old-fashioned hospitality.

That's a shame that Odonata Beer Co. had to shut down, as Chris Macias just reported. Perhaps that piece of bad news for a local beer label can be tempered by some good news: as in, 250 jobs up for grabs.

That's right, when's the last time you saw a story about 250 jobs? But that's how many people Yard House, the Southern California restaurant chain with 30 locations and 4,450 employees nationwide, is planning on hiring at its newest site opening soon at The Fountains, that upscale shopping center across from the Galleria in Roseville.

I know I have lots of vegetarian readers. I hear from them all the time. A long time ago, several asked that I include a notation in the ratings boxes indicating whether a restaurant is vegetarian friendly. I was happy to do so. Well, here's vegetarian friendly for you -- an entire wine dinner at Evan's Kitchen in East Sacramento, featuring the work the talented Evan Elsberry.

If you want meatless dishes to be taken seriously in this town, you have to support the places that are taking them seriously already. This dinner looks impressive, and costs $67.50, including wine pairings. For what it's worth, I recommend taking a cab or arranging a ride to any wine dinner. If you drink the wine that's served, you will likely be over the legal limit by night's end. If you get a DUI, your life will be ruined for years (I have friends who have told me as much). And worrying about that will take the fun out of a wine dinner.

This dinner is called "Where's the Beef? You Won't Believe it's Vegetarian Wine Dinner."

I support folks who take risks. So I'm including the menu below:

Monday, May 16, 6 to 9pm
First Course:
Stuffed Sweet Onion with Potato Gratin
Served with 2009 River Ranch Chardonnay

Second Course:
Celery Root and Apple Salad with Almonds and Apple Butter
Served with 2009 Tamás Estates Pinot Grigio

Third Course:
Grilled Eggplant, Stuffed Baby Peppers and Tandori Tomato Sauce
Served with Murietta's Well - The Spur

Fourth Course:
Charbroiled Portabella Steak with Smokey Pearl Onion Ragout
Served with 2008 Wente Vineyards Sandstone Merlot

Dessert
Red Apple Cobbler
Served with 2008 Riverbank Riesling

$67.50 per person. Reservations Required. Call 916-452-3896.
Evan's Kitchen is located at 855 57th Street, Sacramento, CA. 95819
Suite C, In the 57th Street Antique Row

Since the James Beard Awards were announced last night, I thought I would share a story about the winner for "Outstanding Restaurant," Eleven Madison Park in New York City. It doesn't have anything to do with world-class talent, an extra-sophisticated dining community or huge operating budget. This story is about extra effort. And from what I have seen, the very best restaurants seem to try the hardest.

(Before I go on, we want to ask readers to tell us, in the comments box below, about their experiences with a restaurant that shows extra effort. Let us know what happened, and where.)

The food, of course, was outstanding during our visit in September. The design of the menu was compelling (you select a single ingredient for each course and you have no idea how it will be prepared) and the finished product on the plate was a work of art. That's not surprising for a world-class restaurant with a chef the caliber of Daniel Humm (who used to work in San Francisco).

But the story I am going to tell you has almost nothing to do with cooking. It's about doing the little things that connect with customers and have an impact that resonates.

There was so much good food at Maranello Restaurant in Fair Oaks that I didn't have room to address all of it in my review that ran Sunday. The scallops, for instance, were wrapped in sturgeon, and that nutty sweetness I tasted was actually rhubarb chutney. Quite a creative way to do scallops, I thought. I'm told this was the brainchild of the sous chef, Thomas Daily. Watch for that name because I hear he is quite a talent.

Michael Tuohy, executive chef at Grange, the widely respected restaurant at the Citizen Hotel downtown, is leaving the position to pursue new opportunities.

Tuohy, 49, has been a significant influence on the local food scene, both for his thoughtful approach to cooking and for the public outreach he performed in various ways, including leading tours of the farmers market to buy produce he would later prepare and serve at the restaurant for tour participants.

Tuohy enjoyed an excellent reputation for his cooking at Grange, but some diners, myself included, were occasionally frustrated that the service did not live up to the professionalism of the kitchen.

What's it like to live together, raise kids together and, when you go off to work, there you are: together again?

In recent weeks, I have reviewed a spate of restaurants run by husbands and wives or some kind of domestic partnership equivalent. Magpie. Bistro La Petite France, Café Marika, Chando's Tacos. I can think of plenty more, including superb ones such as Taste in Plymouth and Boulevard Bistro in Elk Grove. I've also heard of more than a few restaurant divorces (including at least a few where they get divorced but continue working at the same eatery).

The humble Frenchman at the top of Sacramento's food scene spent the day Friday slicing sandwiches and placing them on plates and ladling soup into bowls, then moving in his unhurried way to the cash register to make change for his customers - one after another, and for one final time.

"Today was a very sad day. My tears were very close to my eyes," said Daniel Pont, the owner and chef, not long after locking the front door.

I just got off the phone with chef and owner Daniel Pont, who confirmed that this is his final day. Yes, La Bonne Soupe is closing its doors.

The restaurant usually closes at 2:30, but there were still 10 people in line. The chef and I will chat after he locks up shortly. Check back for details.

For those not in the know, this small, one-man operation has become a legend in recent years, known for great soups and sandwiches, and notoriously long lines. Monsieur Pont is a beloved figure and a true gentleman. For many, the closing of this place will be devastating news. What's more, the other top soup place in town, Fog Mountain Cafe, just closed its doors a few weeks ago.

It wasn't that long ago. We were leaving Peet's Coffee on Fair Oaks Boulevard and, as we walked out, we held the door for a petite woman with short blond, spiky hair and a fake tan - and she proceeded to walk through without saying a word or touching the door. She's something special. Of course she is.

In that one moment, she had the chance to take the door, even symbolically, say something nice and make us feel good about this little exchange of kindnesses. Yet, we regretted holding the door and, later, talked about - fantasized about - letting the door go and making her spill her coffee all over her extra-tight gym attire. If I were the least bit spiritual, I might look inside and tell myself it is the simple act that matters, and that I cannot control what other people do. I'm glad I'm not that well adjusted.

There is something about that obliviousness at the door, seemingly so small, that really rubs people the wrong way, myself included. In honor of that loathsome, self-involved woman, I've compiled a short, non-scientific list of other rude behavior I see at restaurants (in no particular order):

My review of Bistro La Petite France focused on the food and the warm hospitality of the husband-and-wife owners, Christophe and Claudine Ehrhart. If you're wondering what it means to have a locally-owned business with a personal touch, this would be a good place to visit and take notes. The formula is very simple, but somehow it remains elusive at too many other restaurants.

During our visits, Christophe never failed to greet us or say farewell, and Claudine was always there to chat with customers.

One of the things you realize when you've been in journalism long enough is that a lot of smart people read the newspaper. Another thing you realize: an awful lot of other people don't really understand how journalism works.

I say this because of a well-meaning email I received recently from a reader. She was concerned that some of my more pointed critiques might hurt a restaurant's bottom line.

She writes (to protect the innocent and not so innocent, I will delete the names of the restaurants):

I had a new dining partner helping out with Sunday's review - Abbey, one of our dogs. When Monkey Cat noted on its website that it was "dog friendly," the journalist in me thought I needed to check it out and find the right companion for the job. Though Oscar, our big Rhodesian ridgeback-mix, is the pack leader, we left him behind because, well, having an alpha dog that close to plates of food is not always the best idea. When he gets really food-focused, Oscar starts to howl.

Being dog friendly is something that is important to a surprising number of folks who go out to eat, myself included. Years before I became The Bee's restaurant critic, I would look for places that allowed pets access on the patio. That eventually led me to Carmel, where dogs are treated like royalty and are allowed to roam off-leash on the spectacular public beach. There are several restaurants in Carmel that are dog friendly, but Monkey Cat is right up there with them.

Beyond canine companions, let's revisit one recurring issue with the food. In recent weeks, I have referred several times to dishes that were timid or bland or that seemed to play it too safe when it comes to flavors. That doesn't mean I only appreciate food that is big and bold, the culinary equivalent of a neon red and white striped shirt. I'm not suggesting that more is necessarily better. Food won't improve by simply dumping more herbs and spices into the pot. My concern is that sometimes kitchens seem to be preparing food and sending it out to the dining room without tasting it. The best dishes I encounter are well balanced, but they also have flavors that pop. There is a clarity of purpose that shines through in terms of flavors.

Though I enjoyed several dishes at Monkey Cat, the ones that were less intriguing made me wonder if the person cooking them actually tasted the recipe that day to see if it was hitting the mark.

This coming Sunday, I will be reviewing a restaurant that reminded me of this issue once again - because the flavors had great clarity and heft.

Fog Mountain Café, which opened three years ago on the corner of 10th and I streets downtown, has closed its doors for good.

The news is a blow to its many fans, myself included, who considered owner/chef Eric Harnish's soups to be the best in the city. Grilled asparagus with applewood smoked bacon. French onion soup. Mushroom with fresh thyme and shaved asiago. Split pea. He even nailed Muligatawny years ago when I requested it.

Harnish was an artist and improviser in the kitchen. He had over 100 soup recipes in his head and never wrote any of them down. He tried new things and wasn't afraid to fail.

I recently had the pleasure of joining Curtis Popp for lunch at La Bonne Soupe, the near-legendary soup and sandwich spot on 8th Street.

Over the years, I have found that journalism - and my career as a writer - is full of ups and downs. You get on a roll, bang out a few good stories in a row, then you look around, run into a few obstacles and false starts and, suddenly, you're stumped. Yes, it's a dry spell.

During my years as a features writer, specializing in profiles, there were times when I thought I would never come up with another compelling person to write about.

I am in one of those dry spells at the moment, though readers of the newspaper might not have any inkling. That's because I have visited several restaurants in recent weeks, tried the food, looked at what they're all about, judged the quality of the overall experience and then, unfortunately, pulled the plug.

The tally includes two Indian restaurants that don't give any indication they want to stay in business or are concerned about the fundamentals of good service and decent cooking; a Mexican restaurant that is like every cookie-cutter Mexican restaurant on earth and pretty much bored me from the moment the stale tortilla chips and watery salsa were plunked down on our table; and a marginally upscale restaurant specializing in American cuisine where the host led us to our table, put down the menus and walked away without saying a word. It would have been helpful if she had at least uttered something along the lines of, "Watch out, the food here is really boring, your server will act flustered even though the place is nearly empty, and, it will soon become apparent that we don't really know what we're doing." Oh, this "host" did acknowledge us when we left - with a smile and a "good night" -- but that's probably because she was standing next to the owner at the time. I'll leave it to readers to try and figure out who I'm talking about.

Monday postscript: Enotria and Magpie

I am returning from a two-week vacation, so today I will be playing a little bit of catch-up, beginning with a look back at my last two reviews.

Let's start with Enotria, the wine bar and restaurant that just spent over $1 million renovating its building on Del Paso Boulevard. Is that amount of money something a restaurant critic should consider when writing a review? That's a very tough question.

Here's the honest answer: yes and no.

No, it shouldn't count from a pure journalistic perspective. The only thing that really matters to customers is the experience - are they getting a superior experience and does the cost of that experience make sense? A restaurant critic's duty is to put himself in the shoes of the customer, gather information, and make judgments from that perspective. If the amount of the investment was supposed to be factored into this equation, there would be a small sign on every table that stated something to the effect of, "Hey, cut us some slack. We spent big bucks on this place."

That said, I could not help but think about the money when I looked closely at Enotria. This kind of investment is a tremendous boost for that part of town, it's great for the local restaurant industry, it suggests this place is serious about being a great restaurant and it's certainly a sign of confidence during very difficult economic times.

But the money also raises questions? Why hasn't Enotria sprung for an espresso machine? Espresso is on the menu. And why, when I called to make a reservation a week after Valentine's Day, did Enotria's voicemail greeting mention the upcoming Valentine's Day dinner? It doesn't cost anything to be organized and stay on top of things.

I wound up writing a mixed review of Enotria, though some readers found my pronouncements harsh in places. (I often have people mention what they see in the online comments, but I don't read online comments (except for this blog) because I don't find them sincere or, for the most part, constructive. It's pretty much the professional wrestling of intellectual discourse. But I do take calls, voicemails and emails seriously, since most of those folks are willing to put their names behind what they believe).

