menuplease

Anyone who has lived in the Redding area more than a few years knows that until quite recently live music was as rare as jackalopes. Oh, sure, if you were over 21 you might have gone into Ricardo’s to hear some band that got stuck here on their way to getting stuck in Lodi, or heard Norm Bailey and the Nervous Kats at a dance at the Moose Lodge, but that was about it. Concerts? Well, the Turtles played at the old Shasta High School auditorium (now U-Prep) in the mid-60s. There was also a concert by the 1910 Fruitgum Company and the Ohio Express – who can forget the immortal lyrics, “Yummy yummy yummy I’ve got love in my tummy”? The situation improved in the 1970s when the civic auditorium occasionally hosted a touring musician with an open date on their schedule like Jeff Beck or a young Dire Straits, but venues for local music just didn’t exist.

These are happier days for music fans. In the past couple of years numerous bars and restaurants have started featuring live music at least one night a week. (A News Cafe’s own Hal Johnson has taken on the arduous task of compiling listings weekly.) California Brewing Company is one such spot that opened up two years ago next to Holiday Market in Palo Cedro. A small dining room is augmented by a courtyard that serves as an auxiliary dining room & stage in good weather. In bad weather – well, squeeze together to make room for the musicians. When there’s no live music, you can watch a silent TV while listening to piped-in oldies.

Though primary focus is on their beer, CBC offers a simple menu that goes beyond salty bar snacks. The focus is on fresh, uncomplicated dishes that appeal whether you’re quaffing a brew or sipping an iced tea.

California Club Wrap, $9.99, with side of deep-fried green beans, extra $2.00

You heard it here first: Femme de Joie predicts that crisp-fried green beans will replace sweet potato fries as the next ultra-popular restaurant appetizer. In the same way that deep-fried mushrooms have an almost meaty taste and texture, grassy green beans were transformed into vegetarian snacks that a carnivore would snarf up in a nanosecond. On a hot day, the salady California club wrap – lightly dressed chicken salad enfolded in a tomato flour tortilla (though colored tortillas never seem to actually taste like whatever they’re tinted with) was filling without being overwhelmingly heavy.

Adult Stout Float, $4.99

Years ago, when a friend described the stout-and-ice-cream dessert he’d had at a Portland restaurant, M. de Joie privately thought that sounded really disgusting. Fortunately, tastes change. Dark and spicy house-made stout poured over chocolate ice cream, eaten while listening to the Trammps sing, “Disco inferno, burn that mother down,” is a pleasure M. de Joie doesn’t expect to ever find again in this life. Not for fans of super-sweet desserts, this was like carbonated dark bitter chocolate in a glass. Lovely.

Baja California Burger, $10.99

Yes, $10.99 is a lot for a burger – unless it’s a 1/2 pound burger. Topped with fresh Jalapeno, pepper jack cheese, and sliced avocado, the Baja California was one of the better hamburgers Femme de Joie has tasted around the area – the burger still juicy despite needing a longer cooking time, with abundant and spicy toppings. More of those green beans on the side – they’re worth the $2.00 upgrade from salad or fries.

Bacon, lettuce, & tomato sandwich with French fries, $6.99

This was a special deal sandwich, hence the lower price. The fillings were all fresh and tasty but it was a bit on the skimpy side. To be sure, you get what you pay for. The fries were quite good, non-greasy and very lightly salted.

Palo Cedro isn’t a long drive from downtown Redding and this little oasis is a pleasant reward for making the trip. The limited menu doesn’t overtax the small kitchen so service is fairly speedy. Service is friendly and helpful. Though there isn’t a children’s menu, all ages are welcome.

And now Femme de Joie gets on her soapbox, which she carries with her everywhere: Yes, there is frequent free live music. But there has been an influx of people coming into CBC, occupying chairs and tables, and ordering a glass of water. While that isn’t illegal, it takes up seating that would otherwise be used by customers who would happily pay good money to order food and drinks, which is what keeps the restaurant in business and keeps the live music coming. If this trend continues, it would certainly make sense for California Brewing Company to institute a cover charge or minimum purchase, and M. de Joie couldn’t blame them if they did. All this to say – if you want to listen to live music, don’t sponge off the good nature of a place like CBC.

California Brewing Company, 9348H Deschutes Road, Palo Cedro, CA 96073, in the Holiday Market shopping center. 530-222-2739. Open Wednesday and Thursday, 4:00 PM – 9:00 PM, Friday and Saturday, 4:00 PM – 10:00 PM, Sunday 12:00 PM – 6:00 PM. Closed Monday and Tuesday. Cash and cards; no checks. Beer and wine. Vegetarian and vegan options. Parking lot. Website at California Brewing Company or follow them on Facebook.

