valentine's day Cosmo Cafe Opening

valentine's day

I have been working on the design for a new Sacramento restaurant, Cosmo Cafe, for the last few months, and had the pleasure of attending the Grand Opening Night Event last Thursday night. The Cosmo Cafe is part of the larger Cosmopolitan building which is also home to the Cosmopolitan Cabaret and the soon to be opening Social nightclub. I thought you all might like to take a peek:

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Of course there were Cosmos

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And lots of friends and familiar faces.

Kerry Ellis (don't you just love that name?!?!), lighting designer extraordinaire of Benning Design Associates, worked to get the lighting design just right. And Sean from Lumens Light and Living helped us with supplying the decorative light fixtures.

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Stacy Paragary of Paragary Restaurant Group, proprietress and wonderful client, had fun with Bruce Benning, owner of Benning Design Associates.

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And here I am in my role as Senior Designer for Benning Design, with my good friend Kate of Girl Meets Glamour blog.

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Good friends Leanne and Nicole. In the back round you can see the back lighted photo of K Street in Sacramento that I had enlarged showing the original exterior of the restaurant building in it's previous mid-century incarnation as Woolworth's.

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I met Kevin Johnson, former NBA Star and perhaps the future Mayor of Sacramento. November 4th will tell!

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The crowd was swelling early into the evening helping to kick off a great first night.

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Cool congas (Thanks MER!) were played.

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Diners were enjoying the sumptuous menu.

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The Sacramento Hotel, shown here, was the original occupier of the corner of 10th and K Streets. I created niches lined with back painted glass to showcase historical buildings on and around K Street.

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For the bigger groups, there is a private dining room with a view to the kitchen.

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Cocktails and friends made it an evening to remember.

So, if you are looking for a very "Cosmopolitan" way to spend an evening, don't miss dinner at Cosmo Cafe before seeing a show at the Cosmopolitan Cabaret!

valentine's day WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND:

So, are you looking for a little excitement this weekend? Are you tired of the air conditioned cubicle at work? Ready for a little people watching, a little art gawking, and little music, and little cocktail imbibing?

May I suggest: LOUNGE ON 20 and the Sacramento Art Walk!

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LOUNGE ON 20 is one of the latest and greatest new hang outs located in the heart of midtown, 20th Street, Sacramento, California. Sleek and modern with a sophisticated, yet casual atmosphere, ON 20 emphasizes wine, champagne and smaller plates. And what champagne lounge would be complete without oysters, so count on them as well!

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Owned and operated by the very gallant Ali Makari (who also owns Restaurant 55 , another top notch restaurant), the lounge is doing brisk business. It's small wonder as Mr. Makari has a way of making everyone feel like a VIP. Take a look at the drink menu here and the food menu here. Just a little something to whet the appetite!

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The concrete floors, white leather upholstery and dark wood accents all provide an excellent backdrop to the custom lighting which continually changes throughout the evening as it skims over the wave textured white walls. Wine bottles become an artful display against one whole wall of the space. You can tell where the priorities are here! valentine's day

I stopped in during their "soft opening" last month during the Second Saturday Art Walk to check it out. It was in full swing early in the evening. valentine's day

A fab place to just hang out with friends, old and new.

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And here are some old and new friends now! My long-time gal pal Leanne Davis just happens to be one of the fabulously brilliant designers of ON20. And new friend Valerie Hoffman-Deming headed up the project. Both are from the very talented architecture firm of Lionakis Beaumont Design Group, one of Sacramento's finest. Very nice work ladies!

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ON20 is located in the MARRS Building (MARRS = Midtown Art Retail Restaurant Scene) which was developed recently by the very enterprising visionary, Michael Heller. Above is a very typical scene from the Sacramento Second Saturday Art Walk (I will refer to it as SSSAW) right outside the MARRS building.

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The Solomon Dubnick Art Gallery, also located in the MARRS building, is a "must-see" on SSSAW. Serious art for serious art collectors. valentine's day

But there is something for absolutely everyone. There are a host of galleries all within walking distance, and there is a free tram service to get you to those bit farther than you may want to hoof.

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If you start a bit on the early side, you may miss the heavier crowds...but then again...the crowds are a part of the excitement. I had to hold my camera above my head to get this picture. It was a "tight spot".

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There is also the out and out funky and fun. This was a fund raising art event: the Art Bra Show, which benefited the Albie Aware Breast Cancer Foundation.

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There are bands on every corner. This one was all girls.

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There are all forms of entertainment.

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One of my favorites is Sacramento's own One Man Band Acoustic Sanctuary. You crawl into the very small back entrance of the "band wagon" and find:

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Wink Ljizz. He will ask you to take a seat and ask you to name any subject. He will play you a song, or several, based on that subject. Just the thing to hum on your way home at the end of a very happy night.