[photo courtesy Shawnehalldesigns.com]

Looking for a fancy birthday dinner and blessed with a babysitter the other night, we hightailed it up to Granite Bay to visit Hawks Restaurant, open now for almost a year. And boy are we glad we did! It's one of the best places I've eaten in the Sac area.

Because it was a celebration meal and an upscale restaurant, I didn't feel comfortable taking photos. So I apologize for a lack of pics on the beautiful presentations. You can, however, get an idea of their style by visiting their Web site, which has a slide show of food and restaurant photos. The photo above, from the restaurant's designer, gives you a sense of the calming grey, white, and brown color scheme that surrounds you as you eat. Large black-and-white photos of fields and landscapes emphasize the connection to local produce reflected on the menu. We sat in an uphostered booth that was initimate but still afforded a nice view of the inside and outside dining areas. The restaurant is in the Quarry Ponds retail center, along with Pizza Antica and Toast. The patio tables face south and look over the pond.

The first indication that this meal would be memorable was the attention to detail showed by our server. My husband asked for a sazerac to drink, and the waiter noted that they were out of the Sazerac brand rye but he would check with the bartender if they had other ryes to substitute. Usually, we get quizzical looks when we order sazeracs, which are a New Orleans cocktail of rye, Peychaud's bitters, and Pernod. So the server's knowledge of the cocktail as and that they were out of a particular brand of alcohol impressed me. He also offered a choice of bottled still or sparkling water or filtered tap. The bread station was near our table, and we noticed that each of the bus people kept the station free of crumbs and well stocked throughout the night. But even more impressive was the food.

Continue reading "Hie Thee to Hawks!" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 11:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

There's a hidden jewel of a new restaurant in Land Park these days and I finally discovered it last night. It's simply called Masullo, after owner and chef Robert Masullo, and the theme is Wood Oven Individual-Sized Neapolitan Pizzas. It's easy to miss right now, in an old strip mall on Riverside Boulevard, but once you've found it, you won't easily forget.

Formerly the home of the New Tin Wah Noodle Company (which, alas, I never visited), the 4-week-old restaurant has been under construction for quite a while. The new space is sleek and minimalist, with gorgeous wood-slab communal tables and a few small two-tops along one wall. The wood-fired oven is the focal point of the open kitchen in the back.

When I emailed with the chef last winter, he had this to say about his plans: "It will be a pizzeria in the Neapolitan fashion/tradition, like what you see throughout Europe. This means individual-sized pizzas, much lighter topped than the typical American pie, wood oven, quality over quantity. Typically American pizza is baked in gas ovens that get no higher than 650 degrees rather than the 800 degrees needed to achieve a proper Neapolitan crust. The higher temperature (with the wood oven) makes for an airy crumb and chewy crust with the little blistering spots that are a hallmark of Neapolitan pizza."

In fact, the pizza crust was fantastic--flavorful and with a good chew. It was sprinkled lightly with salt before going in the oven, which added to the rich, yeasty taste. The pizzas were 10 or 11 inches in diameter, and light enough that one made a nice meal without seeming overwhelming. My husband and I tried the Eggplant ($11), with fresh tomato sauce, mozzarella, onion, eggplant, pine nuts, and chili flakes; and the Jacqueline ($12), with potato, fontina, Niman Ranch bacon, and oregano. I preferred the Eggplant, with its uncooked tomato sauce (less sweet than usual) and roasted eggplant slices. The sauce had made the bottom crust just a bit soggy, but the flavors worked very well together. The potato pizza crust fared better and the rich potatoey flavor of the vegetables was notable. I often think that potato on pizzas is bland, but these were thinly sliced and well complemented by the salty bacon and zingy cheese. Other offerings included Margerita (tomato, mozz, basil), 4 Cheese, 4 Quarters (separate quarters of roasted peppers, artichoke, Italian sausage, and prosciutto), and Sophie (potato, sausage, fontina, corn, rosemary).

Continue reading "A Wood-Fired Jewel" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

You might think chicken and waffles sounds like an odd combo, but it's no weirder than pancakes and bacon. The essence of both duets is the interplay of salty and sweet. Oni's Chicken & Waffles on Stockton Boulevard has the pairing down pat, with jazz on the sound system and a friendly atmosphere to boot. Some friends and I went a couple of weeks ago, but I haven't stopped thinking about their macaroni and cheese since. That's what brought me to Oni's in the first place.

A couple of months ago at a birthday party, I tasted some of the best mac and cheese I've had outside of my mother's kitchen. It wasn't fancified with blue cheese, brie, or black truffles--it just had great savory flavor, good texture to the noodles, and plenty of real cheese. I had to have more, so I planned a trip to Oni's to get it and try their chicken and waffles while I was at it.

I first discovered the concept of chicken and waffles in Oakland, I think, but I've since read about it in John T. Edge's great book Fried Chicken: An American Story. In it he says (and Oni's Web site quotes), "My guess is that it comes from the days when someone would go out in the morning and wring a chicken's neck and fry it for breakfast. Preparing breakfast bread with whatever meat you have on the hoof, so to speak, comes out of the rural tradition." The Wells Supper Club in Harlem lays claim to the commercial birthplace of the combo, where late-night jazz patrons in the 1930s often wanted both dinner and breakfast foods at the same time. More famous now is Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles in L.A. But whatever the origins, it's a food pairing that you often see in more Southern or African-American neighborhoods. Stockton Boulevard being the United Nations of Sacramento, it's not surprising to find Oni's there and doing a brisk business.

Continue reading "Oni's Chicken & Waffles" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 11:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

One of the things I like best about trying a variety of restaurants is learning about the culinary history of different countries. The cuisine of any country is made up of local foodstuffs mixed with the imported tastes of settlers. That's how we ended up with things like deep-dish pizza and chop suey as distinctly American foods. And the Central Valley is one of the most culturally diverse areas of the U.S. (see my article from Edible Sacramento magazine two years ago). So Sacramento is a great place to learn about other cultures through their food.

Someone at the Portuguese Historical Society had told me awhile ago about Macau Cafe in South Land Park as an example of Portuguese food. (I was hoping for baked goods, but I'll take what I can get.) Macau is a peninsula just off mainland China that was settled by Portuguese traders in the 16th century and just received semi-autonomy in 1999. So it was one of the longest held colonies in the extensive Portuguese empire. Other Portuguese colonies like Brazil and Sao Tome have similarly interesting culinary and cultural mash-ups.