Not everyone loved the old Hatch Cover Restaurant, but it held a warm place in Femme de Joie’s heart from many get-togethers with family and friends over the years. She loved the retro-70s vibe with the piped-in Pablo Cruise-y music, the cozy sofa nook in the lounge, that weird painting of the man in black heading down the stairs in the lighthouse, the cute waiters in Hawaiian shirts, even the cherry-scented liquid soap in the ladies’ room. The food wasn’t haute cuisine, to be sure, but it was competently prepared and great value for money. (There was a Chico branch of the Hatch Cover too, set so far back from the Esplanade that it was barely noticeable under the trees.) It just about broke M. de Joie’s heart ten years ago when she drove past the old Hatch Cover and saw all that lovely wood from the interior broken and tossed into dumpsters like worn-out holey socks. After a series of unfortunate and untoward events, the late Rivers opened and closed two years later; in 2012, Redding restaurant empresario Joe Wong opened View 202 on that spot.

Clearie’s, Moonstone Bistro, Nello’s Place, Cafe Paradisio, Market Street Steakhouse, Peter Chu’s, Gironda’s, and View 202, among others, all compete for the diner looking for that special occasion restaurant. What is that special something, that je ne sais quoi, that makes the consumer choose one place over another? Is it the buzz, the bartender who knows your special drink, the dark corner where a discreet affair can be carried out, the salad dressing? With the demographics and population of Redding, a place like View 202 needs to set itself apart from the others, to court consumers seeking white-tablecloth occasion dining. But are they getting their money’s worth?

Femme de Joie enjoys a well-appointed restaurant interior as well as a kitschy one, but she can’t figure out what’s going on at View 202. It was as if three or four decorators were each given a section to work on – a white wall splashed with big blowsy flowers befitting a ladies’ tearoom; the patio’s mishmash of black wicker chairs, white plastic chairs, and red and purple sofas; an ultra-modern exterior; plain faux-granite tabletops, concrete floors, and Ikea-inspired hanging lights. It appears to have been inspired by Carnival Cruise Line ships, not to dis Carnival.

Ahi avocado burger and cup of Pismo Beach clam chowder, $15.00

When Femme de Joie orders a burger, she expects to get, you know, a burger. She would not have described this as a burger. Four thin slices of ahi – a meaty-textured fish – were seared rare and placed on a rather good brioche bun along with an extremely small fan of thin avocado slices. The wasabi-lime slaw was overwhelmingly bitter; a couple of black soy beans does not an aioli make. Other than the bitter slaw and the buttery brioche, this was one bland sandwich.

Femme de Joie doesn’t know what distinguishes Pismo Beach clam chowder from any other creamy clam chowder, though perhaps it was the lump of melted cheese she found glommed onto the bottom of the soup cup. The soup was on the thin side but the cheese was on the thick side, so it balanced out.

Cherry Tart, $5.00

On a visit for dinner, M. de Joie asked if she could sit and have a drink before dinner. The hostess offered her “the couch.” Where couch? Outside, inside? It turned out to be on the patio, as there were Happy Hour specials “on the couch,” though it wasn’t clear if those specials could be had not on the couch. The hostess seemed determined that the couch should be occupied.

Once M. de Joie had her Cherry Tart, described as a whiskey sour with fresh cherries (the Maraschino cherry didn’t qualify as fresh and there weren’t any other cherries in the glass), she became invisible for an hour. Other than one waitress asking if she would like to order a bar snack, M. de Joie was completely ignored. While Femme de Joie is of that age where she is passed over in favor of younger and hotter women, it seemed a bit remarkable how completely she was forgotten. Eventually she had to get up and go find the hostess to ask to be seated for dinner, who began preparing a place for her on the by-then chilly patio- which M. de Joie demurred in favor of a table indoors.

Warm bread came with herb olive oil made with celery, basil, parsley, and capers as described by the female waitstaff who filled water glasses- she said she made it. The oil was delicious, the bread average.

Maseca calamari, $13

Spicy Fresno chilies and the medium-hot sauce were the best things about this appetizer. While the breading was evenly cooked, the calamari strips were floppy, not crisp, and on the oily side.

Steak frites, $19.00

When food processors became popular in the late 1970s, purees suddenly appeared on every plate. Purees of turnips and zucchini, carrot and beet, potatoes and apple. It was part of the nouvelle cuisine movement, which happily disappeared quickly as diners realized they didn’t particularly care for baby food on their plates. Remember Nora Ephron’s great line, “Pesto is the quiche of the ’80’s”? Sous-vide appears to be the food processor of the 2010s. Sous-vide is translated as “under vacuum” but might be better described as “in a boiling bag.” It’s the darling of certain modernist chefs but to Femme de Joie, it’s an annoying fad that will eventually wind up on garage sale tables alongside Bacon Bowl makers, Taco Salad Shell makers, and Salad Shooters.

