Whired Wine whose name is a combination of both WHIte and RED wines, is scheduled to open on Feb. 8, it announced on Facebook late last week.
Sactown Magazine's Tori Masucci Cummins fills in some of the details:

San Francisco restaurateur John Marco and his wife Vicky transformed the intimate space, a former jewelry store, into a wine bar with a modern, industrial vibe and chic details like a central chandelier and colorful paintings by local artists such as Rafael Delgado, and a moniker that combines “white” and “red...”

To that end, Whired Wine will be serving up local craft beers, selections of sake and a small plates menu that includes a panini with brie, pear and prosciutto, or a cheese and charcuterie board with choices like Tartufo salami and Point Reyes Farmstead cheese. Chef Cecil Rhodes, who runs Cecil's Taste Food Truck and formerly served as head chef at Bella Bru in Carmichael, will helm the kitchen.

Read the entire story in Sactown Mag.

2016 will be a very busy year for the blocks adjacent to the arena. I expect many, many other restaurants to open by the time the Kings play their first game at the Golden One Center this Fall.

Whired Wine is located at 410 L Street, and can be found online at http://www.whiredwine.com/.

* Photo via their Facebook page.

More News:

Confidential: Secret menu, Mother - “You should order our kimchi fries.” This is what chef Matt Masera at Mother tells me. Sure. But they’re not on the menu. “They’re on the secret menu.” Nick Miller in Sac News & Review.

Capitol Garage - The popular downtown restaurant debuted a new menu Jan. 18 replete with vegetarian and vegan options. Head chef Raphael Kendall (whose own vegan diet inspired the menu) is dishing out new meatless options like zucchini noodles with roasted carrots, red pepper, and chimichurri, or the carrot hash, topped with sautéed broccoli, rainbow chard and fried eggs. Tori Masucci Cummins and Anna Petkovich in Sactown Mag.

Flatland Brewing Company - This new brewery is set to open Jan. 22 in Elk Grove, replacing Handcraft Brewing Company. With six rotating taps, Flatland’s brews will include a double IPA, an imperial stout, the malty Bavarian Copper, the spicy Czech hop-based saison coined Uprising, and the rich, fruit-flavored Royal Quail with caramel and chocolate. Tori Masucci Cummins and Anna Petkovich in Sactown Mag. (Second Item.)

Police: Man Denied Sandwich at Subway Returns to Assault Employees, Smash Window - Sacramento Police say a man who was denied service at a Subway restaurant returned moments later with some friends to smash a window and attack its employees. According to officers, the man was denied service when trying to buy a sandwich at the Del Paso Boulevard and El Camino Avenue store Sunday evening. He returned a short time later with several other people. Ian McDonald on FOX 40.

Happy Hour Hound: Duke's Plates and Pints - Located on La Sierra Drive, near Watt Avenue and Fair Oaks Boulevard, Duke’s Plates and Pints is ready to cater to any football fan, hungry patron or happy hour hound. Duke’s is a casual bar that is small enough for you to grab a quick bite by yourself but big enough to meet with your crew on game day. Amy Serna in Submerge Mag.

Southwest Magazine, the publication fliers find in seat back pockets, featured Sacramento in their Winter Travel Guide.

As usual, when out of towners make recommendations, there are some hits and some misses. Author Alison Miller has more hits than misses, though when she's wrong, she's really wrong.

First, what the reporter gets right, in what she calls the Next Great Food City:

Breakfast: "Local bacon and egg sandwich on a house-made English muffin from Old Soul Co."

Lunch: "Chicken-fried mushroom po'boy at Mother."

Dinner: "Five-course prix fixe menu at The Kitchen."

Nightcap: "Star bartender Ryan Seng's homemade nocino at Grange."

However, she gets one thing hugely wrong.

Lodging: "Make your home base at the centrally located Red Lion Woodlake Sacramento..."

Not sure what it's centrally located to unless she wants to be in the Costco-Arden Fair Mall-REI triangle.

But it's always good to see Sacramento get some good ink in national publications.

Click here to read it for yourself.

More News:

Black Bear Diner opening Monday in Elk Grove - Black Bear Diner, the Redding-based restaurant chain specializing in traditional comfort food and sizable portions, will open a new eatery in Elk Grove on Monday. Mark Glover in the Sac Bee.

