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Cannot Wait for Brunch at Alaro Craft Brewery in Midtown Sacramento
Alaro Craft Brewery got its name in part from a Mallorca municipality in the Balearic Islands of Spain. It used to be Rubicon Brewing Company in that location at 2004 Capitol, but that 30-year institution in Sacramento closed its doors last year. We had been reading about the opening of Alaro Craft Brewery. I’ve been craving Spanish food. Especially Spanish cheese, since my team member Josh Amolsch texted a photo of a trio cheese package I had served when he visited me in Kona last August. Yum, Manchego, tipsy goat and Iberico cheese.
When we read in the Sacramento Bee a review of Alaro Craft Brewery, it was iffy to wander down for a late lunch. Reason is every time the Sac Bee reviews a restaurant, they are generally flooded with business. It was about 1:30 on Sunday when we suddenly decided we were starving. Too hungry to walk, needed to drive, park in my husband’s parking lot for the State and wander over. Sure enough, we were able to score one of the last outside tables available.
Inside was a zoo.
In part it was noisy inside because a couple of the Brew Bikes were parked outside and waiting. There were so many people we couldn’t even see the type of seating arrangement inside. Only that it was too loud.
You will love the small plates. I really don’t see any reason to order anything else when such delectable treats are available at such reasonable prices. We ordered the Gambas Al Ajillo, which is shrimp with garlic (a bit greasy, not enough napkins) yet surprisingly accompanied by those hearty small loaves of bread; the lamb meatballs (heavenly), beets with pistachio-caper relish sprinkled with feta (my favorite); eggplant caponata, which also featured cauliflower; and a roasted pepper filled with a cheesy potato and fish mixture.
Then, there is the craft beer. Not to go hog wild on a Sunday afternoon, I ordered a high-octane IPA, but a small glass at 10 ounces. My husband chose a pale ale. Both selections were excellent. Can’t wait to come back to this place when brunch begins. Just sit outside when the you spot the Brew Bikes nearby and you’ll be fine.
After that, you can stroll over to the R Street corridor to visit all the new shops, including WEST ELM, which is now open!
Reservations for Dining in Midtown Sacramento for Friday Night
Elizabeth Weintraub in Midtown, Sacramento
The only time I ever watch trashy daytime TV is when I’m getting a manicure over at Galaxy Nails in Land Park. Can’t help it. It’s right there in front of you, and I admit to getting sucked in to view some of the most ridiculous stuff I’ve ever witnessed in my life. Don’t get me started on Dr. Oz, either. The show yesterday was Steve Harvey promoting crowdsourcing dating, and some woman who claimed to have her life booked out 4 months in advance, which means she has no time to date.
I cannot in a million years imagine booking my schedule so heavily that I couldn’t turn around for 4 months without bumping into my next appointment. That seems insane. But that’s how people are today. As I drove past Crocker Elementary School on Riverside, a person could not help but notice the number of parents standing on the sidewalk and meandering about the grounds with their children.
No comparison to my past — just saying if my parents had come to my grade school to pick me up, that would have been because President Eisenhower had just blown up the world and we were in the middle of a nuclear holocaust.
You can’t even get a dinner reservation on a Friday night at a decent restaurant in Midtown Sacramento if you suddenly decide on a whim, like I generally do, that an evening out dining would be a spectacular way to spend some quality time with your husband. It’s difficult to go dining in Midtown because most of the top spots require dinner reservations a week in advance. Now, one can go to Ella Dining Room and Bar and sit at the bar without a reservation or dine outside, but it’s too cold outside.
Through Open Table, I was lucky to snatch a reservation at the Waterboy. Every other restaurant I desired for dining in Midtown was booked solid through my preferred dining hours, and by all rights, Waterboy should have been as well. It was a fluke.
I remember the old adage about living in California: the only place where people stand in line at midnight at 7-11.
Still, I wouldn’t trade living in California and selling Sacramento real estate for anything. Well, maybe a house on the ocean in Maui — when I make my next $5 million.
