Arden Hills Resort Club & Spa has promoted Ashurina (Rina) Younan from Sous Chef to Chef de Cuisine, effective immediately.  In her expanded new role as Chef de Cuisine, Chef Rina will oversee the entire food services division at the Resort that includes event/banquet catering and two on-site restaurants -- Mangos and Sprouts Natural Foods Cafe. Chef Rina joined Arden Hills in March 2011 with an extensive background working in food service positions in resort environments throughout the greater Sacramento area. Previously, she worked as Sous Chef for Thunder Valley Casino Resort in Lincoln; as Lead Chef for Scott's Seafood on the River (that also serves Le Rivage guests); and as Lead Cook

After working in the restaurant industry for more than 20 years, Mark Mitchell decided it was time to stop working for other people – so he opened a catering business last summer. Mitchell and Sons Mobile Eatery came to life after friends who own Kasbah Lounge at 22nd and J streets offered to rent their kitchen to him. He has been building his business since then, catering events and regularly supplying food to Midtown and downtown businesses. “The idea was essentially that I really like cooking food, but I didn’t want to work for anyone else,” he said Friday. “I like the creative side of cooking. I like to play music and experiment with it.” Whether he’s listening to The Clash, Tom Pet

UC Davis law professor Anupam Chander spoke to a large crowd at the California Museum on Tuesday, April 19th about the role social media has played in the recent uprisings around the globe, and how it could be a key player in making the world better. Just prior to the professor taking the stage, a wonderful meet-and-greet was held in the lobby of the museum. Politicos, business leaders, media experts, teachers and others chatted over mouth-watering hors’doeuvres provided by Blue Prynt and wine provided by Grace Patriot Wines. Professor Chander was there to discuss a new paper that he had recently published called Googling Freedom. His presentation came in three parts: (1) is social media

Tuli Bistro owners Adam Pechal and Ulrike “Ulli” Lesk Petersen previewed the space and menu of their second restaurant, RESTAURANT THIR13EN, on Friday. The restaurant is located on the bottom floor of the Sterling Hotel at 1300 H St., where the restaurant Chanterelle was until it closed last January. All evening invited guests were provided teasers of THIR13EN’s menu, which included oyster shooters, sous vide quail wings, seared scallops, Kurabuta pork belly and seared sirloin with potato puree. Each guest was also provided a drink ticket to sample offerings from their full bar, such as wine from Berryessa Gap Vineyards, international beer taps and a number of signature cocktails. Peters

St. John’s will give formerly homeless women with children the opportunity to gain work experience and become more self sufficient with its new restaurant, Plates Cafe and Catering. St. John’s Shelter Program for Women & Children celebrated its anniversary on Thursday along with the grand opening of Plates. Guest speakers such as Congresswoman Doris Matsui, Assemblywoman Alyson Huber and Mayor Kevin Johnson attended, along with 350 supporters from the community. "Plates is  a very, very special place,” Matsui said. “It provides a place, a structure, a sanctuary.” After graduating from the 90-day program at St. John’s Shelter, Plates trains women with skills in the food service, catering,

WOW! AMAZING! Cafe Americain is incredible! I stumbled upon this restaurant while I was looking for a venue to hold my yearly Halloween Vampire Ball. I could not have found a better place anywhere. I'll start with my food experience: WOW! I sat down at the beautiful antique bar when a lovely bartender, Chelsea, greeted me and asked me if I'd like to try the Caviar & Champagne Special ($10.00). I was feeling adventurous since I had never actually had Caviar before. WOW! It was smooth, not too salty, just the right amount of snap, and laid upon a little baked pastry with creme fresh. There was also a buttery pancake type of Bellini that had delicious caviar & creme fresh all wrapped up wit

One would be hard-pressed to find somebody more passionate about preserving the environment than multi-professional bike enthusiast John Boyer. "I was mad as hell about the treatment of the planet since I was very small," he said. "I've always been an environmentalist at heart." Boyer Currently holds four occupations: a mechanic at Carmichael Cycle, an instructor at the Sacramento Bicycle Kitchen, a long-time waiter at La Bohème and now founder of catering delivery business Edible Pedal. Yet despite his loaded work schedule, Boyer said he's able to find solace in his work because of the eco-friendly message it provides the community. "I bike everywhere," Boyer said. "When I was a child,