AUDIO: Best Of Sacramento Party And The March Of Dimes - One of the biggest events in the Capital City is more than just a party this year, it’s a 15th Anniversary Party and a celebration of more than $4.5 million donated to the March of Dimes. Nov. 12 is the annual Best of Sacramento Party, hosted by Sacramento Magazine. Sacramento Magazine Publisher, Joe Chiodo and March of Dimes Volunteer Jessica Bracy talk about the event's impact on Insight. On Capitol Public Radio.

Nacho Day, bro: Seafood nachos, Lou's Sushi - Seafood nachos consist of six fried wonton “chips,” topped with smashed avocado and a blend of raw seafood pieces dressed in spicy-mayo magic, then topped with green onion and roe on a bed of red cabbage. An unexpectedly addictive and sharable appetizer. Nick Miller in Sac News & Review.

High tea: Tea Service No. 1, Empress Tavern - Tea Service cocktails at Empress are conversational, boozy and absolutely precious. It's essentially a cocktail brewed for four, poured from a teapot into glass punch glasses. Garrett McCord in Sac News & Review.

New housing taking shape at downtown Sacramento landmark - As for the ground floor of the 105-year-old Ransohoff Building, Fathy said the partners are in talks with several users interested in taking over the 8,200-square-foot space vacated by Pyramid Alehouse in March 2013. Some of the potential users have expressed interest in keeping the beer-making equipment that Pyramid left behind. Bob Shallit in the Sac Bee. 

After a six month journey, Public House Theater soft re-opened over the weekend after resolving a permitting issue with city authorities.

When we last heard about Public House Theater, the owners closed the theater portion of their business in March 2015, but their pub remained open.

At the time, Sac News & Review's Janelle Bitker wrote that the theater shutdown was related to not having the proper licenses to show films (though in a subsequent Facebook reply, Public House Theater says it had "NOTHING to do with the mpaa").

On April 6, they announced that the pub was also forced to close, without explanation.

A Go Fund Me plea posted at the end of April seems to shed some light on the issue.

So we started this journey a year ago. We hired a design group to do the plans and get our permits. They lead us to believe that we had our permits and to continue building and open. We have since found out that what they had told us was far from the truth. We did not have any permits and should not have opened. We have been working on getting our drawings done by a great customer (friend). The community has been so good to us and has been behind us all the way. They had a party for us and raised almost $3000 for us. We are almost there but we have a little bit more to go. We need money to pay rent and taxes while we are closed. Thank you for your support and time.

This story is corroborated by city permitting records, which list details for a May 15, 2015 request for a Commercial Housing Department permit:

REMODEL WOP 15-005476 QUAD FEES Public House Theater Parking Lot with interior remodel of space becoming the theater. Use is allowed but the parking provided is currently under review as an Administrative Parking Review IR15-015 and the parking lot improvements are under Site Plan Review DR14-310. Signed Concurrent Review is attached.

When Pubic House Theater first hit our radar screens in Sept. 2014, it looked like it would be one of the first places locally to allow drinking at a movie theater and there was much enthusiasm for the project. Since then, the concept has become less unique with the openings of Studio Movie Grill in January 2015 and the addition of alcohol to Esquire IMAX's menu in April.

With that said, many locals seem to love the theater and rallied around it on Facebook when it looked like it was closed.

Public House Theater can be found at 5440 14th Ave., and can be found online at http://www.publichousetheater.net/.

More News:

‘Snails’ on menu for Slow Food’s Harvest Dinner - Who earns the next “Snail of Approval”? Learn at Slow Food Sacramento’s annual Harvest Dinner on Nov. 8 at Mulvaney’s B&L. Tickets ($75; $65 Slow Food members) are on sale now for this popular fund-raiser that supports Slow Food Sacramento’s local programs such as school gardens and promotion of urban agriculture. Past Harvest Dinners sold out quickly. Debbie Arrington in the Sac Bee.

10 Things You Didn’t Know About Bogle Winery - In September, Bogle Vineyards (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) invited Girls on the Grid for some vino and good times at their tasting room in Clarksburg. Here’s some fun stuff that we learned about this wonderful winery...On Girls on the Grid.

Aloha, ohana - In the five years since, he’s returned to Hawaii 12 times, launched a mobile Hawaiian barbecue business called Ben’s Huli Huli Chicken and, last month, opened his first brick-and-mortar restaurant, Ben’s Hawaiian Cafe (6610 Folsom-Auburn Road, Suite 7, in Folsom). Janelle Bitker in Sac News & Review.

