Restaurants in Florin

A trio of Buddha statues gazes calmly at the entrance to Little Buddha Thai Bistro, as if awaiting the arrival of enlightenment. But before 6 p.m. on weeknights or 7 p.m. on Saturdays, it's restaurant patrons who arrive instead, taking seats at dark wood tables within the eatery's pale gray walls. In the kitchen, main-dish morsels of chicken or beef simmer in coconut milk or sizzle as they're stir-fried in a wok. Appetizers such as skewered satay arrive to prime palates. And in the dining room, thai wraps—stuffed with a choice of fillings such as shrimp and sweet coconut rice—echo the cylindrical shape of hanging lamps and warp pipes used for day trips to Bangkok.

They came from regions all over Mexico, more than 40 recipes in all, carefully compiled and tweaked by Art and Efrain Vallejo's grandmother. Today, these form the backbone of the menu at the brothers' eponymous eatery, which serves up eclectic south-of-the-border fare at three Sacramento locations. Diners share sizzling fajitas and appetizer platters of bite-size taquitos or padlock the flour tortilla wrappings of burritos to hoard fillings, such as charbroiled mahi-mahi, for themselves.

MidTown Deli serves up slices of local pride—swirled rye, sliced sourdough, and sweet french rolls bookend sandwiches named after streets and popular sights in Sacramento. The wraps are named for bodies of water and the salads are named for zip codes––95814, 95815, 95819—and served with a side of stamps. After catching the game on one of MidTown Deli's 55-inch high-definition flat-screen TVs, diners can retreat to the outdoor patio with a hot panini and a cold beer or stay in and surf the deli's free WiFi.

Located next to the bustling lanes of Capitol Bowl, Cap's Bar and Grill elevates expectations of a typical snack bar with sleek decor and an upscale menu. Tan suede cushions and polished-wood bar chairs host diners in a sleek space lit by modern hanging lamps. As for the food, chicken fingers get an upgrade when rolled in panko bread crumbs, and the sirloin beef for burgers is double ground in-house. Flat-screen televisions behind the bar broadcast sports games or frame-by-frame commentary on outtakes from Kingpin.