….wine, pizza and green salsa

When I first got the email from one of my readers about doing a restaurant review I was a little bit leery, yet touched.
I read the email outloud to Shaun. He was dead set against it. He said by going out there and having a dinner and writing something fluffy about this place would just be a big ol’ sell out for Random and Odd.
My eyebrows crawled into my hairline and my mouth dropped open.
“But…”
“No Kristine, you’re not selling out. You email him back and tell him thank you but you’re not interested.” Shaun was stern. Too stern.
“You’re fucking with me right? Shaun…they serve pizza and hamburgers…a higher class pizza and hamburger. AND WINE. A place where I can eat pizza and drink WINE. ”
Yes, he was fucking with me. A free hamburger to Shaun is like a lap dance to most guys.

River K (i’m going to pretend the K stands for Kristine) is right by the movie theaters. If I wasn’t afraid that my children were going to burn the house down making toaster struddles, I would have been tempted to pull a ‘dinner and movies’ night.
This place is around the corner from my house, yet I felt like I was in the city doing cool city things.

I would like to think I can hang on to the exciting young woman I once was. The woman that can go out and have a couple of drinks with a good looking guy. Last night I had that. It felt good to go out to a nice place that has a big-city feel to it. One side of the wall is a clear garage door that they opened up to this huge patio. They had this jazzy music playing that made you feel like you were somewhere else. At all times I know how far I am away from my house, it’s the curse my mother put on me. Last night I didn’t feel like I was that close to home.

Shaun and I have a small handful of restaurants we agree on. He doesn’t like my Chinese restaurant and I hate his Del Taco. Finding a place that we can both agree on is nearly impossible. I like sit down and relax. He likes hamburgers.
AND BY THE GRACE OF GOD WE FOUND A PLACE WE CAN AGREE ON!
The food was great too. I had the pesto chicken brick oven pizza and he had a….let’s say it together now…HAMBURGER.
“Kristine, it’s real meat.”
I was tempted to ask him what the other hamburgers he has been shoveling in his face for the past two years were made of, but I was too busy fingering the green salsa.

I’m just going to take a moment to talk about the salsa: It was green. I don’t like green runny things, but i’m a wussy when it comes to spicy salsa and mild is the only kind I can eat. It was green. Did I mention the green already?
It was so damn good.
“Shaun, try the green salsa. It tastes so fresh.”
“Because it is, they just told you that.”
“I wasn’t listening, I was to busy eating it.”
Ryan offered to send me home with a cup of it, but like Shaun so accurately stated, “I’ll come home and she will be eating it with a spoon.”

For once the D70 doesn’t do something justice. It had a lot of flavor and was much bigger than I expected (Try some green salsa on it…Ohhhh so good.)

Internet, meet Ryan and Gregor. Ryan leaves for college tomorrow so wish him good luck on his adventure into political science.
Gregor is the guy that runs the show. I think it’s because of this guy that the restaurant is going to do so well.
While eating my dinner…okay, while shoving the green salsa into my purse…I watched him sit down with an older couple and just chat with them. The woman’s eyes lit up and her whole demeanor changed. She was thrilled to have the manager come sit and chat.
That action alone made this visit worthwhile.
Yes the food was great, the prices were good, the place was super clean…but the people there, all of them, were so relaxed that it made you feel comfortable.

They offered anyone in the Sacramento area (or if you’re from Houston visiting to avoid the storm) to hook you guys up. Just say that Kristine sent you and they will make sure you’ll leave happy. Make a point to talk to Gregor about the history of River K. He has thee most beautiful smile when he is talking about his place and the direction he wants it to go in.

And bring a Tupperware bowl to smuggle out the green salsa!!

*banner by Shaun

* more pictures at flickr

* River K official website

1563 Eureka Road
Roseville, CA 95661