Over the past few months, we’ve eaten at a few new restaurants (to us) in Sacramento, namely, Jensai Sushi, Golden Dragon Restaurant, and Shake Shack.
We happened upon Jensai Sushi and Golden Dragon Restaurant unintentionally. I wanted to try Shake Shack as soon as it arrived in Sacramento, as I had heard about it from East Coast colleagues.
Let’s eat!
Jensai Sushi on 16th Street
Jensai Sushi sits in a small strip mall off 16th Street with a large, recognizable sign alongside the building. Although the restaurant features Chinese and other Japanese-fusion options, we visited to try the sushi specifically.
We arrived on a Tuesday at an awkward time between lunch and dinner, so we had the place to ourselves. There was one other couple inside when we came and a family seated while we ate. Although it was closed during the daytime, they had an additional bar in another room off to the right that looked quite impressive.
I’m an appetizer fiend, so we began our visit with gyozas (deep-fried pork pot stickers) and miso soup. The miso soup at Jensai Sushi was my preference as it only had scallions and tofu; holding the seaweed. I don’t mind seaweed presented in any other way, but for some reason, it’s not my favorite when included in miso soup. I’ll eat it, but not my choice! The gyozas were rich, meaty, and tasty. I can’t pass up gyozas when I’m at sushi. Too good.
I also tried a Sho Chiku Bai Nigori Sake to drink through dinner — my first time trying a cold sake. I’ve had hot sake a few times and enjoyed it, but cold sake offered a varying experience. Seemingly a touch thicker, cold sake displays different aromas and notes you might otherwise miss in hot sake. Different, but both enjoyable in their unique ways!
We probably would have eaten more if we had more time, so we had to next move to the central part of our visit quickly: sushi.
Four separate rolls were ordered for the two of us, including a California Roll, Rainbow Roll, and two specialty rolls with unagi, tuna, salmon, avocados and more. It’s been months since our visit and I can’t remember which specialty rolls we enjoyed, but I remember consuming everything in sight and not leaving anything left to bring home as leftovers. A good sign!
Golden Dragon Restaurant on Broadway
Sitting off Broadway near the Elvas and El Dorado Freeway interchange and exits lies Golden Dragon Chinese Restaurant.
We haven’t yet dined in but have ordered takeout twice.
After having tried many Chinese food places in Sacramento, at the moment, I have to rank Golden Dragon Restaurant as my current favorite.
Since we order takeout, we set all the dishes on our counter, open the lids, add serving utensils, and have at it while watching a favorite movie or TV show.
For this particular occasion, I ordered Wor Wonton Soup, filled with minced shrimp and pork wontons, sliced chicken breast and shredded Napa cabbage. There’s something I find so scrumptious about boiled-down cabbage mixed with meat-filled wontons. Barrett’s Chinese food soup preference would be Hot ‘N Sour Soup, while my favorite continues to be wonton.
Next, we tried another Chinese food favorite — Crab ‘N Cream Cheese Wontons, served with house-made sweet ‘n sour sauce. This came served as six fresh but soft and baked pieces – not over-fried and inside, were creamy and crabby.
Eggrolls were our final appetizer. They were crispy, veggie-version eggrolls and also served with Golden Dragon’s house-made sweet ‘n sour sauce. Yum, yum!
For our mains, we had BBQ Pork Fried Rice, with peas, carrots, and scallions. It was a wonderful, classic fried rice – not too oily, well-seasoned, and the fresh vegetables were perfectly cooked.
Our next few mains were Chicken Chow Mein, Sesame Chicken, and Mongolian Beef.
The Chicken Chow Mein was made with egg noodles and stir-fried with beansprouts, shredded cabbage, celery, carrots, scallions, and white onions. Oh boy, so good! The Sesame Chicken was battered and fried chicken breast and wok-tossed in a sweet and tangy glaze, then topped with roasted sesame seeds.
As the coup de grâce to my belly, the Mongolian Beef may have been the final, shining star. Simply beef stir-fried with onions and scallions in a spicy Mongolian sauce. It had all the right balance of sweet and tangy while staying light and not overwhelming. The beef was supreme!
Shake Shack on R Street
I heard about Shake Shack for a long time from co-workers and then quickly became obsessed with trying their burgers.
As soon as they opened their Ice Blocks location on Historic R Street in Sacramento — my husband and I have been enjoying Shake Shack ever since. It might be a sore subject because he worked there in the past, but I’m not the biggest fan of In-N-Out Burger and other fast-food burger joints.
Shake Shack changed this for me.
This joint is yet another restaurant where we’ve only enjoyed their food takeout and have yet to dine in.
And guess what? We’ve tried pretty much *almost* everything on their menu at this point! I’m here to guide you through the experience.
What do you get when you’re hungry for an appetizer at Shake Shack? Crinkle-cut fries galore! Their regular fries are crispy crinkle-cut fries (containing soy) that are perfect for dipping into your own favorite sauce. Mine? Ranch dressing or ketchup. You can also order crinkle-cut fries as a “cheese fries” version, topped with cheese sauce. I’ve yet to try the bacon cheese fries. Be sure to eat your fries FIRST when ordering takeout, so they don’t get soggy!
As a secondary appetizer to burgers, the Shake Shack chicken bites are delicious. Crispy, whole white meat bites and served with honey mustard or BBQ sauce. I love them.
Oops, I forgot. Yet ANOTHER item you need to try at Shake Shack before you get to the burger is chicken sandwiches. Their chicken sandwiches are amazing! No antibiotics, hand-breaded chicken, and crisp-fried to order. The regular Chicken Shack sandwich is supreme, with chicken breast over lettuce, pickles, and covered in buttermilk herb mayo.
Now it’s time to introduce the king of Shake Shack; their 100% Angus beef blend burgers that are never frozen, humanely raised, and not filled with hormones or antibiotics. My personal favorite is the regular ShackBurger, which is a cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato, and smothered in ShackSauce. It’s so wonderful and fresh, and the meat, to me, tastes so perfect. Buttery goodness!
I also love the Bacon Cheeseburger, topped with applewood-smoked bacon on a toasted bun.
When it comes to burgers, I still need to try the Bourbon Bacon Cheddar Burger, SmokeShack, ‘Shroom Burger and Grilled Cheese. I’m determined to taste the full lineup!
Don’t forget to grab one of Shake Shack’s famous shakes and frozen custard on your way out. Since we’ve last visited the shake choices and flavors have changed, but currently, they offer a Sprinkle Cookie Shake, OREO Cookie Funnel Cake Shake, and Chocolate Churro Shake.
What’s your favorite restaurant in Sacramento?
Sacramento is home to many restaurants, from elegant dining to quick-stop taco joints. What’s one of your favorite restaurants in the city? Recently, Mattone Ristorante has risen to the top as a current favorite, or The Waterboy, for its local, seasonal ingredients.
