Bistro 33 in Midtown shut its doors Monday, but will reopen in November as a burger place catering to the late-night crowd. “Midtown is focused more around bars and nightlife,” Matt Haines, vice president of SRO Managing Group, which runs Bistro 33 and other restaurants in the area. “We were selling mainly our burgers.” Haines said the bistro concept at 1020 16th St. wasn’t working in the area dominated by nightlife, so the restaurant will undergo a six-week transformation to a new concept: Spin Burger Bar. “We went with Spin Burger because it goes with DJs spinning records, and bicycles,” Haines said, adding that the live DJ will be able to moderate sound levels and music to fit with t

Pedestrian traffic may have appeared somewhat peculiar in Midtown on Saturday. Merry crowds of golfers, and a pirate or two, took to the streets in droves for the first annual Albie Puttin’ Pub and Putt Crawl presented by Go-Girl Energy Drink. Tickets were $25 for walk-ups and $20 for those who preregistered. All proceeds from the event went straight to Albie Aware Inc., a foundation dedicated to supporting women struggling with breast cancer. Executive Director Cindy Love, was a close friend to Albie Carson. The foundation was formed after Carson died of breast cancer in 2002. “We started the foundation because she was not given the proper testing after she was diagnosed, and we would

Golf, pub crawl and breast cancer are usually not three topics you see together. But then again, Albie Puttin’ is not your typical pub crawl. Saturday, Sacramentans can play a nine-hole game of miniature golf and enjoy drink specials all while helping breast cancer patients. All ticket sales will benefit the Albie Aware organization — founded to help provide resources such as paying medical fees to breast cancer patients. This is the first pub crawl event fundraiser that Albie Aware is holding, sponsored by Go-Girl Energy Drink. The crawl will begin with at noon Saturday at deVere’s Irish Pub. Each restaurant or bar has made its own themed hole and will feature drink and food specials,

Dye the rivers green and dance in the streets, Saint Patrick's Day is here. A day when everyone is Irish and people takes to the streets for music, food and green beer. Below is a collection of restaurants and bars in Midtown and downtown offering specials on food and drinks and even hosting a block party or two. de Vere's Irish Pub, 1521 L Street, is hosting their second annual St. Patrick's Day Block Party, closing off L Street between 15th and 16th. The street party will feature music by '80s cover band Tainted Love and the California Fire Department Pipes and Drums. Sandwiches, brats and other food will be sold to soak up the alcohol from the two outdoor bars and whiskey tent. Advance

Prospective developers for a new sports and entertainment complex were questioned by Mayor Kevin Johnson’s volunteer task force Wednesday night. The 12-member task force, which includes real estate, finance and communications executives, asked numerous follow-up questions after listening to presentations by Matt Haines, Doug Tatara and Ali Mackani. Haines, who owns Bistro 33 in Midtown, told the task force about his proposal to build the complex in downtown’s Docks Area. “This would be a direct front-door” to Old Sacramento, he said. Old Sacramento is north of the proposed area. Task force project coordinator Matt Massari wrote earlier that Haines’ Docks Area project would be “adjacent

The fifth annual Dine Downtown week is back January 8 through January 17 with 35-featured restaurants. Dine Downtown is the perfect opportunity to sample the best Downtown restaurants like The Firehouse, Biba Restaurant, Bistro 33, and Ella Dining Room & Bar on a budget. How it works: Each Dine Downtown restaurant will offer a prix-fixe three-course dinner menu for $30 per person that typically includes your choice of an appetizer, an entree, and a dessert. All you have to do is ask for the Dine Downtown menu once you’re seated. Restaurants like Morgan’s at the Sheraton Grand Hotel and The Pilothouse Restaurant also offer special wine pairings to complement each dish. Plan ahead: Take a

On Friday of last week, Nick and I went out for a tour of Sacramento, trying to discover new forms of advertising and new hot spots for our advertising. We began at Caesar Chavez Park thinking that there would be a farmers market. There wasn't, but that did not stop us from leaving Sac Press cardboard computers in a couple of random places. We then headed on down to Centro, on J and 28th for some delicious grub. We had a couple margaritas, and dropped a few buttons out front. They are sure to be noticed by some bar hoppers on Friday night. The genius with this marketing ploy is, that whomever finds this button may think that it was dropped by mistake, and will therefore be more eager to