
Seasons Greetings
Arden Fair Mall gets a farm-fresh eaterie
To this day I lament the closing of the California Café at Arden Fair Mall.
For years I would describe it as “my favorite restaurant that I never go to.” It had a great vibe, comfortable ambience, cool bar, eclectic wine list, intelligent bartender and a seasonal, farm-fresh menu long before that was trendy. I just couldn’t get over the fact that it was located in a shopping center. I take partial blame for its demise nearly a decade ago; I should have frequented it more often.

The New Wine Country
Opportunity abounds for California varietals
Let’s say you’re in a glitzy Beijing restaurant. Your waiter uncorks a $300 bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. He pours you a glass and you sip it, savor it, let it breathe. But around the table, everyone else gulps theirs down one swallow, like a shot, yelling “Gan bei!”
Welcome to wine culture in China.

What’s Cooking?
The best reservation in town might be in your own kitchen
These days, the best reservation in town might not be at a restaurant, but at a chef’s table — in the chef’s private home or yours. Congenial chefs are inviting clients to stir and chop to their heart’s content before sitting down to a meal.

Breakfast of Champions
I’ve long believed that just about the worst way to begin a workweek is scheduling an in-office staff meeting. Employees start dreading it by mid-day Sunday. The gatherings usually get off to a late start, drag on and are deemed worthless by most participants.
Enter the breakfast meeting.

Cuisine Under Construction
Biba Restaurant endures some neighborly development
What Biba Caggiano describes as the “bing, bang, bong noises,” began on Jan. 26, 2007. That’s when the building next door to one of the region’s most established destination restaurants was being demolished. What followed was a three-sided, multi-year Sutter Medical Center construction project that continues to this day.

Men on Fire
Nine years ago, Kimio Bazett and UC Davis classmate Jon Modrow opened The Golden Bear
Nine years ago, Kimio Bazett and UC Davis classmate Jon Modrow opened The Golden Bear, an American restaurant and bar at 24th and K streets in Sacramento. The location came with a beer and wine license, so the two took what they had and ran with it.

The Bubble Buyer’s Handbook
Choose the right Champagne this holiday season
We live in a world of labels. And right or wrong, the labels we choose have an impact on how others perceive us — even during the holidays.

Soul Soother
Sandra Dee's BBQ and Seafood has a family focus
Stand outside Sandra Dee’s long enough on a Sunday, and you’ll see groups of hungry guests walk up and squawk at the realization that the famed soul food restaurant is closed.

The Enotria Experience
Behind the scenes at one of Sacramento's top fine-dining establishements
Since late 2010, following the completion of a multimillion-dollar remodel, management at Enotria Restaurant & Wine Bar has been in pursuit of creating Sacramento’s ideal dining experience.

Star Treatment
Is Sacramento Red Guide worthy?
As restaurant review guides go, it has no equal. It is so prestigious that whole cities vie for even a single mention, and Sacramento is no exception. Breaking in, however, is easier said than done.