Anyway, I finally made it to Macau Cafe recently and am now kicking myself for not going sooner. Part of the restaurant group Culinary Wonderland, Inc., that also runs New Canton and New Lai Wah here, Macau Cafe is in the same semi-dumpy shopping center as Prime Supermarket. So I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Luckily, though, it was better than I had hoped.

We went on a Tuesday night and the place was packed the whole time we ate, with our table being the only Caucasian people there. I may be wrong about this, and I don't want to make assumptions, but I always think it bodes well when there are lots of people present of the same ethnicity as the restaurant. Makes you think it might be authentic, or at least pretty decent. The booklike menus have over 230 dishes you can order and the walls were plastered with photos of additional dishes, with titles in English and Chinese. Some were only in Chinese, which made me even more curious about what they were. So we could only taste a fraction of the offerings, but decided to try a combination of Chinese and Portuguese dishes.

Continue reading "Macau Cafe: Portunese Food!" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 2:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I've been hearing a lot about Tuli Bistro over the last few months, since it opened in December 07. Overall, the reviews have been glowing, so when I had the chance to go for lunch recently, I was definitely looking forward to it. But I have to say, it was one of the more confusing experiences I've had in a Sacramento restaurant.

The chef, locally raised Adam Pechal, graduated from the esteemed Culinary Institute of America and has worked for many well-respected chefs since. He did a stint at Red Sage (interestingly, one of the places I worked as well, but earlier) in DC, Thomas Keller's Bouchon in Napa Valley, and at the Seattle restaurant Fandango, owned by a James Beard award-winning chef. And Chef Pechal's food was hands down the best aspect of our lunch. He has a wood-fired pizza oven, an open galley kitchen, and a casually attractive collection of jars of ingredients and well-thumbed cookbooks out on view to set the stage.

The bistro, on the corner of 21st and S oddly has no sign--not even a chalkboard set up on the sidewalk, which seems either intentionally exclusive or oddly disinterested in bringing in customers. But the decor on the inside is lovely. Tiny, colorful glass tiles form the backsplash of the bar seating area and distinctive ceiling fixtures cast flattering light on the premises. The seats inside are few, but there is a larger sidewalk dining area covered by an awning, with heat lamps for chilly spring afternoons and evenings. We stopped in on a Monday at the end of lunch (although a phone call beforehand confirmed that they actually stay open straight through from lunch until dinner). No less than four people asked us how many were in our party, even though the first asker had already begun clearing a table for us. So the service staff seemed quite attentive, if not a bit unsure who was in charge of greeting guests.

After that, though, the service went disastrously downhill, even while we enjoyed some of the tastiest food next to a table that included the Bistro's manager!

Continue reading "Tuli Bistro: A Confusing Time Was Had By All" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

It's not enough anymore to say you're having "Indian" for dinner, just as you can't just eat "American" food or "Mexican." You've got to know whether the cuisine you're trying is from the south, a particular state, or by the ocean. If you went to Maine, you wouldn't expect hush puppies and if you go to Udupi Cafe, you shouldn't expect all of the dishes you find in most Indian restaurants.

Udupi, in Rancho Cordova, has a sign listing it as "Healthy Indian Vegetarian." I had never heard of the word udupi, so I looked it up and found that it is the name of a town in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. The cuisine there is vegetarian and traditionally also uses no onions or garlic. Coconut, jackfruit, mango chutney, and grain-based dishes are common, while the filled crepes called masala dosa originated there. (You can find a fascinating summary of different styles of Indian cuisine at this site.)

Six of us ordered willy-nilly off the extensive menu and soon began getting a dizzying array of dishes to try. We had to try dosa, of course, and got the Masala Dosai ($7.50), filled with potatoes and onions and the Chetti Nadu Califlower Dosai ($7.50) with onion, cauliflower, tomato, and chetti nadu spice. (I guess they don't subscribe to the no onions and garlic rule.) They were impressivly big, thin wheat crepes, folded and filled, with three condiment dishes perched on top. Those included a smooth ground coconut chutney, a sambar (a split pea and vegetable stew), and a spicy chile-based chutney. Both dosai were tasty, but the creamy potato-filled version was fantastic. We also saw another table get a Paper Dosai, which is a very thin, crispy, rolled version of the crepe that was so long it took four plates to hold it all!

The rest of our dinner included:

Continue reading "Udupi Cafe: South Indian Vegetarian" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 11:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Well, I've finally emerged from the scary wilds of the digital purgatory that I was in for two weeks. And many thanks to Elise for her help in rescuing me! But, of course, I didn't stop eating or spending much of my waking time thinking about all things food, so I have a couple of taqueria reviews for the relaunch of Sacatomato.

It seems as if people in California have some pretty strong feelings about taquerias--especially tacos and burritos at these restaurants. Since my entry to California really began in San Francisco, I like a big ol' Mission burrito and soft tacos on corn tortillas. So when I moved inland, I was hard pressed to find those belly-busting burritos for a while. Eventually, I found a couple of favorites, like Juan in a Million on Broadway and La Favorita on Alhambra. But woman can not live by one or two taquerias alone, can she?

Mr. Sac-Eats has been going on about the carnitas at Angel's Fresh Tacos on 16th Street, so I finally tried their version in a burrito. My husband also tried their tacos on another occasion. And I have to say...I was underwhelmed. Sac-Eats is usually a trustworthy source, but I'm going to have to question his taqueria taste from now on, I'm afraid. The burritos were big and belly busting, but surprisingly lacking in flavor. The carnitas on its own was very tender and juicy, but oddly dull. Combine that with plain refried beans and no salsa and it was a sad affair. The chile verde was slightly more flavorful, but still ho-hum. The salsa that came with them was fine--a bit tomato sauce-ish, but with plenty of cilantro and a hint of spice. And if you want to argue that it might just have been an off day, Mr. Sacatomato reported the same lackluster experience with his tacos. He did like the slightly unusual griddled flour tortillas that they used, but the fillings were only okay. How disappointing!

On the other hand, a recent trip to Sal's Tacos was much, much better.

