NOT FOUND: restaurant2.jpg"The Hof".
No not the alter ego of Baywatch and Knight Rider star David Hasselhoff ... but the restaurant known by regulars as one of the most memorable and historic in the North Sacramento area. Many we talked to have been going for the more than 50 years the landmark has been in business. Younger adults from as recent as Generation X & Y remark that they have fond family stories of dining on hearty dinners on weekends when they were little kids.
If not solely for the history, go for the hats.
NOT FOUND: restaurant3.jpgChefs work in an assembly line wearing something akin to the ten gallon ... high enough to see from the outside window. It almost makes you feel like you're on a whimsical trip to Disneyland and the European section of "it's a small world". Hof Brau specializes in a 'manly man' menu. Meat is carved fresh from whole cuts of roast beef, and baked ham ... pastrami, corned beef, turkey wings and veal cutlets also dot the buffet depending on the day. Sides include mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, and green beans. Try the potato salad, it tastes like mom used to make.
Imagine something like a holiday meal ... any day of the week.
Some odds and ends... house made pickles are some of the best in the west. The bar serves draft root beer and there is just something special about it. Coconut Cream Pie is one the favored desserts. (it was all thumbs up around our table)
NOT FOUND: retaurant review1.jpgThe place is right on the Watt Avenue Corridor in the same shopping center as the Country Club Lanes and just down the street from the mall. If you've never been, you might feel like an outsider for a moment. Most of the customers are regulars -- whether its the huge bar or the intimate wooden booths with tiny, floral curtains -- most seem like they know where they are going and what to do. But don't be intimidated! Just hope in line and choose your meat - and enjoy the atmosphere.
Depending on your vantage point, and what time of day you go -- this place could be a great college hang out for American River students, a grandparents lunch date or a step back in time to a simpler place where the homey hospitality and generous helpings make you feel like you've traveled to a German villa or downtown hole in the wall. Either way, if you're a fan of "meat and potatoes" you'll love Sam's Hof Brau.