Pho Saigon Bay at 6458 Stockton Blvd has been closed for remodeling for quite a while now. Turns out the owner is working on a monumental project that will turn the entire lot into an unprecedented concept embracing the future of the restaurant industry.
A new restaurant called Sobabuck has been proposed for the site at 6458 Stockton Blvd. According to the plans submitted, the development of the project is broken down into two phases. Phase One will build out Sobabuck and Table 20, a food hall and ghost kitchen concept in the same building with some facade remodeling. Phase Two will add a few new retail options and a community center into the adjacent building.
“The food hall will have 21 kitchens total. Eleven will have on-site serving capabilities, and the other ten will serve as ghost kitchens. We will have Friday night markets twice a week to highlight the various food options. Eventually, we also want to invite different chefs to prepare food for the community,” said project manager Michael Martin, a local architect and engineer partnering up with owner Thai Tran to make this ambitious project a reality.
The restaurant portion, Sobabuck, will feature soba, ramen, and pho, and will become Scramento’s first fully electric and partially automated restaurant once built. Meanwhile, Table 20, the food hall and ghost kitchen concept, will become the experiment ground for restaurants exploring electrification as their future.
“The project is an experiment designed to create an understanding of how electric restaurants can be put together, with Sobabuck as an example and a showcase. We want to educate people on the difference between electric and gas cooking and make this the flagship for restaurant electrification, which will come into effect in California in 2030,” Martin told What Now Sacramento over the phone.
In 2022, California released the world’s first plan to achieve net zero carbon pollution. The plan includes reducing gas consumption by 98% by 2045. For the restaurant industry, this means stepping away from traditional gas cooking and exploring electrification possibilities.
“If everything goes smoothly, we hope to open in Summer 2025,” said Martin. “Right now, we are partnering with manufacturers to find the right electric restaurant equipment with the desired efficiency.”
