Newest articles on The Sacramento Press tagged as "soup"

Muntean's soups' one year anniversary

2011-10-19T05:49:29Z

This month is the one-year anniversary of the opening of the restaurant Muntean’s Soups, Salads, and Sandwiches at 1225 J St. George Muntean owns the restaurant with his wife, and while soup is the specialty, Muntean is no soup nazi.

Entering the restaurant, a customer is likely to be surprised by a barrage of soup samples offered as he or she contemplates what to buy.

Muntean said his generosity is a product of his Romanian heritage as well as his business philosophy.

“Romanians are very friendly,” he said. “(This work) is my bread and butter. I offer the customer as much as I can if they are new here. I want them to choose something they like,” he said.

Muntean’s offers 12-15 soups per day. Some of these include: Hungarian chicken stew, curry chicken, turkey gumbo, clam chowder, and broccoli cheese among other more conventional soups.

The restaurant also offers roughly 20 daily sandwiches such as smoked turkey, turkey and avocado, and corned beef; and salads such as falafel salad, spinach salad, and a Greek garden salad.

Everyday the restaurant features 10 special-menu items such as spicy tomato vegetable soup, potato cheese soup, and cream of broccoli.

Three days out of the week special regional meals are featured as well. On Tuesdays Romanian food is offered, on Wednesdays it’s Greek and on Thursdays it’s Hungarian.

The recipes come from either Munteans’ family, or cooking ideas he discovered while in and around his native country of Romania.

“We offer Romanian, Hungarian, and Greek recipes. All of the recipes either came from my parents, or things I picked up while travelling,” Muntean said.

Muntean’s also offers sodas, tea, and coffee, but no alcohol.

Muntean said that the majority of his clients come from the surrounding office buildings and Sacramento Convention Center bustle. Because of the proximity to these spaces, many of his customers are regulars.

The other large demographic is fans of his old restaurant, Hannibal’s.

“25-30 percent of my customers used to go to Hannibal’s,” he said. “They come here because they liked the food there.”

Located at 525 L St., Hannibal’s was opened on a whim by Muntean after visiting a friend in Roseville. He found that he preferred the temperate California climate to his previous home in Florida.

“I don’t look at the economy, I look at the weather,” Muntean said.

Hannibal's utilized the same recipes as Muntean’s. However, after leasing the space that housed Hannibal’s for 10 years, Muntean’s landlord would not renew the lease with him.

Muntean then opened the Muntean Blvd. Bistro in Roseville. But after five years the restaurant went under.

“I had put everything I had into my restaurant in Roseville. When it failed, some of my family came out here to help me get started again,” he said.

In October of 2010, Muntean opened his soup restaurant on 12th and J Streets, and it seems that the third try is a charm.

“There is no competition, not like the way I do it,” he said.

Muntean's offerings of samples, explanations of the menu, and overall charisma show that he cares about his customers. Furthermore, he said one of his favorite aspects of owning the restaurant is opening people’s minds to new types of food.

“The best thing is offering kids a taste,” he said.

Muntean said he chose the 1225 J st., location because it had previously been a restaurant and did not need much renovation.

“I owned everything already from the Roseville restaurant, so it made moving less expensive,” he said.

Muntean said he hopes to eventually expand.

“I would like to start a franchise,” Muntean said. “But this worries my wife.”

Muntean’s is open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.

For more information, visit the restaurant’s website.

Fresh Freshii on Third and Q Streets

2011-06-28T14:32:07Z

Freshii opened a new location in downtown Sacramento on April 11, and owner Eric Heffel said they are happy to be in the area.

According to Heffel, there are about 12,000 daytime office workers and 3,000 residents in the surrounding area and only one restaurant within walking distance to choose from.

“Freshii can now provide all of those people another choice,” Heffel said.

Located at 400 Q St., on the corner of 3rd and Q streets at the CalPERS building, the newest Freshii location is providing a variety of items to patrons in the area including, but not limited to, frozen yogurt, freshly made wraps, soups and salads, and a variety of snacks and drinks.