For a high-end restaurant, Enotria was struggling in a couple of areas. Some of the shortcomings that I noted are opinions and some are simply facts. Either way, when I make such pronouncements, it is my obligation to show my reasoning and to support my argument. For instance, when I noted that several of the entrees we tried were bland, that is an opinion that requires some supporting evidence. It also requires me to draw on a very broad benchmark established by visiting all other restaurants operating in the same category. But when I say the steak was riddled with gristle, that is not something that can be disputed - explained, perhaps, but not disputed.

When I noted that the presentation of the wines should be tweaked, that was something that combined fact with opinion. I was simply reporting the events as they happened when I noted that the wine flights, which come in three separate glasses all at once, are presented in a blur and that it is next to impossible to keep track of which winery produced which wine. If you like your wines paired with confusion and random pronunciations of obscure French or Italian wineries, then you will disagree with my suggestion that Enotria must make this experience more customer friendly by providing, say, a laminated note card with the wines, the order of tasting and a couple of observations by the sommelier. What's more, I would make these cards something customers can take home for future reference, since a big part of wine tasting is to get folks to know and understand new wines with the idea they may want to order them or buy them retail and take them home.

I occasionally watch the TV show "Undercover Boss." In addition to revealing that many CEOs are incredible klutzes, the show often illustrates that a strategy or system the boss thought was a good idea doesn't actually work in the real world. I would encourage all restaurant managers and owners to put themselves in the position of servers, cooks or hosts from time to time and see how things are working or not working. Even more importantly, they should sit in the customer's chair on occasion to see if their ideas make sense and can be executed properly.

Enotria is a fine restaurant and wine bar that should not have difficulty resolving its issues and moving toward the top tier in the Sacramento region. The money spent on the building, coupled with a talented staff capable of delivering an excellent overall experience, suggest to me that Enotria will rise up and thrive soon enough.

Magpie Café

What more can I say about this place? Magpie is running on all cylinders. I love the food and the way the business is run.

If I were to get picky, one question I might have is what happens on the sidewalk patio at Magpie - sometimes diners get wind of the smoke coming from adjacent Shady Lady Saloon.

Is this a problem? Not when you have two businesses of this caliber working side by side. Shady Lady is one the great places in town to enjoy a cocktail and its presence on R Street has been a real boon. So I'm not surprised how it is handling the matter.

I just got off the phone with Jason Boggs, one of the owners at Shady Lady. He told me he admires Magpie's food and realizes smoking can be an issue. He and the managers recently had a meeting to discuss this very issue. They hope to resolve it by making that side of Shady Lady's patio a non-smoking area.

It's a simple fix and a classy move.

We've spotted another story on the AeroPress, that amazing little $30 device that just may brew the best cup of coffee you'll ever have at home.

Last week, the L.A. Times weighed in with a story headlined "AeroPress coffeemakers brew loyal fans." It talks about what many AeroPress aficionados have known for months or even years - that it is hardly attractive or elegant or high-tech, but that its simplicity may hold the key to its success.

I wrote a story on the AeroPress last July that began this way:

"In the overcaffeinated competition among coffee makers, the AeroPress is a game-changer: an invention that thrills with its simplicity and functionality.

What's more, the AeroPress costs less than $30, is made of shatterproof plastic, is very easy to clean, was invented in California and, unlike nearly every other coffee contraption, is made in the United States."

Recently, when Chris Macias, The Bee's wine writer, mentioned he was interested in a new coffeemaker, I suggested the AeroPress (he gives me wine tips and I return the favor with coffee stuff). He got one and loves it.

Which leads us to our question - or questions - for readers out there who are really into coffee: Have you tried the AeroPress? If not, what is your preferred brewing method at home? If you'd rather get your coffee from the pros, what is your favorite coffee shop (and why)?

One of the great things about getting feedback from readers via email is that it reminds me that many of them are passionate about food and demanding about the issues related to food.

But how much politics do you want with your restaurant reviews? That is a question I think about often, and I have yet to come up with the right formula to please everyone.

Yes, I try to weigh in on the local/sustainable trend from time to time. I tend to emphasize the importance of where the food comes from and what happens on the way from the farm to your plate.

If you're into the local food and dining scene, you won't want to miss the latest installment of the excellent ongoing series called Sacramento Living Library. Chef and restaurateur Patrick Mulvaney and Shawn Harrison, executive director of Soil Born Farms, will talk about local agriculture, local restaurants and various issues tied to farm-to-table dining.

The free event is this Sunday (March 20) at 7 p.m. Time Tested Books is at 1114 21st Street, between K and L streets in midtown Sacramento.

Though farm-to-table cooking has become more and more common in the city's restaurants, Mulvaney is perhaps its most visible practitioner, if not its most devoted. His eponymous restaurant on 19th Street is well known for sourcing local ingredients and celebrating the area's farmers.

Soil Born Farms is a remarkable and enlightened undertaking that not only grows food, it has an educational mission for youths and adults that provides classes, workshops, tours and job training. The farm also targets under-served areas in the community with alternative food distribution and food donation programs.

The Living Library series, curated by Time Tested Books' owner Peter Keat and hosted by Tim Foster of Midtown Monthly, has been a big success. The talks are casual, wide-ranging and thought-provoking, all in the cozy setting of a well-stocked shop of used and rare books. Recent food-themed talks have featured chocolatier Ginger Elizabeth Hahn and grocer/wine expert Darrell Corti (interviewed by Elaine Corn).

Though the talk will begin at 7 p.m., this event will likely fill up quickly. For the talk in February, featuring Fred and Victoria Dalkey, we arrived 15 minutes early to find standing room only at the very back of the bookstore. The talks generally last an hour.

And if you're looking for a very good restaurant nearby before or after the event, you won't go wrong with Bombay Bar & Grill (1315 21st St.).

Certain journalists have been eating lots and lots of sandwiches recently, all in the interest of determining where the best ones are.

The latest issues of Sactown Magazine and Midtown Monthly each feature extensive articles on all things sandwiches. And there are certainly plenty of great selections in this town.

The always-dedicated Becky Grunewald of Midtown Monthly explained to readers, "I ate sandwiches until they were coming out my ears." That's not a good look. Even for a foodie. Shockingly, the out-the-ears approach did not include a sandwich from Roxie Deli, which may be the city's all-around sandwich king. Sactown put Roxie's pastrami on its list, but you really can't go wrong with the daily special - especially the beef brisket, which is smoked for hours in the deli's heavy-duty smoker just outside the front door.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

I got lots of calls and e-mails this morning about my story on food apps. Some readers -- we won't call them Luddites -- are worried that this newfangled iPad thing is going to make books a thing of the past. Not a chance. Cookbooks are a huge industry with plenty of clout. Sacramento's own Biba Caggiano, for instance, has sold 600,00 books.

But, just like the newspaper industry, technology is giving us more options and forcing us to look anew at ways to provide content.

Apps and tablets are part of the solution. Your iPad can be a book, a radio, a TV, a newspaper, a Facebook page and a tool for browsing and buying.

One reader called to recommend an app called "Paprika" ($4.99), which is supposed to take all of your recipes from all kinds of sources and consolidate them. Sounds impossible, but I am going to check it out.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

There are several coffee houses in the area now that serve very good espresso. But if you're like me and occasionally want an espresso at home, you have probably obsessed over all of the options out there. You read, you compare, you read some more. And what you may have concluded is that if you want to make coffeehouse quality espresso in your kitchen, you have to buy a machine that costs $1,200 to $1,800.

Until now.

A few months back, I wrote a review of the Mypressi Twist. Maybe it was a big hint, too, because my girlfriend got me one for Christmas a few weeks later.

The Twist is a handheld device that doesn't use batteries or electricity. Instead, the pressure is created by small cartridges of nitrous oxide, the same thing used for whipped cream canisters (and the same cartridges ravers use for an underage buzz).

I have been making espresso with this machine ever since. Sometimes, "pulls" are close to perfect and sometimes, as in this video, they are just pretty good (the espresso came out a little fast on this one, prompting me to adjust the grind and tamp pressure for subsequent shots). To watch, click the link below.

espresso.MOV

This thing costs around $150, does a really good job and I no longer obsess over how to explain why I've just spent $1,800 to make a 3-ounce beverage I can buy for $2 around the corner. Yes, it's still important to have a good to excellent grinder. Those tend to cost $100 and up.

The cartridges for the Twist, by the way, last for about six shots. I bought a new box of 24 for $15 at a local restaurant supply store, but not before the salesperson grilled me about what I wanted to do with them. I told him I was into nice wine, not N2O.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

What is Biba doing getting in on the St. Patrick's Day fun? For the second year running, the beloved Italian restaurant on Capitol Avenue in midtown is offering a special a la carte menu item for lunch and dinner to accommodate her many customers of Irish descent.

That would include Biba Caggiano's two sons-in-law.

The same restaurant that serves prosciutto di parma with caramelized pears, gnocchi del giorno and, yes, the famous lasagne verdi alla Bolognese, will be cooking up a special St. Patrick's Day stuffed pastal. As someone who is half Irish but feels like he should have been born in Northern Italy, I endorse this tradition wholeheartedly.

This hybrid, hyphenated and wholly unusual dish consists of spinach ravioli stuffed with corned beef, braised cabbage, carrots and potatoes, and finished with a sauce made of butter, braised cabbage and pancetta. No word on the green beer.

The dinner is $17.50 and lunch is $16.50.

Speaking of Biba, when I checked the restaurant website, I noticed an array of cooking classes taught by Biba herself. Each class costs 125 and is limited to 15 students. Classes cover such areas as fresh pasta, gnocchi and risotto. Clearly, they are very popular - they're all sold out through June 18.

OneSpeed, the always busy (and for good reason) restaurant and pizzeria in East Sacramento will hold a fundraiser Thursday, March 24 for the NorCal Aids Cycle, a charity bike ride that benefits local HIV/AIDS providers.

Owned by cyclist and cycling enthusiast Rick Mahan, OneSpeed (4818 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento) will donate a portion of its sales that day to this worthy charity. Chef Mahan is also the owner of Waterboy, one of the city's premier fine dining restaurants.

The Norcal AIDS Cycle is a four-day, 330 mile ride. It began as the brainchild of a group of cyclists that included Maggy Krell, a state prosecutor living in Sacramento. I wrote a story about Maggy and the ride back in 2007.

The original idea was to take the large and famous AIDS charity ride that travels from San Francisco to Los Angeles over seven days, shrink it down to four days, do one very large loop through the Central Valley, Wine Country and the Sierra foothills and, best of all, give the money raised to local AIDS-related charities.

Now in its seventh year, the charity ride is a major success story, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The OneSpeed component of this deal is easy: stop in on the 24th for some of the best pizza going or, as I did recently, try a delicious fish dish or excellent gnocchi. And you'll know some of the money you spend is headed to this charity.

For those who want to take it a step further and actually do the ride from May 12-15, learn more at http://norcalaidscycle.org/. Here's a description of the experience I lifted from the website:

You'll share the experience with your fellow participants, realize a goal that you made for yourself months before, build camaraderie, and find friends and family that will last long after the ride ends.

While the route is challenging, it's also invigorating. The road mixes with laughter, sweat, tears, and smiles. Your muscles will ache while your mind soars with the sense of accomplishment you are earning.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

As I was sitting in Café Marika one night, what came to mind were all those touristy towns I have visited over the years. You know the ones. You want to go out to dinner, you pick a spot, sit down and you find out soon enough by the time the plates hit the table that it's pretty much a tourist trap serving inferior food. And you wonder: where do the locals eat.

Café Marika is where locals eat. At least the ones who can cram their way into this tiny restaurant and its five tables.

The size is only part of the charm. It was the charm - and the consistently good old-fashioned food - that drew me to write about this place.

When I am in the process of sizing up a restaurant, one of the things I look at is personality. Yes, some restaurants have personality and some, just like people, have plenty of flash and not much depth to back it up. After many years writing human interest stories and profiles, I am also drawn to a good story. And eccentricity.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

Congratulations to Hot Italian on its very special recognition as a "Bicycle Friendly Business" by the League of American Bicyclists, the first California restaurant to be honored in this way.

If you've ever ridden to Hot Italian and locked your bike in its very stylish bike racks (they have space for 32 two-wheelers), you probably have a sense of how pro-bike the pizzeria is. Many times when I've ridden my bike to review a restaurant, I've had to lock it to a tree or post. Hot Italian also delivers pizza by bike, sponsors a bike club, produced the well-received Bicycle Film Festival in Sacramento, the Velo & Vintage bike-themed fashion show and recently hosted the "Savage Sprints" series of stationary bike races to raise money to build a local velodrome..

