Snubbed: These 5 restaurants should have made The Sacramento Bee’s Top 50 list, readers say

The Sacramento Bee’s 2024 Top 50 Restaurants list traipsed the capital region to shine light on the best eateries around. A few more places deserve to be highlighted, too, readers said.

These five restaurants were the Top 50 list’s biggest snubs, according to reader write-ins. Each has been added to the master list with “readers’ choice” tags, and be up for review for The Bee’s next Top 50 list.

Cacio

$ — Italian

If the Hallmark Channel needs romantic comedy inspiration, Cacio has a heartwarming tale. Jonathan Kerksieck and Katie Kinner-Kerksieck spent decades in high-end Sacramento restaurants before meeting in 2008 at Grange, the renowned downtown spot attached to the Citizen Hotel. Both shared the pain of recently losing their fathers, and a romance eventually blossomed over bowls of cacio e pepe that then-chef de cuisine Jonathan made for front-of-house manager Katie. That simple Roman mix of pecorino cheese, black pepper and bucatini became the namesake dish for the couple’s own Italian restaurant when it opened in 2018 in the Pocket’s Riverlake Village Shopping Center. The orecchiette con salsiccia has become popular in its own right with Cacio’s loyal fan contingent, its housemade sausage and Calabrian chiles punching through broccoli rabe and pasta shaped like little ears. Although the seasonal menus change frequently, one dessert remains: a streak of housemade chocolate ganache bisected with olive oil, finished with sea salt and served with grilled bread.

7600 Greenhaven Drive, Suite 23, Sacramento, CA 95831 | 916-399-9309

Mayahuel

$$ — Mexican

Ernesto Delgado is Sacramento’s preeminent Mexican restaurateur, the visionary behind Octopus Baja in midtown, La Cosecha in downtown’s Cesar Chavez Plaza and Mesa Mercado in Carmichael’s Milagro Centre (not to mention the reason West Sacramento landmark Sal’s Tacos is still open). A Michoacán native who picked fruit in Napa Valley before attending Sacramento State, Delgado’s mini-empire began with Mayahuel, his elevated restaurant and tequila museum that became a jewel of The Kay in 2011. The lush streetside patio feels built for happy hour cocktails, tortilla chips and Yucatán pepita dip called sikil p’ak, while dinner customers will want to dive into platters of carnitas or cochinita pibil in the spacious dining room covered in storytelling artwork. The creme de chile poblano, Mayahuel’s signature item, ranks among the best soups anywhere in the Sacramento region, a smooth, pale green concoction with a cascade of flavors that ends in heat. Excellent gluten-free options, a full vegan menu and mocktails crafted with intent help make Mayahuel accessible to a diverse group of dining needs, making it a top after-work or pre-show spot near the Capitol.

1200 K St., Sacramento, CA 95814 | 916-441-7200

Nixtaco

$ — Mexican

Nixtaco’s lore and reach has only swelled since Cinthia Martinez and Patricio Wise, Monterrey natives with no formal restaurant experience, opened their enterprising concept in 2016. Housemade blue corn tortillas playing host to short rib barbacoa, Mazatlan-style shrimp or honey-glaze pork belly have made Nixtaco a must-visit for anyone driving through on Interstate 80, a phenomenon SF Gate recognized when dubbing them “Northern California’s best tacos” in 2021. Customers can also opt for those fillings to be wrapped in burritos, and eight-inch quesadillas such as the campechana (Monterrey’s specialty with al pastor, carne asada, caramelized queso Oaxaca and avocado) aren’t to be overlooked either. A new distillery program produces gin and vodka to be enjoyed neat or mixed into house cocktails, perhaps in a private dining room unveiled in December.

1805 Cirby Way, Suite 12, Roseville, CA 95661 | 916-771-4165

Queen Sheba Ethiopian Cuisine

$ — African

Sacramento’s best-known Ethiopian restaurant since 2003, Queen Sheba has withstood a move from Howe Avenue to Broadway, a Davis location closure and even arson to cement its place in the city’s dining scene. Ethiopia native Zion Taddese is a happy ambassador for her birthplace’s cuisine, introducing thousands of customers to traditional coffee ceremonies, doro wat (chicken stew) and kitfo (rare minced beef with housemade cottage cheese and greens). She’s also one of the brains behind Sheba Farms, an effort to promote teff — the grain used to make spongy, gluten-free injera — as a viable food crop in California. While those yields have yet to reach the lunch buffets and family platters that let customers try much of Queen Sheba at once, they’ve further established Taddese and her restaurant as one of Sacramento’s top Black food leaders.

1704 Broadway, Sacramento, CA 95818 | 916-446-1223

The Waterboy

$$ — Californian

Erstwhile Paragary’s chef/partner Rick Mahan became a Sacramento farm-to-fork pioneer in his own right when he opened The Waterboy in 1996. Similar to Mahan’s former bistro, The Waterboy creates California-fresh dishes from a Northern Italy/Southern France base with an emphasis on pasta. Yet gourmands such as Corti Brothers owner Darrell Corti fill The Waterboy’s wicker chairs for its veal sweetbreads, tossed with mushrooms, bacon and capers in marsala wine and a demi-glace. The steak tartare, side squares of creamy potato gratin and Caesar salad with grilled Mary’s Chicken breast are all cornerstones as well, and chef de cuisine Kate Sutherland oversees seasonal inventions such as baked Alaskan halibut with braised sweet potatoes, French green lentils and sauteed kale in guanciale butter sauce. Pastry chef Chloe Albin’s creations are always worth checking in on, including airy profiteroles with housemade toffee, peppermint bark or caramel ice cream depending on the weather.

2000 Capitol Ave., Sacramento, CA 95811 | 916-498-9891