Continue reading "We're Back and Snackin'!" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 3:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

[Sacatomato's guest poster today: Cyndi Wreford of Folsom reviewing a new restaurant with an extensive list of beers on tap and in bottles]
I like the place. A lot. It’s swank. The owners (Brent and Dave) definitely have an eye for decorating, which they did themselves, and have erased any interior reminders that this was once a Dairy Queen. However, you do have to go outside to use the restrooms so not all reminders are gone. The restrooms are beautiful, as odd as that sounds. There’s a main bar, a wine cellar, center bar-height tables and booths around the perimeter of the room. While this place is not a sports bar, there are flatscreens filling the bar. Come summer, they will have an outdoor patio area.

The menu looks good and the food we had was outstanding. Jennifer had the steak salad – steak served over romaine lettuce, endive, red onions, arugula, crumbled Gorgonzola cheese, topped with red wine vinaigrette for $15.99. It was fresh and crunchy, the meat was tender and done exactly as ordered. Good amount of food and a good mix of flavors. Alex had the Angus burger, a half-pound hamburger grilled and served with your choice of lettuce, tomato, and pickles. Comes with Brew house fries and coleslaw for $9.49. A seriously good burger and a great price for a “real” burger. They serve their own “cusabi” dipping sauce for french fries, which is a wonderfully yummy cucumber-wasabi mixture. Its crisp, light and slightly spicy flavor paired well with the fried food.

The “No Crap on Tap” policy gave us a zillion high-quality choices with 19 beers on tap, but watch out because a couple of them are 8% and 9% alcohol, which bit me in the butt on a subsequent visit. The wine cellar is still being filled up. I especially liked the Arrogant Bastard Oaked beer, but my favorite was the Racer 5 India Pale Ale, an American IPA-style beer from Bear Republic Brewing Co. in Healdsburg, California. The head lasted the whole beer; very bubbly and hoppy with citrus and pine flavors. Really drinkable.

A great addition to the local beer scene and one my friends and I will (and do) visit often.

Note: They'll be hosting special beer events, like the Belgian beer tasting scheduled for tomorrow (1/23), 7 to 10 p.m.

Manderes (pronounced man-dare-s: means "to chew or eat" in Latin
402 E. Bidwell St.
Folsom
916-986-9655
Every day, 11 to 11

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 5:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

It's a bit of an odd concept to turn a grease pit into a grease joint, but the old Orbit gas station on Alhambra is now the new (old) Suzie Burger. Got that? I wasn't around for the first iteration of Suzie Burger, but they were apparently a favorite of brothers Matt and Fred Haines, who have the Bistro 33 restaurant group. Open just since January 3, the new Suzie Burger is a marvel of Jetson's-style architecture in primary colors. The old mechanic spaces are now seating areas, and the former gas station office serves as the counter and kitchen. There are also glossy black steel tables out front overlooking lovely Business 80. That sort of enhances the fifties-ish car culture thing going on there though. Unfortunately, the parking and traffic flow issues aren't quite as retro hip.

As for the food, we ordered two cheeseburgers ($2.95 each, plus .45 for grilled onions), a large fries ($2.95), and two Lemon Squeezies ($1.95 each). The Squeezies are a proprietary lemonade and very good. They're supposedly squeezed by hand, although we didn't really see that happening in the frenzy to order and pick up. The burgers were fine--much better than regular fast food, but comparable to In-n-Out I thought. Now, this may be a case of my not having grown up with Suzie Burgers and therefore I don't appreciate the flashback flavor. I thought they were a bit thin, but with the fried onions and cheese, pretty good. The fries, on the other hand, were really good for fast food. They're coated fries, which means they're bought precut and coated with potato starch most likely. This helps to make them crisp when they're fried, so they don't have to be fried twice, which is the high-end way to make good fries. They're thicker than most fast-food fries though, and they stayed crisp and hot for a good long time. Plus they were well cooked--not steamed by sitting around for too long. Oh--and the signature accompaniment to the burgers is pickle slices and baby carrots served in a baggie. The carrots, especially, are an unusual thing to get with fast food and the pickles were tasty.

We went on a Sunday, past the normal lunch rush time and it was still packed, so that's good news for Suzie. The parking curbs are painted red to match the decor, although I thought this made it seem like the whole thing was a fire lane. That might be helpful, though, considering the traffic flow disaster that is the inside of the place. There is only one entrance, which leads to the counter. The problem with this is that the counter was packed and you had to fight through the line to find the end. There are several more doors in the place all marked No Exit, which seems like a fire hazard, frankly. We got in a side door as someone else was leaving, which made it easier to get in line. People were parking willy-nilly out front, so they're definitely packing in the customers right now.

I would go back to have the fries again and try some of the other menu items. They've got house-made chili and chicken or beef cheesesteaks, as well as beer-battered onion rings. The toppings menu for burgers is a nice touch, with everything from pickled jalapenos to fried egg and Cheese Wiz as options. Hopefully the parking and customer flow issues will be worked out soon so that it's a more enjoyable experience to get in and out. I'm not a big fast-food eater, but every once in a while some hot, crispy fries are a good thing to get.

Suzie Burger
29th and P Streets
455-3500 (You can call ahead and have your order brought to the car)

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 5:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Is it 2008 already? This holiday season was a bit like a time warp. One minute it was 2007 and I was baking fourteen dozen cookies and the next it was 2008 and all I wanted was soup and stew. But that's winter, right? And if you end up without electricity for a day, as I did last Friday, then you should have a few good restaurants to turn to. I've visted three noteworthy places recently and have the scoop on some up-and-coming joints too.

Fortune House
On Broadway across the street from Target, this Chinese restaurant has been around for years. For some reason, I hadn't been to it before, but in my quest to try all of the Broadway restaurants, I ate their food twice in two weeks. A friend whose Chinese grandmother loved the place marched in and ordered a ton of take-out one day, including a few off-the-menu items. Soon afterwards, I went to my husband's work holiday party there. They're great for big dinner groups, with the large round tables and enormous lazy susans in the middle. Everyone shares and you get to try more flavors. One of my favorite items was the Singapore Chow Fun ($6.95). There were thin egg noodles with a stir-fry of chicken and vegetables in a lightly curried sauce. The Chicken Salad ($7.25) was a good appetizer with crisp cabbage leaves and hoisin sauce for wrapping up the chicken into bite-sized morsels. We also tried fried rice, Kung Pao Chicken, Baked Spareribs with spicy salt, and Peking Duck served with warm tortillas (a bit odd, but it worked). Everything was flavorful without the bad-Chinese-restaurant quality of too salty or oily. We'll be putting them on speed dial for take-out.