So: The steak did not appear to be grilled; it appeared to be cooked sous-vide with grill marks added later. While sous-vide ensures an extremely tender steak, it also eliminates the flavorful crisp and seasoned browned exterior – the Maillard reaction. The interior is one uniform color – here, pink (M. de Joie ordered it cooked rare) – and one uniform mouthfeel (soft). However, with the fatty, enveloping coat of butter – not just a melting pat, but a cold cream-like swath – any exterior browning was completely smothered. Limp shoestring potatoes were so salty with Parmesan and bacon that even a salty-food addict such as M. de Joie couldn’t get through them. Described on the menu as “grilled bistro fillet, crispy pancetta and brown butter sauce atop a mountain of Parmesan shoestring fries,” this was a far cry from the simple and superb steak frites served in even the meanest French bistro.

Smoked corned beef sandwich with chopped starter salad, $13.00

House-smoked corned beef was smoky but also very dry and fibrous. Combined with bacon-braised sauerkraut and aged white cheddar, it made for an unpleasantly salty sandwich. A very small chopped starter salad served in an even smaller bowl was awkward to stab with a fork but freshly made and crisp.

Side of macaroni and cheese, $6.00

M. de Joie liked the intense Cheddar taste of the macaroni and cheese; though it was a little watery when first served, the sauce thickened upon standing to cling to al dente pasta.

What to say about View 202? The view is nice from the patio. Waitstaff was mostly helpful and friendly (though it bugs M. de Joie when she asks a question and gets, “Uhhhh, I’m not really sure….” Just say you don’t know, then go find out). But the food misses the mark – so much and so often so that she felt it was a waste of good ingredients as well as overpriced for the end result.

Speaking of overpriced: an uninspired glass of Markham Sauvignon Blanc (year unknown; why isn’t the year on the wine list?) cost $9/ $32 for a bottle, yet BevMo sells it for $10.99. Alexander Valley’s Redemption Zinfandel was a much better wine but View 202 priced it the same as the Markham; Wine.com sells the 2012 for $12.99. Even more shocking, $14 a glass for Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling, available at BevMo for $6.99 a bottle. If you want to bring your own wine, View 202 charges $18 corkage (compared to $12 at Nello’s Place and $15 at Clearie’s and Moonstone Bistro). Femme de Joie has nothing against restaurants making a profit – that is why they’re in business – but she does object to blatant gouging.

Obviously Femme de Joie is missing whatever View 202’s fans see in it. She has no problem with spending money in high-end restaurants if the product is worth the price, but she doesn’t see that value at View 202. She might have a glass of iced tea on the patio, but she’ll eat elsewhere.

View 202, 202 Hemsted Drive, Redding, CA 96002. 530-226-8439. Serving lunch, dinner, and Sunday brunch. Open Monday through Thursday, 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM, Friday and Saturday, 11:00 AM to midnight, Sunday 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM. Cash and cards. Parking lot. Vegetarian and vegan options. Full bar. Website at http://view202redding.com/

The first time Femme de Joie dined at Brick's, back when it was on Placer Street (in the tiny building now occupied by the wildly popular Wilda's), she was underwhelmed. She and Amico del Signore ordered sandwiches (the exact contents now forgotten) which arrived slathered in a sweet red barbecue sauce that completely obliterated any smoke or grill taste. It could have been terry-cloth in those rolls; we wouldn't have been able to tell. Privately we vowed to never return.

But years went by. Brick's prospered and moved to a bigger location. The disappointing pain of those first sauce sandwiches eased. And eventually Brick's was given a second chance to redeem themselves. Breakfast seemed like a good place to start, so one Saturday morning we hied ourselves to Eureka Way to try it out.

If there is a Redding restaurant with a more poorly designed parking lot than Brick's, M. de Joie would be afraid to attempt parking in there. It isn't Brick's fault;' this lot has been like this for a number of years. It's as though the inventor of the Tilt-a-Whirl decided to transfer the concept of an amusement park ride to paving.

There have been several restaurants in this spot. If memory serves, there was the Donut Wheel, the ill-fated Avocado's, La Gondola (sorely missed), and possibly a couple of others. The current interior arrangement isn't fancy - wooden tables and chairs, a small beer bar in the back, a salad bar.

Tri-tip and eggs, $9.89.

Tri-tip is one of those cuts of meat that everyone professes to love, but is nearly always dessicated and rendered flavorless by well-meaning cooks. This, however, was luscious and tender, with smoke rings around the edges. House-made hash browns were similarly well-executed - crunchy exterior and creamy interior.

Chicken-fried steak and eggs, $10.89

We debated whether this chicken-fried steak was better than the one served at Dry Creek Station. While we didn't come to a definitive conclusion, we agreed it was equal. The steak still had some pinkness in the center and was quite juicy - a rarity for CFS. M. de Joie has never cared much for country potatoes/home fries in restaurants because they always seem to have an off taste, but these were delicious, crisp without being burned, and without that old-oil taste.

Grits, $2.89

Is there another place in Shasta County serving grits? They aren't everyone's cup of tea, but it's worth ordering a small cupful and trying them with butter, a squeeze of honey, or using them to mop up egg yolk. These were al dente, as Joe Pesci prefers.