Hot Italian has been racking up recognition and leading the way on many fronts in the local restaurant industry. It recently received LEED certification by the U.S. Green Building Council for its environmentally friendly building. Being bike friendly goes hand in hand with that.

To celebrate the bike friendly business designation, Hot Italian (16th and Q in Midtown) is hosting an event tonight (Saturday) from 6-9 p.m. to unveil the "pop-up" bike shop selling PUBLIC Bikes and Rickshaw Bags. Attending will be PUBLIC Bikes owner and founder of Design Within Reach, Rob Forbes. I have seen the PUBLIC Bikes city-style bikes and am impressed. Simple clean lines, not a lot of extra parts, nice colors and, best of all, a really good pricepoint (around $500). That's much cheaper than the Le Corbusier chaise ($3,600) you can buy at Design Within Reach. Also on hand will be Rickshaw Bags' Mark Dwight.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com
Driving through midtown Thursday afternoon, this is the reason I did a doubletake and then a U-turn. The wienermobile is in town.

I'm not sure what the occasion is, but this giant wiener of a car was in Sacramento -- and it was turning plenty of heads. A little research tells me the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile travels the country promoting the Kraft Foods hot dog brand.

The company also hires a new crew each year to drive this puppy all over the place. So if you're young and still searching for what matters in life and what it all really means, don't you think that journey would be even cooler in a wienermobile?

And just think: a multi-national corporation will pay you to drive it. If you're going to sell out, do it in the wienermobile.

There's a website where you can get more information on this fascinating career opportunity. I'd do it myself, but I've already figured out the meaning of life -- and it does not involve a 27-foot hot dog that is really, really hard to parallel park.

Or, if you simply want to watch from the sidelines, there's a blog that keeps up with the wienermobile's exploits.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

Officials announced Thursday the launch of Flavor! Napa Valley, the four-day food and wine festival that will celebrate the region's culinary and winemaking bounty while promoting the area as a major destination to much of the world.

Additionally, proceeds from the event will go toward scholarships for students attending the Culinary Institute of America's nearby Greystone campus.

Judging from who was in attendance, this event has some major star power behind it. Among those attending the announcement and luncheon at the Silverado Resort were Thomas Keller, the chef behind the French Laundry, Per Se, Bouchon and Ad Hoc. Keller, wearing a white chef's coat and shiny black clogs that looked like they haven't been near a prep table any time recently, mingled for a while beforehand, stood and listened during the brief announcement, then slipped out before lunch was served.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

Trey Luzzi began the glamorous life of a small businessman and gourmet bakery owner by waking at 4 a.m., selling out of nearly everything, getting home by midnight and asleep by 12:30 a.m.

Today? He was up and at 'em again at 4, thrilled about his first day in business at the much-anticipated Trey B Cakes Gourmet Bakery and Eatery on L Street between 18th and 19th.

One of the appealing things about the bakery are the hours: 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., and closing at 1 a.m. on Friday and Sunday. But Trey B Cakes didn't make it to 10 p.m. on Monday.

"We sold out. We had to close at 9 p.m. because we were out of everything except a couple of pieces of cheesecake," he said.

Bee reporter Carlos Alcala has a scary, amusing and sad story in today's paper about a restaurant, a dream and the lousy people who ruined it.

Kevin and Nancy Cairn opened their restaurant, Dante's on the River, seven years ago on a barren stretch of Highway 50 near Pollock Pines. Turns out, the story turns on the absence of a suitable rest stop for miles around. So folks would pull into the restaurant parking lot and do their business right there.

The Cairns put up with it at first, then began to confront the worst offenders and even got into a scuffle or two. Now Kevin Cairns is facing a felony trial, allegedly for assaulting a motorist in the parking lot with, of all things, a traffic cone.

When they opened, the Cairns thought it wouldn't be a problem to allow non-customers to use the restaurant restroom, but they changed that policy in a hurry when motorists abused the privilege.

The Cairns are fed up and are selling the place. From the looks of the photo, it's a nice spot.

So, if you've always wanted to open a restaurant -- and you have a darn good plan for how to deal with the parking lot potty problem -- then you just might be able to stake your claim on a stretch of Highway 50 sorely in need of a rest stop.

Another young chef is taking his shot, opening a new restaurant at 11th and H in the building formerly occupied by Sofia Restaurant.

According to Suzanne Hurt's Sacramento Press story, Jason Lockard left his position as chef at Brew It Up at 14th and H to stake a claim as a restaurateur.

Lockard is preparing to open Blue Prynt, a restaurant and bar whose curious spelling will allow the "y" in "Prynt" to be in the shape of a martini glass on the sign. Now there's an idea that really needed an intervention. Nevertheless, this restaurant isn't going to rise or fall on spelling or nomenclature.

One of the big questions is location.

I received an email from an avid reader and devoted restaurant enthusiast asking, "Are you grading on a curve?" He went on to pull quotes from my review showing that I was either underwhelmed by the food at Kupros Bistro or entirely unimpressed with six of the seven dishes mentioned. One exception was the poutine, a French-Canadian dish composed of French fries, gravy and cheese curds. Enjoyable poutine - especially in poutine-free California - is not enough to carry a restaurant.

He wasn't arguing with my review or my taste in restaurants. But he wondered if I had given too high of a star rating to Kupros, given my feelings about the food.

"You need to call this what it is: a truly poor, or at least very sub-par showing by Kupros. One-for-seven just doesn't cut it in any aspect of life, including spending our hard-earned dollars in restaurants. It almost seems as if you are giving Kupros a bit of partial credit based on past performance, something which is utterly irrelevant to someone dining there today," he wrote.

That's a very fair question. No, I was not giving partial credit for past performance (the chef who opened Kupros, John Gurnee, was doing excellent food). If anything, I was extra tough on Kupros because of Gurnee's style and daring with the menu. The restaurant said it wasn't ready for San Francisco-type fare in Sacramento and let Gurnee go. Of course, he promptly landed a job in San Francisco at a restaurant run by the Tyler Florence Group. More than a few sophisticated diners in Sacramento would find Kupros' conclusions a tad insulting.

The bustling block on L Street between 18th and 19th is about to become an even better destination for dessert lovers with the opening of Trey B Cakes Gourmet Bakery and Eatery.

There's already the renowned Ginger Elizabeth Chocolates and the ever-popular Yogurt A-Go-Go.
Today, Trey B Cakes opens its doors at 7 a.m. Great hours, dog friendly, serious about coffee and a focus on such treats as cakes, pies, fruit tarts and cookies.

In addition to sweets, there will be a range of savory items, including something owner Trey Luzzi is calling the "Stud Muffin" - meatloaf wrapped in phyllo and topped with mashed potatoes and parmesan.

"It's a whole meal on the go," he told me.

Who says Fridays are slow news days? Things are blowing up here in the newsroom on 21st.

I just got a call from the campus president at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Sacramento, who informed me: The student-run restaurant once open to the public has shut its doors.

Not yesterday or last week. It closed a year ago, according to Rafael Castaneda, the president who has been at the helm at the Natomas campus the past four months.

OK, so they're a little slow letting us know. They're chefs, not public relations experts.

The prez says the school is taking a different approach by closing the restaurant. Instead of hands-on, pressure-filled training at the school with the cafe, students will land externships (remind me how that's different than internships) at area restaurants.

For the general public, that's too bad. As I wrote over a year ago, the public was able to visit the restaurant, eat for free or cheap and then give a written critique. During our visit, we got mixed results, but there was plenty of good food and it was enjoyable. You just had to roll with the idea of eating rack of lamb, say, at 8:30 a.m.

But from what I heard, some of the "guest" reviews made my Morton's review look like a Hallmark greeting card. Yes, people were mean, and students were angry and flustered. Some guests didn't understand the concept of constructive criticism. Nor did they get that these were students, not pros.

Those externships will give students a different view of kitchen life -- they'll be doing mostly the kind of work no one else wants to do. That means plenty of time with brooms, rags and bleach rubbed on countertops in a circular motion. Sauces? Sautees? Not yet.

And they're not going to get a lot of sympathy from executive chefs around here.

Want to know what it's going to be like at some of the best restaurants? In the kitchen at a certain top restaurant downtown, the executive chef has a sign on the wall that lets you know where you stand:

"Your (past-tense expletive deleted, but it begins with the letter before "G" and rhymes with a certain tasty waterfowl) life is not my problem."

I'm told the chef also doesn't do hugs when you get your feelings hurt.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

I just wrapped up the writing on this Sunday's review -- a look at Kupros Bistro on 21st Street.

This was a challenging restaurant to assess, mostly because, even though it is quite new, it has shifted its focus rather abruptly since opening last August.

For years, 21st Street has been either dead or where restaurants go to die. But that's changing. There is actually some life within blocks of The Bee that goes beyond I Heart Teriyaki. The most noteworthy addition in recent times has been Bombay Bar and Grill, which is really succeeding, as it should. The service is friendly, the room is lively and the food is superb.

Kupros? It took a run-down Craftsman-style house occupied for years by Cheap Thrills costume shop, spent $500,000 fixing it up and then opened with a flourish.

It has a beautiful, large bar and it appears that in recent months that shift I referred to means more focus on the bar. That's probably the way it should be.

To read the Kupros review, tune in Sunday. Even better, impress your friends and buy an actual Sunday paper, which has all kinds of re-use and re-purpose possibilities, from lining the proverbial bird cage and wrapping fish to protecting your floor during your house-painting project, or, as they did on J Street recently, papering over the windows the minute Plum Blossom went under.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Dining Critic
Following up on Chris Macias' revealing story in today's Bee on the sudden rise of chef Pajo Bruich, here are a few signs that cutting-edge cooking techniques are catching on beyond high-end restaurants and boutique caterers.

As I was shopping at East Bay Restaurant Supply on Tuesday (for a silicon spatula and a couple of other things), I happened upon a sous vide machine for under $300. Next to it was a vacuum sealer. And near that was a book explaining how devoted home cooks can get into this compelling low-heat, long-hours way of cooking.

Be the first one on your block to cook a steak for three days without sending everyone to the dentist or the ER.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

I heard plenty of positive things from readers - and a couple of negative things - after my reviews yesterday of two exciting places that serve beer, this being Beer Week.

Of course, there are plenty of other fine establishments with a Beer Week agenda, and I encourage you to drop by several and get a sense of their different approaches. In fact, if you're looking for a watering hole to call home, whether you're new to town or have simply made a new commitment to start drinking more often to balance out all that time you put in at work and in the gym, this is a good week for you to be making the rounds. Remember, it's all about balance.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

Check out our breakfast this morning, made with products from the Sunday Farmers Market.

The bacon is from Bledsoe Pork, where the affable John Bledsoe has gained fame as the supplier to Mulvaney's and several other top restaurants. The eggs are from the poultry vendor right next to Bledsoe, sold to us by a shivering woman who was without a portable heater.

The bacon was thick and beautiful, and it fried up in the cast iron pan much differently than the cheaper bacon you see at grocery stores. It held its shape, didn't curl and shrivel, and just look how good it looks when it is browned.

We got to the Farmers Market relatively early, but the eggs were nearly sold out. Again, these are significantly different than cheaper commodity eggs. The yolks are bright orange, as you can see, and the flavor is much better. Not shown is the three-egg omelet I made. The color of the beaten eggs was noticeably deeper than what many might be used to. This is why you'll often hear good chefs urge people following their recipes to use the best eggs they can get. The payoff is in the flavor.

To finish the breakfast, we had some excellent strawberries and honey roasted almonds, also from our Farmers Market excursion. It was a great way to start the morning -- and the kitchen smells terrific! It certainly got Oscar's attention.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

OK, so we don't want to jump all over the Girl Scouts. We love their cookies -- at least we used to.

But check out this photo: On the left is the peanut butter sandwich cookie sold by the Girl Scouts. On the right is a peanut butter cream cookie made by Back to Nature, which we bought at the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op.

Not only does the cookie on the left have "partially hydrogenated palm kernel oil," but the amount of filling is just insulting. Bernie Madoff wouldn't sell these cookies.

Perhaps now is the time for the Girl Scouts to learn a little something about quality control and get more involved in the oversight of the cookie process. According to the box, the cookies are made by ABC Bakers/Interbake Foods in Richmond Va.

Sure, it's great that the Girl Scouts raise money by satisfying the nation's sweet tooth. They've been doing so for 100 years. In fact, being accosted by moms at folding tables outside grocery stores while their daughters talk amongst themselves and barely pay attention is one of the great American traditions.

