Sunflower Farmers Market opened a long-awaited new grocery store in the Land Park neighborhood on Wednesday morning. Over 400 people waited at the entrance for the 7:00 AM ribbon cutting ceremony. The first 200 customers in line received a canvas grocery bag filled with food products. Steve Black, Vice President of Operations for Sunflower Markets, said the earliest customer had arrived at 3:15 AM. Several customers in the line were still wrapped in blankets. Sunflower Markets is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona and has 37 stores in eight states. The Land Park store is their third store in California and the company is in the process of opening several more in the state this year. The n

Snow cones are a seasonal favorite of the Osaka-Ya pastry shop and market, but it’s taken more than snow cones to keep the shop in business for almost 100 years. A vestige of Sacramento’s former Japantown, which sat in the area around L, N, Third and Fourth streets, Osaka-Ya still provides traditional Japanese sweets, hot food and other edibles near the corner of 10th and V streets downtown. “My mom and dad took over this business in 1963,” said owner Linda Nakatani. “A friend gave them the recipe for the snow cone syrup, and they used a hand-crank snow cone machine to shave the ice.” Her father installed a motor, and the snow cones have been a summer favorite at the business ever since

A request for an expedited hearing by two shoppers suing the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op was denied Thursday, according to court documents, meaning that the case will not be heard before board elections this fall. The lawsuit was brought against the co-op earlier this month and claims that the co-op is not following its bylaws as board members refuse to ban Israeli-made products from the store’s shelves. According to the documents released Thursday, the plaintiffs, Maggie Coulter and Robin Kristufek, “will not suffer irreparable injury if the hearing is heard according to the Court’s normal procedures.” It was unclear Thursday evening when the case will be heard. Had the expedited h

Slicing off the side of a 28-pound halibut is just another day at the office for Danny Johnson, co-owner and butcher at Taylor's Market in Land Park. It’s a skill he was happy to share with a dozen Sacramentans on Saturday for one of several Butchering 101 workshops his store has held since January. The class members bombarded Johnson with their seafood, poultry and butchering questions. He didn't let them down. "Everything I tell you, it's how it works (at Taylor's)," Johnson told the class. They started with poultry. Johnson explained where dark spots on chickens and turkeys come from, the current controversies with organic labeling, and good handling and knifing technique. He showe

A new Grocery Outlet is set to open Thursday in Midtown. Local residents and state workers seemed not to recognize the place when owners Mindi and Ken Admire offered a sneak peak during a ribbon-cutting celebration late Wednesday afternoon. A market-scene mural still marks the corner store at 17th Street and Capitol Avenue, where Rick's Uptown Market operated. But following a costly renovation, the 9,000-square-foot space is much more neighborhood market than convenience store. The sidewalk in front is lined with wooden produce bins holding tomatoes, avocados, onions and fruit. Cheeses, meats and more produce line back walls. A grab-and-go section in front offers pasta salad, sandwiches

One of Sacramento's oldest markets — a store that stood in the heart of Alkali Flat since 1868 — was ravaged by fire Sunday. The little brick store had first been damaged by fire last December after a blaze at an adjacent apartment building spread. The market was shut down, then fenced and boarded up. A man had been squatting in the building recently. Nearly 40 firefighters from nine companies responded Sunday after neighbors heard a boom and saw fire break out on the second floor of the building, 427 10th St., at about 7:30 a.m. A search dog found no one was inside. Firefighters stopped the fire from spreading but weren’t able to save the building. A city crew later tore the rest of th