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<\/a><\/p>\n\n A stretch of the Interstate 80 highway runs through a deep canyon
\n between Truckee and Reno. (Shutterstock photo)\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\n For the past four years, my tween-turned-teen son and I have made
\n that drive over and over so he can play hockey. Did you know that
\n the Sacramento Valley is home to two major youth hockey programs
\n serving Northern California? Are we crazy for driving two hours
\n each way \u2014 sometimes three times a week \u2014 for a youth sport?
\n That\u2019s a story for another time. What I can tell you is that
\n after four years, we\u2019ve become pretty great at knowing where to
\n stop along the way.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\n The drive down the hill is typically uneventful, except on nights
\n when practice starts late and we catch a glowing Sierra sunset
\n through the windshield. It\u2019s the drive home where decisions get
\n made, though, after four years, they\u2019re not really decisions
\n anymore; we have our places.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
A required stop at Ikeda\u2019s<\/p>\n
\n \n Pies and other baked goods on display at Ikeda\u2019s California \n Ikeda\u2019s California Country Market is a required stop at least \n The most reliable of them is Ikeda\u2019s, a family business that\u2019s \n We always get too many fries, but somehow they stay a little Detours into Auburn and Davis<\/p>\n \n \n The author\u2019s son, with whom she regularly travels along the I-80 If we\u2019ve had a Saturday game and the team \n When we\u2019re in the Bay for a game and passing through Davis, we \n On an early Saturday heading home, we sometimes swing through the Fresh fruit and fresh air<\/p>\n \n Some stops aren\u2019t even really stops. Sometimes it\u2019s just pulling<\/a><\/p>\n
\n Country Market. (Photo by Nicolle Sloane)\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\n once a week on our way back through Auburn, where we order
\n burgers, fries and pie for dessert. Tucked in the fridge behind
\n the fries is an Ikeda\u2019s marionberry pie we brought home as a
\n sweet little reward after another week spent traveling back and
\n forth along the I-80 corridor between Vacaville, Roseville and
\n Truckee.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\n been pulling people off the highway for over 50 years. Ikeda\u2019s
\n sits right off the Lincoln Way exit, conveniently close to an EV
\n charging station. What looks like a roadside stop turns out to be
\n a restaurant, market, bakery and fruit stand, all in one. As soon
\n as we pull up, Luke dashes out of the car to order his burger and
\n fries, while I make a lap through the market, collecting fresh
\n seasonal fruit, prepared meats, tortilla chips, Ikeda\u2019s hot
\n salsa, a few muffins for the morning and, of course, a
\n fresh-baked marionberry pie (because you can\u2019t not grab a pie
\n from Ikeda\u2019s). We\u2019re back on the road in 20 minutes, fed and
\n stocked.\n<\/p>\n
\n crisp even when cold the next morning, eaten while standing at
\n the kitchen counter.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\n corridor for hockey games, enjoys a burger at Burger & Cream.
\n (Photo by Nicolle Sloane)\n<\/p>\n
\n won, the real treat is Burger & Cream. It\u2019s a tiny detour into
\n Auburn proper \u2014 barely worth calling a detour, with a walk-up
\n window, picnic tables outside and a menu that includes burgers,
\n fries and a variety of soft-serve ice cream options. You order a
\n burger, fries AND an ice cream (we always go for the Banana Cream
\n Pie Twistie). The ice cream (the \u201ccream\u201d in the eatery\u2019s name) is
\n a requisite \u2014 it\u2019s almost the reason to stop here, although the
\n burgers and fries are great too (don\u2019t worry, they also have
\n onion rings).\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\n have regulars there, too. Guad\u2019s Tacos & Beer lives up to its
\n name. We pull over for the tacos but skip the beer since someone
\n still has to drive home, though pale lagers gleam in the cooler.
\n Luke loves the chicken street tacos, and I typically go for the
\n burrito bowl; the complimentary chips-and-salsa bar is impossible
\n to resist, and the portions are generous enough that Luke isn\u2019t
\n asking for another \u201cstop\u201d an hour later.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\n Davis Farmers Market instead \u2014 a chance to stretch our legs,
\n shake off the rink and grab whatever looks good from the vendors.
\n If for some reason we\u2019re craving dumplings, the nearby Dumpling
\n House is a quick stop with fast service and enormous portions.
\n Get the Thai tea and the pork-and-chives potstickers, and plan on
\n leftovers.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\n into Newcastle Produce for cherries in the summer or mandarins in
\n winter. Sometimes it\u2019s just standing outside at a gas station
\n near Colfax, breathing mountain air after two hours inside a
\n freezing rink and more inside the car.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n