But let's reinvent these woeful cookies. First, we wouldn't feed partially hydrogenated oil to terrorists, so let's get it out of these all-American cookies. It's pretty much a consensus that this stuff is sinful. Looking at the list of ingredients of both cookies, the worst culprits appear to be vegetable shortening and corn syrup.

Then let's add actual filling that amounts to more than a dollop. Perhaps it's time to contract with a baking outfit that aims to produce a significantly better product, one that mimics the original Girl Scout home-baked cookies of generations past.

Certainly, cookies are never going to be mistaken for health food, but they don't have to be this bad.

Make a better, marginally healthier cookie, Girl Scouts, and next year I won't pretend I'm answering my iPhone every time I walk past your folding tables.

In honor of Beer Week, which begins Saturday with many exciting events at pubs and restaurants throughout the Sacramento area, I am working on two separate reviews of places that serve beer really well: deVere's Irish Pub and Pangaea Two Brews Cafe.

Those reviews will run Sunday. If you haven't been to Pangaea, here is a shot of the excellent beer list.

There's plenty of mystery but not much intrigue about the sudden closing of Plum Blossom, the semi-popular, semi-decent Chinese food joint on J Street at 19th.

When I was out walking the dogs the other night, I noticed the windows had been papered over (I applaud this progressive re-use of The Bee), and a sign said the place had closed. It was pretty much "Thanks, we're outta here."

Now, we learn via friend and reporter Suzanne Hurt's story in the Sacramento Press, that the prime location isn't sitting idle for long.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

On Sunday, I wrote a very favorable review of a modest little taco joint. I talked about the wonderful flavors of the meats, the commitment of the owner and his employees, and the excitement of having such a stellar place to enjoy the best of Tijuana street food right here in Sacramento.

So how did Chando's Tacos do on Sunday? I called Chando - Lisidro Madrigal - after closing time to ask. I already had a pretty good clue. At about 2 p.m., he called me while I was out on a bike ride. Chando explained they were slammed with customers from the moment they opened and that he was on his way to the store to get more supplies.

By the time I called him at 8:30 p.m., Chando and his employees were bleary-eyed, dead tired and more than a little overwhelmed.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com
Not to rub it in or anything, but I brought in a loaf of sourdough bread I baked this afternoon -- hot out of the oven.

I like to do this fairly regularly because it's fun to share food and, well, it's important that I don't eat all my bread myself.

This is the sourdough made with the techniques from the great new book, "Tartine Bread" by Chad Robertson. I wrote about this a couple of weeks ago.

The most popular accompaniment on this cold, rainy Thursday was some excellent brie from the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op called "Fromager D'Affinois Brie." Highly recommended. The best pairing was by higher education writer Laurel Rosenhall, who enjoyed the bread with her homemade soup.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

Elaine Baker, the highly regarded pastry chef at Grange Restaurant, is looking for work.

The position at Grange has been eliminated and Baker, whose many dessert creations distinguished the restaurant, isn't wasting any time looking for new challenges.

Freelance work? Baking classes? Catering? Writing?

Baker is getting the word out that she's open to those things and more.

"I'm just kind of seeing what opportunities come my way. I had one of the best pastry chef jobs in the city. It was fabulous," she told me Wednesday when we chatted by phone.

I didn't get into what happened. Instead, we talked about baking for a living and what she might do next. Just to give readers an insider's view of this line of work, I asked Baker about the demands, the long hours, the physical toll it takes, especially with discerning customers typical of a high-end restaurant like Grange.

"There is a lot of pressure. You need to stay on top of the trends. You need to do things that compliment the overall menu that the chef has. It's very exciting," Baker said.

While viewers of the Food Network might get the impression that it's a glamorous occupation, Baker says it's pretty much 12-hour days, you're on the feet all the time and the schedule you work can be tough on families and relationships.

Baker was an original employee at Grange, starting there two years and four months ago.

When I mentioned the popularity of baking classes in town, Baker said it's something she is considering as she plots her next career move.

"Some people make it sound so mysterious and difficult. It would be nice to show people how simple it can be," she said.

Baker graduated in 1999 from the Culinary Institute of America's baking and pastry arts program. Before Grange, she worked at Firehouse Restaurant.

Anyone interested in discussing opportunities with Baker can contact her via email, efrancetic@yahoo.com.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

If you think you were busy on Valentine's Day - making that reservation, buying a card, ordering flowers, dousing yourself in cologne - think about Ginger Elizabeth Hahn and her talented staff at Ginger Elizabeth Chocolates.

Valentine's Day was their Super Bowl, their ultramarathon and, it turns out, it was a little bit of history.

I called Hahn the day after the big day for chocolatiers everywhere. Feb. 15, it turns out was a day for here to ask, "Where did everything go?"

"It was crazy. We had our busiest day ever - the most transactions, the most dollar amount ever," she said. "We had a double snake line going out the door all day."

This comes on the heels of a Christmas season that saw sales increase 60 percent from the year before.

When I walked past the stylish, 600-square-foot shop on L Street on Monday, the place was, indeed, jammed. Hahn, her husband and all their employees had the focus and intensity of athletes as they greeted customers, gathered up the orders and rang them up - over and over.

"Everyone is on super-overtime," Hahn said.

And Hahn? She's eight months pregnant with her second son, name still to be decided. The Hahns might go with something to do with Palet d'Or, the bittersweet chocolate treat that is the shop's top seller. I don't know about baby names, but I do understand a thing or two about chocolate. I'm a fan of the Meyer Lemon, the Maya Chile, the Grapefruit and Fennel Pollen Caramel, and the Fleur de Sel Caramel. If you can't decide, get a whole box, find a comfortable seat at home and prepare to savor some of the best chocolates you will ever have. I've also purchased chocolate in bulk at the shop, grabbed a recipe card at the register and did quite well baking Ginger Elizabeth-inspired cookies and brownies at home.

Ginger Elizabeth's fans know Hahn, just 30 years old, was recently named one of the top 10 chocolatiers in North America by "Dessert Professional," the respected trade magazine for the pastry and baking industry. Her ever-expanding customer base also understands that the shop's chocolates are worth the money, that once you have a brush with superb, it's hard to go back to so-so.

Hahn isn't resting on her laurels. The next big chocolate holiday is Easter, then Mother's Day. Meanwhile, she and her staff are planning to launch a selection of jams, as well as sell ice cream by the pint.

Before I let her go, I asked Hahn what she and her husband get each other for Valentine's Day.

"We don't have time to do it, so we normally do a nice dinner the next month," she said. "We eat our fair share of chocolates, though."

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee restaurant critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

I expected a lot of feedback regarding my review of Tower Café. My voicemail and e-mail did not disappoint.

This enduring restaurant has a loyal following and, if voluminous reader reaction is any indication, there are plenty of others who don't really get the appeal.

Is it possible both sides are correct? Of course. This is what I told folks on Facebook a couple of days before the publication of the review:

"One thing people who read my reviews should realize is that you don't have to agree with all of them. If I like a place you hate or hate a place you like, it doesn't mean you're wrong, and you shouldn't feel insulted. My primary obligation when I give my opinion is to convince the reader it is sincere, well reasoned and given in the spirit of context -- I compare similar places to one another.

"If I get careful readers to agree with 75 percent of my reviews and at least respect the rest, and perhaps be entertained along the way, then I'm doing OK."

So why the massive response this week? Many wrote to say I had validated their opinion, that their friends had considered them cranks and oddballs for not loving this restaurant. Some folks wrote or called to say I am an angry, bitter person. That's not fair. Comments like that make me angry and bitter.

But seriously, I never begin the review process thinking I am going to slam a restaurant. I always keep an open mind, am always on the lookout for things I had not considered, and I am always looking to be entertained. But I also know my role as a critic. I look for the good first - but I never ignore the bad.

Given the number of times I eat out each week, I take my mindset seriously. I never eat out if I am in a bad mood or feel as if it is some sort of obligation. I also make sure I am hungry. Sometimes, I will go for a run or a bike ride to stimulate my appetite because I don't know many people who go out to eat when they are full.

That is how I approached Tower Café - as a place I wanted to enjoy. It didn't work out that way. I didn't have room to elaborate in print, but it starts with attitude. The service tends to be too hurried, too businesslike, right down to those little handheld ordering devices that become the focal point of the server-customer exchange. There is very little banter, very few examples of extra effort and little to no warmth.

For a contrast of what I am getting at here, please visit Formoli's Bistro. It's a very busy little restaurant and the servers are working hard. But part of the hard work means taking the time to allow their charisma to shine through and to connect with the customers. It enhances the dining experience. It is no coincidence that Fromoli's has placed two different employees on my list of best servers the past two years.

As for the food at Tower, I argued in my review that the menu tries to do way too much with this idea of international cuisine. It's the kind of menu that seeks to make everyone happy. One rule of thumb regarding menus almost always holds true: If you encounter a giant menu at a restaurant - and the name Heston Blumenthal or Thomas Keller is not listed as executive chef - you're probably going to have a hit-or-miss experience. Big menus set the kitchen up for failure. You simply cannot bring your best cooking to so many different flavors and sauces and textures unless you are in a world-class kitchen with a talented chef devoted to each station in the cooking and plating process.

Just the week before, Chef David English, owner of the new and successful Press Bistro in midtown, touched on this topic. I asked him why he didn't have more options on the tapas menu. My contention was that after a third visit, I was a little less excited about adventurous eating and thought that the menu needed to change more often or have more options. I also wondered why he wasn't doing lunch, which would add to the liveliness of that midtown block during the day. English argued that trying to do too much too soon would have a dramatic impact on quality and he simply doesn't have the resources in the kitchen to do more just yet.

That made sense, even if I think Press Bistro really needs to offer lunch. I have been in several world-class kitchens through the years. At Corton in New York City, for example, I stood and watched one chef, tweezers in hand, carefully place a single strand of spaghetti (made, thanks to molecular gastronomy, out of charged liquid parmesan) on each plate. That was his role during dinner service. Around him, another chef handled the meat, another the fish, several others the different vegetable preparations and sauces. In the center of it all, the executive chef, Paul Liebrandt, sized up each plate with the eye of an art appraiser before allowing it to leave the kitchen.

I have worked as a cook and I could imagine what was going on in the kitchen at Tower Café - something along the lines of managed chaos and acknowledged concessions on quality. I don't think many would argue that a leaner menu would improve the quality and the focus of the cooking. Perhaps this menu, unchanged for so long, could reinvent itself as a seasonal selection of dishes. You could still embrace the theme of international cuisine while employing current progressive thinking about food that advocates local, seasonal and sustainable.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

After my "First Impressions" piece on the new K Street sensations Pizza Rock and Dive Bar (District 30 had yet to open at the time of publication), I received an interesting voicemail from a reader.

She has a 7-year-old daughter who adores mermaids and was wondering if Dive Bar would allow a child to stick her head in for a quick look at the mermaid. I had never thought of that. The mermaid and her massive, brightly lit water tank above the bar is the focal point of this new venue on K Street.

After listening to the woman, I thought that, yes, kids would find the mermaid even more interesting than adults do. Why couldn't they have a kids' hour or a monthly kids' day? So we asked. Liquor licenses don't seem to have much wiggle room for wide-eyed kids.

"We would absolutely love to do this," media contact Trevor Hewitt said via e-mail. "But we are licensed as a 21-plus-only venue. This means we are not allowed to have people under the age of 21 in the venue (even during off-hours). Pizza Rock is the only one of the three venues that has the appropriate license for under-21 guests. Hope you can understand."

The new Pizza Rock is a family-friendly pizzeria, and there's plenty of mermaid-less fun for kids. Checking the website, there is even a Kids' Day at Pizza Rock this Saturday.

But it looks like that little girl may have to wait 14 years for an up-close and personal encounter with the mermaids at Dive Bar. By then, once-doomed and deserted K Street could look more like Bourbon Street.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

Here's a little inside information for "Appetizers" readers.

I have written a story on this month's one-woman Julia Child show sponsored by Slow Food Sacramento. All proceeds from the event will benefit Plates Cafe and Catering, which gives formerly homeless women a chance to work in a restaurant setting and develop skills to find jobs in the industry.

While most of us can be baffled by the homeless situation and the lack of ironclad solutions, this one is something we all can support - get women off the streets and away from potential danger, get them working, get them trained and send them out into the world to start a genuine career.

The "Julia Child Says: Bon Appetit" show, starring Linda Kenyon, is Feb. 17. Tickets are $45 - that includes appetizers, wine and the performance.

The story will be published Sunday in the newspaper. I am told that 93 of the 150 tickets have been sold. But once it's in the paper, those tickets are likely to be snapped up.

