These three restaurants near Sacramento made Yelp’s Top 100 list for 2020
Three restaurants on Yelp’s list of “America’s Top 100 Places to Eat in 2020” are within an hour drive of Sacramento.
No, not that one you’re thinking of. Not the other one either. No, not even that one. None of the big-name eateries from the capital city itself made the cut.
Pikul Thai Bistro in Fairfield came in at No. 10; Roseville’s Roundhouse Deli was No. 15; and Kuji Asian Grill in Woodland earned the No. 47 spot in a ranked list created by Yelp data scientists and community managers. The list factored in user ratings, review quantities and a bit of human curating.
Bee reporter Benjy Egel put a spotlight on Kuji’s $10 tofu stir-fry lunch plate last March for The Bee’s “You Gotta Try This” series, noting high marks on Yelp and nearly a dozen perfect Google reviews just two months after its opening. Kai Jung, chef and owner of Kuji, crafted a menu with “heavy Korean and Hawaiian influences,” according to the now-1-year-old restaurant’s website.
The other two spots, though, flew lower under the radar. Quick searches appeared to turn up no results for either of them in The Bee’s archives or other news publications prior to Yelp’s recent list.
But they’re clearly popular: Roundhouse Deli and Pikul Thai Bistro each maintain a five-star average on Yelp, Roundhouse with nearly 350 total reviews and Pikul with more than 200.
What did Yelp users like?
“Ditto to all the raving reviews of their tacos and tri tip sandwiches!!” Carrie K., an “Elite” Yelp reviewer from Folsom, wrote of Roundhouse in December. “I tried the chicken tacos and loved it!!”
Another Sacramento-area Yelp Elite guru, Alex L., who has penned nearly 2,000 reviews on the website, concluded his review of the Roseville spot: “It’s about as delicious and unpretentious an eating experience as any casual luncher could hope for.”
Roundhouse also made a 2019 list by Yelp of America’s best tacos, ranking No. 3 in the U.S.
Yelper Shu S. of Vacaville wrote of Pikul: “The portion sizes are huge. The service is great, and it’s a very calming and nice atmosphere to dine in.”
Among the rare, less-glowing reviews, some eaters criticized Roundhouse Deli for what they felt were small portion sizes for sandwiches. One user wrote that Pikul was a bit pricey for Thai food. Each restaurant had its share of three- or four-star reviews that didn’t include any negative feedback in their writeups. Tough crowd.
California fared well overall, scoring 19 spots on Yelp’s Top 100. Other ranking Northern California and Bay Area eateries, for those who are up for a day trip:
▪ Shish Ke Baba in San Francisco (No. 12)
▪ Achilles in Santa Clara (No. 37)
▪ Curry Pizza Company’s second location in Fresno (No. 52)
▪ 310 Eatery in Albany (No. 55)
▪ Tuna Kahuna in Burlingame (No. 67)
▪ Trattoria 360 in Campbell (No. 70)
▪ Porque No? Tacos in Oakland (No. 71)
But as for the No. 1 restaurant in the nation, according to this Yelp list? That came from Southern California: Shawarma Guys, a San Diego food truck that opened last January.
This story was originally published January 8, 2020 at 10:29 AM.
