| Food | * * * * |
| Service | * * * * |
| Ambience | * * * |
| Value | 6.5 |
| Cost | $ $ $ |
| Dish | Price |
Value | Rating | |
| Beers | $2.75-6.50 |
* * 1/2 | * * 1/2 | |
| Fries with Bleu Cheese and Chili Oil | 4.75 |
* * * * | * * * * | |
| Pork Chop I | 15.95 |
* * * | * * * * | |
| Pork Chop II | 15.95 |
* * * | * * * * | |
| Grand Marnier Creme Chocolate Cake | 4.75 |
* * * | * * * * |
River City Brewing Company is located just beyond the Warner Brothers Store at Downtown Plaza in Sacramento. They'll validate your parking, so you can stay up to 4 hours for free, which is always an added bonus. The interior consists of a brewery in progress. There are several free standing copper vats with spigots lining the windows and inner edges of the lower level. Gunny sacks filled with hops and other materials sit on the upper level. The tables and chairs are of a modern design - dark cast iron, stark, and small.
I tried their oatmeal stout. They serve in 0.3, 0.6, and 1.0 liter size glasses. I was intrigued by the description of beer in a railroad glass, but was not up to a full liter of dark beer. It was thick and a little bitter, and I am not a great connoisseur of dark beers.
We perused the menu, but were having a difficult time deciding. Their menu consists of a front/back laminated flip card, with full descriptions of what comes on the plate (down to "a small side of creamed pumpkin in a maple/orange sauce"). Then, there is the special menu, which consists of 2-3 pages of additional descriptions. Everything sounded mouthwatering, but we consented to come back possibly at a later date. We began with French Fries with Bleu Cheese and Chili Oil. They brought out a huge plate of perfectly cooked fries, with a small ceramic container with chunky bleu cheese dressing and chili oil swirled in for dipping.
Since we couldn't decide which main course to get (and we both really wanted pork chops), we each decided to try one of the pork chop specials. Mine was drenched in an oatmeal stout (slightly sweet) sauce, with asparagus tips, and the aforementioned creamed pumpkin. J had her chops with an orange sauce, brussel sprouts (she doesn't like Brussels, but these were good!), and carrots. Both of us were overstuffed by the end of the meal, but we took our leftovers home and decided to split a dessert. We decided on the Grand Marnier Cream Chocolate Cake. It was presented so artistically, we weren't even sure we wanted to eat it. It came on a large white plate, a generous wedge of chocolate fudge cake interspersed with Grand Marnier Creme, with a few mint sprigs and orange sauce dribbled across the cake and the plate. The cake was rich beyond all reckoning, and excuse the phrase, to die for. To DIE for. My arteries constricted a little tighter, just at the mere thought. River City Brewing has an excellent cook, an excellent dessert chef, superb service, and an entertaining descriptive menu.