Southwest chicken Reuben, $7.99

Brick's serves an interesting variation on the standard Reuben, substituting smoked shredded chicken for corned beef. It made for a messy, drippy, and delectable sandwich, the smoky chicken holding its own with the other ingredients. The swirled rye bread didn't hold up so well and finally collapsed.

Hot link sandwich, $7.99

Femme de Joie does enjoy food that's fiery enough to make her reach for the Tums. The hot link sandwich at Brick's did just that, but it was worth it. A combination of sliced Andouille and Louisiana hot links, this might be a bit too spicy for some people. It is hot, as the name implies, and a bit on the greasy side, but the piquant seasonings make this more than just one-note hot.

Both sandwiches came with waffle-cut fries, which added support to M. de Joie's theory that any French fried potatoes which are sliced in fancy shapes will always be inferior to fries sliced in the usual wedges or finger strips.

Spicy mac and cheese, $2.99

We both liked the creamy shell mac and cheese - not overcooked or dry, it did have a little heat but wasn't so hot that the kids would reject it out of hand.

Coleslaw, $1.59

One the other hand, M. de Joie wasn't crazy about the coleslaw, which was less than crunchy. With a non-sweet mustardy dressing, it would have been better served on a sandwich as a relish rather than as a side dish.

Overall, Femme de Joie likes Brick's and is glad she gave them a second and third chance. The atmosphere is casual and service is friendly, if a little on the slow side at times. And they get huge Brownie points for serving Guinness and Newcastle Brown Ale on tap. It's a good locally owned and operated place on Redding's West Side, an area that could use some more decent restaurants. Rather than stop at that chain burger hatchery across the street, give Brick's a try (they serve burgers too).

Brick's Smokehouse BBQ & Grill, 1970 Eureka Way, Redding, CA 96001. 530-245-9158. Fax 530-245-9163. Open Monday-Friday, 10 AM - 11 PM; Saturday & Sunday open 6 AM for breakfast. Beer and wine. Vegetarian options. Cash, cards; no checks. On-site parking lot from hell or park on the street. Website at http://bricksbbq.com/index.php/home

"Now, tequila may be the favored beverage of outlaws but that doesn't mean it gives them preferential treatment. In fact, tequila probably has betrayed as many outlaws as has the central nervous system and dissatisfied wives. Tequila, scorpion honey, harsh dew of the doglands, essence of Aztec, crema de cacti; tequila, oily and thermal like the sun in solution; tequila, liquid geometry of passion; Tequila, the buzzard god who copulates in midair with the ascending souls of dying virgins; tequila, firebug in the house of good taste; O tequila, savage water of sorcery, what confusion and mischief your sly, rebellious drops do generate!" — Tom Robbins (Still Life with Woodpecker)

La Conquista is one of those places just off the freeway where travelers pop in for a fast meal, then slide back onto I-5, never to return. Femme de Joie and Amico del Signore visited a couple of months after it opened. It was, not to put too fine a point on it, Godawful. All M. de Joie recalls of that evening is a vegetarian burrito filled with what were labeled "grilled vegetables." They weren't grilled, they were interrogated and tortured. Amnesty International and the Geneva Convention couldn't have saved them. We expected La Conquista to go out of business shortly.

Three years later and La Conquista is still in operation. Femme de Joie decided to be brave and give it another try. It's hard for her to believe that a restaurant could stay in business based on shots of 500 tequilas, but that may indeed be the case, as the food ranges from pretty average to pretty stuccolike.

Service was friendly and fast. Chips and salsa arrived at the table promptly, along with one food menu, one tequila menu, and one cocktail menu. This, in addition to the laminated tequila menu tacked on the wall of every booth, did not bode well for what the food might be like.

The menus are difficult to read, with bolded font on very intensely-colored paper in torn plastic page protectors. And they're badly organized: La Conquista has all the standard Mexican menu items, but you'll have to search for them. They're there somewhere in the midst of more tequila promotion. Combination platters are featured at La Conquista, most of them running $9.29 at lunch and $9.99 at dinner; they come with a choice of sides -- refried beans, corn, rice, or a green salad.

La famosa wet burrito with shredded beef, $8.99

Shredded beef filling was moist and tender but not especially flavorful. The refried beans inside were not nearly as hot as the meat so there were hot and cool spots within the burrito. Serving size was very generous.

Pork enchilada verde and chicken taco ($9.29 lunch, $9.99 dinner)

This combo of enchilada and taco were amply sized, filled with tender but bland shredded meat, but overwhelmed with too much melted cheese. It took a few spoonfuls of salsa to add any character other than cheese. A side salad was served separately (a good idea instead of lettuce wilting rapidly on a hot platter); nothing out of the ordinary but was adequate. The corn also was served separately -- plain buttered corn but unusually sweet, as though it had been heated in sugar water.

