Thank you for visiting Cowtown Eats and for making 2015 another great year! Cowtown Eats had more than 725,000 page views and 257,750 unique users. Also, a huge Thank You to valued advertisers who help keep the lights on here. Please visit them so they'll continue to want to advertise.

These rankings are based on which happy hours Cowtown Eats readers are clicking on.

15. Shady Lady Saloon

Named as one of the "best bars in America" by Esquire Magazine, Shady Lady is filled with happy hour goers looking to get one of their craft cocktails at a slight discount. 1409 R Street, Sacramento.

Click here for Shady Lady Saloon's Happy Hour info.

14. Buffalo Wild Wings

Sometimes, you just want to grab a Coors Light, eat some wings and watch a game. Or maybe you want to meet a friend before going to a Kings game. That's what Buffalo Wild Wings excels at, and why they've made it on the list for the second year in a row. 3635 N Freeway Blvd., Sacramento.

Click here for Buffalo Wild Wings' Happy Hour info.

13. Hook & Ladder

Hook & Ladder, the heralded restaurant who shares owners with the popular midtown spot Golden Bear, opened late in 2012 and has hit its stride as both a restaurant and bar. The restaurant's popular happy hour is just another sign of that. 1630 S St, Sacramento.

Click here for Hook & Ladder's Happy Hour info.

12. Chevy's Fresh Mex - On The River

One of the best things about Sacramento is the river, and nothing is better than sipping on a margarita, snacking on a basket of chips and people watching at Chevy's. That's why people continue to flock to this restaurant - and its happy hour - year after year. 1369 Garden Hwy., Sacramento.

Click here for Chevy's Fresh Mex's happy hour info.

11. Burgers & Brew

Situated on a revitalized portion of R street, Burgers & Brew continues to draw in the crowds with its patio seating and diverse tap list. 1409 R St, Sacramento.

Click here for Burgers & Brew's happy hour info.

10. 33rd St. Bistro

A great neighborhood standby, 33rd St. Bistro is popular with those who live and work in East Sacramento. With their recently-remodeled bar, now's a perfect time to check out this happy hour. 3301 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento.

Click here for 33rd St. Bistro's Happy Hour info.

Here are the 15 most popular Sacramento happy hours of October 2015 (based on page views) on Cowtown Eats:

1. BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse (Last month's rank: 1)
2. Bento Box (Last month's rank: 2)
3. Chicago Fire (Last month's rank: 6)
4. Zocalo (Last month's rank: 3)
5. Fat's Asia Bistro (Last month's rank: 7)
6. Magpie Cafe (Last Month: Unranked)
7. Cheesecake Factory (Last month's rank: 10)
8. Ruth's Chris Steakhouse (Last month's rank: 5)
9. Broderick Restaurant & Bar (Last month's rank: 13)
10. Hook & Ladder (Last month's rank: 11)
11. Bottle & Barlow (Last month's rank: 4)
12. Burgers & Brew (Last month's rank: 9)
13. Buffalo Wild Wings (Last month's rank: 15)
14. Shady Lady Saloon (Last month's rank: 12)
15. Lucca (Last Month: Unranked)

Thanks for visiting Cowtown Eats! We had more than 51,000 page views and more than 20,500 unique visitors.

I also want to give a special shout out to Cask & Barrel, Hook & Ladder and Ernesto's Mexican Food for generously sponsoring Cowtown Eats and keeping the lights on here. 

Here are the 15 most popular Sacramento happy hours of September 2015 (based on page views) on Cowtown Eats:

1. BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse (Last month's rank: 1)
2. Bento Box (Last month's rank: 3)
3. Zocalo (Last month's rank: 2)
4. Bottle & Barlow (Last Month: Unranked)
5. Ruth's Chris Steakhouse (Last month's rank: 4)
6. Chicago Fire (Last month's rank: 5)
7. Fat's Asia Bistro (Last month's rank: 6)
8. Firestone Public House (Last month's rank: 7)
9. Burgers & Brew (Last month's rank: 14)
10. Cheesecake Factory (Last month's rank: 8)
11. Hook & Ladder (Last Month: Unranked)
12. Shady Lady Saloon (Last month's rank: 11)
13. Broderick Restaurant & Bar (Last Month: Unranked)
14. Oak Park Brewing Company (Last Month: Unranked)
15. Buffalo Wild Wings (Last Month: Unranked)

Thanks for visiting Cowtown Eats! We had nearly 46,000 page views and more than 17,250 unique visitors.

I also want to give a special shout out to Cask & Barrel for generously sponsoring Cowtown Eats and keeping the lights on here. 