It should be a great evening for a great cause in a room packed with people who care about good food and a more stable, thriving community.

If you're interested in going, this is something you should jump on ASAP. Ticket information can be found at the Slow Food Sacramento website.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

Out with the dogs for a long walk on a chilly Tuesday night, I was startled to spot the first signs of life at Zen Sushi since well before Christmas. For weeks, the windows had been papered over and, eventually, many began to wonder what was up.

The good news: The paper has come down and the restaurant looks ready to reopen soon after a major remodel fraught with construction delays.

The restaurant's many fans will be happy about that. But even better, the new and vastly improved look is going to make quite a splash inside and out, and it is sure to spruce up the once-drab corner at 15th and I streets, across from Memorial Auditorium.

At first glance, the makeover looks stunning, taking a ho-hum interior and turning it into a showcase of modern style and dramatic lighting. There appears to be a completely new bar, a dining room that is much more open and all new furniture.

For passers-by, you simply won't be able to miss it, with large vertical blue lighting effects in the windows capturing your attention.

The food has always been good, but now Zen Sushi is really making a fashion statement with its bold new look.

As I strolled past, there were a few people inside going over final preparations. From the looks of things, it's ready to open. We will try to track down owner Jason Hom and get specifics on the reopening, along with more details on what promises to be one of the better-looking restaurants in town.

Gov. Jerry Brown's new neighborhood is going to get even better. I've been keeping my eye on the renovation of the historic but run-down Maydestone apartment building at 15th and J. According to Sacramento Press, that 10-month project is at the halfway mark and will have 32 units with rents in the $750 to $1,300 range.

New residents at the Maydestone won't have far to go for for good sushi -- Zen Sushi is a two-minute walk in one direction and Mikuni is three minutes in the other. Keep going on 16th for three or four minutes and there's Sapporo. Plenty of other restaurants, too, including Capitol Garage, P.F. Chang's, Lucca, Petra, California Pizza Kitchen, de Vere's Irish Pub and, for lunch, the Bread Store -- all a few minutes away on foot.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

I just got off the phone with the product rep from Utah-based Thermoworks, makers of a high-end instant-read thermometer called the Thermapen. Cook's Illustrated raves about this gadget, as do many others. When I recently spoke with Harold McGee ("On Food and Cooking") and asked him about his favorite kitchen gadgets, he immediately weighed in on the wonders of the Thermapen. Emeril Lagasse? Alton Brown? They're fans, too.

The standard instant-read gadget costs $12 to $25, and "instant" in many cases should be taken with a grain of salt. It should probably say "eventual."

In the days ahead, I will be putting this highly touted and very speedy device through the paces in the test kitchen. We'll try to determine if it's worth $89 and who should consider getting one. Beyond that, we'll be preparing a story on the importance of understanding temperature during the cooking process.

Apparently, there's not much understanding going on. Thermapen's makers recently did man-on-the-street style interviews at the Sundance Film Festival, asking folks how they determine if the meat they are cooking is done. They couldn't find anyone who uses an instant-read thermometer, let alone an $89 one.

I'm looking forward to seeing if the Thermapen lives up to all of the raves.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

Hot Italian is known for excellent pizza as well as the style of its building at 16th and Q, done primarily in a palette of black and white, with large, inviting windows out front. It's also newly certified as a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building, a designation by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Taking the Italian theme further, Hot Italian made sure from the outset that it would serve a nice shot of espresso, made with an eye-catching and meticulously restored vintage Faema espresso machine. What's more, Hot Italian gets its beans from Mr. Espresso, an Oakland-based roaster with deep ties to Italy. The coffee company has for years supplied some of the Bay Area's top coffee shops and best restaurants.

Recently, Hot Italian began selling the beans by the pound. As a fan of its espresso, I stopped by to purchase some and give them the once-over. One pound costs $14.50, which is in the standard range for premium beans.

In days of old, perhaps due to the influence of Starbucks and the many roasts dubbed "Vienna" or "espresso" or "full city," we associated this style of coffee with dark, nearly burnt beans. Dark, of course, suggests it will be smoky on the palate, and really dark means it will be the equivalent of puffing a cigar and then snorting what's left in the ashtray. Most discerning espresso drinkers, along with more and more proponents of standard drip coffee, are looking for a more balanced cup that allows the flavor characteristics of the bean to shine without being overwhelmed by heavy hand in the roasting process.

That said, I have had many espressos along the way that were syrupy, overly fruity and unbalanced - and then were defended by the coffee shop by arguing that's the way the bean is supposed to taste. So, a good roast can be lighter, but not all lighter roasts are automatically good.

Now that independent coffee shops have stemmed the tide of the Starbucks explosion and dominance, it's no longer cool to say that Starbucks was largely responsible for educating the American consumer about coffee. Yet Starbucks, for better or worse, set the table for savvy independents like Temple, Chocolate Fish and Old Soul, to come in and do better work.

Mr. Espresso, founded in 1978 by Carlo Di Ruocco and managed these days by his son, Luigi, was one of the roasters that said no to super-dark beans. The beans sold through Hot Italian are medium roast and have a balanced flavor profile without being sweet or floral.

Most coffee roasters are heated with gas. According to Mr. Espresso, the company is the only roaster in the United States to roast beans by burning oak wood. When I first heard of this process, I assumed that a wood-burning roaster would impart some of that flavor into the finished beans. That is the assumption with wood-burning pizza ovens and bread ovens, though Chad Robertson, in his new book "Tartine Bread," argues that the bread he bakes in a gas-powered oven at his bakery in San Francisco tastes the same as the bread he baked in the wood-burning hearth oven he used in Point Reyes Station years ago.

According to the Mr. Espresso website, using wood for roasting allows the process to be slowed down. For coffee geeks, here is what the company says:

The differences (between gas and wood) are not what one might initially expect. Unlike cooking with a wood oven or grill, where the smoke from the wood imparts a flavor to the final product, the main difference between wood and conventional roasting lies in the quality of the heat delivered to the beans. Heat derived from wood has higher moisture content and is better suited for slow roasting.

The more oil preserved within the bean, the more exquisite the final flavor will be. The natural humidity within the wood seems to envelop the beans during the roasting process, hence preserving more of the lipids within. Meanwhile, the slow roasting aspect ensures the coffee is lower in acidity and higher in body. The result is most apparent in our espresso, yielding more crema, fuller flavor, and a smoother finish. For drip coffee for which we actually wish to retain the acidity of the coffees, we subject the beans to a faster roasting time.

As I have said before, more coffee options translates into better coffee options, and that leads to a more demanding coffee consumer. Sacramento is continuing to mature as a city with decent, good and great options for coffee.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

Speaking of the Super Bowl, I had a little Super Bowl déjà vu Sunday when, on a whim, I decided to make ribs. Specifically, I made the ribs from the can't-fail recipe in the timeless cookbook "Joy of Cooking," And no, I wasn't hosting a Pro Bowl party.

This delicious meal actually comes together with two recipes - one for the barbecue sauce and one for "country-style ribs baked in barbecue sauce." I had been thinking about the Super Bowl and recalling that these were the same two recipes I used for the first Super Bowl party I attended in Sacramento (January 2000) after arriving from the East Coast the previous June.

The party was at the apartment of Matthew Barrows, who started at The Bee two weeks after I did and sat across from me in the newsroom. We were both general assignment reporters. Matt went on to become the beat writer for the San Francisco 49ers, and now he pretends he doesn't know who I am. But back in 2000, all I knew about his interest in football was that he was a fanatical Redskins fan (he grew up in the D.C. area) and that he couldn't throw a tight spiral if his life depended on it.

Anyway, the ribs were a big hit at the party - incredibly tender, full of flavor from the meat and the sauce cooked into it, and most importantly, they weren't greasy. There are lots of fancy cookbooks these days, but this is a recipe that would be hard to improve. Best of all, you don't need a big outdoor smoker and thus, you don't have to wake at 3 a.m. to light your big smoker. The ribs are actually baked in your oven - very slowly over four hours.

Here's what you do:

First the sauce. If you have the "all new" edition, the recipe is on Page 90. There are plenty of ingredients required, but no technique. Dump everything into the pot and stir occasionally for about 10 minutes over low heat.
1 ½ cups of ketchup
1 cup cider vinegar or red wine vinegar (I used the latter)
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup soy sauce
1 cup packed brown sugar (scoop sugar into a measuring cup and gently push down until it is level)
2 tablespoons dry mustard
4 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 slices of lemon

Now you've got an excellent all-purpose sauce. Next, you need some ribs. Pretty much any kind of ribs will work. The way you choose will depend on personal preference and, to some extent, the nature of the occasion. I went with country-style pork ribs because they are very meaty. I bought them at the excellent meat counter at Taylor's Market, where they cut them to order. These are actually boneless, which is even better. But if you're looking for traditional rib eating, where you gnaw on the bones to your heart's content, go for spareribs or baby back ribs.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Place the ribs in a large baking pan. Mix 1 ½ cups of the BBQ sauce you just made with 1 cup of orange juice. Place the ribs in the pan, then pour in the sauce mixture, turning the ribs to coat. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and place in the oven.

Bake for three hours. Remove the pan from the oven, take off the foil and spoon sauce onto the exposed ribs so they don't dry out. Return to the oven uncovered for 1 hour, for a total of four hours. Check on them a few times in that final hour and spoon more sauce onto the ribs or turn them over. The sauce will cook down and thicken.

By the time you're finished, you will have ribs so good and tender they will be a big hit at whatever Super Bowl party you attend.

A couple of tips:

Plan ahead. This takes four hours of baking, plus more time to make the sauce. So you will want to start at least six hours before the party.

The baking pan will be tough to clean, so it might be best to line the bottom and sides with aluminum foil.

Finally, if you're going to eat these ribs, don't wear a white shirt.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

In the last 10 days, my e-mail in-box has been bombarded with recipes, products and menus tied to a certain football game. The PR machine is working overtime. The assumption: Absolutely everyone watches the Super Bowl.

Count me out. I gave up on pro football years ago - it may have had something to do with a strike and substitute players and the demise of "Air Coryell" - and rare is the Sunday when I cannot think of something better to do than watch big dudes fall into one another, call a meeting, then do it all over again, complete with code names.

Turns out, I'm not the only one who doesn't have Super Bowl fever. Richard Ebert, the wine buyer for Taylor's Market (2900 Freeport Blvd.) in the Land Park/Curtis Park section of Sacramento, knows there are plenty of folks looking for something to do while most Americans are glued to their flat screens.

Thus, the affable Ebert, who always seems to be in the wine aisle when I'm shopping, is holding a wine tasting on Super Bowl Sunday at Taylor's Kitchen, the restaurant next door.

The focus is on bubbly, suggesting there will be a selection of sparkling wines and champagnes to taste. Those in attendance are free to pick Ebert's brain about the details on what they are tasting, perhaps with an eye toward choosing the right bottle for the right occasion. Ebert, of course, is the man behind "Dick's Picks" at Taylor's, selections of wines he particularly likes.

The tasting event is $10 and there's no need to make a reservation. Just show up, pay and start sipping. It's from 2 to 5 p.m.

I've been to these kinds of events before. Best advice for the best experience: Bring a designated driver who doesn't mind sipping Sierra Mist. Better yet, if you're close enough, leave the car at home and walk to Taylor's.

By Blair Anthony Robertson, Bee Restaurant Critic
brobertson@sacbee.com

Chocolate Fish, the downtown coffeehouse with the stellar reputation, has begun roasting its own beans.

I learned this recently when I stopped in for one of my favorite coffee drinks in the city - the "flat white," the delicious equivalent of a strong latte - less foam and a little more milk than a cappuccino.

Andy Baker, who owns the shop with his wife, Edie, said Chocolate Fish is roasting at a facility near the new Target on 65th Street. The roasting plant isn't open to the public, but the beans are available for sale at the coffeehouse at Third and Q streets.

This is big news for coffee aficionados, as it gives the city even more options for ultra-premium coffee beans. Chocolate Fish is known for its quality and attention to detail. Beyond that, its employees seem to exude that perfect blend of coffee love and customer service - you'll get the obsession but without the attitude, and they can pretty much answer any coffee question you can think of.

The roasting endeavor is so new that there is no mention of it on the company's website, and its brochures still refer to sourcing coffee from Ritual Roasters in San Francisco.