Shredded beef tamale and chile rellano, rice and beans ($9.29 lunch, $9.99 dinner).

This plate was heavy going and difficult to plow through. The tamale was shaped like a taco with nary a corn husk in sight, plasterlike masa reminiscent of canned Gebhardt's tamales and the same shredded beef used in the wet burrito. Gobs of melted Monterey Jack cheese engulfed the beef bursting from the masa casing. The chile rellano was a canned green chile filled with Monterey Jack cheese, coated in a heavy floury egg batter and deep-fried, then covered with more cheese. Refried beans were canned and the rice had a weird and unpleasant over-reheated taste. Everything was very salty.

Though M. de Joie visited La Conquista three times during prime dining hours, she never saw more than ten tables occupied. She has to assume those 500 tequilas are keeping it in business - though she didn't actually see anyone belly up to the bar and order a shot. If you're looking for a tequila sunrise, an aged anejo, or a shot with a lick of salt and a squeeze of lime, this is the place, but M. de Joie thinks you could do better elsewhere for dinner.

Note: Since this was published in A News Cafe, La Conquista has closed and is currently due to be replaced (as of August 2012) by Mazatlan Grill.

La Conquista, 1630 Hilltop Drive, Redding, CA 96002. 530-222-0450. Open Tuesday-Saturday, 11 AM - 9 PM, Sunday 11 AM - 8 PM. No checks. Cash, cards. Full bar. Vegetarian selections. Parking on-site. Outdoor seating.

It was 1968 that Buz’s Crab Stand opened for business in a slightly grotty location between a dry cleaner’s and Safeway. Back then, after placing an order, customers had to keep one ear peeled for staff yelling through the noisy restaurant that their order was ready. The menu was short and sweet: fish and chips, a few broiled fish dishes, clam chowder. Though they claim to be a “funky fish joint,” nowadays Buz’s is more genteel and calculatedly funky than in their early days. The amount of available seating has expanded and servers now bring food to your table. You still order at the counter -- usually standing for a few minutes reading the enormous menu board behind the cashier -- and get your own non-alcoholic drinks, but now diners are given a table marker saying Swordfish or Halibut to ensure food is delivered to the right table. Service has been friendly and prompt.

Buz’s menu has expanded wildly since those early days, which may appeal to a broader demographic with more adventurous palates than was had forty-some years ago, but very often the execution is uneven and disappointing. There doesn’t seem to be one chef overseeing operations and ensuring consistency. Pastas, wraps, fish burgers, Southwestern, Cajun, cioppino, Mexican, fish kebabs, grilled/fried/broiled -- Femme de Joie feels that while trying to please every taste, the kitchen has spread itself too thin.

The signature dish at Buz’s, fish and chips, $7.75. The batter was crisp but bland; the fish was fine the first few bites while still warm from the fryers. After that it became apparent the fish inside was dry and overcooked. Chips -- which appear to have been pre-cooked en masse and kept warm; they certainly are not freshly fried -- are under the fish so any crispness they might once have had is steamed out by lying under the hot filets.

Crab chowder,$5.49. This rich and creamy soup was filled with new potatoes and loads of crab. Unfortunately, the delicate, sweet crab taste was lost due to a heavy hand with dried herbs.

Salmon bisque was much more successful than the crab bisque; the stronger flavor of meaty salmon chunks stood up nicely in a not-too-creamy base.

Two fish tacos supreme. Nuggets of deep-fried fish were crunchy but tasteless and covered with guacamole from a jar, cheese, olives, salsa from a jar, scallions, and a very runny creamy sauce that saturated the flour tortillas and eventually made the entire taco a soggy mess.

Open-faced crab sandwich on sourdough was one of the better offerings: lots of hot crab under a not-too-heavy coat of melted cheese on a thick slice of sourdough. The sweet crab -- mixed with bits of celery -- came through nicely and the sandwich was kept hot on a metal platter. There were plenty of those soft, pasty chips on the side.

The best thing Femme de Joie had at Buz’s: a fresh green salad.

Generally, M. de Joie doesn’t care much about presentation as long as the food is good. But when she pays a fairly hefty price for lunch and then finds the food isn’t all that wonderful, she starts to notice things. For instance: a $5.50 cup of soup served in a plastic bowl, runny and drippy tacos served in a plastic basket with a sheet or two of paper to keep the flood from spilling onto the table, cheap plastic forks. It wouldn’t be so noticeable if other restaurants did the same thing, but if you’re paying sit-down prices and getting takeaway plastic and paper, you start thinking about whether you’re getting the best value for money.

EDIT: Buz's has closed as of September 2012. R&R Meats has purchased the building and will turn it into a seafood market.

