it all started with a dream…
Hello, I’m Gonul Blum, and I must tell you… that when we opened our restaurant in 2003, it was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. I was raised in Turkey, a country with a rich culinary tradition based on farm-fresh ingredients and artful, exotic spicing. (My family is in the spice business, so my childhood memories are awash in the taste and fragrance of fresh saffron and the famous Maras pepper.) When I moved to the States I became a cardiac surgery nurse, and did that for 12 years - until a “fortunate” injury curtailed my career. One door rudely closed, but another door swung open. It opened to my dream. First - to Napa’s Culinary Institute of America. Next - to a home-style catering business. And finally, encouraged by the community’s warm response – to Gonul’s J Street Café. A genuine touch of the Mediterranean I am most proud to offer, here, in East Sacramento.
fresh… fresh… fresh
It’s no secret: the freshest ingredients make the best food. I grow many of the herbs I use in my recipes, and even some of the vegetables you may find in your summer-time lunch or dinner. I buy most of our produce at local farmer’s markets, choosing organic and sustainably farmed whenever possible. Our fish is delivered fresh three times a week from San Francisco, and our meats are top quality (and often organic as well). The chickens we serve enjoyed a free-range environment, and the mere thought of aluminum cans makes my nose wrinkle. Freshness and quality are indispensible to the magic spell that good food can cast. I really can’t imagine cooking any other way. We also do as much prep-work as possible by hand – which infuses the food with yet another invisible level of quality.
and with fine food you of need…
Fine food and fine wine – a match made in heaven! My husband Mitch Blum is a Grand Knight in the Order of the Knights of the Vine. Never heard of them? No matter. All you need to know is that these folks enjoy wine as both a pleasure and art form. And they adore sharing it with others. It’s a labor of love for Mitch to assemble our list of fine wines, which come from California, France, Italy, Argentina, Spain, Turkey, Israel and Australia. What guides Mitch on his quest? Three things. Quality is number one. Affordable quality is number two. And last (but of course not least): the wines must be excellent companions to our Mediterranean-inspired recipes.
"My greatest pleasure is to see my guests at ease at the relaxing oasis of a table aglow with good company, fine food, and a good glass of wine." - Gonul Blum