Here are the 15 most popular Sacramento happy hours of August 2015 (based on page views) on Cowtown Eats:

1. BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse (Last month's rank: 1)
2. Zocalo (Last month's rank: 2)
3. Bento Box (Last month's rank: 3)
4. Ruth's Chris Steakhouse (Last month's rank: 5)
5. Chicago Fire (Last month's rank: 4)
6. Fat's Asia Bistro (Last month's rank: 6)
7. Firestone Public House (Last month's rank: 12)
8. Cheesecake Factory (Last month's rank: 8)
9. Lucca Restaurant (Last month's rank: 10)
10. 33rd St. Bistro (Last month's rank: 11)
11. Shady Lady Saloon (Last month's rank: 12)
12. Paesanos (Last month's rank: 10)
13. Brasserie Capitale (Last Month: Unranked)
14. Burgers & Brew (Last month's rank: 9)
15. Orchid Thai (Last Month: Unranked)

Thanks for visiting Cowtown Eats! We had nearly 59,000 page views and more than 23,750 unique visitors.

I also want to give a special shout out to Cask & Barrel for generously sponsoring Cowtown Eats and keeping the lights on here. 

Chef Keith Breedlove, a chef about town who was recently the official State Fair Chef, will appear on FYI TV's Man vs. Child: Chef Showdown show on Thursday at 6 p.m. and again at 9 p.m. (depending on your cable feed).

In an episode titled "Viva La France," the episode description reads:

Culinary and literal giant, chef Keith Breedlove muscles his way into the kitchen to see what all the fuss is about. But when he squares off against 7 year-old chef Estie in the "Poulet-Trois" will he crow like the rooster? Or run away chicken? Legendary Master Chef, Ludo Lefebvre, joins to blind taste and judge the winner takes all final round.

You can find Chef Breedlove normally on his Culinerdy Cruzer. Late last year, the Sac Bee's Chris Macias wrote a great profile of him, detailing his journey as a chef and how he uses his Asperger's to his advantage.

These kids can out-cook any ordinary grownup, but can they face off against their favorite chefs? The competition is HUGE on an all-new #ManVsChild: Chef Showdown, Thursday at 9/8c!

Posted by FYI Television Network on Friday, August 21, 2015

You can find FYI TV on the following channels:

AT&T U-Verse: 1272
Comcast: 772
DIRECTV: 266
Dish: 119

For those who don't have cable (like me), Chef Breedlove is hosting a watch party at The Falls Event Center in Elk Grove at 5:30 p.m.. Click here for more details.

More News:

Local and seasonal: Chefs preview five-course menu for Tower Bridge dinner - With an emphasis on the region’s rich bounty and the crossover from summer into fall, chefs on Monday previewed the five-course menu for the eagerly anticipated Sept. 27 Tower Bridge dinner...A closely guarded secret for weeks, the menu promises to offer plenty of creativity, technique and variety, including a sturgeon pastrami with heirloom beets, endive and, yes, chicharones made with the skins of the fish that are fried until they are puffy and crisp and, we’re told, mouth-wateringly delicious. Blair Anthony Robertson in the Sac Bee.

The Parlor Ice Cream Puffs - This popular ice cream shop, best known for its donut ice cream sandwiches, expanded to Roseville with a new location that opened Aug. 8. Larger than the original ice creamery in Arden-Arcade, the Roseville space includes a room for guests to reserve for special occasions and an airy interior with modern tiling and foliage spilling from planter boxes lining the light gray walls. In Sactown Mag. (Third Item.)

Bakers celebrate 25 years of a flourishing business - Walking into the Grateful Bread bakery is to become enfolded in an aromatic cloud of homey comfort. Is there a more enticing smell in the food world than freshly baked bread, or one more evocative of sweet childhood memories? The family-owned wholesale-retail bakery turns 25 this month, still occupying the same quarters in Loehmann’s Plaza that it did when husband-wife Joe and Dianna Artim mixed dough for their first loaves in 1990. Allen Pierleoni in the Sac Bee.

Beer Run: From IPAs to German brews, ‘The Beer Bible’ sets record straight - Whether you’re a bona fide beer geek, are studying to be a cicerone or simply want to know why your coolest friends always seem to be heading to a brewery taproom with their kids and dogs in tow, there’s a big new book that will enlighten and entertain you for 600-plus pages. There are plenty of good beer books out there, but none is as thorough, wide-reaching and accessible as “The Beer Bible” by Jeff Alworth (Workman, $19.95, 644 pages). Its publication is a big deal because, it turns out, the more you know about beer, brewing and the history, geography and culture of beer, the more likely you are to become a devoted beer lover. It’s a simple formula: More knowledgeable consumers will buy more good beer. Blair Anthony Robertson in the Sac Bee.

