Freeport Bakery's new owner runs another Sacramento bakery. She had been a Freeport customer for years, and her shop and Freeport used to lend each other ingredients when one of them ran short. In January, Vic's Ice Cream reopened on Riverside Boulevard under owners from Sacramento's restaurant business, and over the summer local operators moved into two spaces on Sutterville Road. Land Park's food landmarks mostly didn't close. They changed hands, and the new operators were people already working in Sacramento's food business who kept saying the same thing: the place stays as it is.
Vic's Went First
Vic's Ice Cream at 3199 Riverside Blvd. reopened at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, after almost a year of renovation, the Sacramento Bee reported. Ashley Rutledge and Vic Zito founded the shop in 1947. Over the decades its ice cream won seven straight gold medals at the California State Fair.
The buyers were a group that includes Carlo Grifone, who owns the local chain Giovanni's Old World New York Pizzeria, and his daughter Samantha. They first planned to reopen in late summer 2025. Unexpected remodeling problems pushed that back, and from the beginning they said they would bring Vic's back to its "original glory." That meant keeping the checkered floors and the original recipes.
On opening day, general manager Dave Gilson told the Bee the ice cream was "the same recipe, same high-quality ingredients, same person making it."
The one addition is next door. Brew Bird Coffee + Creative soft-opened along with Vic's, serving coffee, tea and wine, with pottery you can paint. The new owners put their new business next door and kept the recipes and the ice cream exactly as they were.
Freeport Bakery Followed the Same Script
The Freeport Bakery deal at 2966 Freeport Blvd. drew more attention, and it followed the same pattern even more closely.
Marlene and Walter Goetzeler have owned the bakery since 1987. They didn't found it, as some coverage said; they bought it. Abridged by PBS KVIE reported in August that they were selling it to Lisa Calk, who owns Ettore's Bakery & Café in Arden Arcade. Calk wasn't new to the trade. She bought Ettore's in 2018 after working there for 14 years. Ettore's opened on Fair Oaks Boulevard in the 1980s, so it's a Sacramento institution about as old as Freeport.
The Goetzelers had turned down other buyers over the years because they weren't the right fit. Calk and her daughter Veronica, who is Ettore's general manager, had been Freeport customers for years. The two bakeries also had what Abridged called a symbiotic relationship, lending each other ingredients and equipment when one of them was in a pinch.
"We know them, and we know what kind of people they are. We have really similar values, and it's just a really good fit. They love Freeport, and they want to keep it just how it is." Marlene Goetzeler, speaking to Abridged by PBS KVIE
Calk told Abridged, "It's going to stay Freeport." She plans to keep the recipes and staff, and she may add soups, salads and sandwiches. The handoff was set for the Goetzelers' retirement on Sept. 7. On Sept. 23, the Sacramento Business Journal called Calk the new owner and the Goetzelers the outgoing owners.
As of the Bee's August report, Freeport was open Tuesday through Sunday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., and closed Mondays. Longtime customers may remember Marlene Goetzeler walking free samples out to drivers stuck at the nearby rail crossing while a freight train went by, a story she told the Bee on the bakery's 30th anniversary.
Who Runs the Places Now
Most of the new operators already had a business somewhere in the Sacramento area.
| Place | Address | Running since | New operator | Where the operator came from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vic's Ice Cream | 3199 Riverside Blvd. | 1947 | Grifone family group | Giovanni's Old World New York Pizzeria |
| Freeport Bakery | 2966 Freeport Blvd. | Goetzelers since 1987 | Lisa and Veronica Calk | Ettore's Bakery & Café, Arden Arcade |
| Vallarta Prime | 1948 Sutterville Rd. | Soft launch mid-June 2026 | Leo Beas with Junior Sanchez | Sanchez owns Taqueria La Nueva Vallarta and Taqueria La Perla |
| The Mimosa House | 2760 Sutterville Rd. | Open by June 2026 | Dedier Family Co. | A brunch group with nine locations |
The two Sutterville Road spots show the other side of the pattern. Those spaces didn't come with a beloved owner to hand off to. The new tenants are moving into rooms the neighborhood remembers for other reasons.
Two Rooms on Sutterville Road
Casa Garden opened in 1974 as a fundraising restaurant run by volunteers on the Sacramento Children's Home campus. The Los Niños Service League operated it, and the money it raised went to the Home. After stopping service during the pandemic, it closed for good on Feb. 1, 2021, after 46 years. The Bee reported that canceled events, lost revenue, an aging group of volunteers and rising costs all played a part.
The Mimosa House now operates at 2760 Sutterville Road, on the Curtis Park edge. It's the ninth location for Dedier Family Co.'s brunch chain. Its location page lists hours of 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, mentions a private Rosé Room, and shows a ribbon cutting on Oct. 15, 2026. It's the one true newcomer on the list, and it took the building with the longest memory.
A short drive west, at 1948 Sutterville Road in South Land Park, Vallarta Prime took a space that had changed hands often. The Bee traced it from Dali's Kitchen, which opened in 2016, to Arabella's, then to Bibi's, which closed in late 2025. Owner Leo Beas is from Jalisco. His menu focuses on fire-grilled meats, tortillas made by hand every morning, and coastal-style seafood. The tacos al carbon were $3.49 and the aguachile verde was $21.99 at the time of the Bee's June review.
This is Beas's first restaurant, but his partner, Junior Sanchez, owns Taqueria La Nueva Vallarta, which has three locations in the region, and Taqueria La Perla on Marconi Avenue. The new branding went up early in the year, and the soft launch came in mid-June. Beas told the Bee he spent about six months going back and forth with the city over a permanent patio cover with TVs, heaters and fans. Until that's built, the wraparound patio uses umbrellas.
That gives Sutterville Road one experienced Sacramento taqueria operator backing a new owner, and one regional brunch group in a building that ran on volunteers for nearly five decades. Even the newcomers came in through people and places that were already part of the local food scene.
Halloween Weekend Around the Park
Halloween falls on Saturday this year, and two of the neighborhood's best-known gathering places have plans that day.
- Fairytale Town's Halloween Fun Day, Saturday, Oct. 31, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at 3901 Land Park Drive. The day includes a dance party, a scavenger hunt and trick-or-treating.
- Elks Lodge Trunk or Treat, Saturday, Oct. 31, 4 to 7 p.m., in the Elks parking lot. The Land Park Community Association lists it as free.
- Land Park Community Association meeting, Thursday, Nov. 12. The association's calendar says food and drinks will be provided.
Vic's on Riverside Boulevard and Freeport Bakery on Freeport Boulevard are both short drives from Fairytale Town. Both are now run by owners who took them over on a promise to keep things as they were.
If you're starting to think about what's next for a Land Park property your family has held for a long time, Jennifer Kirtlan RES Inc. can help you plan that transition with care and clear communication. Contact Us.