There's already plenty of roasting talent in town. Last July, the folks at Sacramento's Temple Coffee stunned the coffee industry - and no doubt themselves - by earning a score of 97 (out of 100) from the prestigious CoffeeReview.com for its roast of Guatemala Hunapu Antigua Bourbon beans. The score was the highest in the country and prompted online sales from throughout the United States and beyond.

Other local shops that roast their own beans include Old Soul and the venerable Boulevard Coffee (in Carmichael).

That kind of number from Coffee Review doesn't come around often. But I would expect Chocolate Fish to be happy with nothing less than excellence as it ramps up its roasting operation. I bought a pound of its espresso blend for use at home with the Mypressi Twist, the amazing handheld espresso maker powered with nitrous oxide chargers. The flavor of this espresso is complex, with an appealing sweetness and hints of caramel without any smokiness as it lingers on the palate.

Check out all the options for beans at Chocolate Fish and, if you know what's good for you, stay awhile and let one of the shop's baristas prepare you a coffee that approaches perfection.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

Who would have imagined that mixing Korean barbecue and Mexican street tacos would create not only a stir but a bona fide trend?

I'm not exactly sure where the idea started - the consensus is L.A. - but now Sacramento is in on it, and food folks seem into it.

The first time I tried going tp GoGi Korean BBQ, close to its 2 p.m. closing and in the first week after it opened, the line was huge, so I bailed. The next time, we got our grub and took it home for some close analysis and tasting.

GoGi Korean BBQ has opened as a walk-up eatery at 15th and L streets, the complex that holds comfort food restaurant Cafeteria 15L (formerly Mason's) and the casual Chinese food joint Ma Jong's. It's a great idea, an excellent location but, well, pretty weak hours - 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. This is one of the busiest intersections in the city for foot traffic, and this place could thrive late into the evening and on weekends. I understand catering to the lunch crowd. There are thousands of workers within a couple of blocks. But this part of town is hopping at night, too.

How do I know? I'm part of that foot traffic. There are plenty of dining options within walking distance, but sometimes we just want something fast and casual. And if you can add delicious and different and affordable to the equation, you've just launched a can't-miss endeavor.

It's too soon to make a full assessment of the food, but so far I am impressed. The spicy pork tacos were quite good, with nice, tender meat, pleasant spiciness that could have been bolder, a tangy citrusy flavor note and solid crunch from the fresh red cabbage. On the downside, one could argue it was a tad greasy. Not a big deal if I'm eating it late at night after a stint at a bar, but I'm less fond of greasy food for lunch. We'll check back to see if this was an aberration or an ongoing thing.

The barbecue short ribs burrito was also a pleasure, though that delicious meat often showcased at traditional Korean BBQ restaurants gets a little lost in the crowd rolled up in a burrito.

This $5 burrito is also on the small side, but refreshingly so. I have had burritos in this town that weigh over 2 pounds (yes, I weighed them), and that is nothing but a paean to pigging out (for context, the typical sourdough loaves I bake weigh 2.2 pounds). This one will satisfy your hunger but will not make you feel like Joey Chestnut after a hot dog eating contest.

One other quibble. Yawn - the line was short, but the wait was long. Were they barbecuing my short ribs to order, or were they just a little slow spooning the food into the tortillas? All that should be worked out in the days to come. So far, GoGi looks like a winner. I'll definitely be stopping by again soon, and I'm eager to try some of the other flavor combinations.

By Blair Anthony Robertson
brobertson@sacbee.com

Andy Soto wants to help save restaurants in this troubling economy and, along the way, maybe develop a tidy collection of new clients for his business, Spectrum Restaurant Consulting.

Throughout December and January, Soto was offering a price that few struggling eateries could resist: free. As in, on the house.

When I caught up with Soto recently over the phone, he explained that his offer was no gimmick, that the assessments he would give restaurants wouldn't be some shallow drive-by just to entice them.

When I asked what was involved time-wise, he said, "As much time as it takes. I would probably go in and spend a couple of hours with the owners or top managers and see exactly where they need to change, then take all the information back with me and analyze it. So, we're talking at least a week, maybe up to four weeks."

Referring to restaurateurs, Soto added: "I'm really not looking for anything from you except your success."

Soto was born and raised in New York City, so he knows a good restaurant when he sees one. He has also spent time in the business, starting as a waiter in Miami and working his way through the system. After a stint in San Diego, he arrived on the Sacramento scene in 2006.

"I've done just about every position in the industry," he said. "I had opened several restaurants for other people and thought it would be kind of fun to try it on my own."

As a restaurant critic, I have the luxury of seeing what the good, the bad and the dreadful are doing, practically on a daily basis.

Obviously, the numbers have to make sense when you look at costs vs. revenue. Beyond that, many restaurants send a confusing message about what they are all about. How are you trying to distinguish yourself from the competition? Or are you trying to be just like the competition? Do you have the kind of personnel who believe in what you are doing, who understand the team concept of running a business and are committed to the idea that they are there to serve customers and make them feel special?

I asked Soto to give me an example of a client consultation, and he recently got back in touch with a rundown on what he was doing for the charming Sugar Plum Vegan in midtown. This is a place I like. The sandwiches are cool and alternative, and the desserts, despite the absence of butter and eggs and vital things like cream cheese frosting, are delicious and distinctive. But I found it off-putting that the place didn't take credit cards. I can't be the only one who A) rarely carries more than $6 and B) finds it a pain to use a bank machine on site that will charge be a couple of bucks to get access to my money, only to be charged another $2 by my own bank for financial infidelity.

Our consultant says he spotted several areas of opportunity and will complete a mystery shopper report, create training manuals, guest comment cards, and an employee incentive program, among other ideas. "I did the math and I will be providing (the owner) with over $5,000 worth of services for free," Soto told me.

Sounds like Soto is working his plan. His free offer may be ending soon, but anyone interested in having him visit a restaurant and tap into his expertise can contact him via email, spectrumrc@rocketmail.com, or by visiting his blog.

Here's a tip for the thousands of cars arriving downtown every morning via 12th Street: take a quick left on F Street and grab a gourmet treat for the office.

Sugar and Spice Specialty Desserts opened its doors Monday, offering everything from custom weddings cakes, special occasion baked goods and, best of all for impulsive dessert lovers, a walk-in shop at the corner of 12th and F.

The business is owned by experienced pastry chef Carissa Jones, who was busy tending to new dessert creations when I called Tuesday.

"I'm piping as we speak," she told me, referring to an ice cream mousse cake creation.

Jones, who has worked in several restaurants as a pastry chef, wants to bring tradition and creativity to the desserts at Sugar and Spice. So expect plenty of classic French pastry techniques, playful twists and fresh new flavors. Apple martini meringue, anyone?

"There is something strangely satisfying about being able to follow the rules and know something is going to come out perfectly, and at the same time knowing when to break the rules," Jones said.

"I like taking a traditional dessert and changing it, and then taking a non-traditional dessert and making it a little bit more friendly."

The bakery is also serious about quality, obtaining many of its fresh ingredients from highly respected Produce Express. Jones also plans to hit the farmers markets.

Jones says the foundation of the business will be built on weddings. But it also won't leave single folks and happy old married couples out of the picture. Sugar and Spice will feature a daily "happy hour," when a certain desserts will be half price. There will also be a daily turnover, a daily muffin, and a daily crostada, among many other treats. A coffee program will be introduced in the next couple of weeks.

Sugar and Spice Specialty Desserts is at 1201 F St., Sacramento.

Good news for fans of Shoki Ramen House. There's going to be another one soon.

Not that the original in the ramshackle shotgun house on 24th Street wasn't cool, but the demand had far outpaced the supply of tables and chairs. Thus, part of the Shoki experience was the sign-up sheet and the stroll around the neighborhood until your table was ready.

I recently got word that Shoki has a second location lined up --1201 R St., Sacramento -- which means the ramen fanatics, myself included, will have a choice of where to get their fix. The new place will seat 48, with a nice patio out front.

Owner and chef Yasushi Ueyama is expected to open the new joint in 30 to 90 days. He will divide his time between the two locations and is apparently training someone to uphold his very high standards in the kitchen.

We'll keep you posted when it opens.

3 lbs Casa Di Bertacchi Italian Meatballs, frozen (1/2 of the 6 lbs bag or about 75 meatballs)

1 1/2 cup real maple syrup
2 Tablespoons dried chives
1 1/2 cup chili sauce
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 Tablespoon ground mustard

Pour frozen meatballs into a slow cooker. Whisk together maple syrup, chives, chili sauce, soy sauce and ground mustard. Pour mixture over meatballs. Cook meatballs on high for 4 1/2 hours or on low for 5 1/2 hours.

This Thursday is "Friends & Family Night" at Capitol Garage, the popular neighborhood restaurant and bar at the corner of 15th and K streets.

The idea is simple: bring a packaged toy from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.and enjoy complimentary appetizers. This is an easy win-win. Capitol Garage is always an entertaining place to visit. The menu is eclectic, many of the dishes are creative in concept and the cooking is quite good. And if it's your first visit, everything will make sense if you try partake of the $6.95 unlimited mimosas during weekend brunch.

Checking out the restaurant's website, I also noticed a very good deal for New Year's Eve: dinner for two, including a bottle of wine or champagne, for $49.95. Reservations for this one are encouraged.

It has been a whirlwind week for the folks at Temple Coffee, which scored a chart-topping 97 points at www.CoffeeReview.com for its Guatemala Hunapu coffee.

As I reported earlier, the score was the highest of any coffee in North America in 2010. Once the news hit the coffee obsessed among us, Temple's website lit up with orders from all over.

"We even had an order from Poland, which we had to cancel," said Sean Kohmescher, Temple's owner. "We checked and it was going to cost $185 to ship it."

I was lucky to score a bag of the coffee, but I had to buy it via the website and have it shipped to my house just a few blocks from where it was roasted.

Turns out, I could have scored some had I walked into the flagship shop on 10th Street. According to Nick Miller, an editor at Sacramento New & Review -- the fine weekly that balances cogent news, edgy opinion and enough pot dispensary ads to give our own Marcos "No Toke" Breton fits - the coffee-loving newsman with the obviously impeccable timing and taste was able to walk out with 12 ounces of the 97-point beans, thanks to a barista giving him "the best upsell I ever had." Turns out, there were a few bags of the beans remaining despite all the commotion from all over the country.

On his fine blog, Nick then went on to say, "feel free to pass by my pad Saturday morning for a cup."

If he provided an address, I would have joined him, assuming he doesn't make his coffee with a French press, or, if he uses a Chemex he pre-rinses those hideous paper filters - or, better, if he is wise enough to use the amazing Aeropress.

I don't like to provide tasting impressions by comparing my coffee to flowers or raisins or blueberries, but I will say that these beans made an incredibly smooth and balanced cup of coffee, with a mouth-feel that was practically creamy. That said, we don't have a lot of benchmarks for such high-scoring super-premium coffee around here, so I am going to defer to the folks at Coffee Review.

Alas, these special beans didn't last long. Temple is already sold out, even without Poland and thanks to the aforementioned upselling downtown. Sean tells me the shop is focusing on getting its coffee into the two local Whole Foods stores in the days ahead.

That's the latest success for this coffee shop, which is clearly enjoying some serious momentum.

Temple also sells its coffee at Corti Brothers and Taylor's Market.

Temple Coffee is adding to its reputation for superior coffee. The Sacramento coffee house and roaster, was recently awarded an astounding score of 97 by www.CoffeeReview.com for its heirloom coffee called Guatemala Hunapu Antigua Bourbon.

Big news? Actually, it's huge. Coffee Review has the most prestigious ratings in the industry and this is the highest score given any coffee in North America in 2010.

The news left Temple's owner, Sean Kohmescher, in disbelief when he first heard. When did it start to sink in? When the shop's website began getting hits from all over the country and Temple practically sold out its inventory of this particular bean to coffee lovers in New York, Virginian, Florida, and elsewhere.

Local coffee aficionados may be out of luck. Kohmescher said the Guatemala Hunapu is pretty much sold out at the Temple Shops on S Street in midtown and 10th Street downtown. But both shops held back enough to have special tastings this Saturday from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. You'll get 14 ounces made in a French press for $5.50.

I managed to nab a bag of whole beans online -- $15 for 12 ounces, plus $5.45 for shipping.

Ted Stachura, the assistant editor at Coffee Review, said he knew right away he was tasting something special. Coffee roasters and shops throughout North America routinely send beans to the Oakland-based Coffee Review for an assessment. A rating in the high 80s or low 90s can help sales significantly and bring prestige to a business.

Stachura and Kenneth Davids, the editor and well-known author of books on coffee, were the tasters.

