The Early Days of a Great Coffee City

When I first landed (actually I was sent here, under orders by the Department of the Air Force) in Sacramento in the summer of 1981, I must say I was pretty shocked at how small of a place The Big Tomato was! There were not a lot of restaurants (that were not chains) and there were few amenities. In some ways, if I had not discovered my beloved Fox and Goose on 10th and R Streets in week one, I might never have been able to have stuck it out and had the opportunity to grow with Sacramento.

Another thing that happened that was the first signs that Sacramento was going to become a great City - was the opening of Coffee Works, on the corner of 34th and Folsom Boulevard. I had moved off Mather AFB and then got out of the service in January of 1982. I found a lovely tiny apartment in the basement of an older house in East Sacramento. And then, luck of all luck, Coffee Works opened up right in the neighborhood!

Coffee Works roasted their own coffee and in the early days there was no place to sit and no real coffeehouse part of the operation. But still! I had a source of great coffee and I will always be grateful to these coffee and urban pioneers.  I have a coffee card and still get my coffee here. I enjoy their wonderful pastries and am glad to have the whole coffeehouse experience now, but will always be thankful for those early days.

See you there for a cuppa soon!