Skip to main content

Style Magazine

Rudy's a Cozy Hideaway Satisfying Rancho Cordova for 30 Years

Mar 31, 2015 10:43AM ● By Style

Pan-seared Sea Bass - Photo by Dante Fontana © Style Media Group

Every so often the sea calls out to me, and I can’t help but heed its call. I recently answered by grabbing my first mate and sailing over to Rudy’s Hideaway, a Rancho Cordova lobster house and bar that’s been satisfying seafood cravings for more than 30 years.

Speaking of lobster, want to hear something crazy? Up until the mid-19th century, many Americans viewed lobster as cheap, second-rate seafood that was best used as fertilizer or as food for prison inmates. This view changed gradually as folks in New York and Boston developed a taste for the clawed crustacean, and gradually lobster became the culinary delight we know today. 

But back to Rudy’s. Inside the restaurant, it’s cozy and tranquil, and looks like the interior was recently updated. There are dining areas on either end of the handsome, wood-paneled bar, and the tables and booths are quite comfortable—many of them featuring attractive new tabletops that look like a view of the sea floor. Playful, nautically themed art adorns the walls, and there’s even a tank that showcases rare lobster specimens they’ve recently received.

After being comfortably seated, the server promptly greeted us and brought out warm hunks of soft sourdough bread. To start, we ordered prawns that came with tangy house-made cocktail sauce. 

For entrées, I ordered pan-seared sea bass topped with shoestring potatoes and served with sautéed asparagus and rice pilaf. The moist, fresh flakes of fish combined well with the thin, crunchy potatoes.  My meal also included a bowl of piping hot lobster bisque that was creamy and toothsome (I polished it off in a flash). 

My dining companion’s New York steak was broiled to perfection, resulting in a tender, perfectly pink interior; the accompanying baked potato—with a crisp, golden skin and light, fluffy interior—arrived with the requisite butter, chives and sour cream. 

Throughout the evening, our server was friendly and efficient—resulting in a dining experience that can best be described as smooth sailing, especially after that big slice of luscious banana cream pie. 

Jeremy B. Neely


Rudy’s Hideaway, 12303 Folsom Boulevard, Rancho Cordova, 916-351-0606, rudyshideaway.com.