While attending a training in New York City last month, fellow Sac Foodie, Jenna Kirkwood, and I were fortunate to dine at some fantastic restaurants. We enjoyed almost every culinary experience, but Rock Center Café at Rockefeller Center stood out as the most entertaining. Yes, entertaining. Not only was the Italian-influenced cuisine phenomenal (see photo highlights below), we enjoyed the tremendous “people watching” opportunities as the restaurant looks out onto the Rockefeller Center ice skating rink.
There was one gentleman ice skater that was particularly memorable. Dressed in a trench coat and hat, he used the rink as his own personal stage and gave restaurant patrons a Fred Astaire-like performance! See a snippet of his show HERE.
By Julie Ficker
Archives for 2008
Let Them Eat Cake
Even though I am at the age in which I should be in birthday denial, I always look forward to the monthly birthday celebration at work. This is when the person(s) whose birthday falls within the month gets to choose which sweet treat is brought in to the office for everyone to share.
My choice for birthday cake has always been a German Chocolate cake and Freeport Bakery makes one of the best I have ever had. Not only is the chocolate cake moist with just enough of the coconut pecan frosting to not overpower the cake, but they also add a coconut custard filling in between the layers which makes it extra moist.
By Gayla Schlittenhart
A Tale of Two Pizzas . . . And Then Some
Under the Brooklyn Bridge
Lucky enough to be in New York City for business, I spent the weekend with my older brother who made the move to the Big Apple a few years ago. What do we do every time I visit? EAT! For me, a trip to NYC is not complete without downing that cheesy, saucy, tomatoey (it could be a word!) pie known as pizza. Although I’m a West Coast girl, I can fully appreciate the uncomplicated masterpiece that is New York pizza: incredibly thin, crispy crust, thin slices of melted mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce, a sprinkle of fresh basil.
Knowing that I cannot hold back when it comes to this style of pizza (“Thinner crust means fewer calories,” I tell myself), my brother and I decided to work for our lunch. Our destination was Grimaldi’s, one of the city’s finest pizzerias housed in an unassuming building tucked underneath the Brooklyn Bridge. So what better way to burn off our anticipated calories, than to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge before lunch?
Two extra-larges later, and only a few slices wrapped up as left-overs, we trekked back across the bridge, albeit much slower than on the way there, but it was a beautiful clear day and we were in no hurry. No trip to New York is complete without pizza and if you find yourself on the Brooklyn side of the bridge, Grimaldi’s is definitely a must try!
By Jenna Kirkwood
Keeping it Classy in Tallahassee
I’d consider myself to be fairly open minded, so when it comes to pizza, I don’t ever discriminate. Thin crust or deep dish, plain cheese or all the toppings – you name it and I’ll give it a try. After a recent trip to Tallahassee, FL – I’ve added a new favorite to the ever-expanding list of pizza places I couldn’t live without: Momo’s! With the slogan “Slices as big as your head” and an eclectic vibe perfect for any rumbling tummy, this place is right up my alley.
If there’s one thing cheesier than my blog postings – it has got to be the pizza at Momo’s. They don’t skimp on any of the toppings!
While I may regret admitting this, I feel that it’s only fair to say that I frequented Momo’s twice in a four-day time span during my trip to Tallahassee – if that doesn’t scream delicious then I don’t know what does. I tried the sun-dried tomato and artichoke, mushroom, buffalo chicken with blue cheese and plain cheese – each as delicious as the next. So if you ever find yourself rooting for the FSU Seminoles or just enjoying the Florida sunshine, be sure to check out Momo’s – it’s worth the trip!
By Brittany Mohr
If you don’t find Tallahasse or Brooklyn in your upcoming travel plans, here are a few other recommendations from the FH Foodie Team:
Kris Caputo Hurley: “The margarita pizza at Trattoria dell’Arte in NYC is my favorite in North America!!”
Joey Chapman: “Luigi’s Pizza! It’s on Stockton Blvd. and they just opened another one downtown; there is nothing better.”
John Caffrey: “You can’t beat Round Table – I like the combination.”
Kim Bedwell: “Luigi’s Pizza Parlor at 3800 Stockton Blvd.”
Steven Frith: “Chicago Fire’s Deep Dish Pepperoni”
Christine Moravec: “Mary’s Pizza Shack (originally from Sonoma, but franchises are popping up across Northern California) – Margarita Pizza, extra thin crust with a side of ranch dressing. Second runner up is Pizza Orgasmica & Brewing Company in San Francisco.”
Maria Chacon: “I love Pizzeria Classico in Folsom – they have the most delicious BBQ chicken pizza. A close second is Original Pete’s Pizza on J Street. They also have amazing, tender artichoke hearts deep fried to a light crispness in a tasty beer batter and served with a mild garlic butter. Oh, and the pizza’s great, too. My favorite there is the veghead pizza.”
