
Fusion restaurant Orale Cantina filling long-vacant space along Stockton Boulevard
Source: Sacramento Business Journal
Brokers: Jon Lang , Kimio Bazett
A Stockton Boulevard space that has been vacant for six years is being converted into a new restaurant that will specialize in Sinaloense and Japanese cuisine.
Orale Cantina is in the final stages ahead of its opening at 3701 Stockton Blvd. in Sacramento. The approximately 3,500-square-foot building was previously occupied by Mighty Kong Cafe, which closed six years ago.
Haleem Haider, who is opening Orale Cantina with business partner Gabriela Sanchez, said the full-service restaurant’s menu will feature mariscos (seafood) dishes, sushi rolls that are Mexican-inspired, and other items such as tacos, burritos and birria, in addition to a full bar. The space will also have an area dedicated to karaoke. Haider said they hope to eventually bring in live entertainment after the necessary permits are acquired.
“My family owns the Tres Hermanas restaurants in the area, I’ve always worked for them,” Haider said. “This was my next step to open my own restaurant.”
Tres Hermanas, founded by the Saenz family, has operated Mexican restaurants in the area since 1996, with sites currently operating in Midtown Sacramento and Davis. The chain’s founding sisters have also opened similar concepts around the area. Dora Saenz opened 3 Hermanas in East Sacramento in 2018, while Norma Saenz previously operated Three Sisters Mexican Kitchen Y Cantina, which closed during the pandemic.
The Stockton Boulevard building was purchased earlier this year by Norma E. Saenz Living Trust in a deal that closed in late August — Norma is Haider’s mother. A broker in the deal told the Business Journal at the time that the owner planned to use the space as a prep kitchen for events elsewhere and could open a new restaurant in the future.
Haider said final touches on the dining room are underway. The owners plan to begin to-go operations before the end of the year and open the bar and dining room in January. Once open, Orale Cantina is expected to operate from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. with hours likely to expand for breakfast on the weekends, though operating hours haven’t been finalized, Haider said.