As restaurants reopen for in-person dining, Dine Downtown adds takeout brunch, lunch
Dine Downtown, the Sacramento city core’s annual three-course January meal deal, returns Friday — with pandemic alterations.
Gone are the multi-hour meals in The Firehouse Restaurant or Empress Tavern’s basement dining rooms. Brunch and lunch have been introduced, and prices now range from $25 to $45 in lieu of last year’s flat $40 rate.
The 28 participating restaurants will offer 2021 Dine Downtown meals exclusively for curbside pickup, takeout and/or delivery in accordance with local and statewide COVID-19 social distancing regulations. Prix-fixe meals will be available from Jan. 8-24, a three-weekend stretch that’s longer than previous years.
Dreary weather, New Years diets and a dearth of celebrations combine to make January the worst financial month for many restaurants. The pandemic has particularly walloped restaurants around the Capitol and Golden 1 Center as thousands of state employees continue working from home and stadium events figure to among the last stages of pre-coronavirus life to return.
Kaiser Permanente and InterWest Insurance Services have covered restaurants’ participation fees for the Downtown Sacramento Partnership’s 16th annual Dine Downtown in light of the difficult past year. SacRT is offering free rides to downtown, midtown or east Sacramento on Jan. 12 and 19 through on-demand SmaRT shuttles if riders print or screenshot a flyer available at godowntownsac.com.
Orders for some restaurants can be placed through Pickup Fixe, a zero-commission online platform created by Canon co-owner Clay Nutting at the start of the pandemic.
Participating restaurants include:
▪ Aioli Bodega Española (1800 L St.): $45 dinner menu or $50 with dessert course
▪ Beach Hut Deli & Taproom (711 K St.): $25 lunch and dinner menu
▪ Brasserie Capitale (1201 K St., Suite 100): $35 lunch menu and $45 dinner menu
▪ Camden Spit & Larder (555 Capitol Mall, Suite 100): $45 dinner menu, only open Wednesdays and Fridays
▪ Canon (1719 34th St.): $45 dinner menu
▪ Capitol Garage (1500 K St.): $35 lunch menu
▪ Dawson’s Steakhouse (1209 L St.): $45 dinner menu
▪ Falafel Corner (1004 J St.): $25 lunch and dinner menu
▪ Frank Fat’s (806 L St.): $45 dinner menu, includes eight items
▪ Hawks Public House (1525 Alhambra Blvd.): $45 dinner menu
▪ Hook & Ladder Manufacturing Co. (1630 S St.): $45 dinner menu
▪ Hoppy’s Railyard Kitchen & Hopgarden (1022 2nd St.): $45 lunch and dinner menu
▪ House Kitchen & Bar (555 Capitol Mall): $35 dinner menu
▪ Kasbah (2115 J St.): $35 lunch and dinner menu
▪ Kodaiko Ramen & Bar (718 K St.): $35 dinner menu
▪ La Cosecha (917 9th St.): $45 dinner menu, five courses
▪ Mayahuel (1200 K St.): $45 dinner menu, includes cocktail
▪ Maydoon (1501 16th St., Suite 111): $35 dinner menu
▪ Midtown Sushi (2801 P St.): $35 dinner menu or $35 vegan dinner menu
▪ Polanco Cantina (414 K St., Suite 240): $35 dinner menu, includes chips and salsa
▪ Solomon’s (730 K St.): $25 brunch and $35 lunch menu, serves two
▪ Station 16 (1118 16th St.): $45 dinner menu
▪ Steamers Bakery and Cafe (101 K St.): $25 dinner menu
▪ Tapa the World (2115 J St.): $45 lunch and dinner menu
▪ The Firehouse Restaurant (1112 2nd St.): $45 dinner menu with $15 or $25 wine flights available
▪ The Melting Pot (814 15th St.): $25 dinner menu or $35 with a bottle of wine, must order at least two
▪ The Porch Restaurant & Bar (1815 K St.): $35 brunch menu
▪ Yard House (405 K St., Suite 100): $35 lunch and dinner menu
Customers can also purchase e-gift cards valid across eight participating restaurants at https://app.yiftee.com/gift-card/downtown-sacramento--ca. Kaiser will will chip in a $25 certificate, which must be used during Dine Downtown, for every gift card purchase of $100 or more while supplies last. Customer-purchased gift cards do not expire.
This story was originally published January 7, 2021 at 6:30 AM.