Buz’s Crab Seafood Restaurant and Market, 2159 East Street, Redding, CA 96001. 530-243-2120, fax 530-243-4310. Open Sunday-Wednesday, 11 AM - 8 PM, Thursday-Saturday 11 AM - 9 PM. Seafood market open Sunday-Wednesday 9 AM - 8 PM, Thursday-Sunday 9 AM - 9 PM. Beer and wine. On-site parking. Cash, local checks, cards. Overnight delivery of fish via FedEx; see website for details. Website at http://www.buzscrab.com/index.php

Long ago, when Femme de Joie was a young and innocent child at Shasta College, an older-but-wiser man said to her, “Man, the burgers at Damburger are just like the burgers they had back in the ’30s. They’re salty and greasy and crispy.” There was a certain lascivious tone to his words salty and greasy and crispy.. He paused for reflection, then continued sadly, “But then just when you’re about to bite into one, some old fart at the end of the counter lights up a cigarette and blows smoke in your face.” It took Femme de Joie a few years to realize the older-but-wiser man was born in 1945, so how would he know what burgers were like in the ’30s? He did have a point about the smoke, though; that stuck with M. de Joie for years and kept her out of Damburger until she realized no one was likely to light up in there any more.

If you never get into downtown Redding except for the rodeo parade or to pay a traffic fine at the courthouse, you might not even know about the existence of Damburger in its modest little spot on Placer Street. The bright blue awning might be your only clue that this humble little cinder-block building really is a living, breathing relic from Redding’s past.
.

.
There are a few tables with umbrellas outside on the patio; inside are tables as well as counter seating. Sit down anywhere, inside or out, and someone will come take your order, or order at the takeout window. The menu is modest; it won’t take you long to decide. This place hasn’t diversified with French dips and fishwiches and taco salads: it’s burgers, dogs, chips, and fries.
.

.
Double Dam cheeseburger, $5.65, small fries, $2, with fry sauce, .25 (Damburger is one of the only places M. de Joie has come across that charges extra for fry sauce). What’s different about a Damburger is that the burger is cooked until it’s actually crisp and crunchy on the exterior and thoroughly well-done throughout. This can’t be done with frozen patties: too much moisture will keep the meat from browning properly. These fries were perfect: golden, crisp, cooked all the way through.

On Femme de Joie’s next visit, she went inside to order and got to watch the line cooks at work. One cook mans the grill, cooking thin patties and pressing them down to extract all moisture - a practice that makes M. de Joie cringe a little. Burgers are passed off to another employee who preps each bun individually, checking the order tag for no onions or extra ketchup. Finally, a third person bags the burgers, adds fries or chips and a drink, and brings it to the customer. There was no frenetic hurry and no buzzers going off to tell when things were ready, unlike in chain fast-food restaurants. It takes practice to do this right.

The Helen Burger is a thicker patty (1/3 pound) and it’s cooked less well-done than the standard Damburger. That means it doesn’t get the crunchy exterior; without that, it’s perfectly tasty but there’s nothing much to distinguish the Helen from a decent burger at any other independently-owned drive-in.
.

.
Double Dam Dog, $3.75. It’s two hot dogs split in half, grilled, and slapped on a hamburger bun with cheese and trimmings, like if your dad was grilling hot dogs and ran out of hot dog buns. It wasn’t bad, but there was nothing really special about it that would entice M. de Joie to have another one. Like Gertrude Stein said about Oakland, there’s no there, there.

Interestingly, vegetarians and even vegans are served at Damburger: you can get a Garden Burger (vegetarian) or a Boca or chipotle-black-bean vegan burger. However, since they’d be cooked on the same grill with the beef burgers, individuals will have to decide for themselves if that cancels out the vegetarian aspect.

About that institution stuff. It’s one of M. de Joie’s many pet peeves to hear the phrase “a Redding institution since 19–” thrown around loosely, usually on radio commercials. Merriam-Webster defines institution as … “a significant practice, relationship, or organization in a society or culture … something or someone firmly associated with a place or thing …. an established organization or corporation…” Saying Barney’s Drive-Thru Coffee, Duck Calls & Glass Packs, a Redding institution since 2003 doesn’t make it so. Damburger is doing something right: they’ve been around since 1938 (to the best of Femme de Joie’s knowledge, only Lim’s Café outdates it for being the longest running area restaurant). Give this institution a try.

Damburger, 1320 Placer Street (between Market and Pine), Redding, 530-241-0136. Open Monday-Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM, Saturday 10 AM - 3 PM, Sunday 11 AM - 3 PM. Street parking only. Cash, cards. No alcohol. Vegetarian and vegan options.

About a year and a half ago, a new building went up on Yuba Street next to the beautiful Dobrowski House. The designer had the good taste to mimic the California craftsman style of that lovely old home (now used as offices). A franchise restaurant called Blendz went in and went out again about six months later. Then last fall, county employee Shelley Wilson, at the urging of her co-workers, opened up Aunt Sheli’s Deli in the recently-vacated building. Wilson’s son Robert oversees the daily operations of the deli.

