After a three-month closure for remodeling, the East Sacramento landmark The Shack is back in business. "We still have the outhouse, but it's a little nicer than it was before," says Gary Sleppy, who with his wife Jen has owned the place about two years, gradually transforming the old sandwich shop - it used to be called the Sub Shack - into a more comprehensive neighborhood pub and cafe. Just as the restaurant closed about Thanksgiving, for one, it was generating buzz for its Thursday-night themed wine dinners. They are to resume this Thursday, though Sleppy still doesn't settle on a theme much before the day of the dinner.

Sleppy says he hadn't intended for The Shack to be closed this long, but the sprucing up was more of a chore than he expected. He anticipates another couple of weeks of work before he has the place fully up to speed. "It's less shacky and a little more East Sac, but not so much that I think it will become trendy," says Sleppy.

The Shack, 5201 Folsom Blvd. is open 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday through Friday, 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays; (916) 457-5997.