1211 Broadway
443-3128
M-Su, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Aioli Bodega Espanola
I went here for the second time on New Year's Eve day. My first visit was during the late summer, when I sat outside on the back patio and enjoyed the secluded feeling of that area amidst the chaos that has become 18th and L Streets. This time we sat inside and there were few guests--probably all saving up for parties that night. We started with a bottle of cava, the Spanish sparkling wine. They only had one variety, but it was light and refreshing for lunch. Aioli has been at that location for 13 years, with a Davis outpost for just a few. The place is small, but bright and specializes in tapas, with two pages worth of offerings. I've had the Bourek de Casa ($6.25) twice. They're pastry triangles (or in one case, squares), filled with your choice of cheese or meat. Both versions were flaky and delicious, but I preferred the light white cheese filling. The Puerco Castilla ($7.25)--bites of pork braised with raisins, pearl onions, and a sweet and sour sauce, was delicious. I also liked the Albondigas Todo Ajo (garlic meatballs) and Judias Blancas (white beans, tuna, mint, and olives). The lunch special of three courses is a good deal with plenty of food and the salmon we tried as one of the choices was moist and flavorful. On the second visit, I got pork and pineapple rolled in coca bread, while my husband had braised lamb in coca bread. This is a kind of flatbread similar to a naan or lavash. The lamb was fantastically flavorful, but the pork was lacking some seasoning. However, the shoestring potato fries that came with the sandwiches were crisp and hot. I've only had one dessert there, but it was a very tender almond cake flavored with honey and orange water. I'm sorry I waited so long to visit Aioli because the food has been very good. I look forward to going back when the patio is open again and enjoying the little oasis of delicious calm.

1800 L Street
447-9440
M-F 11:30 to 3; M-Sat 5 to 11; Su 5 to 10

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 2:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

(Today's guest blogger is Melody Elliott-Koontz of Sacramento Food Forums and Cooking Schmooking.)

Going to Taylor’s Market in Land Park is like Christmas morning for me … the smells, smiling people, the lights. I get excited at the thought of shopping there and I always know I am going to be with friendly people. So off I went recently to speak with the manager, Dave Hunter, the two butchers who were there (Mike and Gary), the Cheese Head (Felicia), and Sarah, the stocker/bagger/oldies music lover. She was quick to point out the music that was playing on the sound system that day, a Dusty Springfield number. I also shopped, so you know I was one happy camper!

Dave explained that most of their products are “customer driven.” If somebody asks for something, they can usually source it. They attend the annual Fancy Food Shows in San Francisco and in New York. Sometimes they read about a product in a food magazine and call the company and ask for samples. Dave said, “Sometimes this blows their mind, to have a small store in Sacramento call about their products and they are tickled pink to help us out.” I asked Dave about the strangest request they’ve ever gotten. He said, “Well, once we got a call for alligator.” (I think that was actually me!)

Dave thinks that Taylor’s competes for customers with a lot of stores in Sacramento. He was quick to say that Sac has many good stores like the Nugget, Whole Foods, the tradition of Corti Brothers, and Raley's, and he said, “Even Safeway has improved over the years with the products and produce they carry.”

Dave got his start at Taylor’s when he was 17, as a bagger. He talked about how he was just out of high school and “baggers can’t be choosers.” So, now he is 35 and still as passionate about Taylor’s as every other employee in the store. Danny Johnson and his wife own the store these days, and he started out as a butcher there at age 19! In fact, my in-laws and their folks shopped at Taylor’s back in the sixties, when it opened.

Taylor’s has specialty items that I absolutely swear by: "The Rub With Love," which I just bought in Portland at City Market, is at Taylor’s! Dave said the guy who makes it is a “neat guy.” His name is Tom Douglas and apparently he has restaurants in Seattle. I love his smoked paprika rub. Taylor’s has had a long relationship with Land Park favorite Ford's Hamburgers, supplying their meat for years now. They also supply some items for Vic's Ice Cream, The Distillery, Tower Café, and Burrs Fountain … other long-time Sac businesses.

So I begin my shopping experience and talked with customers and other employees:

Continue reading "Taylor's Market: A Refreshing Stop" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 11:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

From guest poster Paul Somerhausen of Sacramento Epicureans:
Nestled behind the mega movieplex on Eureka Road in Roseville, is a new row of faux Mediterranean town homes that appear to be urban dwellings but are actually several trendy new businesses. One of these is Paul Martin’s American Bistro. They generously extended an invitation to check out their new place during their soft opening and here is what transpired during my lunch visit.

The name of the establishment is not in honor of the last Prime Minister of Canada but is in actuality the main financier Paul Martin Fleming, most famous for his PF Chang's outlets. While Mr. Fleming brought his money and resources to this project, the idea was born with Brian Bennett and Peter Serantoni. They envisioned a place where the food was truly fresh, homemade, organic, locally grown, and from sustainable farms where possible. And to enforce the point, they even make their own ice creams and infuse their vodkas in their kitchen among many other interesting touches. This restaurant is the first of what the staff promised to be many more, the second already slated to open in LA in the near future.

When you arrive at the brightly colored “town homes,” you don't suspect what awaits you inside the place. Once the doors open, a very large open room spreads deep and wide to showcase a warm and welcoming casual chic environment. It is decorated with at least a dozen shades of wood, brick wall accents, soft brown leather booths, wide soft comfortable chairs, a long elegant bar, and seven large spherical lamps with a type of flame motif. The hostess booth was manned by half a dozen staff, which I was told later was due to the fact that everyone was in to practice one last time before the real grand opening on Monday, October 29. We got seated and felt immediately welcomed by the warmth of the staff and comfort of the place. Our server, Shayleen, was very friendly and knowledgeable and introduced us to the restaurant, highlighting the philosophy and recommending several dishes. We started the meal with a Butcher’s Board, which featured some coppa salami, a separate orange and fennel infused salami (the salumi here is primarily from Oakland-based Boccalone, owned by "Next Iron Chef" competitor Chris Cosentino), thinly sliced prosciutto, aged gouda, some Laura Chenel goat cheese (also marinated with some fennel seed), and finally some Point Reyes blue cheese. It was served on a wood board with stone-ground mustard, capers, and olives. I particularly loved the orange salami, salty with a tangy finish and a sweet undertone of licorice flavor. The blue cheese was fantastic, soft in texture and strong in flavor. The only selection I did not care for was the goat cheese, which was too soft in flavor and was completely overwhelmed by the other powerful choices. Also, this dish did not come with any crackers or bread, which I thought was odd. Some warm flatbread would have complemented this perfectly.

