With 2,624 Sacramento restaurants reviewed on Yelp, the capital city has thousands of restaurant-goers using Yelp to share their dining experiences with others. A recent study done by Harvard Business School Assistant Professor Michael Luca found that local restaurants increase revenue 5 to 9 percent per star they gain on Yelp. The Sacramento Press wanted to see if this finding held true for restaurants in the central city. Comments and ratings on Yelp appear to make a big difference, but Sacramento restaurant owners and managers say they aren’t so sure. Luca combined data on Seattle restaurant revenues that he collected from the Washington State Department of Revenue and Yelp ratings o

One walks down 16th Street on the “grid” in Sacramento and comes across two large and empty buildings at the corners of L and K streets. Both once newly operating restaurants in this energetic area have since closed their doors. The buildings, a common sight for many pedestrians and grid commuters like me, are prominent icons within the mid and downtown areas of Sacramento. The old Firestone building at 16th and K streets with its art deco details and sidewalk-fixed spot lights stands lonesome among the moving traffic and thriving businesses in the suites next door. The contemporary O Street Lofts, built back in 2005, beg for a tenant in their corner, first-floor suite with a wrap-around

The new vegetarian food blog, “Eat Well, Live Free,” launched earlier this month in Sacramento. Since it went online, the site has garnered more than 400 unique visitors, said co-creator Marcos Hernández. Jillena and Marcos Hernández, the married duo that created the blog, said the idea behind the blog is to provide local vegetarians with information about recipes and restaurants that cater to vegetarian and vegan lifestyles. “We’re just trying to spread awareness and make it easier for vegetarians,” Marcos Hernández said. Jillena Hernández is a vegetarian, while Marcos Hernández is a meat-eater. While the two differ in that respect, they work well together in combining their skills for

Sacramento International Airport’s new Terminal B opened to the public on Sunday to give locals a preview of the $1.03 billion project before it opens for air traffic on Oct. 6. Airport spokeswoman Karen Doron said nearly 4,500 people made reservations to observe the terminal's new art and its elaborate design. “It’s beautiful,” said Merrilyn Hirsch, a 65-year-old retiree. “They really got their money’s worth.” Starting at 10 a.m., guests lined up to be the first to see the architectural feat. They were led onto the trains, called “people movers,” and brought from the terminal’s “land side” to the “air side.” The trains sped across the airport and went back and forth every two minutes, b

Local eats such as Mighty Kong Café’s pork sliders, Dad’s Kitchen’s specialty macaroni and cheese, Scott’s Seafood Grill and Bar’s oyster dish and Freeport Bakery’s cakes and cookies will fill plates while local wines and beers flow into glasses during three hours of sampling and socializing at Saturday’s Wine Tasting & Silent Auction. The Sierra Curtis Neighborhood Association is hosting its 21st annual Wine Tasting & Silent Auction Saturday from 4 - 7 p.m. at the Sierra 2 Center at 2791 24th St. This year’s event will feature the addition of local microbrews and dishes from first-time participators Lucca Restaurant and Bar, The Supper Club, Enotria Restaurant and Wine Bar and Matteo’s P

Restaurants accumulate anywhere between 250 and 500 pounds of organic kitchen scraps each week, according to Green Restaurant Alliance of Sacramento co-founder David S. Baker. These hundreds of pounds of scraps, instead of filling landfills, can be used for compost to fertilize the very soil that will produce the next crop of fruits and vegetables. Since March 2010, GRAS, in partnership with Atlas Disposal, has worked toward creating a more sustainable food industry in the city through the use of a “closed-loop” system. “These are valuable resources that would be just going straight to a landfill and serving no use,” Baker said. GRAS is made up of Hot Italian, Mulvaney's B&L, Selland’s

Looking for an excuse to go out with the girls, or a new spin on a date? Check out these unique brunch specials in Sacramento that are sure to make your mouth water. Tower Cafe Located on 1518 Broadway. Brunch hours are from 8 -11 a.m. Monday through Thursday, 7 – 11 a.m. Friday and 7 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Tower Cafe takes pride in its “Madame Cristo.” It is a new version of French toast, loaded with swiss cheese and ham. “French toast is our most popular dish, and people love it so much that our chef decided to make another version,” Manager Ruben Reveles said. Breakfast cocktails are also served during brunch hours. “La Frida” is Tower Cafe's version of a Mimosa, whic

