0820_AUG Comstock's Magazine 0820 August | Page 24

TASTE
The parklet shared by Reset: Cafe By Day
and Sutter Street Taqueria can seat 12
people per restaurant.
capacity has been crippling for many
of them.” Sutter Street Grill, owned by
Folsom native Lorna Lee Smart since
1997, announced its closure April 22.
The community has rallied around
the survivors. During the lockdown, the
Folsom Historic District Association
deployed the Sutter Surfer, a stretch
golf cart decorated with tiki motifs that
usually shuttles shoppers from the
parking structures, to offer free restaurant
delivery. The association also conducted
social media promotions and a restaurant
bingo game — every takeout order
fills in a square — with gift card prizes.
After Sacramento County restaurants
were allowed to reopen for dine-in service,
the Folsom forces tag-teamed again. They
settled on parklets — sidewalk expansions
in parking spots — to expand the existing
capacity for al fresco dining, which has
been shown to pose less of a risk for transmission
than dining indoors. The Folsom
Historic District Association applied for
a permit to install the parklets, the city
fast-tracked the approval process, and, on
June 9, a fleet of volunteers gathered to install
them, armed with wooden shipping
pallets and string lights. These expansions
proved especially useful after Sacramento
County restaurants were again ordered
to close indoor operations July 1.
In the first days of summer, there
was a festive — if cautious — atmosphere
as diners in sunglasses and
masks filled the parklets. Some bars and
tasting rooms that previously eschewed
food brought in chefs to help them
comply with state COVID-19 guidance,
which banned such businesses from
reopening unless they served meals.
Willamette Wineworks, which had its
grand opening just three weeks before
bars were ordered to close, reopened
for table service May 27, closed again
July 1 and reopened July 10 for patio
seating only, with a “pairing menu”
that includes local products such as
sourdough bread from Village Bakery
in Davis. Its interactive barrel blending
machines, designed for customers to
push buttons, turn dials and make their
own custom wines, are temporarily
off-limits. “What we are looking to do is
partner with local businesses in ways we
safely can to jointly promote our offerings
and come up with innovative new
business ideas to support each other,”
says Christine Clair, winery director.
Reset shares a parklet with its
neighbor Sutter Street Taqueria. The
makeshift patio, shaded under red umbrellas,
has enough space for 12 people
per restaurant. It is separated from the
street with a fence made of pallets and
down the middle by several planters of
rosemary. Though no one is allowed to
sit inside, at 4 p.m. each afternoon, the
Voelzes and their staff still flip the art,
light the sconces and turn up the jazz.
“I’m amazed at the camaraderie and
the unity in the community,” Voelz says.
“We all want the other one to succeed.
… This has created more of a family
environment in the historic district, more
than ever before, and I’m super proud
of everyone working hard together.”
Jennifer Fergesen is assistant editor of
Comstock’s. Online at jcfrgsn.journoportfolio.com
and on Twitter @jenniferferges1.
24 comstocksmag.com | August 2020