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Since you're reading this article, I'm going to assume that you're a connoisseur of breakfast, and that you probably spend a fair amount of time surfing the Internet, about great places to enjoy breakfast, and breakfast recipes. If you've spent any amount of time on the Internet, looking for reviews about enjoyable breakfast restaurants, you've probably encountered MrBreakfast.com, a web site that not only features breakfast restaurant reveiws, but great breakfast recipes, and practically everything about breakfast that a breakfast fanatic needs to know. Back to today's story: One day, charter Sacramento Breakfast Club member David was surfing MrBreakfast.com for enjoyable restaurants in the Sacramento metro area, and up popped Evan's Kitchen and Catering, in Sacramento. Mr. Breakfast's web site gave Evan's Kitchen a five coffee cup rating, which is as good as it gets, so when it was David's turn to choose the location for our club meeting, on Friday, June 19, 2009, he picked Even's Kitchen as the location to hold our club meeting.
Photo: David takes the time to admire the friendly outdoor dining that Evan's Kitchen offers, along with the flower, the grill and the smoker. Evan's Kitchen is located in Sacramento's 57th Street Antique Row, sandwiched between two antique stores, in a small shopping center, dedicated to the joy of shopping for antiques. Evan's Kitchen is the ONLY non-antique business in the shopping center, so that makes it easy to locate when you're in the mood for a delicious breakfast. The outdoor dining tables, the potted flowers, not to mention a grill and a smoker also offer clues as to the fact that Evan's is a restaurant, not an antique store. Then, there's the heavenly aroma of fine, California, eclectic cuisine, floating on the breeze that greets you as you approach the restaurant... As soon as we opened the front door, we were greeted with a cheery "Good morning," from Kristy, who was to be our server. After we were seated, she asked what we wanted to drink -- coffee, of course -- and we were presented with menus, mugs of coffee, and glasses of ice water. The ice water was in a real glass, not plastic, glass, which always adds a bit of decorative class.
Photo: Evan's dining room is warm, friendly, comfortable and inviting. Note the attractive oak wine cabinet in the center background of the photo. Evan's Kitchen and Catering is a comfortable place to enjoy a delicious breakfast, and the dining room decor is functional, attractive, and very comfortable. Attractive booths line the perimeter of the dining room, and the center is furnished with tables of various sizes, including a couple of tables that could easily fit eight or more diners. All furniture is made of oak, which lends a warm, homey feeling to the dining room. Wall decorations are quite sparse, which adds to the open, uncluttered look to the dining room, and makes it appear larger than it actually is. The main focal point of the dining room is an imposing wine cabinet, stocked with fine wines, and strategically-placed white boards are printed with daily specials. To add a fresh, elegant touch, a vase of fresh orchids graces each table. Evan's breakfast menu features three pages of breakfast favorites, and its divided into four sections: Family Favorites, Classic Benedicts, Three-Egg Omelets and Hearty Breakfasts. Some of the selections are named quite creatively, with monikers such as "Gina Ba Bina," "The Big Al," or "Kevin's Connection." The menu features something for every taste and is definitely a rung or two up the ladder from your typical truck stop diner, but the prices are very reasonable. Our friendly server, Kristy, was happy to point out that they use only the freshest ingredients available, and that the staff places a high priority on the quality of ingredients. As if to underscore her point, as we placed our orders, a produce truck pulled up in front of the restaurant, making the morning delivery of fresh produce.
Photo: Kristy is about to place Mark's "Starvin' Marvin" breakfast of chicken fried steak on the table, and she hold's David's breakfast of corned beef hash in her left hand. Brad and Matt each ordered "The Big Al" omelet, Mark ordered a "Starvin' Marvin" chicken fried steak, David ordered corned beef hash, and I ordered a scramble breakfast called "Steph's Platter." If you're a connoisseur of fine coffee, Evan's is the place to be, as they serve some of the best coffee in Sacramento. According to Kristy, the coffee is an organic blend; the name escapes me, but it's simply delicious. Another gigantic plus is that your coffee cup will never run dry, as the attentive staff seem to have developed a "sixth sense" of when its refill time. Another huge plus is that you don't have to fiddle around opening little containers of cream, as the cream at Evan's is in a small ceramic pitcher, which doesn't drip and make a mess when your pour cream into your coffee mug.
Photo: Chef Evan Elsberry, chats with us at our table.
Photo: My breakfast of a "Steph's Platter," toast and coffee. Check out the gravy, which is probably the best breakfast gravy that I've ever had the pleasure to enjoy. What about the food served at Evan's Kitchen and Catering? We weren't disappointed, as our orders arrived in a timely manner, piping hot from the kitchen, prepared exactly as ordered. Evan has been in the restaurant business for many years, and it shows in the presentation of the entrées, as each dish is a work of art. We were especially impressed with the attractive garnish of an orange slice and a sprig of parsley, which added a splash of color. I ordered a "Steph's Platter," which is a large plate of country fried potatoes, with two fried eggs on top of them, topped by gravy, with bacon, and a side dish of toast. When I placed my order, I expected my breakfast to come with sausage gravy, which is the de facto standard breakfast gravy in California. I received an unexpected surprise, in that the gravy wasn't sausage based, as it was based on ground beef and made with a SOS-like sauce, but that description doesn't do the gravy justice, as it makes the gravy sound like something that would be served in on a Navy mess deck. Evan works magic with his breakfast gravy, as I can truly say that the gravy that topped my breakfast was the best gravy that I've ever had the pleasure to enjoy for breakfast. I'd love to obtain the recipe, but I'm sure it's a closely guarded secret... My breakfast was simply delicious!
Photo: Today's Sacramento Breakfast Club members, from left to right: Matt Donnelly, Mark McIntire, Eric Rench, your photographer and web author, David DeMario and Brad Holther. The photo was graciously taken by our server, Kristy. Chef Evan emerged from the kitchen, introduced himself to us, and sat at our table for a bit, and personally welcomed the Sacramento Breakfast Club to Evan's Kitchen, and thanked us for visiting his restaurant. It was great to chat with Evan, who is not only a great chef, but also a nice person. He's worked hard to make Evan's Kitchen and Catering the wonderful restaurant that it is, and he should be proud of his accomplishment. Evan's Kitchen and Catering is the sort of restaurant that you'll want to visit with your wife, as it's a comfortable, special place. Combine exceptionally friendly service, fresh, skillfully prepared cuisine, and a comfortable, family-friendly atmosphere, Evan's adds up to an exceptional value. The members of the Sacramento Breakfast Club agree with MrBreakfast.com, that Evan's Kitchen and Catering is as good as it gets... Evan's
Kitchen and Catering Copyright(c) 2009 eRench Productions, Inc. All rights reserved. This site has been on the web since December 22, 2002. Web page design has been created by eRench Productions, Inc., custom photography for any occasion...
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