Must-Eat Summer Treats
The heat is on, Sacramento. For those of you looking for some cool comfort during these dog days, we’ve got 10 delicious ways—from delicate macaron ice cream sandwiches to decadent pie milkshakes—to help you chill out this summer.
The Thrill Isn’t Gone
After his 2020 birthday concert was canceled due to the pandemic, Mick Martin is getting his band back together for take two at The Sofia in August—his first live indoor performance in over a year. At 72, the Sacramento bluesman is readier than ever to reclaim the stage.
Getting Back on Track
Five years ago, Sacramento Regional Transit was on the verge of derailing. Riders felt unsafe, staff morale was low, and the agency was flat broke. Then Henry Li stepped in. He cut costs, launched innovative programs targeting climate change, equity and customer service, and built a $30 million reserve—leading him to be named, effectively, America’s public transit CEO of the year in 2019. But when Covid hit, ridership plunged, a key funding mechanism was pulled from the ballot, and now the future of commuting is a looming question mark. Whether you ride public transit or not, his decisions will affect your commute, the air you breathe and, in many ways big and small, the future of Sacramento. Henry Li is now arriving.
Q&A with California State Architect Ida Clair
It may surprise many to know that as the newly minted state architect of California, Ida Antoniolli Clair does not design government buildings. Instead, her foremost responsibility is to oversee design and construction of public schools. But considering the impetus for her role—the 1933 Long Beach earthquake, which damaged over 200 school buildings—we’re glad she’s on the case, creating a safer and more sustainable future for our kids. Here, we talk to the longtime Elk Grove resident about California’s zero net energy goals, her favorite buildings in Sacramento, and breaking the brick ceiling as our first female state architect.
Perfect Picnics
We’ve filled our wicker baskets with the best takeout en route to eight sonnet-worthy spots across the region for your alfresco dining pleasure. Whether you’re unpacking a gourmet BLT on toasted artisan bread while gazing upon a sweeping view of Gold Country or digging into a bucket of crispy fried chicken while smelling the roses at McKinley Park, we prove that life in the wake of a pandemic can be a picnic after all. (Just don’t forget the sunscreen.)
Bread Winner
Arden-Arcade-based home baker turned cookbook author Gregory Berger simplifies the art of loafing around in his new book.
Maine Attraction
In Portland, Maine, local artists have found a new kind of canvas: city bus shelters. With such inspiring designs, good things come to those who wait (for their bus to arrive).
Nut Tree Forever
If you lived in Northern California any time from the ’50s to the ’90s, your memories likely contain vivid flickers of Vacaville’s Nut Tree—the roadside oasis that lured generations of kids and adults alike. Was it an amusement park so wondrous that even Walt Disney himself visited? Or was it California’s original farm-to-fork capital? Or a modern art and design mecca that was first to bring mid-century Eames furniture to the NorCal masses? It was all of that and more. It was also, as it happens, the creative vision of a group of Sacramento artists, designers, architects and, yes, candymakers. And now, in 2021, it’s turning 100. Let’s all jump on that miniature train—you know the one—and take a ride back in time for a Kodachrome encounter.
Field of Dreams
On the first day of spring, Ruhstaller Farm—our region’s only brewery designed in the spiritual mold of a soil-to-sip winery—officially opened, with a hop yard surrounding towering twin kilns inspired by 19th-century California pioneers and 20th-century Parisian postmodernism. The Farm, with its mission to produce beer defined by the Sacramento Valley’s rich agricultural heritage, is the fruition of a decade-long vision for J-E Paino—brewer, farmer, storyteller and a tenacious optimist who runs decidedly against the grain.
La Vie en Cinéma
The Sacramento French Film Festival celebrates its 20th year this June. Beret optional, champagne required.
On Sale Now!
Stay in the know!
Get Sactown's top stories in your inbox by signing up for our weekly newsletter.