Femme de Joie has to admit she was a bit reluctant to try the food. Her one experience with predecessor Blendz had been slooooowww, and the deli’s initial takeaway advertising flier was so fraught with misspellings and creative grammar that it made her dubious about the care and attention being lavished on the food. (The current flier has fixed all the mistakes.) But greed and hunger overcame her doubts, and she is very pleased with what she found.

When you walk in, there is a menu taped up on the right side of the cash register, or pick up one to peruse at your leisure. Order and pay at the register, then either have a seat indoors or out (there is limited seating) or lounge around for a to-go order. The menu includes the usual things you’d find at a deli — ham-turkey-roast-beef — but there are also some specialty items worth trying, and some surprisingly delicious and unusual vegetarian/vegan options.
.

.
Kailey’s Delight — roasted red bell peppers, spinach, homemade red onion marmalade, homemade garlic hummus, on a sweet French roll ($8.49), served with a cup of the blue cheese, bacon, and spinach soup ($3.25).

Often vegetarian meals are served only as an afterthought for the random veggie who might wander in hoping to maybe be offered an avocado sandwich. But at Aunt Sheli’s, some real thought and effort has gone into the vegetarian sandwiches. Kailey’s Delight was crunchy with fresh spinach, sweet with the delicious marmalade, and given substance with the garlic hummus and roasted peppers. This was good enough to entice meat-eaters. And while the blue cheese, bacon, and spinach soup isn’t vegetarian, it was wonderful — like a spinach salad in a cup. Creamy and tangy with blue cheese, this had smoky bacon and grassy spinach flavors. Creative and unusual.
.

.
Hot pastrami ($8.49) and the world’s smallest cup of macaroni salad, $2.50. Aunt Sheli’s serves hot pastrami two ways: “Southern style” (pictured above) with brown mustard, Swiss cheese, and homemade coleslaw, or Reuben style, with Russian dressing, Swiss cheese, and sauerkraut. This was a wonderful, messy, falling-apart-on-your-lap sandwich, with lots of hot, fatty pastrami and very fresh slaw piled high. The macaroni salad seemed insignificant — both in portion size (this was about 1/8 cup) and flavorings.

On another day, M. de Joie tried the Reuben style pastrami and it was quite wonderful - again, stuffed with good-quality pastrami plus the usual Reuben accompaniments. On the side she ordered the day’s special soup, chicken and dumpling — blindingly white and a bit on the starchy side; you might call it a Festival of Starch — but filling, tasty and packed with home-cooked chicken.

If you’re in the neighborhood — say, the courthouse or the downtown post office — Aunt Sheli’s is worth a stop for a cup of coffee and a muffin, a smoothie, breakfast (breakfast burrito $4.25, berry yogurt parfait $2.95), or lunch. There are two homemade soups every day. Servings are more than adequate and the staff is friendly and helpful. One caveat: they are sometimes a bit disorganized so it would behoove you to check your order to make sure it’s the right one and that everything you ordered is included.

EDIT: Aunt Sheli's Deli closed in 2011, a victim of the state of California, Redding, and Shasta County, who are determined to tear down beautiful buildings and erect a monstrosity of a new courthouse. There is a special place in hell for those who make those decisions.

Aunt Sheli’s Deli, 1730 Yuba Street, #A, Redding, 530-246-0400, fax 530-246-0401. Open Monday-Friday, 7:30-6:00 PM. Closed Saturday and Sunday. A few tables inside and also some outdoor seating. Street parking. No alcohol. Vegetarian and vegan options.

Recently Femme de Joie paid a visit to Bonney's Burgers, and to spare innocent eyes we will put some of the details behind a cut: ( Beware of falling F-bombs ahead. )

CR Gibbs opened, way, way back in the 1970's as a sort of sophisticated pub-for-Americans. Back then the never-ending shrimp bowl was the attraction - a large bowl with a mound of cracked ice, topped with shrimp in the shell. It was presented as the amuse-bouche at every dinner. Presumably the shell was to slow down those diners with the constitution of a shrew.

Over the years Gibbs has changed to keep up with evolving fashions in food - pub, then sports bar-cum-restaurant, and now California cuisine, complete with open kitchen. This to M. de Joie's mind is the most successful of the incarnations thus far, especially with the pleasant patio dining area. Behind the vine-covered fence, one can (almost) forget they are steps away from Hilltop Drive. Service is always friendly and helpful, though sometimes a bit rushed - be sure to ask what the specials are, as they sometimes forget to tell you.

M. de Joie enjoys an occasional lunch at CR Gibbs; they seem to her to be a better value than the dinners. She would altogether rather forget the time she enticed Amico del Signore to Sunday brunch there; it reminded them of an episode of Wild Kingdom that featured a pack of dingoes dining on wildebeest at the watering hole.

On not-too-extreme days and in the evenings, the patio is enjoyable and more casual than the dining room. Misters keep the heat tamped down to a bearable level.
.