Vanessa Smith: “Non-local: George’s Pizzeria in NYC…really any pizzeria in NYC…all cheese all the time! Local: Giovanni’s Pizza does a pretty good job on NYC style pizza.”
Julie Ficker: “I always love good old Round Table pizza – maybe it’s the result of our pizza reward conditioning!”
Melinda McRae: “Giovanni’s on Folsom Blvd. New York style with a thin, crispy crust with a good chewy bite to it. Our favorite is the Da Bronx Bomber with fresh ricotta, garlic and tomato sauce with generous-sized meatballs. They also make their own sausage and offer roasted red bell peppers, yummy! The slices are super huge, so ask for a double-cut if you don’t plan on eating it New York style (folded in half). Our other favorite is Garolbi’s Hot City Pizza at 5642 J Street – they do a whole wheat crust, so we think we’re eating healthy.”
Alison Liebich: Our favorite pizza place is at home. Bob makes the best pizza! Our Superbowl Sunday creation was a thin crust topped with mushroom, olive and onion.
Food That's Fit for a King
Anyone who has been to a Sacramento King’s game at Arco Arena knows the feeling – it’s the beginning of the fourth quarter of a close game and a timeout is about to conclude. All of a sudden you hear a thunderous boom coming from the speakers in the arena. Then slowly rising from the vibrations, you can hear the beginnings of “Sirius” from The Alan Parson’s Project and Big Mike’s voice begins the now infamous Arco Arena dialogue “Welcome to the fourth quarter, in 28 other cities it’s only a game…But this is Sacramento. This is Arco Arena. Now let me hear you make some NOISE!” As fans and players alike can tell you, this is now the time to buckle down and be as much of a part of the game as you can. It seems as if the concessions from around the arena are encouraging it, as they all shut down around then as well.
The problem is that, this usually happens at around 9 o’clock and by the time you get home, it’s going to be too late to eat dinner. If you didn’t bring any food with you, that leaves you only a couple choices. You can either a) go through a drive through and understand the real meaning of the word ironic as you ponder “fast food”, or b) you can surprise yourself at the variety of food at the arena itself.
The doors of the arena typically open about an hour and half before game time. When those doors open, just about every concession stand is as open and ready for your money as your stomach is for their food. Between pregame, timeouts, and halftime (or even the game itself if you are there because your significant other dragged you there), there is plenty of opportunity to scout around for what will make the perfect meal that night.
The most common place for any fan to go eat is at the concession stand. You don’t need me to explain to you about King’s Dogs, nachos, popcorn, churros, etc, etc. Try something new, though – did you know that every concession stand has a carving station where you can try meats that are carved right in front of you such as tri-tip, roasts, or turkey?
Honestly though, except for the meat carving, once you’ve been to one concession stand in any arena or ballpark in the country, you’ve been to them all. The real trick to uncovering some good food is to walk around the concourse. By doing so, you may be surprised to discover an array of choices that are very appetizing. There is Mexican food (made to order burritos, tacos, taco salads, etc.). You can pick up an Asian rice bowl, or go outside to the Arena grill for all of your BBQ needs. But no matter what you have for dinner, make sure you stop off at Dreyer’s ice cream for a ginormous (so big that I needed to create a word) ice cream cone that you won’t soon forget.
Image courtesy of Arco Arena
There is also one more secret to dining at the arena, and that is the Skyline Restaurant. It is on the fourth floor with as good a view of downtown Sacramento, the river, and the Tower Bridge as you can have. They offer a delicious buffet of premium carved meat, cheese, and pasta. Of course, there is full bar for your “gametime energy drink” needs. Another secret about the restaurant is that it opens a half hour before the rest of the arena, so you can come in before anyone else. Just ask the stadium personnel where to go to get in.
Save the hotdog for that Rivercats or Giants game that starts in April, expand your entertainment center palette. There are all kinds of crown jewels as far as food in the house of the Kings.
By Steven Frith
The Best Midnight Snack Ever
It had been a particularly long day, and the second I hit the door my son jumped out of bed and ran down the hall with arms outstretched. I scooped him up and we started talking about things that matter to a three year old and his mom: “I played trains today at school. Jake took my ball. I cried. We ate ta-ghetti. Tessa is a pretty girl.”
The litany of pre-school highlights and heartbreaks continued as I poured each of us a glass of milk and unwrapped the Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies. He promptly showed me that Thin Mints float in milk – who knew? This is just another item on the long list of things he has taught me in the past 36-plus months.
But, on this night, the real lesson was that I could have enjoyed a dozen or more high-dollar, four-star dinners and none of them would be as memorable as that midnight snack.
By Shelly Kessen
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