Menu prices range from $1.79 to $9.79.

But, if being told what to eat isn’t your thing, one of the main features of Freshii is that everything is customizable. There are more than 70 different ingredients to choose from, such as avocado, chopped almonds, grilled salmon, edamame, feta cheese or bean sprouts, to name a few.

Patrons are welcomed to build their own meals from scratch by checking off wanted ingredients on the provided menus/checklists. First, customers choose what type of meal they want to build, either a salad, bowl, classic or grilled wrap or soup.

After choosing from a base of romaine, spinach or a Freshii mix of greens for a salad or wrap base as well as vegetable, chicken and lemongrass broth for soup, they can choose from two lists of ingredients before finally selecting a dressing/sauce.

Though it opened in April, the Q Street location waited to hold its grand opening on Friday and Saturday evening, when its liquor license came through. Heffel said they are the only Freshii out of the 48 locations throughout Canada, America, Austria and Dubai that serves beer and wine and said he hopes that this will allow them to provide the residents in the area with a cool hangout spot.

This particular location is also the only one with a full self-serve yogurt section. Normally, Freshii locations only sell one flavor of frozen yogurt, but Heffel, also the owner of Yogurtagogo, said when CEO and founder of Freshii Matthew Cornin came across Yogurtagogo, he really liked the concept and wanted to try it out at the Q Street corner.

The new location has three seating areas, including an outside patio that can serve up to 60 people.

The Freshii brand is about fast, fresh and healthy food, Heffel said. And being that it is also a very green company, it provides food delivery service throughout the downtown area by bicycle.

To read more about Freshii's menu and manifesto, click here.

New owners reopen La Bonne Soupe Café

2011-05-12T01:11:35Z

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. "This food does take a long time to cook – but it's worth it."

Pont retired April 29 after owning five restaurants and spending more than 50 years in the industry. Zagat rated his French onion soup at La Bonne Soupe Café as the best in the world in 2009. If he comes out of retirement, he said he would have a staff to work alongside him. He sold the café's concept, name and equipment.

Perhaps most surprising is that Stoddard and Brown found La Bonne Soupe Café in time to buy the business.

They discovered the café through an ad on Craigslist. But the description and location were so vague, they had no idea what it was until talking with Pont. They didn't really know much about the restaurant or its huge following. La Bonne Soupe Café is hidden behind a modest storefront at 920 Eighth St. on an obscure downtown block.

Several others also wanted to buy the café. Two people later made offers to buy the business from the couple. Stoddard believes his commitment to good French cooking and the way he makes stock with roasted bones and meat convinced Pont to sell the café to them.

Stoddard and Brown replaced a sink and art on the walls, but little else. La Bonne Soupe Café had a soft re-opening Monday and Tuesday.

However, problems with a refrigerator, meat slicer and plumbing cropped up Wednesday morning. The couple posted a sign on the door and temporarily closed the café to give them time to repair or buy a new commercial fridge, repair plumbing, replace a second sink and buy a heavy-duty slicer.

The café's charming yellow and red interior and even the phone number – 492-9506 – will stay the same.

The small menu of $4 soups, $6-$7 sandwiches and $5 salads will seem nearly identical. The new menu will keep a customer favorite, Pont's brie and prosciutto sandwich, a variation of Pont's famous French onion soup, and braised meat sandwiches. The rest will be variations of Pont's offerings. Stoddard will reintroduce wild game such as boar and antelope to the menu.

The dishes will be based on his own recipes, with improvisation. The café won't use any of Pont's recipes.

"You don't buy the chef," Stoddard said.

The locavore restaurant will reflect the couple's commitment to eating locally produced food. The dishes will be made using only organic produce, with Stoddard picking up 90 percent of the produce at local farmers markets or ethnic food stores.

Meats from free-range animals will come from local and non-local sources. He'll travel to the Bay Area to buy fresh seafood for soups and sandwiches each week.

The food will also have "integrity." If the menu says it came from a certain location or company, it does, Stoddard said.

He and Brown are working out a plan to deliver groceries at night by car and bike or skateboard to work downtown each day.

