Really! It was good!

I know what you're thinking. A sushi buffet? Seriously?

That's what I was thinking when I met my cousins at Mizu Japanese Restaurant in Roseville last Friday. My expectations were fairly low, but boy was I surprised! For $9, you get all-you-can-eat sushi (sashimi and rolls) -- that is made right in front of you -- and a variety of other Asian treats including soups, lo mein, potstickers, mussels, tempura shrimp & veggies, orange chicken, beef with broccoli and more.

Did I mention it was only $9?

Mizu is located at 1420 East Roseville Parkway in Roseville. 916-781-6888

The Search is On

For close friends of mine this will come as no surprise. I love Italian food. I love everything about it. And I don't mean mere "pasta" (or, as I'm sure some of you will say, "noodles". Noodles are the egg variety, or the Asian kind. I like these, but they're different.), but the inmmense variety of traditional Italian food. What I love about Italian food (besides the mass amounts of cheese often present) is that the focus is on the ingredients. Anyone can make great Italian food as long as you have high quality products to make it. Which is perhaps where the problem is in most "traditional" Italian restaraunts. They often try to make it something it isn't. I'm looking for a great hole in the wall Italian place where I feel like I'm stepping back in time, or half way across the globe. Because really, I make a pretty mean Italian meal myself and am just as happy cooking at home if necessary.

My first attempt at finding the perfect Italian restaraunt was Cafe Milazzo on Folsom Blvd in East Sac last week. I've heard mixed reviews on the restaraunt and wanted to try it myself. A friend and I stopped by last Tuesday after my class. I was afraid that we would be too late, but even though they were cleaning up they welcomed us in. Their menu is fairly brief and basic, but honestly, I like it that way. Our server was extremely patient with us while we took a long time to decide. I decided on the ravioli special, an asparagus and cheese ravioli with a vodka cream sauce, and Emily chose the Tuscan chicken over fettucinni. We got a glass of Chianti each, and our wine was perfect start to our Italian meal. I was excited.

Foccaccia and salad are complimentary with dinner. The bread was fabulous, and served with the traditional olive oil and balsamic rather than butter. I was starving, but regardless it was still awesome bread. Our salads were good and large with a simple Italian dressing. This may seem nitpicky, but it was impossible to eat the salad without making a huge racket because the bowls didn't sit flatly on the table. Emily and I were flinging lettuce everywhere. Emily's Tuscan Chicken was good, a pounded chicken breast on a bed of fettucini and wilted spinach with red bell peppers and a cream sauce. The combination of flavors was quite good, and the spinach a nice surprise. My ravioli were good, but they came out with about 7 medium sized ravioli floating in the vodka cream sauce. It looked like pink soup. The sauce was so thin it was hard to have a bite of the ravioli and the sauce together because it kept dripping off. The ravioli themselves were good, but they tasted very similar to the kind that come out of the grocer's freezer. It wasn't very exciting.

I have to say, in perusing the menu I was rather shocked by the high prices. Price-wise they were comprable, or even more, than restaraunts such as Paragary's and Lucca's, two of my favorites. I was sincerly hoping for gigantic portions or fabulous food. I received neither. The service, however, was fantastic. Everyone was incredibly friendly and knowledgable about the food. But I just don't think the food was worth the price. They do, however, have pizza nights on Tuesdays where a slice costs only $2. Their lunch menu looks good as well, and the prices seemed all to be under $10. I'm willing to go back and try either of these options, but Cafe Milazzo just did not fulfill my search for the best Italian in Sacramento. I'm still looking though, so if you have a suggestion please let me know.

Bali Wine Bar and Grill

Jennifer and I had been waiting for our Cafe Rolle night for weeks. Literally weeks--we planned this dinner so long ago (and have had dinner elsewhere in the meantime) that it seemed like it was never going to happen. So when we pulled up last night to use our expired coupon and taste some delicious French cuisine (yum, pate) I don't think either of us was surprised that the restaurant was closed until next week. Damn it!

Instead we decided to drive to Bali Wine Bar and Grill, another restaurant on our list to try. Bali (the restaurant, not the island) is right off Broadway on 18th Street. Super close, easy drive. There is plenty of parking on the street (if you don't mind parking in front of someone's house) and a very small lot in the back of the restaurant. I was already impressed "I love it already" to which Jen replied that I hadn't even seen it yet. Well, perhaps not all of it, but I did see lovely gauzy curtains and a wine bottle on every table. Good enough for me!

We were warmly welcomed right when we came in, and continued to have excellent service throughout the meal. Our server was friendly, knowledgeable and helpful in choosing entrees from a rather exotic (and unpronounceable) list. A nice touch was the recycled wine bottles used for mint-flavored water. Our server graciously poured our water and left one on the table. Always nice for us thirsty folks to not have to continuously ask for a refill of water.

We decided to order a bottle of red wine for our meals, and although Bali calls itself a "wine bar" I have to say it's a little stretch. They have wine, sure. And there's a fairly decent selection of varietals. But they certainly don't have the selection necessary for that title. And not to sound like a wine snob, but I don't go to a "wine bar" to taste wine I can buy for under $10 at Trader Joe's. That said, Jennifer picked out a lovely Sangiovese from Gina in St. Helena and it was great. It was also very reasonably priced.

We snacked on the chip things our server brought for us-- a strange, yet tasty crispy tapioca with garlic. I'm not sure exactly what they were called, but they were addictive. We decided not to do apps (saving room for desert) and went for main courses. Jennifer had the tri-tip and I had the salmon. Both were great-- each was marinated in a lovely tropical sauce that was not too sweet. None of that sticky sweet teriyaki here! My salmon was topped with a really spicy chili mix that really brought out the flavors of the fish. Both of us were pleasantly surprised by the veggies; each entree was served with a mix of wilted greens that were not too wilty, and crispy green beans and bean sprouts. The rice was our favorite however-- it was warm and aromatic. I'm not a rice fan (unless it's fried, but that goes for just about anything) but this was so good I had to go back for more. It was also nicely served in a separate bowl to share.

For desert we had a chocolate filled banana that wrapped in some sort of phyllo and fried, served with vanilla ice cream. The banana was great-- really chocolaty and crispy on the outside. The vanilla ice cream was also something special, it was very creamy and a great accompaniment for the bananas.

Overall, the ambiance and service were fantastic. It has a kitschy feel that works well with its small space. The bathroom is also something to check out--so much stuff! You almost want to hang out in there for a little while, if it wasn't for the scale sitting on the floor. Hmmm. Maybe it was a good thing there was no french food tonight! This would be a great place to go on a date, it's quiet enough to easily have a conversation, yet there's plenty of stuff around if the date proves boring.

It was also quite reasonable, due partially to our Entertainment card. If we had a rating system yet, it'd be right up there.

You can find Bali Wine Bar and Grill at 2416 18th Street in Sacramento, 95818. (916) 444-1247