The seventh Buckhorn Grill - but the first for Sacramento - now is expected to open in early March. John Pickerel, who with his wife Melanie has owned Buckhorn Steak & Roadhouse in Winters since 1980, says the couple expects to take possession of the 18th and L site in mid-February.

After applying the finishing touches, including the training of staff and the testing of equipment, they expect to open within two or three weeks of moving in.

The Buckhorn Grills are a streamlined version of their fullscale Winters steakhouse. They opened the first grill in San Francisco in 1999, and since then have opened additional outlets in Napa, Walnut Creek, Emeryville and two more in San Francisco, including the most recent in October at Bloomingdale's department store along Market Street.

The grills are best known for their tri-tip sandwiches, made with certified Angus beef that has been aged 21 days, marinated, rubbed, grilled and finished in a pecan-fired oven.