Continue reading "Paul Martin's American Bistro Opens" »

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I can't believe I hadn't been there before, but I finally got to Karen's Bakery in Folsom last week. I'd been hearing about it for years, but somehow never thought of driving all the way (it's SO far!) to Folsom for baked goods. But now I'll be doing that. Or, rather, maybe I should be biking there. Turns out that Karen's is right off the American River bike trail, near Lake Natoma. So I can have my cake and work it off too. Yay!

Karen Holmes worked with Rick Mahan for years, first at Oaxaca, then at the Waterboy. In 1998 though, she started her bakery and café, eventually moving to Old Folsom. The café is sunny and spacious, with a big outdoor patio for pleasant weather. There were lots of bicycles parked outside, and it's conveniently located near a bike shop for tune ups while you snack.

I tried a delicious apple-walnut muffin (top photo) that Karen got the recipe for long ago. She says the batter shouldn't work, but somehow it does and makes a moist but not oily muffin that's got great flavor and crunch. I also sampled a walnut scone (better texture than many, but a bit dry), sour cream coffee cake, an almond granola bar with cream cheese frosting (2nd photo), and some granola with yogurt. PLUS, a taste of the Senorita Breakfast Sandwich, which was smoked ham and white cheddar on cheddar-jalapeno bread with chipotle bechamel sauce and a dead-ripe tomato and fried egg. Delicious! I really should have ridden my bike there.

Karen said that the granola bar was the first baked good she produced commercially. It's a crunchy bar made primarily of sliced almonds. I liked it that the texture wasn't too sticky. Except for the cream cheese icing, you could stash it in your jersey pocket and eat it on the trail. She also said that her salmon bowtie pasta salad is popular, and there were several other cold salads in the display case that looked tasty. One was a Moroccan chicken salad with lentils. Plus there are coffees and teas and chocolates. Oh my! I could have stayed all day.

Karen's Bakery Café
705 Gold Lake Drive
"Sweet" 340
Folsom
916-985-2665
Mon to Fri 6-4; Sat 7-4

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 11:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

I was at a dinner party recently when the host remarked that it seemed like you could eat a wider variety of cuisines in Sacramento than practically anywhere else (except maybe New York). You name it, and we've probably got at least one practitioner if not an entire market geared toward the foods of a country or geographic region. So there's no excuse for being bored when it comes to eating out here. You don't even have to spend a lot of money to do it.

Take Kabul Kabob, for example, a small restaurant near the corner of 8th and J. I've heard quite a bit about two other local Afghan restaurants, Bamiyan in Citrus Heights and Kabul Afghan Cuisine in Davis, but haven't yet tried them. But my husband had seen the one downtown, so we went to check it out on a night when I didn't feel like cooking.

Given its location, it does much more business at lunch than dinner. That part of downtown is still a little deserted in the evenings, and Kabul Kabob only stays open until 9 p.m. So we were the only customers on a Thursday evening and had the small, warmly decorated dining room to ourselves. (But we also had free parking right out front. No valet "needed.")

Continue reading "Kabul Kabob Downtown" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 9:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

In my continued search for ways to use my abundant zucchini, I came across an interesting recipe on the Yogurtland blog. It's a site about Turkish food, written by a woman named Fethiye, who lives in Folsom. She takes beautiful photos and always has interesting recipes. I zeroed in on Negerek because she claimed that those who are tired of the green veggie in everything they've eaten for two months will still enjoy it. That fit me to a tee.

However, there were two ingredients in the recipe that I didn't have: white sheep's cheese and nigella seeds. Fethiye made a point of saying that substituting feta doesn't work as well, although it's much more available. I tried the recipe last night using feta because it's what I had, and I really liked the result. It's especially interesting that you put uncooked rice in with the mixture and it cooks in the milk (or soy milk, as I used). But I wanted to try the more authentic version, so off I went to Fulton Avenue to visit two of my favorite ethnic markets.

Continue reading "Day Trip to India and Turkey" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 1:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Headed to Amador county anytime soon? If so, then you don't want to miss Mel & Faye's Diner in Jackson. I was there looking for antiques, on a semi-regular jaunt to the area. I've been going to Jackson, Sutter Creek, and Drytown for years to check out their antique shops and historical downtowns. And every time I go to the area, I have to eat at Mel & Faye's. In fact, I don't think I've eaten anywhere else there. (I would be curious about the Chinese restaurant on Main Street in Jackson, but mainly from a historical perspective.)

In any case, if you've been to Mel & Faye's before (and it's been around since 1956), you may be surprised to see that it's now 100 yards up the street from where it used to be. The old diner was up against a rock face, with a small parking lot and terrible bathrooms outside. You could count on flies to help you eat your food. But the new place (maybe 2 years old), is roomy and has a suspiciously huge parking lot (where are all those people supposed to sit??). The menu is much bigger than I remember, although the "Moo Burger" is the special. That's a double patty with everything and the special sauce. I ordered the Sourdough Burger and Fries instead ($6.39), which came with Swiss cheese, grilled onions, and Thousand Island dressing. It was pretty tasty, although the single patty was a bit small. But it's a real burger--not a preformed frozen thing. The fries are thin and crispy, but they cool down fast. The other thing I always have to get there is a shake. Their menu says they have "most flavors," although I usually get coffee. This time I tried banana, since the waitress looked at me funny when I asked if they had peach or blackberry. I guess I thought I was at Whitey's in West Sac. The $3.79 shake was piled with whipped cream and had small chunks of fresh banana. Pretty tasty.

They have a ton of other diner food, like hot cakes, salad bar, chili dogs, and rib eye sandwiches. There is the ubiquitous flat-screen television, but it's less annoying at a diner I suppose. There's also some outdoor seating (probably with less flies). And you've got to like a place that has the following quote on their menu (three times!): "Thank you for your patronage. Consideration for waiting customers will be appreciated by not holding meetings that extend beyond meal time during peak hours." So go and set a spell, but don't hog the tables.

Mel & Faye's Diner
31 Highway 49/88, Jackson
209-223-0853
www.melandfayesdiner.com

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 9:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

...I don't care if I ever get fat, so it's root, root, root for the River Cats!

