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.
San Francisco’s string of freeway billboards hawking AI technology are so indecipherable to those outside the industry that they’ve become a running joke. Two hours northeast, Sacramento’s AI transformation isn’t quite as visible — but it’s begun.
It’s at Ladyhawke Farm’s farmers market stand when I buy tomatoes, and at the center of Sacramento State’s planned technology hub on Capitol Mall. It’s part of the Rancho Cordova city manager’s “future hopes for the region,” and the crux of an airport car tracking system that could result in your next parking citation.
Perhaps the most visible use of AI, though, comes when you’re looking for your next meal out. Restaurants across the region have increasingly advertised their businesses via generative AI over the past year, from a decades-old Downtown Sacramento mainstay to upstarts trying to make names for themselves. Proponents say using AI heavily can triple these restaurants’ foot traffic, but not all customers are biting, as I explored in an article Monday.
Abridged by PBS KVIE is in the process of authoring a formal AI policy for our own work. As it stands, we use AI for elements of news reporting such as transcription, data analysis or identifying story trends. The hard line: we do not use AI to generate articles, scripts, interviews or any other editorial content we present to the public as journalism. More on that to come (relatively) soon.
Today’s City of Treats also looks at a pair of cafés opening this week — one Ukrainian, the other Yemeni. It highlights a Cuban/Mexican restaurant with one brick-and-mortar location and a roving food truck, and a lazy day eating and drinking along Sacramento County’s preeminent natural gem.
Let’s dig in.
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Benjy’s Bites
Gondo Fusion | 2790 Stockton Blvd., Sacramento | 916-942-9165
Gondo Fusion is pulling out all the stops to attract people from the UC Davis Medical Center and burgeoning Aggie Square across the street, including morning pancakes, dirty sodas and, yes, AI-generated poster boards. But Sylvia Rodriguez’s orange-and-black food stand and associated food truck would draw my attention sans gimmicks by nature of unique approach. It’s “where Mexican heat meets Cuban flavor,” and with the Sacramento region severely lacking in options for the latter, that’s where my order leaned.
The Cuban burrito ($14.71, available with other meats or vegan) is the clearest marriage of those cuisines. A mix of mojo pork, sweet plantains, rice, black beans, chile de árbol salsa, mango pico de gallo and a creamy-but-kickin’ aioli wrapped in a flour tortilla, it’s an easy-to-love marriage of sweet and savory served alongside tortilla chips.
Gondo Fusion also makes a nice classic Cubano sandwich ($13.78) with the typical mojo pork, Swiss cheese, mustard, pickles, a thin slice of ham and the same aioli, slid between a soft French roll, grilled to a mild crisp and served with potato chips. Dairy-free horchata ($5) comes in matcha or strawberry flavors, but the cinnamon-heavy classic is the house specialty.
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.
Most years throughout my 20s, I organized an annual Fourth of July float down the American River with 35 or so of my closest friends. While that level of responsibility has thankfully been lifted from my shoulders, a day on the river is still one of my favorite ways to beat the summer heat. We hauled out the inner tubes and stand-up paddleboards on Saturday, met up with our flotilla at the Sunrise Recreation Area and set sail for River Bend Park.
My two-person inner tube included a built-in central cooler filled to the brim with water, Donna’s Pickle Beer and Topo Chico Ranch Water hard seltzers. We pulled over on a rocky river beach for bánh mì from South Sacramento institution Đức Hương Sandwiches stuffed in a dry bag — all No. 1s, the version with grilled pork. Unfortunately, I got a bit grilled as well, and left the river with a painful reminder to sunscreen my thighs if they’re going to be pointed skyward.
In the news
Two miles off Highway 99 in Galt, Valensin Vineyard & Winery sits along a private lake built by the property’s former owners (professional water skiers). It’s now used for pedal boats, paddleboarding and a turquoise backdrop to glasses of rosé and chardonnay. Read more from Keyla Vasconcellos here.
Generative AI is everywhere in the Sacramento region’s food scene, from Indian buffets in Roseville to a barbecue joint in the Delta. Some herald it as an easy-to-use, inexpensive way to spread word of their business, while others criticize its aesthetic monotony and potential to mislead.
I’m happy to announce a new Cooking in Season recipe developer: Lisa Lin! Lisa lives in Natomas and runs Healthy Nibbles, her website dedicated to Asian and Asian fusion cooking, though you may also know her from social media. Her first recipe for Abridged uses summer fruit to create plum and strawberry cardamom bars, which can be enjoyed right after baking or the next day out of the fridge.
Happening this week
- Lviv Croissants opened its first California location Monday in Fair Oaks’ Quail Pointe shopping center. Based in Ukraine with more than 200 locations worldwide (but only four in the U.S.), it’s known for its croissants, served around sandwich fixings or stuffed with sweet fillings.
- Haute Coffee will open Wednesday at 8145 Elk Grove Blvd., Suite 20, in Elk Grove. The Florida-based Yemeni coffee shop with ceremonial matcha first launched in Roseville earlier this year.
- Helping Hands OV’s fifth annual Salsa Cook-Off begins at 10 a.m. Saturday in The Orangevale Grange. Admission is $10 at the door and includes tastes of more than 20 salsas, with food trucks, a beer garden and VIP tickets available for those interested in a bit more.
