20 new restaurants opened around the Sacramento area last month. Here’s the list

The shortest month of the year still saw plenty of restaurants open around the Sacramento region.

At least 20 restaurants opened around Sacramento in February, from Yolo County in the west and Placer County in the east to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in the south.

Roseville’s dining boom continued with the addition of three new restaurants, and three places opened around the downtown/midtown Sacramento grid as well. Folsom and Elk Grove each added two places, and Granite Bay, West Sacramento, Gold River and Walnut Grove each gained one new restaurant.

The list of new spots includes four Mexican restaurants, three coffee shops, a trio of fried chicken favorites and a pair of pizzerias. Chinese, Vietnamese, Japanese, Hawaiian, barbecue and soul food restaurants also debuted in February.

▪ Anonimo Pizza (400 12th St., Sacramento): Broderick Roadhouse owner Chris Jarosz recruited former Pizza Rock and Hot Italian staff to power his Alkali Flat pizzeria, which makes Detroit-, Neopolitan- and New York-style pizzerias.

▪ Big Island Hawaiian BBQ (1016 Riley St., Suite 5, Folsom): Get your plate lunch fix with chicken katsu, kalua pork and other Hawaiian dishes in a Walmart-anchored shopping center.

▪ Casa Del Lago (8570 Auburn Folsom Rd., Granite Bay): This sit-down Mexican restaurant replaced another, Cabos, when it opened Feb. 15 with dishes like carne picada and arroz con pollo.

▪ Chef Bo (9135 W. Stockton Blvd., Elk Grove): It’s the second area location for this Chinese restaurant, which opened Feb. 10 in Elk Grove after serving customers in Arden Arcade since 2013.

▪ Drip Espresso (1004 24th St., Sacramento): This Black-owned midtown cafe serves vegan dishes like an open-faced sandwich with black-eyed pea hummus, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions and fried garlic, named “The Jaeda” after the owners’ mother.

▪ Fat Lou’s Cafe (14147 River Rd., Walnut Grove): The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta’s newest restaurant splits its time between all-American diner food and Mexican-inspired dishes such as chile verde or chilaquiles.

▪ Flock (185 Placerville Rd., Suite 150, Folsom): Chef/owner Jordan Davis’ new pizzeria along Highway 50 cold-ferments its dough for three days and tops pies with ingredients like delicata squash, Parmesan cream, garlic, mozzarella, chevre, lemon and crispy sage.

▪ Franquette (965 Bridge St., Suite 100, West Sacramento): Former Paris resident and Canon pastry chef Elena Winks helms this French-inspired wine bar/cafe, opened Feb. 16 in The Bridge District.

▪ Gumbo King (2201 Northgate Blvd., Suite F, Sacramento): Chef Tommie Langford’s south Natomas soul food spot with a full bar opened Feb. 16 with elevated dinners centered around oxtails, lamb chops and, of course, gumbo.

▪ Kiki’s Chicken Place (1565 Eureka Rd., Roseville): This locally owned fried chicken chain held the soft opening for its first Roseville restaurant on Feb. 10.

▪ Koi Japanese Bistro (1920 29th St., Suite A, Sacramento): Tucked away on the fringes of midtown, Koi offers sushi and tempura as well as fusion dishes like miso-mushroom-scallop risotto.

▪ Lola’s Tequila Bar & Cocina (1563 Eureka Rd., Roseville): Fajitas, burritos and seafood dishes such as mango ceviche mark Carlos Justin Rodriguez’s third regional refined Mexican restaurant and bar, following R Vida Cantina in Citrus Heights and La Cascada in El Dorado Hills.

▪ Our Family BBQ And Pie Take & Bake Shop (2326 Fair Oaks Blvd., Suite J, Sacramento): You can heat up pies from this restaurant, now in Sierra Oaks after a run in North Highlands, or enjoy meats like tri-tip, hot links and grilled chicken on the spot.

▪ Raising Cane’s (9164 East Stockton Blvd., Elk Grove and 1220 Galleria Blvd., Roseville): The Baton Rouge-based chicken chain completed its area expansion (for now) with openings in Roseville on Feb. 8 and Elk Grove on Feb. 22.

▪ Ray’s Chicken & Fish Mart (7915 Bruceville Rd., Sacramento): This South Sacramento fish fry also sells king crab, jalapeño cornbread and deep-fried mushrooms or corn on the cob, as at its Arden Arcade and Stockton locations.

▪ Sacto By Night (7121 Governors Cir., Sacramento): Neon lights illuminate karaoke performers and Vietnamese dishes like bún mắm (sometimes referred to as “Vietnamese gumbo”) or Northern Hanoi-style beef pho at this restaurant off of Florin Road, which serves breakfast, lunch, dinner and late-night drinks.

▪ Taqueria Ay Jalisco Express (8740 La Riviera Dr., Suite B, Sacramento): Taqueria Ay Jalisco has expanded to La Riviera after 22 years in a taco truck and West Sacramento and Isleton restaurants. This version specializes in quick-service bowls, burritos and tacos with fillings like birria, pollo asado and Chile Colorado.

▪ The Mimosa House (2180 Golden Centre Ln., Gold River): This brunch hot spot offers more than 100 different mimosa combinations, as at its five other regional locations.

▪ There & Back Again (1020 11th St., Suite 100, Sacramento): Heidi and Ross Rojek’s downtown “Lord of the Rings”-themed cafe replaced Oblivion Comics & Coffee with hand pies, avocado toasts and specials like “Shire-cuterie” boards.

This story was originally published March 2, 2022 at 3:00 AM.