A weekend baseball game in July is just the thing to celebrate summer. Peanuts, hot dogs, and cold beer, the seventh-inning stretch, crazy between-inning antics, and kids hopped up on sugar. It's a classic. And last Saturday was a great night for the River Cats, complete with a winning game and fireworks.

So I don't mean to be a party pooper, but what's with all the orange cheese-food and heart attacks on a bun at Raley Field? I guess it's just as American these days to eat really bad food that could kill you. Why has it become the American way to have greasy, salty "food" at our sporting events? Now you might argue that there are non-greasy choices available (roasted peanuts, Merlino's Freeze, even red ropes I suppose), but the majority of what I saw people wolfing down was meaty, cheesy, grease-dripping stroke material. With beer or a gallon of soda. Mmmmm, what a treat.

The photo above shows a Mexican bowl from the Left Field BBQ that we eventually found. The guacamole was amazingly good, but the rest of the big bowl consisted of ropy pork, half a cup of sour cream, and some rice and beans. Oh, and the lovely cilantro garnish. A vegetable! For $6.50, it was a better cost to quantity ratio than most offerings. We also tried Jimboy's tacos, which were not bad in the grease department, but garnished with shredded American cheese, which was just weird. Although I do give them points for not frying their tortillas. The people in front of us ate big steak sandwiches smothered in melted Velveeta and a fried taco "salad" that seemed to have a few paltry iceberg lettuce chunks and a sad tomato or two under the meat and cheese.

Continue reading "Buy Me Some Peanuts and Orange Cheese-Food..." »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 1:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I recently read cookbook author Madhur Jaffrey's book Climbing the Mango Trees: A Memoir of a Childhood in India. It's a fascinating look at an upper class family in northern India. But one of the things that most struck me was that she pointed out that "Indian food" as most Americans think of it is actually from the Punjab region (formerly Pakistan) and the fancy foods of the old Moghal empire. It's like limiting American food to Tex-Mex or the lobster dishes of New England. In fact, India is made up of many states that have very different cuisines from one to the other, much like the U.S. In southern India, for example, you'll find much more usage of seafood and coconut, and even some beef (which is not eaten by observant Hindus).

Kaveri Madras Cuisine is a restaurant on Fulton Avenue north of Fair Oaks. They have been in business since 1994 and specialize in southern Indian cuisine (although they do have the northern Indian restaurant standards like pakora, aloo gobi [potatoes and cauliflower], and chicken curry). But if you look beyond those, you'll find the opportunity to try rarely offered specialties like avial (a mixed vegetable stew with coconut), idli (steamed rice flour cakes), and ginger shrimp curry. They also offer a la carte, thali dinners (platters with entree, dal, soup, raita, bread, and dessert), or an all-you-can-eat buffet. So the options are very broad and Kaveri is open for lunch and dinner seven days a week!

Continue reading "Kaveri Madras Cuisine" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 1:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Well, Garrett of Vanilla Garlic has been raving about this restaurant for months now, so we really had to see what all the fuss was about. It opened recently in the space that was occupied by two Jamaican restaurants (which, oddly, never seemed to have much business) on Broadway near 17th Street. Since Jennifer and I don't always cross paths, we each tried it on our own and what follows are our individual takes.

Ann: When I lived in DC, I ate Ethiopian food several times and never really liked it much. Maybe my palate was still undeveloped, or maybe the food just wasn't that good, but when I tried Queen Sheba, I was very pleasantly surprised. Doing a bit of research before I ate there, I found out that Ethiopian royalty claims to be descended from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, who was lauded by the King in the Bible. Feasts and hospitality are important aspects of Ethiopian culture, and so the food is traditionally served family-style.

My husband and I ordered two combo platters ($10.95 each), which came arranged on one large platter lined with the distinctive Ethiopian injera. It is a sour crepe-like bread made with flour from the native teff plant. You also get a basket of rolled injera, which you use to pick up bits of food for eating instead of using a fork. Keep in mind, though, that you're only supposed to use your right hand for eating, as the left hand is traditionally used only for personal needs (early moral code that turned out to have food safety value!).

Our combination platter included Doro Wat (chicken and hard-boiled egg in a spicy red pepper sauce), Tibbs (chunks of beef in onions, garlic, and spiced butter), Miser Kik Wot (lentils cooked in spices and accompanied with fresh salad), Gomen (cooked greens), Yebeg Tibbs (chunks of lamb in onions, garlic, and spiced butter), Chicken Tibbs. Clearly, Ethiopian food is meat heavy. We loved the lentils the most, but all of the meats were quite good as well. The sauce with the Doro Wat was especially savory sopped up with injera. I also had a really refreshing iced tea spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves, while my husband had traditional honey beer (known as mead in other countries). We skipped dessert, but enjoyed the constant stream of Ethiopian music videos on a nearby flat-screen TV (one of the only times I've really appreciated a restaurant TV for atmosphere). We'll definitely go back.

Continue reading "She Said/She Said: Queen Sheba" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 1:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Well, there wasn't any vodka, but other traditional favorites were plentiful at the most recent Sac Epicureans dinner. This month was a Russian sampler, set at the small North Highlands restaurant Stolichniy. The Sacramento area has a significant number of the 100,000 refugees from the former USSR who have arrived in California since the 1980s. So in exploring the diverse ethnic cuisines in this area, we couldn't forgo Russian. And Stolichniy fed us well.

As we sat down to a large L-shaped table, we were greeted with bowls of mushrooms with scallions in a vinegar marinade; kompot, a fresh berry lemonade much like a fruit punch; and mixed romaine and iceberg salad with a creamy dill dressing. Plates of thinly sliced delicious brown bread also arrived. Very quickly, the group was presented with a variety of dishes. They began with delicious Ukrainian vereneki (potato dumplings), served with caramelized onions, soon followd by rassolnick, a soup of beef, barley, carrots, potatoes, and the surprise ingredient--pickles! The group was divided by the soup into those who really liked the sour tang of the pickles and those who didn't. Next up were little ravioli-like pelmeni (beef and pork filling), topped with margarine. Pelmeni come from the Siberian region of Russia and were traditionally made in the fall. They were tasty and filling and reminded some of us of wontons.

