Starting Feb. 20 and running through Sunday, community members can turn their dinners out on the town into a battle against hunger in the Sacramento region. The Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services and the Sacramento Press joined forces to host the inaugural Eat to Feed the Hungry, which features 15 Sacramento restaurants, cafes and bars. Using social media, community members can “check in” at one of the sponsoring businesses using Facebook of Foursquare, and then order food and drinks. For every participant who checks in, the business will donate $1 to the SFBFS. If people check in with a photo, the businesses will double their donation, with a cap of $500 per business. Sacramento

Ten chefs in the Midtown and downtown area have agreed to take on the Vegan Chef Challenge starting Saturday. Throughout the month of October, each restaurant will feature special vegan items including soups, appetizers, entrées and desserts. Cafe Capricho, 58 Degrees, Bombay Bar and Grill, Tower Bridge Bistro and Michelangelo’s are just a few of the participating restaurants. Restaurant guests who order these specialty dishes will be asked to go online and vote for their favorite dishes. Those who vote will be entered in a drawing to win prizes. Diners who visit all 10 participating restaurants will be asked to score their overall favorites in each category and will be entered into a dr

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

French chef Daniel Pont has passed his tiny La Bonne Soupe Café on to a couple who bring the same passion for French cookery. Chef Ed Stoddard and his fiancée, Leah Brown, are not related to 72-year-old Pont, who sold them the downtown soup and sandwich shop he created and operated on his own for six years. Nor are they French. Starting Monday, the Midtown couple will continue to offer the same gastronomic experience, following in Pont's footsteps as closely as they can. Stoddard describes the food as good, honest French cooking and the place itself as a French cookery. "A cookery is a place where you don't just go to eat food. You go there to meet people and learn about food," he said.

Well, it's summer again and my wife and I are dreading our electricity bills. Last summer SMUD whacked our checking account for a good $200+ per month-- to keep the house around 78 degrees. It's not like we're power abusers; we even hang dry clothes and hand wash dishes. The truth is: The cost of electricity has skyrocketed in recent years, and there is no end in sight. Add to this the fact that those in influential positions are doing little about it, and we have the recipe for a huge summer financial burden on already economically-ravished Sac County residents. Despite all the "green" talk in these parts, you'd never know there was a conservation effort afoot. Almost every fast food joi

Most musicians have day jobs. Now two musicians own theirs. Cooks Mick "The Deli Lama" Stevenson and Dennis "DJ" Rogers have kept the original Dad's Sandwich Shop going strong at 1310 S St. after assuming ownership three months ago. Dad's Kitchen at 2968 Freeport Blvd. near Curtis Park closed after its owners, Alison and Sam "Dad" England, weren't able to find a buyer. Diners may not even know a change of ownership took place, because Rogers and Stevenson had largely been running the restaurant, which operates from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, they said. Rogers, 26, also plays guitar in the hardcore punk band Killing The Dream, and 37-year-old Stevenson is in three bands: a pu

The 23rd Annual Christmas Party Extravaganza will feature free food from a multitude of hip Sacramento restaurants and establishments.  Tuli, Zocalo, Hot Italian and Kru will all be at the party serving delicious appetizers plus, Rail Bridge Cellars will offer wine tastings. This is heaven for the gastronomically inclined! If you just want to fuel properly before you hit the dance floor, that can be easily accomplished too. Do not miss this unique opportunity to sample so many culinary creations in one place, knowing its all for a good cause. Food is included in the ticket price ($60 in advance, purchase online) and proceeds benefit at-risk youth in Sacramento.           To top