Urban Roots partners to open new Ice Blocks restaurant in former Beast + Bounty space
Most of Peter Hoey and Rob Archie’s restaurants are in residential neighborhoods, and they’ve enjoyed amicable relationships with people living nearby. Being a good neighbor has been core to their business philosophy.
Now, it’ll be part of the brand.
The Urban Roots Hospitality Group partners will open their newest concept, Good Neighbor, in Beast + Bounty’s former midtown Sacramento space in the Ice Blocks development this June.
Like Beast + Bounty, Good Neighbor will fire pizzas and steaks in the restaurant’s wood-burning oven, and source from local growers. But its burgers, salads and overall atmosphere will be a touch more casual than Michael Hargis’ erstwhile fine-ish dining spot, which closed at 1701 R St. at the start of the year. Look for “elevated familiar foods,” Archie said.
The Roost beverage director Justin Sheffey will come up with easy-drinking happy hour cocktails to sip on Good Neighbor’s three patios, one of which will replace a former bocce court. Urban Roots beer will be on tap, of course, and customers will order at the counter as at Archie and Hoey’s other restaurants.
“We’re just going to be creative, but like, also keep it solid and consistent. You know, not trying to be too cute with things, just giving people what they want,” Archie said.
In the past seven years, Hoey and Archie have founded flagship brewery and barbecue joint Urban Roots Brewing & Smokehouse in Southside Park, Bawk and attached speakeasy The Roost in the R Street Corridor and Cervecería by Urban Roots in East Sacramento. Archie and his wife, Kindra, also own Pangaea Bier Cafe in Curtis Park, which ushered in Sacramento’s craft beer boom in 2008.
“My whole goal when I opened Pangaea was literally just to be a good neighbor. I want to add value to the community. I want to be a … it’s just playing nice. It’s playing nice with our competition, and I feel like that spot is one of the ultimate spots to be a good neighbor.”
Local development firm Heller Pacific opened the Ice Blocks mixed-use development in 2018, unveiling 142 apartment units above 100,000 square feet of office space and 55,000 square feet of retail space in what used to be an ice manufacturing plant.
Beast + Bounty’s picturesque dining room and forward-thinking menu made it perhaps the Ice Blocks’ most hyped restaurant when it opened in 2018, along with the attached doughnut shop Milk Money, which closed in October 2023. It was featured in multiple editions of California’s Michelin Guide, but struggled at times to consistently execute seasonal brunch and dishes worthy of their price tags.
Owner Michael Hargis’ financial problems crescendoed in late 2024, when Golden Pacific Bank sued him for allegedly defaulting on loans to Beast + Bounty and sister midtown hotspot LowBrau. He sold LowBrau and attached bar/bottle shop Holy Spirits last week, and his ambitious Old Town Elk Grove barbecue joint Slow & Low closed in January after seven months in business.
Heller Pacific owner Michael Heller chose Good Neighbor from a finalist list of four strong candidates, he said. He’s known Archie for years, and counts Urban Roots as one of his favorites in Sacramento.
“My hope is that they create a more moody, ambient, vibey relaxed environment that is very friendly and welcoming,” Heller wrote in an email. “We are aligned in wanting this to be a neighborhood hangout. We are also committed to bringing the price points down to be everyday affordable and focus on a fun happy hour.”
This story was originally published March 18, 2025 at 2:39 PM.