I found myself wandering aimlessly around the Westfield Galleria in Roseville, pausing to gawk at the Gucci and Tiffany & Co. storefront windows (and the things I couldn’t afford to buy). I walked past the Apple Store, stopped to look at the mall directory and even asked several shoppers for directions as I tried to find my way to the restaurant Snoop Dogg once dined at. I had heard rave reviews about Q1227, but I was having trouble finding it. I didn’t expect to find myself inside a mall after my GPS took me into a parking structure.

Q1227 has some intrigue besides Snoop Dogg, who stopped here before his performance at The Venue at Thunder Valley. Ryan Coogler, the Sac State alum and director of the megahit movie “Black Panther,” was here. It was one of the first spots Mike Brown went with De’Aaron Fox after Brown was fired from his head coaching job with the Sacramento Kings. (I can only imagine what he and Fox, the Kings’ former point guard, talked about.) 

Q1227 is named after Chef Quentin Bennett’s birthday. Bennett, also known as Chef Q, grew up in the South, cooking with his mom and nine siblings. Later, he served in the Navy and worked as a private chef for such celebrities as Jamie Foxx and Bill Clinton before opening his own restaurant. He considers himself a trailblazer of what he calls “California-modern comfort.”

Roseville’s dining scene is made up of mostly chain restaurants, and maybe that’s why upscale  Q1227 feels special. I entered it on a chilly and rainy Tuesday night, not the busiest time for dining, and glanced around at the dining room. It was filled with round wooden tables and plush chartreuse cushioned chairs, and the walls were decorated with colorful art by Detroit artist Marcus Glenn. Each was a variation of a heart — one in reddish-orange, one midnight blue and sunflower yellow — surrounded by dappled splashes of paint that merged together in unison.

The lighting was dim, perfect for an intimate dinner, as some diners appeared to be having. A group of women were laughing and having a good time sharing stories. Over in a booth, businessmen were busy with a work dinner. 

I took a seat at the bar, a large, white marble rectangle with more than 20 seats that dominates the left side of the restaurant. I had a clear view of the elegant kitchen with its shiny copper-colored tiled walls. 

When I’m traveling for work or just want to try someplace new, I like to sit at the bar of the restaurant. The bartender is always friendly and helpful in selecting entrees, as was the bartender at Q1227, who went over menu items with me. Fellow patrons at the bar are usually friendly as well, talking about the food or what they’re drinking.

Restaurant booking site OpenTable reported in 2024 that solo dining rose 8 percent in 2024. A survey found that 60 percent of people said they had dined alone, including 68 percent of Gen Z and millennials. Some people find it convenient — enjoying a great meal with no cleanup. Social media has boosted this trend with restaurants posting enticing photos of their food. 

At Q1227, Jacob the bartender handed me the beverage menu, and helped me choose a Lecavalier zinfandel from Paso Robles, which was rich and jammy, with notes of black raspberry, vanilla and toasted oak. The wine was delicious, but I was equally impressed with the stemware. The zin was served in a large, curved goblet intended for reds, accompanied by a sophisticated water glass that looked more like it should be holding Bourbon. Both were very elegant. (And I immediately did a Google search to try and find them. The larger one was a Reidel Extreme pinot noir wine glass. The water glass was a Japanese-style tumbler glass.)

The menu has a distinct Southern influence. Starters included black-eyed pea hummus, roasted bone marrow and fried lobster bites with Creole remoulade. Among the entrees were gumbo, corn chowder, Chef Q’s jambalaya and Southern fried chicken along with classic American fare such as steak and salmon.

I chose a house specialty — shrimp and grits. Since I previously had shrimp and grits in New Orleans and Charleston, I knew I was taking a risk on ordering them in suburban Roseville, but Chef Q’s dish had crispy, flavorful fried shrimp on a pillow of creamy white grits.

As I enjoyed the balance of crunchy shrimp and smooth grits, a woman a few seats over from me, finishing up her dinner and Chardonnay, said she was in town for several days for business. I looked over at the well-dressed man in the black fedora sitting next to me at the bar. “What are you having?” I asked. 

“These are the best scallops I’ve ever had,” he said. “So much flavor.” He said he comes to Q1227 often and dines solo at the bar. But even though he wants to try other things on the menu, the scallops keep luring him back.

Q1227 attracts a Black clientele that Bennett is quite proud of. He’s devoted one wall of his restaurant to famous people he’s met, including TV personality Steve Harvey, Major League Baseball player, manager and Sacramento native Dusty Baker, and Kings coach Doug Christie. There’s a stylish painting of Q himself in the back dining room. 

And if you’re wondering why I couldn’t find the restaurant, it was because it changed its location. Q1227 was located on Eureka Road for years (and I passed it often). But it moved to the Roseville Galleria a year ago. That would be my only critique of Q1227. If you don’t live in Roseville and aren’t familiar with the Galleria, you may have trouble finding it. It doesn’t face the parking lot. But if Snoop can find it, so can you.

–

Subscribe to the Comstock’s newsletter today.