For entrees, we tried cabbage rolls filled with a mixture of beef and rice, served in a tomato broth, and lamb stew with gorgeously turned egg-shaped potatoes and an unusual sprinkling of cilantro. Cabbage rolls are found throughout Poland, the Czech Republic, and Hungary as well as parts of Russia. The stew was more potatoes than lamb, but flavorful. Oddly, there were bottles of Sriracha Asian hot sauce on each table, and we weren't sure what to put that on. Maybe the dumplings? The rolls could have been good with a bit of spice too, though.

And after all that meat and potatoes, we were still interested in dessert! Each person got a bliny (crepe) filled with a mixture of four creamy cheeses and topped with chocolate syrup. It reminded me of blintzes and would have been perfect for brunch as well. Everyone agreed that the bliny were one of the favorites. The service was so rapid that we were done quite quickly, and from the size of the restaurant, I doubt they usually have parties as large as ours. It's clearly a popular restaurant with the community, though, as several to-go orders were dispatched while we ate. The pizza place next door has Cyrillic on some of its signs, and I saw a market that looked promising in the same strip mall.

The Web site Russian Dining lists Stolichniy as having good borscht and kotlety. Their Sac-area reviews are worth reading if you like Russian food. I'd love to go explore the Kolobok European Market on Fair Oaks Boulevard. It's supposed to be very well stocked (unlike some actual Russian markets in years past, but hopefully that's history).

Stolichniy Restaurant
5601 Watt Ave
North Highlands, CA 95660
(916) 332-5989

Kolobok European Market
7307 Fair Oaks Blvd
Carmichael, CA 95608
(916) 473-0306

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 4:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I grew up near a beach community, where pizza by the slice was easy to find. When I worked in restaurants there, I was always looking for a late-night snack and a gooey slice of pizza did the trick. Then I lived in New York City, and the comparison eating began in earnest.

I moved to Sacramento from a neighborhood in SF that had three pizza-by-the-slice shops. So aside from burrito hunting, pizza hunting became one of my earliest food forays in the capital area. I tend to find more whole pies here, but there are some good slice places. Pizza Inferno, on 16th Street near Broadway, is not one of them. Terrible crust and sauce. Ack! Pieces Pizza by the Slice on 21st in Midtown, though, is probably my favorite. Interestingly, I'm not judging with exactly the same criteria as I use on whole pies.... I want more immediate gratification when I'm just having a slice, so bring on the big flavor, lots of sauce, and stringy, oozy cheese. Plus the crust has to be able to be picked up without cracking or falling apart.

Pieces has giant slices, made on a semi-puffy dough that is sauced to the edges and then rolled over on itself to make a delicious chewy yumminess at the edge. They sprinkle the edges with cheese, too, for added flavor. The downside of this place is the prices: $3.50 to $4.50 a slice (for a whole, multiply by 7; you get the 8th slice free). But you can buy day-old slices for half-price sometimes, and since the pieces are so huge, it's like having two slices of a regular pizza.

You can get the regular toppings like cheese and pepperoni, or try a sun-dried tomato, feta, and pesto combo. They even offer vegan pizza for you lactose intolerants. The place is small, but there's always music and a funky swirled pile of napkins with a note not to be a napkin piggy--just take what you need. Sodas, chilled candy bars, and salads are also available, and don't try to make up for lack of funds by sticking your hand in the tip pitcher. It's filled with water so that any wet bills and change are suspect.

So what are your favorite by-the-slice places in this area? Mall pizza doesn't really count, unless you think it's especially fantastic.

Pieces Pizza by the Slice
1309 21st St.
916-441-1949

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 9:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Real blue cheese, a sprinkling of Parmesan, and well-toasted almonds. Those were part of the excellent lunch on Monday at the Club Car in downtown Auburn. My husband and I had just come from a less-than-enjoyable meeting and needed some serious comfort food. Now I haven't been to Auburn much (mostly for outdoorsy biking and hiking things), but the downtown and "Old Town" streets are full of well-preserved buildings. Even better, it seems as if the businesses are thriving there, which is fantastic to see. Far too many of our area towns have old main streets that look unloved and unsupported.

So we walked along Lincoln Way to choose between a soup and salad spot, a fancier joint called the Monkey Cat, a diner, pizzeria, 2 sushi spots, a Mongolian bbq place, and this spot called the Club Car. Set in the ground floor of the Hink Block building (it says so on the top of the building, that's how I know), the Club Car space used to be a smoke shop. They still have an excellent oak cabinet with lots of shallow cubbies and storage spots for cigars. Now the top part displays wine bottles adjacent to the big wooden bar.

We sat in the front by the big windows. There was a 10-top on the other side and large party going on in the back. My eye immediately zoomed in on the burger listings. Why is it that a good burger is comfort food? I'm really not a big beef eater anymore, but give me a burger with blue cheese and onions, and I'm happy. The onions were listed as "fried," my favorite, and I ordered zucchini fries for $2 extra. My husband ordered the Curry Chicken Salad, since that was my second choice, and I agreed to split everything with him.

Continue reading "Have a Seat in the Club Car" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 9:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I love the idea of a hot dog on the streets of New York and at a baseball game, but I rarely find myself eating one. I mean I can count on my hand how many times I have eaten a hot dog in my adult life and it's not because of the whole ass and lips description of a hotdog, it is just that as junk food options go at baseball games, or basketball or concerts... I have always leaned toward the nachos with the Velveeta and the canned jalapenos--the one food choice that in my normal day to day life I would gasp at with a look of horror at the mere idea of consuming such a inferior food. Anyway, I digress.

I recently discovered a new eatery Sammy Sausage and Beer in Granite Bay. The whole restaurant is devoted to hot dogs and sausage sandwiches. Now the sausage sandwich is a whole different story for me, I actually don’t even think of it as related to the hotdog. I mean if it was related then it would for sure be the well educated, over achiever of the hotdog family. So as I stood at the counter perusing their board of dogs, I settled quickly on the Bratwurst and my husband the Polish. Yes, yes I know we have very sophisticated taste. There are however the standard hotdog choices for those of you from the wrong side of the tracks. All kidding aside, the place is fantastic, cheap, and fun, with a nice selection of beers on tap, wines by the glass and plenty of side options at your disposal. You can not go wrong with this joint.

Sammy Sausage
5550 Douglas Blvd.
Suite 200
Granite Bay CA 95746
Tel. 916-772-3900

Posted by Jennifer Cliff at 12:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

BBQ Pork Banh Mi

My husband has been wanting to try New Paris for a long time. Then Paul listed it as his favorite "under $10" place in the Foodies Roundtable. It had to be tried.

