A Shire Thing
At a new Lord of the Rings-inspired board game cafe, the owners welcome patrons—from midtown to Middle Earth— to “Speak, friend, and enter.”
A Life of Crime (the Perfectly Legal Kind)
John Lescroart became an “overnight” success at 45, and the Davis author has since published 19 New York Times best-selling legal thrillers, with his 30th novel due out in late March. Meet the man with his ink-stained finger on the pulse of American crime stories.
From Paris with Love
Channeling the cafe culture of the City of Light, the team behind Canon—including a husband-and-wife duo who trained in Paris—launch Franquette in West Sacramento.
Where She Was From
Sacramento native Joan Didion, who was one of America’s greatest writers, passed away on Dec. 23, 2021, at the age of 87. We spoke with the literary giant 10 years earlier, as she reflected on the deaths of her husband and only child, and her memories of growing up in River City.
Our French Connection
The French Laundry may be a celebrated Napa Valley restaurant, but its origin story began over 60 miles away in co-founder Sally Schmitt’s childhood home in Citrus Heights. In a new culinary memoir, the pioneering chef honors her Sacramento roots.
Get a Room!
Call it a room boom. Over the past year, three new marquee hotels have flung open their doors in Sacramento, each mixing historic charm with modern flavor. Look for local art, high design and restaurants with noteworthy culinary pedigrees. And more are on the way. So pack a bag, book a show, and turn a date night into a date weekend. Why should we let the tourists have all the fun?
The Magnificent Seventh
East meets west for one of the best meals in town. Former Ella chef Ravin Patel draws from both his Indian heritage and French culinary background at downtown’s new 7th Street Standard restaurant.
Sitting Down with a Good Book
Many cities have combined street furniture with great literature to beautify urban landscapes and improve literacy. Let’s take a page from that book.
Double Vision
With their new Sacramento-centric HGTV home design series, premiering March 12, Land Park’s Kele Dobrinski and Christina Valencia are helping couples find their aesthetic middle ground. And when they’re not swatch-buckling on a national television show, the husband-and-wife duo are helping redefine and reinvigorate both the private and public spaces where locals want to spend their time—from a jazzy new patio for an East Sacramento restaurant to a complete rebranding strategy for Broadway’s Tower District. Their story-driven work has led to the cornerstone of their design philosophy: making memories.
Why Not Here? 15th Anniversary Edition
15 Fun Ways to Take Our City to New Heights
Q&A with Shonna McDaniels, Director of the Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum
Inside south Sacramento’s Florin Square mall resides a hidden treasure: the Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum, named for the trailblazing abolitionist and advocate for women’s rights who was born into slavery. Since 1996, the institution has been an evolving fusion of art gallery, historical collection, education center and community nexus. With Black History Month taking place in February, we visited Shonna McDaniels, the 56-year-old artist and executive director of the “Sojo” Museum, at the cultural institution she founded over 25 years ago. There, she talked to us about its recent and future expansions, the many Black pioneers around the region, and the relationship between race and the arts.
Fit for a King
To celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day, now is the perfect time to take the first steps to honor him in California’s capital with a statue befitting his legacy.
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