"To me, it had a fruit quality to it that was very distinct and very pronounced, almost a black currant character," Stachura said by telephone. "We definitely both really liked this coffee and we knew it was way up there in the score. It's very unusual to give a coffee a 10 in the flavor category."

Temple has only been roasting its own beans since March. The roaster is Ed Whitman. Wonder what he will do for an encore. Congratulations to everyone involved.

On Saturday, Del Paso Boulevard promises to be the culinary center of Sacramento, as contestants will be stirring the pot at the Old North Sacramento Chili Cook-off.

The event runs from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Renaissance Square Building lot at 1219 Del Paso Boulevard. Admission is free. There will also be free hot dogs and free chili. And as the event promotional poster says, "Hint: creat your own chili dog!" We're told there are 11 competitors lined up, so that could make for many delicious variations

A celebrity panel of judges has been lined up, including trick roper James Barrera. There will be live music by Blusion.

Afterward, the fun continues just across the street, where The Spazmatics will be in concert. Those who attend the cook-off can receive $5 off the ticket price to the concert, which is restricted to adults 21 and over.

Congratulations to Temple Coffee. Its Colombia Monserrate just received a score of 90 points out of 100 from CoffeeReview.com, a leading consumer coffee website run by coffee expert and author Kenneth Davids.

Coincidentally, I had spoken with Davids only days earlier for a story I am working on about the AeroPress, an excellent and phenomenally simple coffeemaker (the story will be published in The Bee soon). Davids is a big fan of the AeroPress. Since I am making coffee galore with it, I stopped in at the Temple on S Street and bought a pound of Colombia Monserrate beans and went home to see what 90 points tastes like.

The other coffee in my kitchen happens to be an excellent espresso from Blue Bottle in the Bay Area. We liked Colombia Monserrate even better. Very balanced, very smooth, nice complexity, no bitterness or distracting off-flavors and it is medium bodied. The cost is $17 for a pound.

Coffee Review's website is never going to win an award for navigational ease, so click here to get Ken Davids' take on this coffee. This is great national exposure for Temple Coffee.

Temple has made a major name for itself since opening its first shop downtown in 2005 and its second last year in Midtown on S Street. Now it has opened a roasterie and is venturing into the wholesale market to sell to restaurants, coffee shops and offices. If this 90-point coffee is any indication, the future looks promising.

You're having a picnic. The time comes for the wine. You're trying to make a good impression. But when you reach for your corkscrew, you realize you left it at home.

Fear not. Now's the time to go equal parts Macgyver and James Bond. A reader sent me this link to a video to show you how to get out of bind. You don't need to understand French to follow along. Very cool. Leave it to the French to figure out how to do this.

If you ever needed an incentive to walk the straight and narrow and stay out of jail, one look at the following recipe may have you singing "Ain't Misbehavin'."

A lawyer friend of mine passed this along. It is the legally approved diet for someone placed in disciplinary isolation. When I walk past the jail downtown and hear all the wailing and shouting, I imagine they took their first bites of this meatloat!

Feel free to try this recipe at home for the kid who doesn't make his or her bed..

Here it is:

1247. Disciplinary Isolation Diet.

(a) A disciplinary isolation diet which is nutritionally balanced may be served to an inmate. No inmate receiving a prescribed medical diet is to be placed on a disciplinary isolation diet without review by the responsible physician or pursuant to a written plan approved by the physician. Such a diet shall be served twice in each 24 hour period and shall consist of one-half of the loaf (or a minimum of 19 oz. cooked loaf) described below or other equally nutritious diet, along with two slices of whole wheat bread and at least one quart of drinking water if the cell does not have a water supply. The use of a disciplinary isolation diet shall constitute an exception to the three-meal-a-day standard. Should a facility administrator wish to provide an alternate disciplinary diet, such a diet shall be submitted to the Board of Corrections for approval.

(b) The disciplinary diet loaf shall consist of the following:
2-1/2 oz. nonfat dry milk
4-1/2 oz. raw grated potato
3 oz. raw carrots, chopped or grated fine
1-1/2 oz. tomato juice or puree
4-1/2 oz. raw cabbage, chopped fine
7 oz. lean ground beef, turkey or rehydrated, canned, or frozen Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)
2-1/2 fl. oz. oil
1-1/2 oz. whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. salt
4 tsp. raw onion, chopped
1 egg
6 oz. dry red beans, pre-cooked before baking (or 16 oz. canned or cooked red kidney beans)
4 tsp. chili powder
Shape into a loaf and bake at 350-375 degrees for 50-70 minutes.

Guideline: Regulations require that food will not be withheld from an inmate as a disciplinary measure for major infractions (Section 1083, Limitations on Disciplinary Actions). With respect to inmates who are on a prescribed medical diet, the responsible physician must be consulted prior to putting that inmate on the disciplinary isolation diet. This is to assure that the disciplinary diet does not result in any unanticipated health consequences. The regulation includes a meat substitute and the vegetarian disciplinary option can also be used for a lactose-free disciplinary diet. Both the meat and the vegetarian options for the disciplinary isolation diet meet the nutritional requirements of Section 1241, Minimum Diet. A nutritional analysis of the diet is available upon request to the Board of Corrections. This recipe was updated to comply with the new DRI requirements and the carrot portion has been changed from 4 ½ oz. to 3 oz. of Carrots.

The 72- hour limitation was moved to Section 1083, Limitations on Disciplinary Actions, because restrictions on the use of the disciplinary diet are a custody issue.

Following up on Rick Kushman's piece in The Bee today (and before that, Ann Martin Rolke's fine account at the excellent Sacramento-based blog "Sacatomato") on Chef Michael Tuohy's weekly guided tour of farmer's market across the street from his restaurant Grange.

It seems like an excellent idea in many ways. It's good PR for the restaurant. It's a good way for the chef to pass along ideas he believes in about cooking with local ingredients. And it's good for the city -- this kind of thing, on a larger scale, could be something of tourist attraction. Oh, and the farmers are happy, too, with the reminder that home cooks can actually save money by going the fresh and local route.

So, what else can chefs do to make it a win-win-win? Reading the recent issue of the magazine Food Arts, I noticed a brief item on a successful program in Houston that could work just as well here. It's called "Where the Chefs Eat," and it involves getting chefs to describe where they like to eat when they're not toiling in their own kitchens. What's more, the chefs then take groups of 16 or so on a tour of the restaurant, often a hole-in-the-wall joint or hidden-away ethnic eatery.

My round-up review last month on hamburgers revealed that more than a few chefs like to grab a good burger, usually late at night, when they don't feel like cooking? But where do they go for a little adventure or a little comfort? That's the idea behind the Houston program.

Since the farmers market tours show we have an eager audience for food and education, this seems like a great idea we can borrow for Sacramento. It would be good exposure for the chefs, their restaurants and this city.

By the way, I'm going to take the dining advice of the chefs over the nice fellow who sold me the magazine. What did he have for dinner? He had just returned from a break, where he dined at the nearby Old Spaghetti Factory. His meal? A plate of broccoli and a liter of beer.

The California Café at Arden Fair mall is no longer. Employees found out Tuesday, with phone calls breaking the news to them and giving them absolutely no notice.

Customers began learning the same thing about the popular upscale-casual restaurant today when they showed up for a meal and found the doors locked. Owned by parent company Tavistock Restaurants, California Café had a devoted following dating to its opening 20 years ago this July.

Jeff Carl, Tavistock's chief marketing officer, told me it had little to do with the restaurant's performance, that it was more about the expiring lease and terms of a future lease.

"We were satisfied with the performance of the restaurant given the current economic factors," said Carl, who is based in Emeryville.

But he didn't have much explanation for the way the 30 or so employees were told and how they will be compensated in their final paychecks, which they are supposed to pick up today.

Surprisingly, one longtime employee was sad but not bitter about the way it went down.

"In the restaurant business, that's fairly common practice," said Lori McManus, a server who started at the café 15 years ago. "This will be my second closure. I tend to stick around at a restaurant until they kick me out."

The pastry chef, she said, had worked there since Day 1 and was renowned for his apple tart, among other things.

"After being there 15 years, it was family," McManus added. "I have met so many wonderful people who worked there. It was a pleasure and an honor to work there. It's sad, but it's not often you can work at a place that long."

"I've been very thankful to work there and this is just one of the things that happens," she added.

That said, the reliable and hardworking McManus is suddenly out of work and looking.

She is focusing her search for now in the Roseville area where she lives.

As for Tavistock/California Café, there's an outside chance the restaurant will reopen in another Sacramento location - one with more attractive financial terms.

"We're always looking for better locations, better lease terms," Carl said.

Anyone can drive around the second largest city in North America, tweet a location, and then have hundreds of rabid epicures form a line for Korean BBQ tacos. Delicious, sure. But hardly green. OK, I hope that doesn't sound too envious of cities like LA, SF and Portland, where street food is thriving.

Inspired by the Twitter/Korean taco truck sensation in LA, Sarah Singleton, aka the Undercover Caterer, is doing pretty much the same thing -- but without the fumes that drive Al Gore crazy. Read about her quest for "Faux-gi Korean BBQ Tacos-Without the Truck" here, drool over the pictures, get the recipe, and when you get to the bottom, be sure to enter the contest for a free book. If you're lucky, you'll finish second -- to me!

Stay tuned for the car wash I plan to organize so we can get Sarah an exhaust hood for her 60-year-old house.

You may get the impression UC is not so keen on the restrictive laws Sacramento has regarding food trucks and carts. I'm with her. On a more serious note, if Sacramento wants to get to the next level as a food town, it needs to be more inclusive and offer more opportunity to fledgling businesses, not less. Food trucks, and food carts -- from simple fare to gourmet -- bring more life to our streets, offer more opportunities to folks looking for a meal and give the city a chance to be a more exciting place.

As someone who likes to walk and ride all over Sacramento, I would welcome the chance for greater diversity of choices. For now, I'm going to give Sarah's recipe a shot sometime soon.

Andy Ramsay, the floor manager at Roxy Restaurant on Fair Oaks Boulevard, is about to leave for what shapes up to be the culinary adventure of a lifetime.

He has been accepted into the masters program at the University of Gastronomic Sciences in the small town of Bra in northern, Italy, which happens to be home of the official headquarters of the Slow Food Movement. In fact, Carlo Petrini, founder of the Slow Food Movement, founded the university in 2004.

"I think the world of Andy," said Terri Gilliland, who co-owns Roxy with her husband Ron. "To me, he is one of those rarities of his generation in this business in that he is completely motivated by passion. He loves food and wine and is making the study of both a life pursuit

"His leaving is bittersweet in that I will miss him greatly but also couldn't be happier for him with this upcoming incredible opportunity to actually see, experience, taste and study the food of Italy."

The academic odyssey is a long way from the days when Ramsay was a student at UCLA - studying writing, of all things. Sometimes you go to school for one thing and figure out while you're there that it's another thing altogether.

"When I was doing my writing degree, I fell in love with food and hosting parties," he told me.

It didn't hurt that his mother is Italian.

"She kind of had the host gene. I think I got that from her. I just ran with it in college. It got to the point where I cared way more about the next party I was going to throw or recipe I was going to try," he said.

Between his junior and senior year, Ramsay landed a job at a Bay Area restaurant, knowing he wanted to do something with food but having very little on his resume to show for it.

"The only real plan was to work in a restaurant because I had never done that before. The chef took a chance on me. I felt like I was a very competent at-home cook, but very little of that translated into a commercial restaurant."

Ramsay finished his course work at UCLA in 2007. Prior to landing a job at Roxy, he went the corporate route to gain experience.

That may surprise some readers. But several successful restaurant employees have told me that working at a chain drilled into them all the fundamentals.

"On the advice of a family friend, he said the best thing for me to do would be to work for a corporate restaurant chain. Those corporate places have really strong systems in place; whereas mom and pop places rely on workers who don't need the systems because they have so much experience."

He worked for the Houston's Restaurant Group in Century City. It was during that stint that he got the idea to go to Italy and pursue a culinary education.

"It's something I want to pursue to the fullest. My goal is to have my own restaurant someday (in Los Angeles)," he said.

In 2008, Ramsay landed a job as floor manager at Roxy. In his spare time, he kept close tabs on what other places were doing. He focused on low-end places selling tacos and tamales and high-end places that prepare gourmet cuisine and have impeccable service. The middle? He doesn't think there's a lot there worth learning.

In late May, he will embark on a 12-month program in Italy, where courses are available in Italian or English. Ramsay knows some Italian and is pretty good with Spanish. The curriculum includes eight weeks of study while traveling.

