Cider House owner to open East Sacramento barbecue restaurant, taproom on Friday

A new beer-and-barbecue joint will fire up its smoker in East Sacramento on Friday afternoon

Lefty’s Eatery & Taproom will open at 3:30 p.m. at 5610 Elvas Ave., co-owner Julio Peix told The Bee on Thursday. Peix also owns Cider House, a gluten-free taphouse that opened in midtown last year, and previously owned Dad’s Kitchen in Land Park. He’ll partner with James “Panda” Lee, a fellow left-hander whose nickname is painted as a mural on the front of the business.

Lefty’s was supposed to be another Dad’s location, in fact, before Peix and the current owners parted ways last year. The menu will now lean more on staples such as ribs, tri-tip and brisket with sides like smoked mac and cheese, baked beans and potato salad.

The preliminary tap list is a pretty even split between ciders, IPAs and lighter beers, with the occasional nitro coffee or hard kombucha thrown in there. A few come from local breweries such as Urban Roots and Alaro, and Lefty’s carries 10 varieties of wine. The bar has 35 taps and will keep five vacant for takeovers, Peix said.

The kitchen and taproom are in different buildings separated by Lefty’s courtyard of tables, cornhole and giant Connect 4 and Jenga. Metal beer signs and a mural decorate the bar’s exterior wall, while large TVs play sports highlights a dozen feet from a Skee-Ball Machine inside. Dogs will be allowed inside the bar, Peix said, and kids throughout.

“It’s just a family-friendly juncture. Pretty laid back,” he said. “We want to tap into the market of our neighbors around us.”

Lefty’s replaces Cabana Winery, which moved operations to Lodi in 2018. It’ll be open 3:30 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday and closed Monday.