Comfort food rules: Chili verde with roasted potatoes, Mother - Mother's menu is seasonal but the chili verde with roasted potatoes ($12) seems to have earned a permanent spot. And rightfully so: This comfort food staple is deliciously filling with piquant verde sauce, hearty pinto beans, chewy hominy and gooey chunks of mozzarella cheese. Rachel Leibrock in Sac News & Review.

Dan Barber visits Sacramento - Barber talked about the importance that chefs can play in educating and changing the way we eat. He also explained how, when he made his changes to serving dishes with rotational crops and lesser known ingredients, he switched to a prix fixe menu. Prix fixe menus mean that you eat what the chef decides instead of choosing off a menu. So, in his case, you were eating offal and rotation risotto (risotto made with other grains such as barley and millet) whether you wanted to or not. Catherine Enfield on Munchie Musings.

Postmates, which launched earlier this month, is an app that helps people with delivery - from grabbing something at the local supermarket for you to picking up your to go order at a restaurant and delivering it to your work or your home.

But some Sacramento restaurants aren't on board with the new disruptive app, reports Mark Glover in the Sac Bee.

Operators of Mother at 1023 K St., and South at 2005 11th St., in Sacramento, immediately voiced a litany of worries. Primary among them: The restaurants had no prior warning that they would be put on the Postmates site, and they have no control over how couriers handle their food...

N’Gina and Ian Kavookjian, co-owners of South, which touts its fried chicken and other Southern food specialties, were likewise surprised and upset.

Read the entire story in the Sac Bee.

Postmates, which does not seek permission from restaurants before providing the service to customers, has faced friction with the restaurant community in other cities. Eater reports on Seattle restaurants who have issues with the app.

While I see the restaurant's point, I think consumers are savvy enough to know what they're getting into. I've used Postmates five times over the last two weeks (although I've tried to use it more than that, and I don't think they're staffed up yet) to deliver to my office across the street from the State Capitol.

In my experience, despite the street construction on L street, the deliveries have been somewhere between, "Wow, that was fast!" to what you'd get by sending an intern to get lunch and having them get lost on the way back. Even the longest wait, though, didn't exceed their advertised delivery time of one hour.

The Sac Bee's Brenna Lyles talks to Pushkins, Sandra Dee's, Fish Face & Kru to Postmates.

Consumers also bear some responsibility in ordering items that will still be in good shape up to an hour later. Don't get sushi (obviously) or poke, but the breakfast sandwich or tacos I ordered were still good when they arrived 35 minutes later.

Just like Uber and Lyft, they'll have growing pains and they'll work them out. I'm still excited to have them here and will continue to use them.

More News:

Over Tipping: Why I’m finished with added service fees - Magpie Café killed tipping in Sacramento. It won’t be a sudden death, nor was it intentional. But when we look back in five years, we’ll remember Magpie as patient zero. We’ll also remember its amazing biscuits and gravy. But that’s a different story. Thomas Dodson in Comstocks Mag.

'Bittersweet': Loehmann's Plaza loses another eatery - A dessert shop in Loehmann's Plaza is closing after less than two years in business. Cleary's Ice Cream & Candy Bar will have its final day on Monday. Sonya Sorich in Sac Biz Journal. 

Hidden Sichuan - Overall my friends were quite happy with our outing. The only drawback, the same with Sichuan Spice House, is how far away it was. It's a definite excursion to reach either one if you don't live in those particular neighborhoods. Catherine Enfield on Munchie Musings. 

Counter Culture: Lamb chops are tops at Yianni’s Greek restaurant - Lunch pal Dino Rotas and I stopped by for some bites one day last week. For years, he has manned the gyro booth at the annual Greek Festival over Labor Day weekend, having grown up with Greek cuisine. During the Yianni’s meal he kept saying, “This tastes just like my mom used to make.” Allen Pierleoni in the Sac Bee.

 

Consider yourself invited! We are excited to mark this occasion with the debut of our affogato collaboration with Maiden Ice Cream. Please join us Friday evening for this and more. See you then!

A photo posted by The Mill (@themillsacramento) on Aug 5, 2015 at 3:24pm PDT

Mother & Empress chef Matt Masera will host the first (that I know of) Maiden Sacramento popup on Friday evening as part of The Mill's first anniversary party from 7 to 9 p.m.