Stockton Boulevard is easily becoming my favorite ethnic eatery row. You can drive from Broadway south and find an incredible number of interesting-looking restaurants, holes in the wall, and even parking lot BBQ joints. Someone could do a whole series of reviews from one end to the other (without even looking at chain restaurants of course). You go from soul food to Mexican to South Asian in a span of just a mile or two, with plenty of intriguing grocery stores in between. But we were just focused on New Paris in the Pacific Rim Plaza, near 65th Street.

The plaza lives up to its name, with lots of tapioca shops, noodle and pho restaurants, and cell phone stores. New Paris is a large storefront with big glass windows. You order first, they bring your food, and then you pay (I think this is because you'll probably want to order more after the first round!). Banh mi is a Vietnamese specialty sandwich born of the French occupation of that country. Soft, fluffy French baguettes are split and layered with meat and pickled vegetables, including carrots and jalapenos, topped with fresh cilantro, and moistened with mayo. (Also, see my description of pho here, which some historians say is descended from the French soup pot au feu.) Pork is the main choice, whether barbecued, grilled, shredded with skin, meatballed, steamed, or made into headcheese. We chose the barbecued and grilled varieties first.

Continue reading "New Paris Bakery & Café" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 9:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

[Zocalo's guacamole]

Last night on 18th and L Streets, you could have swung a wine bottle and hit any one of many food bloggers milling about. We were all in the neighborhood for the soft opening of the L Wine Lounge and Urban Kitchen. As food bloggers, we all write our sites out of a sense of avid interest, not paid employment. So an invitation to taste free wine and hors d'oeuvres didn't go ignored.

The Lounge, in the same building as the new Buckhorn Diner, is a modern design, with concrete floors and warmer wood accents. There's a seating area to the left, a bar to the right, and tables upstairs for eating. For the opening, waiters offered red or white wines (a Cab/Zin and a Chenin Blanc). There were music videos playing on the inevitable flat-screen television and cases of wine stacked up in an odd glassed-in space that was either for private dining or the wine racks hadn't arrived yet. They also have wine lockers upstairs for people who live in the building and want to store a small cache.

We started drinking at 7 but no food was offered until at least 8, by which time we were all a little hungry/tipsy. But what they did serve seemed very nice, designed by a chef who used to work at the Kitchen restaurant and the late Elk Grove Co-op. I liked the crispy potato croquettes with lavender, although some thought the subtle floral addition was odd. We also tried crostini with whitefish, bacon, and mire poix; fantastic macadamia shortbread bites; and crostini with asparagus and mint, which was an unusual but tasty combination. Without a lot of food to go around though, we quickly bolted for a big table at nearby Zocalo.

One of the owners of L did provide a copy of the menu, which will be available from lunch through the afternoon and late into the evening, making it one of the few places open mid-afternoon and late. The L Burger, made of lamb and Kobe beef, sounds pretty promising with a topping of manchego cheese. The rest of the menu seems heavy on carbs and protein, with several potato variations, pizzetta, a croque madame, steak, ribs, and pâté. All the better to soak up all that wine, probably.

Continue reading "Eating and Drinking at 18th and L" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 4:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I finally got to try Pizza Antica myself last night, so read my take here.

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 9:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Well, Jennifer and I finally managed to sync our schedules enough for a quick lunch again! So we decided to check out The Pasty Shack, which seemed a bit odd but promising. First, we should point out that the word is pronounced "pass-tea," rather than rhyming with hasty. Apparently this business has been in Sacramento in various locations for 60 years! At 47th and J for only 16 years. That's a pretty impressive run. The history of these meat turnovers is that they originated in Cornwall, England, as a hand-held lunch meal for tin miners. Apparently they sometimes even have had a savory filling in one end and a sweet one in the other. So here's our She Said/She Said:

Ann's Take
I generally like anything wrapped in pastry, and I've had the Fox & Goose's version of the Cornish pasty, which is delicious. We lucked out by arriving on Mexican Pasty Day (Thursdays only), so had to try that one, along with a Cornish (meat and potatoes) and Vegetarian (mushrooms, potatoes, green beans, creamy sauce). They range in price from $4.95 to $5.70, although you save 25 cents each if you take and bake at home. Other choices include Bavarian (beef, cabbage, peppers), Chicken (like Veg but with meat), Tamale (Tue. only), and Chile Verde (Fri. only).

The place is pretty small, with only 4 or so tables, and maybe another one outside. The pasties are pulled from a hotbox if you want to eat them right away. They're each set in a paperboard "boat" and you get a plastic fork alongside. The pastry is a short dough (probably shortening) and was pretty tender and nicely browned. It got a bit soggy on the bottom of each turnover, but we weren't trying to pick them up. The plastic forks were not quite strong enough, but we managed. I liked the Mexican version the best, with juicy ground meat, spices, and cheese, but that's really not the standard. The Cornish, which is the standard, was a bit disappointing because the filling was sort of dry. There were nice chunks of beef though. The Vegetarian had a nicely creamy sauce, although I would have liked some more color in the veggies--maybe some red bell peppers or carrots?? Probably would've zinged up the flavor too. One of these is plenty for one person, so we had some left since 2 1/2-year-old Parker didn't seem too interested in these.

Jennifer's Take

Continue reading "She Said/She Said: Fancy a Bit of Pasty?" »

Posted by Ann Martin Rolke at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Last week was my husband’s birthday. It wasn’t a big one... it didn’t fall on a five or 10--it was just your every day run of the mill I am getting a little bit older day to him. Nonetheless, a birthday is still a call to eat or drink whatever you want because its your day and we had been talking for some time about going up to Auburn to try Le Belig, but four years later we just hadn’t made the trek. It’s not like it is that far, but somehow when we are going through the list of restaurant options for random nights it just never makes the rotation, so location is the only thing to blame there!

But we were feeling motivated and like I said it was a celebratory type of evening, so we hopped in the car with the two year old and all and headed to Le Belig. There were only two things I knew for sure prior to dining there, one that they were located next to a bail bonds, and two the cuisine was French country influenced. The rest was hear-say and myth...things like the children serve the food, Monica (the wife half of ownership) will come take your order with a baby on her hip and of course and most important--the food is delicious!

Continue reading "J'aime ce restaurant! Le Belig in Auburn" »

Posted by Jennifer Cliff at 1:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)