Let’s face it; those of us that use social networking sites are pretty much addicted. Whether you are connected through Facebook or Twitter—or both—you have a pretty good idea of what’s going on around town. Businesses that have been paying attention for the past two plus years are aware of this phenomenon and have leveraged social media to broaden their reach to potential customers. Restaurateurs are no different. On Tuesday, the Social Media Club, Sacramento (@SMCSac) hosted the “Dining Social: Restaurants & Social Media” at The Urban Hive in midtown to discuss how local restaurants are using social media and the impact it has had on their business. Ashlee Gadd (@AshleeGadd), PR Manager

It’s almost time for the August ‘Second Saturday’, where midtown SacTown comes alive with artists, musicians, art galleries, and shops in the evening hours. “K” Street is ‘kickin’, “J” Street is “jumpin’, and the surrounding streets are pulsing with the rhythms of the night. But what about “E” Street over in Mansion Flats? Mansion Flats, the sister neighborhood to Alkali Flats, is located from 12th Street to 16th between “the Union Pacific Railyard & “J” streets. Mansion Flats, Alkali Flats and New Era Park were the original City Street Railway neighborhoods and consisted of the wealthy and middle class families, according to the Sacramento History blog. Have you been looking for some p

July 2011/Edition2 – Cruising for Bargains on Dollar Tuesdays. Location – Downtown around K and R Streets. Short on cash but want to get out? No need to sell your plasma at a blood center or unload your music collection at The Beat. If you can hang on ‘til Tuesday, there are some tasty bargains out there from downtown establishments willing to lure you in their door by staying out of your wallet. Pedal down to 7th and K and try a Vive taco for a buck – inside where it’s cool or outside on the patio. This part of K Street has been recently cleaned up by the city and it’s looking better than it has in years.   If you’d rather eat asian, give Wayside Noodles a try on 9th and J. Happy ho

Biba Restaurant reopened Tuesday with a soft new look after a remodel to celebrate its 25th anniversary in Midtown. Sacramento restaurateur, TV show host and cookbook author Biba Caggiano added a new color palette and made other changes at her namesake Italian eatery. The restaurant at 2801 Capitol Ave. was closed July 3 - Monday to allow work on the its two dining rooms. The makeover was done in time to mark a quarter-century in business next month. "Just like a beautiful woman, you don't stay beautiful forever unless you do something," Caggiano said during the lunch hour Tuesday. "This place needed something: color, other things. I'm very, very, very happy." Both rooms opened Aug. 6,

July 2011/Edition1 – Three Japanese places barely on your radar. Location – Downtown 10th, 11th &12th Streets, between Broadway & R.   Summer is here. It’s hot. Tomato plants are hitting their stride – if you listen hard enough you can practically hear them growing inches by the hour. But it’s still early for the Early Girls, and it’s too hot to cook. So, time to take the cruiser for a spin and see what we can find. R Street has new restaurants and is usually hopping. The city is repaving this neglected corridor and restoring the historic rail. (If only they would put a trolley on it.) What's this? The new Shoki Ramen House! Their first location off 2nd Ave near Crepeville always has

Sacramento locavore Amber Stott is documenting her life as a conscious consumer and her journey to eat as locally as she can with a food blog, Awake at the Whisk. She said she likes to start each day, camera in hand, with a walk through the garden. On a recent June morning, she snapped photos of plants in her backyard next to the American River.  Planter boxes were filled with watermelon, tomatillos, corn, squash, cucumbers, melons and peppers growing in various stages. She pushed aside leaves, peered under plants and squealed with joy when she found the first jalapeno of the season.  "With the garden, every single day there's something new. That's – for me – my favorite part of the da