.
California Club Wrap - turkey, bacon, fresh salad greens, ranch dressing, avocado, tomato and grated cheese, in a spinach flour tortilla - with side of Cajun fries, $10.95. One great thing about CR Gibbs: waitstaff are happy to make substitutions. Normally the Club Wrap comes with multi-colored tortilla chips and an addictive-but-fiery Serrano pico de gallo; but when M. de Joie ordered a side of fries, they were substituted for the chips at no extra cost. The Wrap is perhaps M. de Joie's favorite item on the lunch menu - everything from a club sandwich wrapped up with ranch dressing. And the Cajun fries (with the spicy mayonnaise) proved to be just as fiery as the pico de gallo - a great combination of a cool, creamy, crunchy sandwich with hot, tender fries.
.

.
BBQ Pulled Pork Pizza - layered shredded pork, "pizza cheese" (what would that be, exactly?), Chipotle/Ranch BBQ sauce, purple onion, roasted red bell pepper, fresh cilantro and sliced jalapeños, $11.95. The BBQ pulled pork pizza was one of the best things M. de Joie has ever had at CR Gibbs. It was indeed spicy-hot with jalapeños, but not eye-weepingly so, and the flavors/textures complemented each other beautifully. While Mlle. de Joie is a thin-crust gal, this puffy crust out of the brick oven was flavorful and chewy enough to stand up to the heavy toppings. Indeed, all the pizzas at Gibbs are worth ordering, including the Greek pizza.

Also good at lunchtime are the salads - though the portions seem a bit scanty, they are unfailingly crisp and flavorful, with delicious combinations of ingredients paired with dressings, such as the Mediterranean Salad - greens, imported olives, artichoke hearts, cucumbers, sun-dried tomatoes and red onion with balsamic vinaigrette, topped with Feta cheese.

CR Gibbs features fish tacos at lunch for $11.95, but they have always seemed bland and somewhat mushy, like what a Mexican restaurant in Liverpool might turn out. The black beans and white rice are the best thing about the taco plate. And the Cajun-Asiago Cheesburger was overwhelmed with salty Asiago cheese - so much so that M. de Joie had to scrape the cheese off in order to taste the burger, which had a slightly burned flavor.

Two soups are always on the menu in addition to the soup of the day - baked onion soup at $6.95 and chicken tortilla soup for $7.95. Ordering baked onion soup in a restaurant has usually made M. de Joie wish she had thought to bring scissors with her to cut through the gummy mass of cheese pantyhose; this one is no exception. The chicken tortilla soup is a better choice - lighter but flavorful and packed with vegetables.

Currently CR Gibbs is featuring the "Re-Stimulus Menu" with marked-down items renamed for the recession - "Gas Price Fries - Who knows what the price will be today...take a chance! Choice of Cajun or Garlic-Pesto..." "Ford's BLT Fried Egg Sandwich - Our very special BLT (bacon, lettuce and tomato)on wheat bread with Mayo, two fried eggs and cheddar cheese...Slam! Bam! Whooo! Roll out that new model! $5.99." Sure, it's a gimmick, but it works, and the public seems to be responding favorably.

If you're downtown, CR Gibbs doesn't necessarily rate a drive out Cypress Avenue at noon - not much does - but if you're in the area at lunchtime, stop by. Saturday lunch is more relaxed than weekdays too, especially if you don't have to get back to the office right away.

- Femme de Joie

CR Gibbs, 2300 Hilltop Drive, Redding, in the Best Western Hilltop Inn. 530-221-2335. Cash, credit/debit cards. No checks. Cocktails, beer and wine. Open daily for lunch and dinner; Sunday brunch 10 AM - 2 PM. Live music on weekends. Parking on-site. Website at http://www.crgibbs.com/

Profile

menuplease

April 2017

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30

Syndicate

Page Summary

Palo Cedro’s California Brewing Company is Worth the Drive
View 202 – All That Glitters is not Gold
Brick’s Brings Barbecue to Redding
La Conquista Conquers Tequila – and Little Else
Menuplease: Buz’s Crab Stands, But Doesn’t Deliver
DAMBURGER REALLY IS A REDDING INSTITUTION
AUNT SHELI'S DELI
BONNEY'S BURGERS: GIMME A SIDE OF EXPLETIVE DELETED
LUNCH AT CR GIBBS

Style Credit

Style: Neutral Good for Practicality by timeasmymeasure

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags

Page generated Jun. 4th, 2026 10:34 pm

Where to Eat in Redding and Shasta County, California

Entries tagged with patio

Palo Cedro’s California Brewing Company is Worth the Drive

View 202 – All That Glitters is not Gold

Brick’s Brings Barbecue to Redding

La Conquista Conquers Tequila – and Little Else

Menuplease: Buz’s Crab Stands, But Doesn’t Deliver

DAMBURGER REALLY IS A REDDING INSTITUTION

AUNT SHELI'S DELI

BONNEY'S BURGERS: GIMME A SIDE OF EXPLETIVE DELETED

LUNCH AT CR GIBBS