Wednesday, December 05, 2007

More Retail and Restuarants News

Some random tidbits and rumors I've picked up on various websites in case people have not seen them.

Lot of good stuff here. I could really go for a new Spanish restaurant though and a few new bakeries.

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From "Appetizers with Mike Dunne"
Paragary in September is to open Cosmo's, a deli-inspired restaurant in the Cosmopolitan Building, formerly Woolworth's, at 10th and K in downtown Sacramento. The concept was inspired by the restaurant's proximity to another tenant in the building, Cosmopolitan Cabaret, a 208-seat venue run by California Musical Theatre, which in September is to launch a series of musical comedies in the space. Paragary's concept for Cosmo's is being inspired largely by theater-district delis in New York, but will be more than a sandwich shop, he notes. Paragary's executive chef, Kurt Spataro, is starting to research and assemble the restaurant's menu, including a formula for the establishment's own housemade pastrami. "We hope to be a real presence in the middle of K Street," says Paragary.

- Tuli Bistro, under construction for nearly a year at 21st and S, is to open for breakfast, lunch and dinner this coming Tuesday, Dec. 11

- Ju Hachi, Taka and Susan Watanabe's Japanese restaurant at 18th and S in midtown Sacramento, under construction for a year, now is expected to be ready for sushi enthusiasts in January.

-Brush up on your Portuguese. Come next summer, a churrascaria is to move into a former fitness center at 14th and H in downtown Sacramento. Basically, a churrascaria -- pronounced shoo-ras-ka-ria -- is a Brazilian steakhouse inspired by Portuguese methods of barbecueing. Meats on skewers customarily are cooked over charcoal or gas, then carved tableside directly onto plates. Service is "rodizio" style, or all you can eat for one fixed price.


From Skyscraperpage.com via "TowerDistrict" "Innov8"
and "Ozone"


-ICON is moving from the DTP mall and will join Aqua restaurant (of San Francisco) in the L Street Lofts.

-The Real Pie Co. is moving from F Street and a upscale/urban furniture store will join the new chocolatier that is opening soon in 1801 L.

*If you have not been here, you need to go. The pies are amazing.*

- Cheese and Champagne Bar in a MARRS project at 20th and K along with a newsstand that is opening the next door down soon.

-Patrick Mulvaney has purchased the auto repair shop on the corner of 19th/L and will do open a banquet hall for his catering business as well as creating a prix fix sit down menu.

--Le Petit Paris will be expanding as soon as the sales office for the L Lofts moves into their building (Spring) and they will be offering coffee and small french treats.

-Delite -a gelato and panini shop will be opening in late spring in the old Sakurabana space.

-Still very much a rumor: The building across from 19th/Capitol Building -home of California Commission on Teacher Credentialing is going to be sold and converted to mix-use office/retail.


- Upper Playground out of SF at 25th and J:

World Wide Domination Continues
It continues... Upper Playground's quest for world wide domination is
sweeping faster than the invasion of Iraq. With five stores under its belt
already, U.P. is about to make it six, by conquering the city of Sacramento.
This makes the roster, San Francisco, Berkeley, Portland, London - England
and Taichung - Taiwan; enough to make even Ivan The Terrible proud.
To coincide with the Grand Opening, there will be a special exhibit featuring
the artworks of Sam Flores, Saber, Retna, Estevan Oriol, Date Farmers, N8
Van Dyke, David Choe, Mister Cartoon, Alex Pardee, Jeremy Fish, Vitche,
Mike Giant, San, Doze Green, and Herbert Baglione.

The Upper Playground Sacramento Store Grand Opening Reception will be
held Saturday, December 15, 2007 from 7:00 p.m–10:00 p.m.

9 comments:

  1. Maybe I'm missing something, but this "Upper Playground" shop basically looks like a place to buy "urban thugwear." While I don't inherently have a problem with this, it doesn't seem like something downtown is desperately missing.

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  2. Take a look at the website, seems like they offer more than that. Books, DVDs, galleries, furniture and other things.

    The Brazilian steakhouse is calling my name loudly.

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  3. Okay, I checked out the "Shop" part and it primarily listed T-shirts and hoodies. That, plus the logo, was kind of a turn-off...looking at the art books and furniture gives a different impression.

    Have you stopped by Bows & Arrows on L Street yet? The other side of the same building as Old Sould Coffee, featuring local designers, resale clothes, mid-century furniture, and scooter repair...kind of a one-stop hipster shop, locally owned.

    I'm eager to try out Tuli. I like the way the restaurant is laid out (it reminds me of a particularly fancy greasy-spoon diner) and can't wait to see what the fuss is about.

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  4. Upper Playground will be very similar to the Toyroom on K Street. Street wear, artworks, and other sort of pop-culture stuff. Consider it the "hip hop" counter part to the "indie" oriented Bows and Arrows.

    I don't think UP's website is much of indication as to what's featured in the stores. And while it's probably not my thing either, I'm glad to see store like that pop up in midtown and downtown. Stores like UnitedState, Upper Playground and The Toyroom will only help each other out.

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  5. I haven't been to Bows and Arrows, but I'm not much of an indie shopper, more of an indie eater.

    I'm not into resale clothes or mid-century furniture at all, but like towerdistrict said though, I am very glad to see more interesting places like that pop up around for people who do.

    Variety! Variety! Variety!

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  6. Midtowns got it's act together, Sacramento has so many positive developments moving forward right now.

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  7. LIUS: To be honest I'm not that much into resale clothes (I either go to Macy's or thrift stores, both of which cost less than typical resale shop prices) or mid-century furniture (unless it's mid 19th century.) I'm not all that indie either, but I'm all about the local business with loads of character. Part of why I moved downtown in the first place is because there were a lot of stores like that (at the time, places like Now & Again, How Tacky, House of Monkey, Big Mama's Soul Kitchen, etc.)

    This "Upper Playground," assuming I'm reading it correctly, seems pretty much like a high-dollar version of shops like Threadz (the recent arrival on the 700 block of K.)

    I do like how midtown's business corridors are filling out with various sorts of small trendy shops, even if I'm not particularly trendy. I can see J Street and 21st Street turning into something like Melrose in Los Angeles, with pretty much continuous blocks of boutiques, restaurants and shops, mostly open until like 10 or 11 PM (or later), appealing to a wide variety of tastes. Once there is a critical mass, it becomes a destination in its own right.

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  8. Anyone know anything about this "upscale furniture store" in 1801 L? I saw the logo for it today-something like Freddrick Barton. Can't find any info on this person, etc. Anyone know the story?

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  9. I would not say Upper Playground is a thug apparel shop either. The brand was sold at Icon in the mall for a while and I have bought some of the shirts. I really don't consider myself a thug but prefer the a somewhat hip hop/urban style when I am not in office work attire. I like we are at least seeing some more boutiques moving into Midtown not just resturants. Now if they would just stay open later.

    Speaking of Icon... if they are moving out of the mall that is another hit for Downtown Plaza. I ate at Tuli's today. Limited menu, slow service to start but the sliders and soup I had were excellent. The Pizza my friends ate was ok. The place has great potential. Can't wait to take the cooking classes on Sundays.

    Zen

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