These 29 Sacramento-area restaurants opened in December. What’s on the menu?

Korean shaved ice in North Natomas. Ribeye shawarma wraps from a Mexican-Palestinian couple. Vegan sushi, courtesy of a local plant-based pioneer.

These 29 restaurants opened in Sacramento and its suburbs in December, adding options from fast-casual meals to $250 steak dinners to the region’s dining scene.

Elk Grove, Folsom, Roseville, Auburn, Rocklin, El Dorado Hills and Woodland all saw two new restaurants open in their city limits, while Rancho Cordova, Galt, Citrus Heights and Shingle Springs each added one apiece.

11:11 Sabores Del Pueblo (537 Main St., Suite B, Woodland): Al pastor tacos, pork loin tortas and birria ramen draw people to this Mexican restaurant in downtown Woodland, which filled Las Brasas Tacos & Salsas’ old location.

Bingsu Tea (2711 Del Paso Road, Suite 100, Sacramento): This locally-owned dessert cafe in Natomas Town Center specializes in bingsu, milk-based Korean shaved ice that can be topped with Oreos, strawberries or matcha ice cream.

Camp Cove (1401 O St., Suite B, Sacramento): Named for the Australian beach of owner Jon Rubel’s youth, Camp Cove serves downtown Sacramento customers acai bowls, avocado toast and sandwiches on Acme Bread and drinks made from Santa Monica-based Amigo Coffee Roasters beans.

Casa Flores (8304 Delta Shores Circle South, Sacramento): A family-owned fixture in Lodi since 1992, Casa Flores brought its signature combination plate (beef taco, beef enchilada, chile relleno and steak ranchero) to south Sacramento’s Delta Shores shopping center on Dec. 27.

Chennai Bamboo Garden (2784 East Bidwell St., Suite 300, Folsom): Karuppasamy “Samy” Irulandi’s new Indo-Chinese restaurant in Broadstone Marketplace serves cross-cultural dishes such as chicken Manchurian, Hakka noodles, and chilli paneer.

Chick’s 500 Degrees (4040 Sunrise Blvd., Suite 100, Rancho Cordova): Chick’s brick-and-mortar restaurant opened Dec. 10 in Sunridge Plaza, the next evolution after three years of serving halal Nashville-style fried chicken on brioche from a food truck.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (1460 E. Main St., Woodland and 2310 Sunset Blvd., Rocklin): The Newport Beach-based chain, which helped popularize Mission-style burritos across the U.S., opened locations with drive-thru “Chipotlanes” in downtown Woodland and Rocklin Commons in December.

Eldo Chophouse & Kitchen (3909 Park Drive, El Dorado Hills): Angelo Heropoulos, who owns forward-thinking Saratoga restaurants Hero Ranch Kitchen and Flowers, is a partner in this upscale steakhouse attached to a La Borgata Center card room. Options range from $14 brioche Parker House rolls with truffle honey butter and shaved black truffles to a $250 “ranch platter” that includes a 38-ounce tomahawk steak, Australian lamb chops and two lobster tails.

Ever After Wine (9639 E. Stockton Blvd., Elk Grove): Nadia Pugh Mincey and Kelly Rhodes’ natural wine bar and bottle shop offers seasonal caprese salads, torched burrata with prosciutto, grilled Brie cheese sandwiches and other shareable plates.

Fogo de Chão (1104 Galleria Blvd., Roseville): Founded in 1979 in Southern Brazil, this pioneering churrascaria opened its first regional location on Dec. 16 in Ridge at Creekside shopping center, serving all-you-can-eat steak and other meat carved off a spit tableside.

Grumpy’s Burgers & Brew (13345 Lincoln Way, Auburn): Jamie Anderson’s burger bar (no relation to a previous Auburn restaurant with similar name) began frying jumbo smash burgers and crispy chicken sandwiches on Dec. 30.

Hanoi - 36 Streets (3262 J St., Sacramento): Named for the capital city’s Old Quarter, Hanoi — 36 Streets introduced its herby sausages, Northern Vietnamese-style meatballs and garlic noodles with filet mignon on Dec. 19 in East Sacramento.

Ikura Japanese Cuisine (3475 Sunset Blvd., Rocklin): Eye-catching sushi such as the Ikura naruto (tuna, yellowtail, crab, avocado and masago wrapped in cucumber) or dezato roll (a dessert featuring fresh fruit and New York-style cheesecake rolled in crispy rice and soy paper, then topped with mango sauce) help separate Ikura from other Japanese restaurants.

