Crepe shop, sister-owned cafe among 15 new Sacramento-area eateries in November
Cafes and restaurants expanded existing footprints, families launched new businesses together and a new ice cream shop joined Folsom’s dining roster despite cold temperatures settling in across the Valley.
Eight of the region’s new dining options call the capital city home, while Folsom saw four new restaurants. Lincoln, Carmichael and Newcastle each received one new eatery in November.
More Italian burritos, sushi burgers, French crepes
Casa Flores, 1033 S St., Suite 110, in Sacramento’s Southside Park, opened Nov. 21. Sisters Hassel, Sabinne and Thamara Flores launched their cozy Southside Park coffee shop together, documenting much of the process on their social media accounts. The trio serve classic coffee beverages and a range of European and Latin American-inspired pastries and brunch dishes, pulling from their Salvadoran heritage.
Casa Lola launched at 1132 16th St. on the border of midtown Sacramento, bringing a mix of Mexican comfort meals and contemporary Cali-Mex indulgence. The MAC Hospitality Group, which also runs Iron Horse Tavern and Cafeteria 15L, opened the eatery on Nov. 3. Alongside a diverse food menu, the restaurant has a dedicated tequila list with more options than its standard beverage menu.
Catherine’s Creperie, 200 Wool St. in Folsom, opened on Nov. 21, where Paris-born and Napa Valley-raised Catherine Bonnefoy and her team serve up fresh French crepes with savory and sweet toppings. Bonnefoy had been running her crepe shop as a pop-up stand at the Folsom Farmers Market since 2023.
Dutch Bros opened its newest capital region drive-through shop at 7945 Elder Creek Road in Sacramento’s Glen Elder neighborhood. The new Glen Elder neighborhood location is the fifth in Dutch Bros’ south Sacramento franchise group. The region has more than 45 quick-service Dutch Bros coffee shops from Dixon to Placerville.
Fukumi Ramen’s third outpost in the region began serving bowls of steaming ramen on Nov. 17 at 4630 Natomas Blvd. in Sacramento’s North Natomas. The noodle house focuses on three types of ramen bases: Tonkotsu pork broth, tori-paitan chicken broth and abura, or soupless, ramen. Fukumi’s operators also operate sister restaurants Young’s Teriyaki, Pier 50 Sushi, Its Sushi and Japanese tapas eatery Fukumi Chaya.
Gather and Toast opened simultaneously with Catherine’s Creperie at 200 Wool St., adding sparkling wine, brunch meals and other desserts to the historic Folsom building. Jonathan and Katie Pack launched their wine bar on Nov. 21, pouring a selection of bubbly from their family’s El Dorado County winery, Gwinllan Estate.
Haraz Coffee House started serving Yemeni coffee at its second cafe, 194 Blue Ravine Road in Folsom, on Nov. 14. Authentic Yemeni-style coffee, Turkish coffee, chai and espresso are on the drink menu at the new Muslim-owned business, which opened its first location in Roseville in July.
Notty’s Italian Burrito expanded to its second location, at 129 Ferrari Ranch Road in Lincoln, on Nov. 22. Though its name evokes images of lasagna wrapped in a flour tortilla, the restaurant actually focuses on air-fried calzone creations. Chris Ewing opened the first Notty’s in Rocklin in April, hoping to develop a “fast food Italian” concept, The Bee previously reported.
Onigiri Burgers, 4001 Freeport Blvd., Suite 110, in Sacramento’s Carleton Tract neighborhood, is looking at sushi from a new perspective. The eatery focuses on folding sushi into taco and burger shapes, for a handheld twist on the iconic Japanese meal. Onigiri Burgers opened in mid-November, and a second location may be in the works in Arden Arcade, according to previous Bee reporting.
Teneral Cellars’ first wine lounge opened at 1050 20th St., Suite 110 in midtown on Nov. 29. Business and life partners Jill Osur and Lisa Orrell have been making wine out of their Amador County and El Dorado County wineries for the last five years, winning more than 100 awards for their whites, reds and roses. The pair, along with lead winemaker Kira Ballotta, donate 10% of the company’s profits to racial justice and gender equality organizations, according to the winery’s website.
The Brunch Corner, 6140 Fair Oaks Blvd. in Carmichael, launched with a celebratory ribbon cutting ceremony on Nov. 19. The new breakfast and brunch eatery is housed in a bright, orange-washed building formerly operated by a Mexican restaurant. Its menu features sweet and savory breakfast classics, as well as salads, burgers and sandwiches for lunch lovers.
Umbrella Creamery, 1870 Prairie City Road, Suite 300, in Folsom, opened its doors on Nov. 22, with small-batch ice cream, Mexican paletas, Indian kulfi and more. The new ice cream shop offers familiar flavors like vanilla, while expanding to international flavors like lychee, mango-chamoy and ube. In addition to traditional American ice cream cones and milkshakes, Umbrella Creamery makes Persian-inspired falooda, a creamy and fruity layered dessert.
West Coast Sourdough marked the Sacramento International Airport’s latest step in its dining refresh project, which will rotate out more than a dozen restaurants and quick-service eateries across its two terminals. The soup and sandwich chain opened two restaurants in the airport, in Terminals A and B after the security checkpoints, The Bee previously reported.
Wild Groves Olive Oil opened a tasting room at 9385 Old State Highway, Suite 4, in Newcastle on Nov. 4. The Placer County-based oil mill has a wall full of flavored olive oil and balsamic vinegar dispensers, allowing customers to sample dozens of options. Owner Dewey Lucero and his family have been growing and pressing olives in Northern California for four generations.
Four locally owned businesses and chain eateries permanently closed last month
Two beloved Sacramento restaurants, including a pan-Caribbean eatery and a comforting brunch spot, shut their doors in November. Two chain franchises also served their last meals in the capital region last month.
Bodega Kitchen & Cocktails, 6401 Riverside Blvd. in Sacramento, shut its doors on Nov. 15 after three years slinging Caribbean fare in the Greenhaven neighborhood. Co-owner Rafael Jimenez Rivera closed the Sacramento Bee Top 50 Restaurants mainstay due to rising costs of running the business while sales declined, The Bee reported.
The Five Guys burger chain shut down its only franchise in Folsom on Nov. 25, at 2750 E. Bidwell St., Suite 100. The Bee previously reported that the major fast food eatery filed a mass layoff notification with the state’s employment development department, indicating 16 personnel would be impacted by the closure. Five Guys has seven remaining restaurants in the Sacramento area.
Kitchen 15, 1630 K St. in Sacramento, permanently closed on Nov. 30 after its three-year lease on the midtown unit lapsed. The brunch restaurant combined Southern comfort dishes like chicken and waffles with experimental flavors found on the West Coast, such as ube syrup.
Local Kitchens closed its doors on the Sacramento region last month, eliminating its final capital region ghost kitchen at 500 First St., Suite 13A, in Davis. Since September, the food hall group has shrunk its footprint from 10 locations — including three in the Sacramento area — to four exclusively in the Bay Area.
