The Kitchen
URL: https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/places/ca-the-kitchen.html

A contemporary Californian restaurant in Sacramento, where chef Kelly McCown runs the open kitchen; one star in both the 2025 and 2026 MICHELIN Guide California, and a Central Valley farm-to-fork institution since 1991.

**The Kitchen** is a contemporary Californian restaurant in Sacramento that holds one star in both the [MICHELIN Guide California 2025](https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/works/michelin-guide-california-2025.html) and the [MICHELIN Guide California 2026](https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/works/michelin-guide-california-2026-stars.html).[^michelin-profile][^stars2025][^guide2026]

Randall Selland and Nancy Zimmer founded the restaurant with their children in 1991, and it was among the first in the Sacramento region to build its cooking around farm-to-fork sourcing. More than thirty years on, the open kitchen run by chef Kelly McCown remains the city's most distinctive dining room; guests are encouraged to get up and walk around, even to wander through the kitchen and rub elbows with the cooks.[^official-site][^michelin-profile]

Michelin's inspectors write that after more than thirty years of operation, The Kitchen has upgraded to a grander space, but its raucous party atmosphere is the same as ever: the chef frequently proclaims the menu's caloric impact and nonetheless invites you to ask for seconds. The dishes they name include sweet potato cannelloni with brown butter sabayon and perfectly seared scallops paired with cauliflower, blood orange and lime leaf.[^michelin-profile]

The menu changes monthly and reaches far while highlighting the Central Valley's treasure trove of ingredients; there is counter dining as well as private dining rooms, and tables are typically booked months in advance.[^michelin-profile][^visitsacramento]

## Signature Dishes

- Sweet potato cannelloni with brown butter sabayon[^michelin-profile]
- Perfectly seared scallops with cauliflower, blood orange and lime leaf[^michelin-profile]
- Multi-course menus built on Central Valley produce and seasonal vegetables[^michelin-profile]

Updated: 2026-11-11

Tags:
- MICHELIN Guide https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/tags/michelin-guide.html

Relations:
- Located in: Sacramento https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/places/ca-sacramento.html
- Related works: MICHELIN Guide California 2025 https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/works/michelin-guide-california-2025.html
- Related works: 2026 MICHELIN Guide California Starred Restaurants https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/works/michelin-guide-california-2026-stars.html

Listed in rankings:
- 2026 MICHELIN Guide California Starred Restaurants · 2026-06-24 · 一星 · 米其林一星 https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/works/michelin-guide-california-2026-stars.html
- MICHELIN Guide California 2025 · 2025-06-27 · One Star · One MICHELIN Star https://knowledge.ivjn.us/en/works/michelin-guide-california-2025.html

Sources:
- All The Stars From The MICHELIN Guide California 2025 https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/article/michelin-guide-ceremony/michelin-guide-california-stars-green-stars
- The Kitchen - MICHELIN Guide https://guide.michelin.com/ca/en/california/us-sacramento/restaurant/the-kitchen-559371
- Every MICHELIN-Starred Restaurant in California for 2026, Plus the Year’s Key Trends https://guide.michelin.com/en/article/michelin-guide-ceremony/guide-michelin-california
- About The Kitchen https://thekitchenrestaurant.com/about/
- A Guide to Sacramento's Michelin-Rated Restaurants https://www.visitsacramento.com/blog/stories/post/sacramento-michelin-rated-restaurants/