Drowning in ice cream and coffee - Is it really counterintuitive to make ice cream that doesn't contain any cow cream? Of course not; it is a deliciously wonderful idea, and the proof is in the affogato. The Italian treat of coffee and ice cream (which means “drowned” in Italian) gets the latter from Maiden Sacramento Ice Cream, the apparent dessert branch of the food tree whose canopy also contains Mother and the forthcoming Empress Tavern. Shoka in Sac News & Review.

Here are the 15 most popular Sacramento happy hours of July 2015 (based on page views) on Cowtown Eats:

1. BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse (Last month's rank: 1)
2. Zocalo (Last month's rank: 2)
3. Bento Box (Last month's rank: 3)
4. Chicago Fire (Last month's rank: 5)
5. Ruth's Chris Steakhouse (Last month's rank: 4)
6. Fat's Asia Bistro (Last month's rank: 6)
7. Burgers & Brew (Last month's rank: 9)
8. Cheesecake Factory (Last month's rank: 13)
9. Lucca Restaurant (Last month's rank: 10)
10. Paesanos (Last month's rank: 8)
11. 33rd St. Bistro (Last month's rank: 5)
12. Shady Lady Saloon (Last month's rank: 15)
13. Firestone Public House (Last month's rank: 12)
14. Hook & Ladder (Last month: Unranked
15. Chevy's Fresh Mex - On the River (Last month's rank: 9)

Thanks for visiting Cowtown Eats! We had more than 69,000 page views and more than 29,750 unique visitors.

I also want to give a special shout out to Cask & Barrel and Hook & Ladder  for generously sponsoring Cowtown Eats and keeping the lights on here.

California's Austin, not The New Oakland.

That's how 7x7, a popular San Francisco's Web site that celebrates "trailblazing spirit and to maximize every moment in this magnificent place," describes Sacramento.

(FYI - The site's name is a reference to the roughly 49 square miles within San Francisco's borders.)

7x7 writer Garrick Ramirez is actually pretty spot on with his recommendations for those venturing from 90 miles down I-80.

Among his dining suggestions:

Preservation & Co: "Take home Sacramento-priced bottles of the shop's housemade sriracha, pickled beets, and the killer bloody mary mix that made them famous."

Ruhstaller: "The real joy comes from visiting their hop farm in nearby Dixon. Haybales, wooden spool tables, rustic shelters and sunset campfires lend a magical setting."

Coin-Op Game Room: "Old-school favorites like Roadblasters, Simpsons, and AC/DC pinball sport handy cup holders for the huge selection of craft beers."

Shady Lady Saloon: "Hidden inside a historic masonry building, this unpretentious cocktail bar plays up the city's Gold Rush past with bordello chic interiors."

Federalist Public House: "A lively crowd assembles for pizzas and pints at this modern beer garden comprised of white shipping containers, a bocce court and rooftop garden."

Also featured are Ginger Elizabeth Chocolates, Devine Gelateria, Bottle & Barlow, Temple Coffee and Hook & Ladder.

This is the second time in recent months that Sacramento has been featured by a SF-focused publication.

Read the entire story on 7x7.

More News:

Alcoholic boba tea now for sale at Lazi Cow in Davis - If you’ve ever wished you could get drunk on tapioca milk tea, get ready to find fulfillment in Davis. Lazi Cow (407 G Street) shut down for a few months this spring for a major remodel. The boba shop held its grand re-opening in June with cow print walls, a large cow sculpture that doubles as a bench, a swing—why not? Janelle Bitker in Sac News & Review.

Get ready for more doughnut ice cream sandwiches - The Parlor built a following -- so much, in fact, that this week the owners confirmed a Roseville location is in the works. It will be at 1490 Eureka Road, in the Eureka Ridge shopping center, and is scheduled to open in late July or early August. Sonya Sorich in Sac Biz Journal.

Roseville tapioca shop closes - Fans of Tapioca Express in Roseville will have to get their fix elsewhere. A sign outside the store at 1132 Galleria Blvd. says it's "closing indefinitely" Thursday. Sonya Sorich in Sac Biz Journal.

Dining review: In Roseville, ASR’s food does not match its ambition - Roseville’s ASR Restaurant & Lounge, which measures 11,000 square feet when counting a patio outfitted with cabanas and a VIP section, unfortunately leans more rule than exception. Though admirably thorough – open every day, the restaurant serves lunch, dinner and late-night bites – it falters at the detail level, on such key matters as flavor combinations and consistent service. Carla Meyer in the Sac Bee.

Fish Face kicks off Sacramento's poke trend - Fish Face is chiefly a to-go poke stand, inspired by the shops that dish out raw fish salad by weight in Hawaii. There, you’d stare at pre-made combinations—kimchi octopus, sesami tuna, spicy shrimp—before making a decision. At Fish Face, you build your own salad. Janelle Bitker in Sac News & Review.