This fall, Midtown Sacramento will finally get its own Squeeze Inn – home of the famous Squeeze Burger and Squeeze with Cheese. Squeeze Inn employee Sabrina Nicola will open her first restaurant under the guidance of Squeeze Inn owners Travis and Vicki Hausauer. The Hausauers will be silent partners in the new restaurant expected to open in October on K Street. Nicola, 25, will be the sole operator and will work under a licensing agreement with the couple, who bought the original Squeeze Inn on Fruitridge Road in 2001. Both she and Travis Hausauer said she has learned a lot working behind the counter, starting out at the little old shack that first housed the Squeeze when she was 18 and

Two East Sacramento restaurants with Mediterranean roots – Gönül's J Street Cafe and Formoli's Bistro – are trading places this month. Gönül's will be the first to open in its new location. After eight years near the corner of 39th and J streets, owner Gönül Blum will open just six blocks away at 3260 J St. on Wednesday. In about two weeks, chef Aimal Formoli and wife Suzanne Ricci will reopen their restaurant in Blum's former space at 3839 J St. Blum first made an offer to switch locations with the couple two years ago because she wanted to downsize her restaurant. "I have way too much room that I don't use," Blum said. "I just wanted something cozy." With the move, Blum's restaurant

Sacramento's growing food scene is being documented by an expanding community of local food bloggers. The city and surrounding area have at least 30 blogs dedicated to two things all its residents have in common: food and eating. Foodies can find blogs dedicated to cooking and eating locally, frugally, gluten-free or raw. There are also people who concentrate on baking, desserts, finding the best burger or even hunting and gathering ingredients. "The world of food blogging is fascinating because there are so many camps," said Awake at the Whisk blogger Amber Stott. "There are people who just do recipes. Then you've got people like Munchie Musings – she does a lot of restaurant reviews.

The Garlic Shack is expected to open in Midtown in about two weeks once a renovation and inspections are complete, the restaurant's owner said Friday. The opening was delayed by more than two months to bring in engineering services needed for the installation of a 17-foot-wide sliding glass garage door that will dominate the front of the building. Sacramento County building inspectors wanted the installation plans drawn up for the space on a busy corner at 19th and J streets. The door will be installed in two parts with a two-foot supporting pillar in the middle. An engineer was called in to ensure the installation will leave the building structurally sound, owner Ken Powers said. "Eve

Tonight, the Downtown Sacramento Partnership (DSP) is adding a new twist to the Friday Night Concerts in the Park. Concertgoers can now compete for prizes in a series of challenges and receive special Concert Deals at local businesses on their mobile phones via the SCVNGR app. Participants start by downloading the free SCVNGR app for iPhone or Android. To play, look for the “Friday Night Concerts” trek and complete a series of quick concert-themed challenges to earn points. Challenges consist of snapping pictures, answering trivia questions, and social check-ins by bumping phones with friends. Challenges will rotate each week throughout the concert series giving players more chances to wi

Foodies were out in full force Wednesday when executive chef Michael Tuohy of Grange Restaurant & Bar kicked off his personalized farmers market tours for the season. Follow The Chef tours are led each week at the farmers market in downtown’s Cesar Chavez Plaza, across from the restaurant at 926 J St. The markets – and the tours – run from May through October. A wet winter has delayed some crops, including certain stone fruits. But Tuohy and Grange Executive Sous Chef Brad Cecchi found strawberries, asparagus, snap peas and more when they took 11 people there in the morning. Tuohy started the tours two years ago to inspire Sacramentans to buy locally at farmers markets and to help bring

Six chefs. Five secret ingredients. Three dishes. Forty-five minutes. While hundreds watch. That's what's happening Friday when the Celebrity Chef Challenge by InAlliance takes place in Sacramento. Half a dozen local chefs will compete in this Iron Chef-style cook-off that raises money to help people with developmental disabilities. The nonprofit's ninth annual chef challenge will be much more spontaneous than other types of cooking contests because no one will know what the secret ingredients are until minutes before the event begins. The chefs are planning to have a good time in this friendly competition. "It's going to be fun," said Evan's Kitchen owner Evan Elsberry. "We're going to