 

Today's tasting was a success. Excited for the first #maidensacramento debut at @themillsacramento tomorrow night. @chefthiemann

A video posted by matt masera (@mattmasera) on Aug 6, 2015 at 4:32pm PDT

The video Masera posted on Instagram seems to tease that the menu will be something along the lines of affogato (espresso poured over ice cream), but he didn't elaborate on the menu or prices.

But that's kind of the fun of a popup. Embrace a sense of adventure. Show up, be delighted and enjoy.

Masera has been teasing the idea of a Maiden pop up for more than a year. Back in July 2014, he Instagramed a teaser image of the concept.

 

#maidensacramento @chefthiemann

A photo posted by matt masera (@mattmasera) on Jul 5, 2014 at 6:24pm PDT

The Mill, the host the event, is located at 1827 I St. and can be found online at http://www.themillsacramento.com/.

More News:

Tickets available for Dan Barber in Sacramento - The conversation is guaranteed to generate plenty of food for thought. Dan Barber, author of “The Third Plate” and chef/co-owner of New York’s Blue Hill, will appear in Sacramento on Oct. 6 at the Tsakopoulos Library Galleria. The event is free, but pre-registration is required. Chris Macias in the Sac Bee.

Roseville restaurant will offer beer, burgers, wings and ... custard - The owner of a new burger restaurant in Roseville is more than another entrepreneur with a dream. She has a family connection to a prominent casual-dining chain. Tino Phillips plans to open Buck & Sadie's Angus Burgers & Wings at 2030 Douglas Blvd. in November. Her father, Mike Phillips, is a founder of the concept behind BJ's Restaurants Inc., the Huntington Beach-based company that has locations in the Sacramento region and beyond. Sonya Sorich in Sac Biz Journal.

Cielito Lindo - After shuttering his doors for over a year, chef-owner Ramiro Alarcon says he feels “blessed and excited” to be back in business, whipping up creative new dishes like Sopa Azteca (a savory tortilla soup) or the Huachinango en Salsa de Frijol y Epazote (a red snapper fillet baked with cilantro and epazote in parchment to seal in the moisture and flavor). The restaurant also added two expanded dining rooms and obtained its alcohol license to now offer a few rotating wines and bottled Mexican beers. In Sactown Magazine.

Adult pleasures: Sacramento ice cream, Ginger Elizabeth - Looking to get all your vices in one place? Look no further than Ginger Elizabeth's “Sacramento” ice cream flavor. Comprising New Helvetia Stout ice cream swirled with Old Soul coffee ice cream, then nuggeted with bits of butter toffee and chocolate-covered ice cream cones, and beribboned with toffee sauce, it's an express bus to hedonism. Ann Martin Rolke in Sac News & Review.

Footwear in, frozen yogurt out - Pinkberry closed last week in Davis Commons. A sign on the entrance to its store at 500 First St., Suite 5, said that as of July 27, “we will no longer be swirling at this store.” It referred customers to other area stores in Sacramento, Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Roseville and Folsom. Wendy Weitzel in the Davis Enterprise.

Cafe Roma, located across the street from the State Capitol on L Street, closed in June 2014 to the dismay of many in the Capitol Community.

Last week, the city council approved a new tenant for the space - Cornflower Creamery owned by Cynthia Broughton, reports the Capitol Morning Report.

Broughton says the focus of her creamery will be "artisan, house-made ‘farm-to-scoop' ice cream." She's teaming up with local farmers who'll provide the seasonal ingredients for flavors she's keeping under wraps, for now. Her ice creams will come in three varieties -- regular, sugar-free and vegan -- and all three may be enjoyed as scoops inside her homemade waffle cones. Or, for those preferring sundaes or shakes, she'll have those, too.

Cornflower Creamery will also feature coffee, baked goods, to-go lunch items, Italian Ice and sorbet. Broughton hopes to open the story by the end of the summer.

Read the entire item in the Capitol Morning Report. (Subscription required.)

More News:

Mere seconds: Tower Bridge dinner sells out even quicker than last year’s - Confirming its status as the hottest ticket in town, Sept. 27’s Tower Bridge dinner gala sold out within 15 seconds of going on sale Monday morning. Blair Anthony Robertson in the Sac Bee.

