Food Stuff

Il Fornaio has the most impressive dining room in Sacramento: soaring ceiling, classical arches, gleaming floors, jacketed waiters. Want to enjoy all this splendor on the cheap? Here’s what you do: Go at lunchtime. Don’t worry about reservations, just look halfway presentable. Order a sandwich or salad from the panetteria near the entrance. Grab a stool at the sexy, curvaceous marble bar. Enjoy a couple of breadsticks. Order a beverage from the bartender, if you’d like. Watch the wood-fired oven, the rotisserie and the noon-hour bustle while you wait for your meal to be served. Eat lunch. Go back to the panetteria and order coffee and biscotti for dessert if you’d like. Leave a tip and a smile to anyone who served you. There, you’ve been a big shot for an hour and it cost only about half the going rate. 400 Capitol Mall, 446-4100, www.ilfornaio.com.