Raise high the roof beams, carpenters!

Yes, it’s time to welcome you to the Best of Sacramento 2010, wherein—for your pleasure and ours—we hoist on high the people, places and things that make our region so spectacular.

Inside, you’ll find out who won our annual readers’ poll—first, second and third places—for everything from best burrito to best live-music venue to best bike route to best hair on a newscaster. Along the way, you’ll spot plenty of our staff’s “best of” picks as well, in every imaginable category.

You’ll be regaled with tales of zombie parties and bingo nights, networking truths and tomato secrets, brewing bashes and love’s local languages. And don’t miss the account by a former staffer of the rationale for his skateboard-themed bachelor party.

Finally, you’ll take in some feet-on-the-street advice, from SN&R’s many Facebook friends, about what’s really, truly, flat-out best about this place we call home.

And speaking of friends, we’d like to use this opportunity to thank ours. That’s you, dear readers. Thanks for encouraging us to compile this “best of” opus every year. We love giving credit where it’s deserved, and there’s nothing like a Best of Sacramento issue to help us do just that while rediscovering the wonders of our region.

So raise them high. And here we go!

Give it up for this year’s SN&R Best of Sacramento team:

Art Director David Jayne
Cover and Feature Artist Jayme McGowan, Roadside Projects
Photographers Ryan Donahue, David Jayne, Nick Miller, Shoka

Writers Joe Atkins, Anna Barela, Hugh Biggar, Kimberly Brown, Becca Costello, Tara Eshghi, Josh Fernandez, Gina Finn, Cosmo Garvin, Joey Garcia, Jackson Griffith, Raheem F. Hosseini, Jenn Kistler, Rachel Leibrock, Nick Miller, Kel Munger, Susie Poulter, Stephanie Rodriguez, Shoka, Blair Stenvick, Dave Webb, Melinda Welsh
Copy Editors Kimberly Brown, Shoka Shafiee

Design Manager Kate Murphy
Design Anne De Govia, Miles Harley, Priscilla Garcia, William Leung, Marianne Mancina, Megan Quarton, Sharon Wisecarver

Web Kelsey Falle
Online Best-of Voting Ric Marques

Sales Department Manager Jeff Lang
Sales Team Shereen Africa, Josh Burke, Morelle Ellison, Dusty Hamilton, Niki Kangas, Cathy Kleckner, Rosemarie Messina, Dave Nettles, Ashley Soto, Olla Ubay, Joy Webber, Kelsi White
Sales Support LeeAnn Grundhoefer, Mirinda Glick, Will Niespodzinski, Taylor Scoma

Special kudos to: Jenn Kistler, our start-up Best of editor; Michael Billingsley and his distribution team for putting out SN&R’s biggest issue of the year; human resources director Deanna Frederickson; Ric Marques and the operations department; Kelly Schuhrke and the accounting department; executive assistant Cathy Long; director of first impressions Jeff Chinn; and owners Deborah Redmond and Jeff vonKaenel.