Kabayan Filipino Restaurant (705 E. Bidwell St., Folsom): Traditional Filipino dishes and shelf-stable snacks define this market restaurant in Commonwealth Square, where customers can pick up chicken afritada stew, dinakdakan (pork offal in a creamy sauce) or sliced Lechon belly by the pound.

Mario’s Early Toast (3375 Bass Lake Road, Suite 100, El Dorado Hills): Mario Astorga’s popular Cali-Mex brunch concept with 35 mimosa varieties added a fifth location on Dec. 17 in Sienna Ridge Center, joining sister restaurants in Granite Bay, Roseville, Rocklin and Folsom.

McGuire’s Sports Bar & Grill (13570 Lincoln Way, Auburn): Ken McGuire’s eponymous sports bar (he also owns The Tin Lantern Bar & Grill in Meadow Vista) opened Dec. 17 off Interstate 80 with 7,000-square feet of indoor and outdoor space, 20 TVs and six different burgers.

Pho Fresh (8325 Elk Grove Florin Road, Suite 800, Sacramento): Vegan and non-vegan options abound at this Vietnamese restaurant on Sacramento’s southern border, which was preceded by a Rancho Cordova location also slinging banh mi, rice paper rolls and pho.

Radclyffe’s (1330 H St., Suite 110, Sacramento): Caroline Sailor closed Bear Dive on Dec. 14, and opened Radclyffe’s — marketed as a inclusive queer community space with Latin American-inspired food — in its place on Dec. 28.

Raising Cane’s (1500 Arden Way, Sacramento): Fried chicken, crinkle-cut fries and this Louisiana-based chain’s cult favorite pink sauce landed across the street from Arden Fair Mall on Dec. 17.

Roll N Bowl (3045 Arden Way, Suite 400, Sacramento): Teriyaki bowls, sushi rolls and Korean entrees such as bulgogi tteokbokki or tofu bibimbap rule at this fast-casual spot in Arden Arcade.

Station 16 (9625 E. Stockton Blvd., Elk Grove): Firehouse Crawfish and Daikon Korean BBQ owners Minnie Nguyen and Trinh Le also own the original Station 16 on 16th Street in midtown Sacramento; their Elk Grove seafood bar, opened on Dec. 11, serves the same oysters Rockefeller, pan-seared scallops and Cajun prawn linguine as the northern location.

Taco Exxpress (1661 Watt Ave., Sacramento): Tacos are just $1 apiece on Tuesdays at this fast-casual Cali-Mex spot, the ninth Taco Exxpress location and the first one open 24/7.

The Mix Up (415½ C St., Galt): Gina and Basil Husein combined their Mexican and Palestinian heritages to create dishes such as al pastor kebabs and ribeye shawarma wraps, first in an Elk Grove food truck before opening their brick-and-mortar restaurant on Dec. 6.

The Pantry (1410 E. Roseville Parkway, Suite 140, Roseville): Look for brunch classics and Middle Eastern fusion creations such as “pitaquiles” (fried naan chips tossed with shakshuka, topped with seasoned yogurt and accompanied by two eggs) at Havva Munir and Sofyan Abbasi’s halal restaurant in Palisades Plaza.

Urban Plates (2080 Fair Oaks Blvd., Sacramento): This San Diego County-based California chain, which opened its first Sacramento-area location on Dec. 12 in Campus Commons, prides itself on “clean” dishes full of organic ingredients and devoid of GMO, including grass-finished chimichurri steak or sustainably-raised grilled salmon.

Village of Om (1915 S St., Sacramento): Andy Nguyen, owner of Buddha Belly Burger and Andy Nguyen’s Vegetarian Restaurant, opened this dark, swanky vegan sushi lounge on Dec. 13 using alternative proteins from West Sacramento-based Better Meat Co.

Wisegal Coffee (4241 Mother Lode Drive, Shingle Springs): Brylee Lance and Rachel Bezdek did Wisegal pop-ups for about six months before opening their cafe in the old Southern Pacific Railroad depot on Dec. 7, serving beverages such as “The Vader” (dark mocha in a chocolate-lined cup) along with breakfast burritos and quiche slices.

Yummy Buffet Grill (7217 Greenback Lane, Citrus Heights): Customers help themselves to sushi, chow fun and more at Ling Lin’s long-awaited Japanese and Chinese buffet, which opened at Tokyo Buffet’s old spot and has a south Sacramento sister location.

This story was originally published January 6, 2025 at 10:06 AM.