The following is from City of Treats, a food and drink newsletter by Abridged senior food editor Benjy Egel. Want it sent directly to your inbox? Sign up here.
My bill at the last farmers market I visited was as high as it’s ever been. That’s not a gripe about prices, but evidence of how hard saying “no” is when Sacramento-area produce is in full bloom.
There were heirloom tomatoes, juicy and full like purple-red water balloons, and hollow-sounding watermelon with deep yellow field spots. Ears of sweet corn piled up next to baskets of peaches and nectarines, while baskets of strawberries and blackberries perched delicately beside each other.
It’s a particularly great time to be eating local, whether from your garden or at a local restaurant. This week’s City of Treats includes cross-cultural pasta and craft beer from industry veterans, a trio of exciting new restaurants and a guide to a great day in West Sacramento.
Let’s dig in!
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Benjy’s Bites
Mode Brewing & Kitchen | 9110 Greenback Lane, Orangevale | 916-510-1509
Randy and Tracy Davis made sure their food truck roots wouldn’t be forgotten. The couple used their knowledge from Grange Restaurant & Bar in Downtown Sacramento, Shangri-La in Fair Oaks and other local favorites to launch their mobile kitchen Pasta à la Mode during the COVID-19 pandemic. That evolved into Mode Brewing & Kitchen, their kid-friendly brewpub where customers order from a counter designed to look like the side of a food truck before meandering out to a back patio full of communal tables, board games and a central Old West fountain flowing from retired beer taps.
Fresh pasta remains the focus, available in traditional or fusion preparations (with gluten-free alternatives) as well as take-home kits. The Thai one on ($17) mixes pappardelle, rib-eye steak slices and assorted veggies in a deliciously savory gravy; dive in right away to keep the noodles from sticking to each other. Tracy’s brother Jeffrey Losch, the head brewer, pulls together beers like the Backpacker blonde ale that covers beer-battered artichokes ($9) in a crispy shell cooled in Meyer lemon aioli.
Egel’s Nest
I live, play and cook in this community just like you. This recurring section is a window into my life outside of restaurants and bars, always with a food and/or drink angle.
I was supposed to spend the tail end of my birthday flying back from Washington, but, well, the airport lounge sucked me in and I missed my flight. Needing a do-over, I organized a “second birthday” with a small group of friends the following Sunday.
Some brought za’atar pastry puffs and caprese skewers with buffalo mozzarella, some brought prized flour tortillas from San Deigo, some brought a 2-year-old fascinated by the little cups inside our cabinets (shot glasses). My partner Abbey and I tag-teamed Zoe Barrie’s peach elderflower spritz recipe for the gang, with virgin variations for the 2-year-old and a pregnant friend, and our friend Zach grilled burgers and corn to go with the first truly fantastic watermelon I’ve had all year. Dessert was Freeport Bakery’s shadow fresa cake, a harmonious medley of strawberries, chocolate and whipped cream that’s become a family favorite.
In the news
Alexis Frost moved to West Sacramento thinking it was the west side of Sacramento, not a separate city — a common error for regional newbies. Yet as she made it her home, she discovered nature paths, taquerias, breweries and more. Read more in her guide to a great day in the city.
The California State Fair in 2026 means a cannabis station, a King Tut reproduction, a Native American art exhibit — “a smorgasbord aiming to cater to anyone under the California sun,” writes Savannah Kuchar. Dirty sodas, a Utah-born trend with cream and flavored syrups, are part of that equation, popular with kids and alcohol-free adults.
Happening this week
- Bilao, a new Filipino restaurant, began its soft opening Tuesday at 7485 Rush River Drive, Suite 700 in the Pocket. It’s the brick-and-mortar evolution of Baboy Boys, a food truck selling sisig tacos, bacon adobo jerky and Cebu-style lechon around the Sacramento area.
- Upscale burger chain Eureka! opened Monday at 2070 Fair Oaks Blvd., Suite 100 in The Boulevard shopping center in Sacramento’s Campus Commons neighborhood. Twenty-four of its 30 locations are in California, including one in Roseville, and the menu bears items such as al pastor fish tacos and a Fresno fig burger.
- Hong Kong-based dessert cafe Hui Lai Shan began its soft opening in Elk Grove Landing (8355 Elk Grove Blvd., Suite 400) on July 16. Founded in the 1960s and now bearing several Bay Area locations, it’s best known for its mango desserts — sago, pudding, crêpes and more.
Benjy Egel is the senior food editor at Abridged. Born and raised in the Sacramento region, he has covered its local restaurants and bars since 2018. He also writes and edits Abridged’s weekly food and drink newsletter, City of Treats.