At Omakase Por Favor, chef and owner Jeana Marie Pecha and crew offer a Japanese inspired take on coastal Mexican cuisine fueled by local purveyors.
In Japanese, omakase means, “I leave it up to you.” In other words, trust the chef.
Pecha grew up in Roseville. A formative experience was a trip to Manzanillo, Mexico, to study with Chef Freddy Ahlert.
hu Mai, the new restaurant by Chef Billy Ngo, excites on every level. The space pops, the dishes wow. With casual dining and take-out dominating restaurant openings these days, this elegant spot stands out.
Ngo is a force with three award-winning Japanese restaurants: KRU Contemporary, Kodaiko Ramen & Bar and Fish Face Poke Bar. Ngo’s lineage, however, is Vietnamese and Chinese. Chu Mai celebrates that lineage. It celebrates Ngo’s mother and the Asian American culinary experience.
Sitting down to write this, I struggled with ideas. I stared at the blinking cursor, feeling it mock me. I wracked my brain for something—anything—to hold onto.
Several half-formed ideas raced around my head, but grabbing one and putting it down into words was elusive. Feeling stuck, I got up, put on my coat, and took a walk around McKinley Park.
It was late afternoon. The light was fading, the wind blowing. By the time I returned a half-hour later, I had three coherent, almost finished essays floating in mind.
Officials responded with extraordinary speed when the pandemic struck in 2020. Schools shut down. Businesses closed. Church services were banned.
The goal was to reduce viral transmission and prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed. People were dying, especially older ones.
Now studies show many of the measures designed to limit virus spread had serious negative outcomes for health, education and the economy.
In the years since 2020, much public framing has followed a familiar path: “We didn’t know what to do.” At the time, professional voices who advocated for less radical reactions were censored or defamed.
With state employees working remotely, Downtown needs a boost. Our business district always depended on state workers for daytime vitality. Despite recent progress, Downtown continues to suffer.
Like any big idea, it’s hard to say if this one will ever happen. But Sacramento State University’s compelling proposal for a mixed-use campus on Capitol Mall excites some smart, influential people.
“Downtown is flat on its back,” West Sac developer Mark Friedman tells me. “The daytime population is 40% less than what it was pre-COVID.”
California is the only U.S. location where state employees haven’t been sent back to the office, he notes.
If you walk past the Sterling Hotel at 13th and H streets on Sunday, Jan. 11, and see people in Regency dress, you haven’t stumbled into a time warp.
It’s Jane Austen’s 250th birthday party, put on by the Jane Austen Society of North America, Greater Sacramento Region.
With luck, you’re a reveler in the ballroom, dressed in Austen-era finery, enjoying small plates, stimulating conversation and English country dance in an Austen novel come to life.
“Because it’s her 250th birthday, we decided we’d pull out all the stops,” event Chair Alanna Butterworth says. “We’re hoping to entice people who have not participated yet or who’ve never been to a Regency dance to come and enjoy a warm environment.”
