Dining News: Split Decision on Capital Dime
August 15, 2013
In the last two weeks, more major publications have come out with their verdicts on Capital Dime, the most buzzed about new restaurant of the year.
First, Kira O'Donnell in Sac Mag:
Standout menu items included a rustic, better-than-mom’s spinach and artichoke dip, which left a subtle, lingering heat on the palate; the curiously enticing honey-truffle chicken frites, which looked and tasted something like an upscale, adult version of chicken nuggets; and a fabulous “noodles in a green dress” dish, bathed in a creamy pesto sauce and teeming with oodles of sweet, sun-ripened cherry tomatoes and corn kernels.
Read the entire story in Sac Mag.
Second, Garrett McCord in Sac News & Review:
There’s one simple dish called clams chorizo on the menu, and it’s something you would stab your mother with a seafood fork over, should she attempt to pluck one of its delightful bivalves from your plate. Here, seared chorizo is drowned in white wine and garlic, creating a silky palomino-colored broth in which the teeniest clams ever are cooked.
The only problem with the dish was that many unopened clams made it to our table. In addition, we were provided thin, stale toast. One cannot sop up that epiphany-inducing broth with stale toast...
Yet for all the little flaws, you can see the forethought behind it. There’s obviously a meditation on how to perfect classic dishes and generate innovative recipes, and knowing when they’ve achieved nirvana. With a chef like Zonca, you know these hiccups will fade.
Read the entire review in Sac News & Review.
By reading the two reviews, it seems like Sac Mag's reviewer was a little more ebullient than Sac News & Review's. In my one meal there and anecdotal evidence from friends who have eaten there multiple times, they're still finding their bearings as a restaurant, but most are hopeful that they'll figure it out soon.
More News:
Pastry chef Edward Martinez leaving Enotria for Tyler Florence’s El Paseo - One of Sacramento’s most prominent pastry chefs is soon leaving Sacramento for a plum job in the San Francisco Bay Area. Pajo Bruich, executive chef of Enotria, tells “Appetizers” that Edward Martinez is leaving Enotria in early September to be become a pastry chef at El Paseo, the Mill Valley restaurant run by celebrity chef Tyler Florence and rocker Sammy Hagar. Martinez will join another former Sacramentan at El Paseo: executive chef Mike Ward, who previously worked as a sous chef at Enotria and The Kitchen. Chris Macias in the Sac Bee.
Preview: Midtown Cocktail Week 2013 - I’m a bad Sacramentan (that’s a word, right?). Other than the occasional Gin Daisy at Shady Lady, I know close to nothing about the local mixology culture – which is a shame considering the famed Midtown Cocktail Week (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) now in its 6th year. I’m not one to typically seek out an artisan cocktail. A glass of Jameson or 16 ounces of a Hefeweizen will usually do me just fine. But this year, with a theme that promises entertainment and events filled with tasty alcoholic treats at a reasonable price, I’ll be cashing in my MCW virginity for a seat at the show. Kelly Rathburn on Girls on the Grid.
Tako BBQ, fueled to grow - The idea of expanding has occurred to Alex Won and Yoon Hee Cho as their Tako Korean BBQ has found its footing at 3030 T St. in Sacramento. Cho told me she hasn't found quite the right spot yet, but it's definitely on her mind just one year after opening the restaurant. She and Won have extended the portico to shield customers seated outside during the rainy season. They also added storage space and expanded the menu. Cathie Anderson in the Sac Bee.
Taste Davis beer culture at weeklong celebration - Davis’ love of suds is official: The city’s first beer week kicks off Monday. For seven days, Davis businesses will offer a series of tap takeovers, beer-and-food pairings, rare offerings and special deals, all culminating in a festival with more than 50 breweries, food and live music. Janelle Bitker in the Sac Bee.
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