Great Craft Beer And The Good Life In Sacramento
We are lucky devils living in California. We get all this sunshine, these hip beaches in SoCal, misty hills in SF, lush vineyards spidering Napa and Sonoma, snowcapped mountains encompassing Tahoe, not to mention the sparkling lake itself, and we get Sacramento, the State Capital. Yet despite how creative, how beautiful, and how ambitious this city is, it is often put on the back-burner, but like all wonderful things they are often hidden. That is why Sacramento is a true treasure.
"ivy-enveloped Orphan for a farm-to-table brunch"
After living in San Francisco and Portland, and spending much of my adolescence in Sac's neighboring University town of Davis, I am finally a denizen of Sacramento and I am finally home. There is an urban feel that excites, while at the same time a coziness. Each nook and cranny provides a special, unifying comfort. West Sac has the famous roadside burger joint Whitey's Jolly Kone (blackberry milkshakes and chicken fried steak sandwiches) and the tucked-away 5-star Broderick Roadhouse. It is home to one of Sac's newest and readily embraced breweries, Bike Dog Brewery, and recently Yolo Brewing added its kinship. Across the gilded bridge you hit chic Midtown with its Victorian-style housing, snazzy stores, eclectic restaurants, tattoo shops, and energetic bars that will sweep you off your feet and consume your day and night. Paris is possibly the only place in the world that has more trees per capita than Sacramento, and East Sac truly feels like a canopy as you stroll along shady sidewalks to ivy-enveloped Orphan for a farm-to-table brunch. The Oak Park neighborhood is revving itself up for innovative Oak Park Brewing and nudged near beloved Track 7 Brewing lies Two Rivers Cider Company, where apple’s alter-ego hard cider is fermented into crazily delicious concoctions.
"cider bar that pours all colors of the rainbow"
For an elegant time, you won't find anything as lavish and memorable than Blackbird Kitchen & Beer Gallery. Recently revamped, this restaurant/bar not only supplies a massive variety of solid craft beer, but contains a dedicated cider bar that pours all colors of the rainbow. Not only does The Capital allow us to relish in superb food and drink, but it offers an artistic scene that in addition feeds our souls. Sacramento Ballet’s annual event Beer and Ballet, sponsored by rustic and historic Ruhstaller Beer, allows us to see inside the minds and hearts of the company’s talented dancers, all the while sipping on ale made purely from locally grown ingredients.
Naturally, I adore this city because I live here but it is only because this city adores me back that I am able to enjoy it to its fullest, and I wish that everyone, everywhere will one day know just what I mean. While we drink between the bars and breweries and bike amidst the shadows of oak leaves, Sacramento grows among us and each day us among it. It feels pretty good to root for the underdog, especially when that underdog makes you feel like part of the team.
By Nat Fladager of Hops & Dots
Find Nat @ http://hopsanddots.com