Dinner was at Torc in Napa. Truffles happened to be in season so of course had to get some dishes that had some. We also had jamon iberico and fresh sourdough bread.

The next day started with breakfast at the Inn, then we walked over to Småstad Coffee Roasters to grab some more caffeine as well as split a cardamom bun. We then passed by the original Williams Sonoma and I made the connection that the store started in Sonoma (lol). It happened to be Wednesday, which is free entry at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art and they were having an exhibition on Maija Peeples Bright. Definitely some interesting art.

We then drove back towards Napa (it was a bit of back and forth between Sonoma and Napa those few days) for lunch at Bear at Stanly Ranch (after getting back from our trip we learned that the property Stanly Ranch was undergoing a $230M foreclosure). I had read some good reviews as well as the restaurant being on the Eater list. Overall I would say the food was fine but probably would have had something else if I were to do it over again.

We didn’t have too much on our agenda so after lunch we visited Yountville, where the French Laundry and Bistro Jeanty (another favorite restaurant of ours) reside. We popped into Bouchon to get some pastries and then went back to our B&B.

With nothing else to do, D decided to take a nap while I went for a run through Sonoma. It was nice to get to see the more residential areas and also ran past some historical areas.

Dinner was back in downtown Napa so we once again made the drive over there. We arrived a bit early so walked around downtown and did some window shopping as well as stopping in a bookstore. Dinner was at Oenotri, which we had been to a few times before and wanted to re-visit. I will say that the service was a bit of a letdown (there appeared to be just one server and then the bartender also was acting as a server, a manager was running plates to tables as well). Maybe it was because it was a Wednesday evening. The food was still quite good so I was happy about that.

We checked out the next morning and had lunch at The Girl and the Fig. This is probably our more favorite restaurant in the area and this was our 4th or 5th time dining there. Rather than having dessert (since we were pretty full already), we decided to get their box of cookies (2 since D was going to gift one to her sister and her family).

The drive back to Sacramento was quick and painless and was a bit of a nostalgic moment for me. It was a little early to check in for our AirBnB so we of course stopped to get some caffeine and check off another spot. The Mill is a coffeeshop that is located right by the Sac State campus. They have D’s favorite matcha latte and this time did not disappoint. I went with a classic cappuccino.

We then went to visit my old work to see some old coworkers, stopping to pick up some goodies for them along the way. They have completed a new shopping center not far from where we used to live giving the intersection a different look. Development waits for no person I guess. We also stopped at Raley’s to get our most favorite brand of tortilla chips (which we can’t seem to find in stores in SoCal even though it is produced in SoCal…make that make sense). Our AirBnB wasn’t in our old neighborhood but in the next one over (East Sacramento) and was super cute. Made me miss home ownership a bit (one day).

Continuing to check off boxes from our restaurant list, dinner was at Tres Hermanas. We actually hadn’t been to the actual restaurant in a long time (before COVID times). The menus were updated along with some of the offerings but the margaritas tasted the same and the food was still good.

Breakfast the next day was at Orphan Cafe.

Lunch was at Sellands Cafe. This place had some massive changes since we moved away. They had put in an outdoor eating area during COVID and this was gone. They also completely remodeled the inside of their cafe and changed up their menu/ordering system. We used to order/eat at Sellands quite a bit, due to location and also the food was good and fresh. I’m glad that they’re still there and were quite busy.

Afternoon pick me up at Temple, just a few steps from our AirBnB, with the cookie from The Girl and the Fig.

Fit another run through East Sac. My legs were quite tired so didn’t do too long of a run. Also forgot what it was like running in cold weather (40s). Dinner was at one of our favorite pizza spots, Masullo Pizza, by the Sacramento City Cemetery.

For breakfast on Day 5, I had some leftovers but we did get some coffee from Chocolate Fish Coffee Roasters.

Lunch was at another favorite brunch spot down by Land Park, Meet and Eat. Luckily there was no wait because were fine sitting at the bar for lunch.

We weren’t able to get reservations at Kru, a highly popular higher end sushi place, but D had seen that you can walk in and put your name down. They opened at 5 pm and we arrived a few minutes early only to find there were already maybe 10 people waiting ahead of us. By the time we reached the podium, they had already filled their first round of walk ins and told us it would be about an hour. This was fine with us because we were still full from lunch. So we just went and hung out in the rental car in the parking lot for about an hour. Dinner was fabulous as usual. We did an assortment of nigiri along with their ramen. Dessert was also quite divine.

Our last full day started with coffee from Temple again. This time I also purchased some of their espresso beans after purchasing a Breville Bambino Plus last year. I did another run through East Sac, this time my legs did feel better. Another afternoon pick me up from Pachamama (this time their East Sac location). D’s sister came over for a visit and chat and then afterwards we went to have dinner at Jacks Urban Eats. Along with Sellands, Jacks was probably one of the most frequented ordered foods. Pinkberry rounded off the night as well.

Coffee again from Temple in the AM (along with leftovers for bfast) and purchased some cappuccino mugs as a souvenir. We then packed up and checked out of our AirBnB. Our flight wasn’t until later in the afternoon so we headed over to have brunch at our final spot (on our list of places to eat). Fox and Goose Public House is an English pub that has been around since the mid 1970s. D went with more of a breakfasty brunch and I did more of a lunch. I had a final Old Fashioned to say goodbye to Sacramento again.

We ended our trip by walking around Land Park and then finally headed back to SoCal. Overall a good nostalgic trip.

-StewsCat