by Liz Conant and Cecily Fuller
For our second SacFoodies Dine Downtown Restaurant Week review, we were invited to deVere’s Irish Pub in Midtown to check out its special menu for this week, which is $30 per person for three courses. Little did we know we were dining at the pub on its weekly Trivia Night, and it was packed with serious pub quiz players! After enjoying our first course outside due to the crowds, we managed to snag a table inside to finish the meal and check out the quiz.
The meal began with a light and crisp Endive Salad with bleu cheese, toasted walnuts and Granny Smith apples, and a cup of the chef’s soup of the day, which was a creamy broccoli bisque that was not hard to finish!
Next up were the entrées: a roasted half chicken served with mashed potatoes, broccolini and carrots, and a braised pork shoulder served with brown buttered potatoes. The chicken was juicy, both potato dishes were delicious (we had no trouble eating every bite of the taters!) and the veggies were the perfect healthy complement to the meal.
If we weren’t stuffed enough by this point, dessert came next, and it did not disappoint. Luckily, we didn’t have to choose between the Flourless Chocolate Cake and Crispy Bread Pudding. The chocolate cake was served with candied walnuts and was deliciously rich and decadent, while the bread pudding was Irish to the core, served with vanilla ice cream and Jameson caramel.
Fun Fact about deVere’s: all of the furniture and decorations in the pub came straight from Ireland – how’s that for authentic? They’ve also recently opened a location in Davis.
For a list of all participating restaurants for Dine Downtown, click here.
deVere’s Irish Pub
1521 L Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Dine Downtown: Ten22 in Old Sacramento
Today begins Dine Downtown Restaurant Week, put on annually by the Downtown Sacramento Partnership. From January 9-18, you can enjoy some of the best dining experiences that Sacramento has to offer. During these 10 days only, local chefs will create special three-course dinner menus for only $30 per person.
One of the participating restaurants is Old Sac’s Ten22, and a guest and I were lucky enough to get a sneak peek of its Dine Downtown menu this past weekend. I love that Ten22 has roomy booths and tables with plenty of space between them, so you don’t feel like you’re in on the conversation at the next table over. Its atmosphere feels upscale and classy, yet comfortable at the same time – we sat at a stylish booth near the bar, which had the football game on and an array of beers on tap.
For drinks, I opted for a glass of Fumé Blanc, while my guest sipped on a smoked porter from Stone Brewing Co. I’m usually a red wine gal, but this glass was crisp and mild, the perfect companion for everything on the menu. The beer was smoky and smooth – yum!
For our first course, we tried both options, the Sliced Ahi Sashimi and Roasted Pecan-Smoked Bacon “Chop.” The chop was my favorite – it was like two high-quality, crispy pieces of bacon that coupled well with the smoked porter beer.
Next up was the main course. We tried the Pan-Roasted Salmon and Petit New York Strip Steak Diane. Both were fabulous and flavorful! The salmon was crunchy on the outside and cooked to perfection on the inside – this was hands-down my favorite item of the night. Both dishes came with roasted potatoes, which had a pleasant, simple flavor that didn’t take away from the main courses.
Of course, the evening wouldn’t be complete without dessert! Ten22 has a new pastry chef, so all of its desserts are baked in house. We tried both the Citrus-Scented Crème Brûlée and Chocolate Mousse Cake, and both were a sweet finish to a perfect dinner. The caramelized sugar atop the crème brûlée was delicious and not too rich – just the way I like it. And the chocolate crust on the mousse cake was nothing short of mouth-watering.
I highly recommend you check out Ten22 for its quality food and enjoyable atmosphere. You can view its Dine Downtown menu here, and for a list of all participating restaurants for Dine Downtown, click here.
Ten22
1022 Second Street
Old Sacramento
(916) 441-2211