Ella, Sacramento

On my last trip to Sacramento, I loved Ella Dining Room & Bar. I went back again, but this time, I was able to catch the Happy Hour.

Ella is located 1 block from the Sheraton Grand--1131 K Street.

Happy Hour is Monday-Friday 3-6 pm. There is a large bar area with communal tables, tables along the window and an outdoor area.

Randall's Margarita--$6. 100 % Blue Agave Blanco Tequila, strawberry, lime, salt. This was okay. I think I would have liked plain lime margarita better. The strawberry flavor was weak.

Berkshire Pork Rillette--$7. Bourbon black pepper jam, grilled bread. The rillette was delicious. Tender shredded pork with a sweet jam that complimented rather than overpowered.

Blistered Shishito Peppers--$6. Crispy garlic, lemon, smoked olive oil. This was good but some of the peppers were huge.

Steak Tartare--$5. Torn Garlic popovers, French mustard dressing. I loved this. The steak tartare had so much flavor.

Ella Caesar--$5. Soft egg, fried capers, fines herbes. This was also good although I expected the egg to be a little runnier.

Crispy Fried Chicken--$8. Fried herbs, house made hot sauce, lemon. My 2nd favorite dish. The chicken was tender and moist. I wish the hot sauce was a little more spicy and vinegary. The lemon worked well and the fried herbs were delicious.

2015 07 10

Grand Sheraton, Sacramento

I had a seminar to attend in Sacramento. It was at the Sheraton Grand, located at 1230 J Street, in the heart of the downtown area. It was just 2 blocks from the State Capitol and 1 mile from Old Sacramento. Be careful when walking to Old Sacramento--there are quite a few homeless people just a few blocks from the hotel.

The Sheraton Grand is located in the historic Public Market Building. There is valet parking in front of the hotel or self parking across the street. Overnight self parking is $20/night. There is parking on the street but it's limited to 1 hour from 8 am-6 pm Monday to Saturday.

Inside the hotel.

There is a small outdoor pool and a nicely equipped gym. Unfortunately, no sauna nor jacuzzi.

The beds were very comfortable.

Usual toiletries in the bathroom

2015 07 10

The Daily Egg, Auburrn

In Auburn, we stopped at the Daily Egg to have breakfast/lunch. It's located at 844 Lincoln Way.

Fireman Scramble--$8.99. Chorizo, jalapeños, tomatoes, green chiles, fresh house made salsa, cheddar and jack cheese. It was served with hash browns, home fries or fruit. The scramble was okay.

Biscuits & Gravy--$8.99. Two biscuits covered in homemade sausage gravy, 2 eggs, 2 bacon slices and 2 sausage links. The biscuits were too light for my taste. I like my biscuits denser. The sausage gravy had hardly any sausage and didn't have much flavor.

Here's the rest of the biscuit & gravy plate. It was cholesterol overload. The sausages were very tasty though and the hash browns were nicely crispy on the outside. The bacon was too fatty.

Salad served with Reuben Sandwich.

Reuben (spelled Rueben on the menu) Sandwich--$9.25. Pastrami (thick slice), Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and 1000 island on rye bread. My husband liked this--he thought it was an authentic sandwich.

2015 07 03

Auburn

We interrupt our Greek adventure to bring you our 4th of July road trip. Auburn is a small town on Hwy 80 on the way to Lake Tahoe and is worth a quick stop. It has a population of 12,800 and is an adorable town.

Auburn is the terminus of the Western States Endurance Run/Ultra Marathon. It is a 100 mile race from Squaw Valley to Auburn and is considered one of the ultimate endurance tests in the world. Racers climb 18,000 feet then descend 23,000 feet, following the Western States Trail. The race has to be completed within 30 hours.

2015 07 03

Wednesday Night Dinner

This week we went to Wednesday Night Dinner at Flavor Bistro. Middle Eastern Chicken was on the menu and it's my 2nd favorite Wednesday Night Dinner (after pork chops).

Farmhouse Soup--Tomato with Bacon and Cream. This was delicious!

Organic Salad with Lemon-Garlic Dressing & Sheep's Milk Cheese, Organic Tomatoes, Arugula Couscous, Marinated Potatoes

Hummus & Olives

Middle Eastern Style Chicken, Summer Veggies, Sautéed Green Lentils

Warm Flatbreads

Apple Free-Form Pie with Whipped Cream

2015 07 08

Mt. Zeus

In Filoti, you could find the trail to Mt. Zeus or drive a little out of town, park in the parking lot and shave 20 minutes from the hike.

From the parking lot, it was a flat, paved path to Aria Springs. 

From Aria Springs, a rough slightly uphill path led to the Cave of Zeus. This was a good size cave and impressive. We turned on the flashlight app on our cell phone to light our way and walked deep into the cave. 

From the cave, it was another 40 minute strenuous and uphill hike to the top of 1004 m high Mt. Zeus (also known as Mt. Zas).  Unfortunately, it started to rain and visibility was poor.

2015 05 28

Lunch on the Square

Our next stop was Filoti, a small town in the mountains. We were looking for a TripAdvisor recommendation but couldn't quite find it. Instead, we saw a bunch of people eating at a restaurant near the bus stop and thought it must be good. Turns out, the people were waiting for the bus.

The restaurant looked inviting. Tables on the square, shaded by giant trees.

Homemade Sour Cherry Juice—€2.50. Delicious, almost a tamarind flavor. It was a good start.

Fried Courgettes with Yogurt Sauce--a little overcooked. Carl's Junior still has better fried zucchini.

The special of the day was Pork Gyros--€8.50. I thought the pork was too thick for gyros.

Pork in the Oven--pork cooked with garlic, served with potatoes—€8.50. This was the same pork as the gyros, just sliced thicker. Disappointing.

2015 05 28