New chef takes the reins at vegetarian hot spot Mother - The team behind K Street’s popular eatery Mother is welcoming a new player into its celebrated kitchen. Anthony Scuderi, an alumnus of the East Coast restaurant group owned by famed Iron Chef Jose Garces, joined the vegetarian hot spot this month as its new head chef. He takes over for Mother’s co-founding chefs Mike Thiemann and Matt Masera, the latter of whom will lead the kitchen at the neighboring Empress Tavern when it opens this summer inside the Crest Theatre. S.T. Vanairsdale in Sactown Mag.

Celebrate the tomato - The second annual Sacratomato Week kicks off Monday and continues through July 25 with a concluding free festival 4-8 p.m. on the grounds of Sutter’s Fort State Historic Park, 2701 L St., Sacramento. Janet Vitt in the Sac Bee.

California Craft Beer Summit Brewers Showcase announces lineup ... 150 breweries! - I drink oceans of beer, so I know a boatload of beer enthusiasts. But most of them haven’t yet heard about the California Craft Beer Summit, a major two-day beer event (September 11-12) right here in downtown Sacramento. Nick Miller in Sac News & Review.

This was inevitable: Business marries craft beer and dessert - Two of the Sacramento region's hot retail trends -- desserts and craft beer -- are colliding. Get ready for Sugar & Stout, a new local business that will sell beer-infused desserts and treats. Sonya Sorich in Sac Biz Journal.

If there's one thing I've learned over the years doing Cowtown Eats, it's that construction takes longer than expected. No matter how well organized or financed an operation is, there are always delays.

As recently as early March, Jackrabbit Brewery was slated to open at the end of March. It's now slipped until early April, per an e-mail to Cowtown Eats from Jackrabbit partner Ed Edsten.

We will open the first weekend in April.  We will feature 10 beers on tap with an emphasis on Belgian and English style ales, but also IPAs and some less conventional beers (a saison dryhopped with green bullet hops for example).

Those who want a sneak peek can check out their taproom on their Facebook page (where the photo above comes from), or visit when they do an growler refills on Thursdays from 5:30 to 7 p.m., or Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

When Jackrabbit does open, it will add another leg to the the West Sac Beer Trail, which now includes Bike Dog Brewing and Yolo Brewing companies.

Jackrabbit Brewing Company will be located at 1315 Terminal St in West Sac, or can be found online at http://jackrabbitbrewingcompany.com/.

** Update at 10 p.m., via a comment below:

You can get a preview of Jackrabbit at the Red, White, and Brew event on March 21 taking place at the brewery. $50 per person or $90 per couple. Limited to 120 guests only. Ticket details are at bridgewayplay.com

More News:

Why wait? Mother installs a “line cam” so patrons can gauge the queue at the popular Sacramento eatery - Mother fans, your wait is over. Thanks to the live-streaming “line cam” that the popular downtown vegetarian restaurant broadcasts on its website, patrons can now monitor the busy lunch and dinner rushes from their laptops before heading over. Tori Masucci Cummins in Sactown Mag.

Quick and Dirty - So what makes Sticky Gator stand out in a crowd? In this writer’s opinion, it is not that they have the best barbecue food available in the land (although it was good), but their speedy service, heaping portions and great location that shine. Niki Kangas in Submerge Mag.

Gastronomicon: Sriracha Quesarito revels in density and excess - Taco Bell seems to have always pursued edginess in new offerings. Sometimes, these fringe products find enough success to get rolled into the main menu, such as the Crunchwrap Supreme, a disrupted tostada specially crafted for thinkfluencers on the go, and the Gordita, a hard taco wrapped in a soft taco coveted by indecisive people and stoners around the world. Anthony Siino in Sac News & Review.

Sweet Dozen unveils a Girl Scout cookie doughnut - It’s Girl Scout cookie season, which means inevitable debates in the office breakroom about which cookie reigns supreme. For me, it’s always been Samoas, the chewy cookies coated in caramel, toasted coconut flakes and dark chocolate. And that’s why I simply must alert you to Sweet Dozen’s latest creation. Janelle Bitker in Sac News & Review.

North Natomas is picking up steam - Inside a warehouse the size of an airport hangar, tucked at the end of an oddly named street called Professor Lane, there’s a sign that North Natomas might be getting its swagger back. It’s just one business, and that can’t fully reverse years of a neighborhood feeling like it was dissed at every turn. But when that new business is Track 7 Brewing Co. – one of this city’s most successful startups of the past five years – you start to wonder whether Ryan Graham and Geoff Scott were on to something when they opened up shop in this far-flung outpost last month. Ryan Lillis in the Sac Bee.