Anyone interested in doing something similar should start saving up. Ramsay says tuition, travel and eight weeks of an internship will cost about $30,000.

A couple of years ago, The Bee published a story about how local restaurants were celebrating the locavore movement by identifying the names of farms where the meat and produce originated.

Then, more restaurants jumped on the bandwagon. Now, the inevitable saturation. Are we naming so many names on menus that it no longer means anything. I went to a high-end steakhouse recently where the server started to tell me about the ranch where the meat was raised, fumbled over the name, grabbed the menu for a look, then told me. I had never heard of it. As someone who sees lots and lots of menus, I still like to see the sources mentioned on occasion, and I do like to know if I am getting organic food and meat raised without steroids. But it should be done selectively or all those farms just becomes a blur.

At least one prominent chef in town is putting on the brakes, it seems. I spotted this little missive by owner/chef Rick Mahan of the Waterboy and the new and wildly successful OneSpeed. He does make an important observation -- more and more patrons want to know where the food comes from, and the servers need to be able to tell them.

Mahan writes: It's become pretty common to walk into a restaurant, look over a menu and read all about (in every dish!) farmers and ranchers supplying the great ingredients used by the restaurant to produce their food. This is a great, albeit over-done, practice. I know, I'm guilty of it, I've done it, I'm trying to do it less because I'm beginning to find it distracting and also think it's becoming cliche; I'm just leaning towards educating my staff as best I can so they'll be well equipped to answer all the questions you, our guests, may have pertaining to where, how and when the ingredients were brought to us.

Maybe you're like me and you've told friends about how good the food is at Sampino's at 16th and F streets, especially the sandwiches and the meats, and you appreciate the attitude in the shop that is so old-school it's inspiring.

But the charming Italian deli and gourmet meat market with the seriously good food didn't have the most accommodating hours for those who didn't live or work near there. Now, folks who are not able to get to Sampino's during the week (they officially close at 4 p.m., though they are often open later) have a chance to go on Saturdays.

Sampino's just started opening Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. This deli has some of the best sandwiches in town, including my favorite, the superb "Le Rustique" -- prosciutto with warm, gooey brie and a dash of Tabasco on a very nice ciabatta.

But that's not all. Owner Michael Sampino, who works alongside his dad Bill (a veteran butcher from Corti Brothers and David Berkley), told me he recently bought out the entire beer inventory at Rick's Uptown Market just before it closed. What's he doing with the stash? On Saturdays, he's giving it away as a customer appreciation gesture.

Now that's old school.

For those who want to take their food and wine knowledge to a whole new level, you'll want to circle March 27 on your calendars - and prepare to dole out $170 for an evening that could last five hours or more.

That's the night you'll be able to rub elbows with Anani Lawson, the sommelier at the French Laundry, one of the world's great restaurants. Lawson is doing the event on his own and he is careful to note this is not a French Laundry-sponsored evening. Nevertheless, he's the wine expert at the restaurant and he will be holding court and talking about wines all night while tasting an apparently lavish multi-course dinner.

Lawson told me by phone that this could be the first of many such wine events he will conduct when he's not on duty at Thomas Keller's famous Yountville restaurant.

"I'm still finalizing the selection of wines. The plan is to have a forum where people can be exposed to wines that they don't instinctively think about and wines they see all the time but don't necessarily see the value of them," Lawson said. "Everyone wants to have the trophy wines, but they might not think about the everyday wines."

Affordable? The French Laundry fixed price dinners are $240 per person. So what does the sommelier consider affordable, everyday wine?

He says he is thinking of a pinot noir that retails for $48, for instance, and a Riesling or white Rhone blend that sells for as little as $15. Those wines and many more will be on site for tasting at the clubhouse at the Pavilions, a new residential development behind Loehman's Plaza off Fair Oaks Boulevard.

Part of the evening will involve pairing wines with food, but the rest will be open to participants to chat with Lawson about anything they choose. Thus, registration is limited to 18 people.

Speaking of pairings, the event itself involves an unusual pairing - the highly regarded Lawson with the unheralded and youthful Pajo Bruich, an ambitious cook who runs a part-time gourmet catering operation but is all but unknown even in the local food community.

Turns out, Bruich and Lawson hit it off when Bruich dined at the French Laundry months ago and eventually decided to join forces to showcase food and wine at a high level. Bruich says he plans to present several culinary surprises during the evening, employing a multitude of modern cooking techniques.

"We are planning to go all out. We are trying to bring the element of surprise to the meal," Bruich said.

If Bruich pulls it off, this could be the start of big things for him. His parents run a restaurant repair business in Lincoln and he says his catering business is not yet allowing him to devote his full-time efforts to it.

Lawson says he was impressed when he presided over Bruich's table at the French Laundry.

"Just like most people I meet, we exchanged business cards. I looked at his Web site and said, 'Hey, maybe we can do events together.' I was the sommelier for his dining table. He showcased to me some type of passion as we described the food to him. It lead to me believe he had a unique passion that I had a connection with."

Lawson added, "When I met him, I said, 'Wow, Sacramento. Why not Sacramento?'"

Those interested in a long, intense, inspiring, educational and more than likely delicious evening should act quickly to reserve a spot.

Here is information from Bruich's promotional mailer. The Web site at the end is the place to register for the event:

This is guaranteed to be our best event to date, with the most dramatic food ingredients and preparations experienced yet! Without giving away too much of the surprise, here is a snippet of the menu....
~ Ultra Grade Wagyu "Calotte" or Cap of Rib Eye
~ Royale De Foie Gras
~ Purebred Japanese Kurobuta
~ Brillat Savarin
~ Valrhona Chocolate and much more! It will definitely be an amazing night in food and wine. Anani has access to some of the rarest and hardest to get wines. He promises to deliver on some memorable wines to enhance the food and create a fabulous dinner!
Beth Daane, of Beth Daane Photography will be on site to capture the magic of the evening.
The evening will start with a cocktail and canape reception at 5:30, followed by a formal seating at 6:00pm.
• March 27th, 5:30 pm
• The Club At Pavilions
• 2430 Pavilions Place Lane
• Sacramento, Ca 95825
• $170 per person, inclusive of service
• http://epicureanddiscoveriesinwine.eventbrite.com/

To the best of my knowledge, this is not a national holiday. There are no particular religious affiliations involved. No greeting cards, no candy, no fireworks, no special furniture and mattress sales. You don't even have to take off work, though it might help if you want the full experience of, yes, Sacramento Beer Week, which is this coming week.

The week of festivities features a slew of events, including Draught Beer Seminar & Luncheon at Lounge on 20, a California Beer Dinner at Mulvaney's, a Cider Pairing at Magpie and Tacos and Beer at Rubicon.

There are also plenty of Pint Nights and beers specials to commemorate Beer Week. There's so much going on that you really need to check the Web site for all the details.

Also read:
• Three beers from Sacramento brewers and suggested food pairings
• Brewers, chefs tap Beer Week

In recent years, with the growth of new restaurants in town and the explosion of bike riding as a form of transportation around midtown and downtown, food crawls (and pub crawls) have become a great and growing tradition.

Gather lots of folks, travel from restaurant to restaurant on foot or by bike, have fun, eat well, meet new people and, better still, raise money for a good cause.

The latest food crawl should be really good. It will be Sunday Feb. 28 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Called the For Ben Food Crawl, proceeds will benefit 10-year-old Ben Fagan, who survived a brain tumor two years ago and is now trying to win the fight against a new cancer gripping his spine.

Here is a message from the Web site promoting the pub crawl: "It is our chance to purchase a ticket in support of Ben's challenge and have the opportunity to explore over 20 of Sacramento's restaurants wearing a "For Ben" T-shirt while believing, hoping, praying, and loving Ben.

See the list of restaurants at the For Ben Web site.

Tickets are $35 and may be purchased at Asha Yoga (1050 20th St., Sacramento), Bikram Yoga (9384 Elk Grove Florin Rd., Elk Grove), Horizon Community Church (446 Fairway Dr., Galt), and Starbucks at Laguna Blvd. and I-5 (2300 Longport Ct., Elk Grove).

I hear it's going to rain and rain and rain for the next week at least, and we're going to be hit with enpough water to raise the rivers, put an end to talk of a drought for at least a month and keep most of us doing indoor things.

For food people, that probably involves plenty of time in the kitchen. Right now, I have four pounds of souurdough bread dough rising on the counter and I just finished making a curried carrot soup. After arriving back to the house cold and wet with three wet but happy dogs, it was just the right way to warm back up. Same with my girlfriend, who decided to go for a run in the rain.

The recipe is from Eating Well, and if I did anything different it was to add just a little more salt than the recipe called for. But you do that at the end when you adjust the seasonings to suit you.

It helps to have a food processor to make quick work of the slicing and, though the recipe says to put the cooked ingredients in a blender to puree, I really don't like to do that. It's so much easier -- and safer -- to use an immersion blender. The flavors in this recipe, by the time it hits the bowl, are quite smooth, with just a hint of a spicy kick. But your kitchen is going to smell like an Indian restaurant (a good thing).

Check out the recipe here.

You're probably familiar with Eating Well. If not, it's an excellent magazine that focuses on healthy eating that is also delicious. The recipes don't sacrifice one to arrive at the other. The Web site is also very helpful. If you register (free), you can creat a "My Eating Well" and keep a collection of your favorite recipes from the site, which is what I do. Enjoy the soup -- and the rain.

I understand there are still a few $35 tickets left for what promises to be an enlightening, enjoyable and, if the host's pizza is involved, delicious event at Hot Italian. It's called "Sustainable Sacramento: Eat, Learn and Celebrate" and it's sponsored by Pesticide Watch and Slow Food Sacramento.

If you care about what you eat and where your food comes from, these are two groups you might get to know a little better. For more on the event this Thursday, click here or at the Slow Food Sacramento web site.

Hot Italian is at the corner of 16th and Q.

Every four weeks, I am trying to do a compilation review of dining bargains. This is instead of a review of a single place. My latest such review takes a look at everything from the breakfast sandwich to the long-running dinner for two at Danielle's Creperie.

If you know of other great bargains out there, please let me know. In the coming months, I will be looking at dessert places, the best hamburgers, great soups and various other ways to save money when you go out.

I read Bob Shallit to keep up with what is happening with local business and real estate, espeically the openings and closings of restaurants. Bob has another item today on the momentum for creating a bar on the top two floors of the very stylish Elks Building on J Street.

That area could use some more positive energy, and the bar could be magnificent. Sounds like they are moving in the right direction by knocking down all of the interior walls and clearing the way for 360-degree views. I suppose some of that view will include the unused, ugly acreage that is the railyard. But that site could someday be a coveted view in its own right. I wonder who the players are for the Elks bar -- a couple of restaurant/bar people and a developer.

January is generally a pretty slow month in the restaurant business. People are recovering from the holiday rush. They're making New Year's resolutions that have something to do with eating less -- not more. And if they're like me, they're letting their livers recover after drinking their neighbor's Aquavit!

But the news is good about Dine Downtown, the promotion that is coming to a close this weekend. Restaurants are happy. Customers are happy. And the downtown streets are hopping. The idea was for restaurants to pool their resources and offer a multi-course set price meal.

Here's what we just received from Downtown Sacramento Partnership:

"We've seen the levels of business almost double what we usually expect this time of year," said Brent Larkin, director of food and beverage for Grange at The Citizen. "Considering these economic times, people are surprisingly coming out in droves. We hope many of our guests are
using this promotion to visit our restaurant for the first time and, in turn, become future
patrons."

Participating restaurants include 3 Fires Lounge & Restaurant at The Marriott, 4th Street Grille, 58 Degrees and Holding Co., Biba Restaurant, Bistro 33, Brew It Up!, The Broiler, Chops Steak, Seafood & Bar, Cosmo Café, Cyprus Grille at The Holiday Inn, Dawson's at The Hyatt, de Vere's Irish Pub, Ella Dining Room & Bar, Esquire Grill, Fat City Bar & Café, The Firehouse Restaurant, Frank Fat's, Grange Restaurant at The Citizen, Il Fornaio, L Wine Lounge & Urban Kitchen, Mason's New American, McCormick & Schmick's, The Melting Pot, Michelangelo's, Mikuni Midtown, Morgan's at The Sheraton, Mulvaney's B&L, Pilothouse at The Delta King, Rio City Café, River City Brewing Company, Sapporo Grill, Sofia on 11th, Spataro and Ten 22.