Stoddard has worked in restaurants since he was 13, when he cut wood for a restaurant in an upstate New York spa town, Ballston Spa. At 16, he began apprenticing with a chef who taught him to cook. Stoddard returned to the restaurant business after a stint in the Marine Corps.

He moved to Sacramento in 1991 to train as a sous chef in the kitchen at the private Capitol Club in the Renaissance Tower – just steps away from his new location. Stoddard also worked at Bernice's Cookery and Ella in Sacramento. He developed the menus and was the catering chef at Morgan Creek Golf Club in Roseville.

La Bonne Soupe Café is his first restaurant. Two changes they'll implement: the café will now be a two-person operation, and Brown, the general manager, will deliver meals to tables after taking orders at the small counter.

Customers can still watch the chef in action just behind the counter.

"People like to see the cook cut things – just put on a show," he said. "Everybody's going to see my secret sauce."

They still expect a line to form inside and outside down the sidewalk. Stoddard hopes to hire a classical guitarist to play for customers during lunch once or twice a week.

The couple will add a second outside table but keep just six small tables inside. They'd like to add a sidewalk produce stand. The hours initially will be just slightly extended, from 10:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Within two months, Stoddard and Brown hope to add breakfast and coffee and open at 7:30 a.m. They also may open on Saturdays. For now, Stoddard is offering guerrilla or underground dining on Saturday nights: Parties of up to 20 people can reserve the spot for private dinners.

Pont is still very much a part of the place. He stopped by with his family Sunday night. He wanted to check on them as they prepared for their soft opening the next morning.

"He said, 'You better be serious,' " Stoddard recalled. "He just cares so much."

Suzanne Hurt is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press. Follow her on Twitter @SuzanneHurt.

Empty Bowls serves up soup to fight hunger

2011-03-02T02:01:35Z

Since stormy winter days have almost everyone thinking about soup, it's a good thing River City Food Bank's 8th annual fundraising event is just days away. As in previous years, Empty Bowls features some of the area’s finest restaurants serving up their best soups- all to raise awareness about hunger in the region.

Everyone who attends Empty Bowls chooses from among 1,500 bowls, hand-crafted by Sacramento students and professional potters. The bowls represent people across the region who don’t have enough to eat. As many as one in seven people report that they don’t always have enough money to provide their families with food. After picking a bowl, attendees choose soup from one of these restaurants: Café Bernardo, R15, Scott's Seafood Grill and Bar, Chops Steaks Seafood and Bar, Michelangelo's, Vizcaya, Lucca, The Broiler, Greek Village Inn, and L Wine Lounge & Urban Kitchen.

The Empty Bowls evening event, on Monday, March 7, is already sold out. A limited number of tickets are still available for Tuesday, March 8 at 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Both seatings feature plenty of beautiful bowls, gourmet soups and desserts. Tickets are $30 per person and can be purchased on River City Food Bank’s website. All events will be held at the Sacramento Masonic Temple, 1123 J Street.

River City Food Bank is the only Sacramento- area food bank open every weekday to anyone experiencing hunger from anywhere in Sacramento County. RCFB offers nutritionally-balanced 3-day emergency food, as well as compassion. In the wake of the food bank's October fire, this year's fundraising goals are ambitious. River City Food Bank hopes to raise over $100,000.

For more information, and to purchase tickets online, visit www.rivercityfoodbank.org.

Disclosure: Lesley Miller works for 3fold Communications, a local marketing agency. River City Food Bank is a client of 3fold Communications.

La Bonne Soupe reopens Wednesday

2009-10-14T05:01:33Z

A clean bill of health and an outpouring of customer support have prompted the reopening of a wildly popular downtown lunch spot, La Bonne Soupe Café.

On Wednesday, owner Daniel Pont will resume serving the French onion soup Zagat rated as the best in the world only months ago, as well as the sandwiches and other food that earned his restaurant Zagat's top rating in Sacramento.

The cafe passed a Sacramento County health reinspection Friday, nine days after a restaurant inspector closed it upon finding cockroaches.

