Longtime West Sacramento restaurant Club Pheasant purchased by city, future unclear
West Sacramento bagged itself a pheasant long ago. Now, it’s preserving it.
The West Sacramento City Council voted at Wednesday’s meeting to purchase Club Pheasant, the Palamidessi family’s beloved Italian American restaurant that’ll close after 87 years next month.
The 8,452-square foot building and 2.15-acre lot at 2525 Jefferson Blvd. will cost the city $3.4 million from its Community Investment Fund. It’s not yet clear what the property will be used for, and the deal won’t be complete until Dec. 6, around the time Club Pheasant shuts down.
Club Pheasant’s building was initially constructed in 1912 as a UC Davis soil and agriculture laboratory. George and Luisa Palamidessi bought it in 1935, and opened a restaurant called the Hideaway Cafe in its place.
The name changed, but the Palamidessi family retained ownership over the years, adding a dining room dedicated to Luisa in 1977 and an outdoor patio in 1997. Pastas, steaks and salads soared out of the kitchen for generations, establishing Club Pheasant as West Sacramento’s most iconic restaurant.
“It was enjoyed by generations of local families and renowned throughout the Sacramento region for its garlic steak sandwiches, fried ravioli, and other Italian specialties,” wrote Diane Richards, interim director of economic development and housing, in a report presented at Wednesday’s meeting.
The founders’ great-grandchildren still run Club Pheasant today, but announced plans in June to close the restaurant by the end of 2022. They planned to sell to local real estate developer Ridge Capital, which was considering demolishing the building, according to Richards’ report.
City staff instead worked out a deal to transfer Ridge Capital’s purchase agreement to the city, with an extra $90,000 to cover the developer’s building analysis costs and a $160,000 buyout.
The city will evaluate the building and begin talking to prospective buyers over the next few months, with hopes of selling to a developer that’ll offer some sort of food option.
The property is zoned for a variety of uses including gas stations, convenience stores and retail shops in addition to the restaurant that’s been there for nearly 90 years. Further use as a restaurant, though, would “necessitate significant investment,” according to Richards’ report.
There’s a model 3 1/2 miles down the road from Club Pheasant: Burgers & Brew, which took over West Sacramento’s 1940s-era Washington Firehouse in 2016 after similar city intervention.