Chowder in All Its Glory I A WELL-MADE CUP OF SOUP SHINES AT RIO CITY AND ELSEWHERE
n my nearly 40 years of living in Sacramento, the term “riverside dining” has rarely been a signifier of great cuisine. Restaurants have come and gone on the banks of the Sacramento and the American, and few have left a mark on the sandy shores of our city’s aquatic arteries. Sure, there’s the riverside party patio that is Swabbies on the River. It’s known for good bands and decent fish tacos. There’s the seasonal, floating berth-of-fun, Crawdads. They’ve good bloody marys and tasty fried dishes. There were old riverside haunts like The Rusty Duck and Hungry Hunter, beloved more for their hulking presence than the quality of cuisine.
The revelation, however, was the clam chowder. I’d forgotten how much I liked clam chowder. A quiet player in the riverside dining arena, though, is Rio City Cafe. A bit dwarfed by its brash next-door neighbor, Joe’s Crab Shack, Rio City has been a fixture on the Old Sacramento riverbank for more than 20 years. A recent lunch there was cozy and memorable. Tucked away next to a flickering fireplace, with a view of the slowly running winter river, I was enchanted. The food was solid and enjoyable, a better-than-average offering being the brisket tacos, which had southwest flair and smoky punch. The revelation, however, was the clam chowder. I’d forgotten how much I liked clam chowder. It took Rio City’s near-perfect rendition of
GS By Greg Sabin
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IA JAN n 17