Pont, a renowned 70-year-old French chef, said Tuesday he's recovering from the stress and heartbreak that landed him in the hospital just before the first scheduled reinspection. He spent all day Tuesday preparing to reopen the restaurant he first opened in 2005.

"Today, I came here to see how it is to work," he said. "I cooked for the family today. So I was happy to be in the kitchen again."

The restaurant had been closed for about three weeks before the initial inspection -- initially for a vacation, but then while Pont tended to his wife, who had become sick and spent several days in the hospital.

The closure and Pont's collapse pushed loyal customers to rally to his defense. While a for-sale sign quickly went up, customers left flowers and cards outside the restaurant. They sent emails and filled his answering machine with their calls. They phoned Sacramento County's restaurant inspection program to complain. They even volunteered legal assistance or help at the cafe.

"They were wonderful and that's one of the reasons I stopped the sale, for now," Pont said.

Mark Urquhart-Webb, a program manager with California Air Resources Board, stopped by the cafe at 920 8th St. to read the messages left by well-wishers. He and his wife had enjoyed the French food cooked and served by Pont, who runs the restaurant alone.

"It took nearly the full hour to get served. The food was just fabulous," Urquhart-Webb said. "It's not a Subway moment at all."

His friend, Raphael Hitzke, won a "Best of Best Film Award" at the Tucson Slow Food Film Festival with the documentary, Vive La Food!, featuring Pont and William Rolle, another French chef operating a one-man show, in East Sacramento.

Signs on the door said, "Nous t'adorons Chef Daniel," and "If and when you decide to reopen, we will be waiting for you."

Pont has worked in all facets of the hospitality industry for 52 years. His grandparents taught him to make bread and butter after the family survived World War II in France.

He opened his first restaurant, Le Ranch House, in Sonoma in the early 1970s. He went on to open Chez Daniel, La Maconais and La Maison, all in the Bay Area.

He retired, then he and his wife moved to the Folsom-El Dorado area five years ago to be close to their daughter and her family. Pont left retirement to open the cafe downtown.

Customers soon packed the tiny cafe, where Pont worked 60 hours a week, including Saturdays when he'd go in to deep clean. A small counter was the only thing separating him from customers who watched him prepare their meals, one at a time. The line outside grew longer and started earlier as word of the restaurant spread. Regulars knew they had to turn up by 11 a.m. to avoid the worst of the lunch rush.

It was at 10:40 a.m. one day that an inspector showed up in Pont's last minutes of preparation. Pont felt he was treated disrespectfully by a young inspector who refused to come back after the lunch rush. He's never been treated rudely or cited for any other problems in 70 health inspections at five restaurants, he said.

"We are not students here. A restaurant that never had any violations should not be treated the same as one that constantly has problems," he said. "They hurt me badly and I have to put it behind me."

Some people have said they thought the inspection was prompted by a complaint — possibly from someone jealous of Pont's Zagat rating.

However, John Rogers, the county's environmental health division chief, said the surprise inspection was routine and not initiated by any calls or complaints.

A copy of the inspection report shows that the inspector was on the premises from 10:40 a.m. to noon. The inspector tried to pull Pont aside but Pont said he couldn't and refused to talk to the inspector, Rogers said, adding there was no other verbal communication from the inspector.

Inspectors, who are now visiting restaurants three times a year, must inspect in the morning at least once a year to see whether people are using proper cooking temperatures and food-handling practice, as well as the cleanliness of the facility.

"We advise staff not to go in the middle of lunch. It's too hectic," Rogers said.

A supervisor present for the reinspection Friday agreed the annual morning inspection would be conducted much earlier from now on, and be finished before Pont opens at 10:30 a.m.

"It's a difficult situation to be in for all parties, and we do it as respectfully as we can," he said. "We understand we're coming into their place of business ... and that they own this establishment. They have some ownership and some pride, and people need to be treated in respect."

Pont took down a for-sale sign but said diners will have to decide the future of the restaurant.

"It's up to the customers," he said.

Suzanne Hurt is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press.