[DFW] Jimmy's Comes Back!

[Richard Kilgore]

I just talked to Jimmy's and they expect to re-open in about three weeks.

[FoodMan]

Richard-

Can we non-DFW folks get a little background? The name sounds familiar but I am drawing a blank.

[Richard Kilgore]

Sure, Elie. Here are a couple of threads. A search will turn up many more threads mentioning Jimmy's, for example as some of the best sausage in Dallas (and what Fireside Pies uses on their pizza).

Jimmy's Food Store Burns Down

Italian Food in Dallas, Where to Shop for Ingredients

[Kevin72]

They better get back in time for the Holidays. They're out go-to for cotechino and nougat!

I drove by there about a month back and it was still a burnt-out looking building and they were sweeping it out. Wouldn't be surprised if there were more delays; they've been "about to reopen" for several months now.

[Richard Kilgore]

Yes, deadlines often move. I talked to Siegel's about ten days ago and they said that Jimmy's had been scheduled to move out at the end of October, but that date had been extended for an uncertain amount of time.

[Richard Kilgore]

Newest news from Jimmy's:

The store is much larger and has a new, updated face lift. There are large pillars in the center and a new front area where the cashiers will be located. They also are expanding into the extra space next door that used to be a hair salon.

There will be a room in the new store exclusively for wine, but for now they will have the same assorted selection as before until the new room is completed. The refrigerators are now larger and the back will have more space for the deli items.

And they are going to carry the anhovies packed in salt that I have been searching for.

Re-opening is imminent.

[Kevin72]

Wow, that was fast. They were my go-to for anchovies as well.

And their wine selection was always impressive, even more so for being all Italian. Very exciting!

[irodguy]

Yep I need to ask if they can get the anchovies packed with peppers. Imported from Sicily.

[FoodMan]

And they are going to carry the anhovies packed in salt that I have been searching for. 

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Ah, I want those! I am not sure if anyone in Houston carries them. Both CM and Whole Foods don't. I am still thinking about checking out Spec's in downtown though.

Jimmy's sounds like an awsome place. I will make sure to stop by whenever I am in Dallas.

[Kevin72]

Spec's does carry them, and a good deal cheaper than at Jimmy's.

[FoodMan]

Spec's does carry them, and a good deal cheaper than at Jimmy's.

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Great, thanks for the info. I will make a trip down there sometime this week and enjoy their cheese and wine tastings for a light lunch snack .

Ok, back to Jimmy's.

[Richard Kilgore]

I heard from my Jimmy's contact this past week that they are still bringing in product for the opening. Stay tuned.

[Richard Kilgore]

Jimmy's is back. There was a heating and AC problem that delayed things further for a while.

A quiet "pre-opening", some stocking still going on but now open to all. My informant says better than ever.

[Kevin72]

Great news! I swung by there Friday and it looked ready to go, so I was perplexed as to why they hadn't opened up shop yet. They have moved out of the Sigel's they were operating from, though. I'll head down this weekend for sure.

[Peppertrail]

I just talked to Jimmy's and they expect to re-open in about three weeks.

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Could someone please post the address of Jimmy's.

[Kevin72]

Jimmy's Food Store

4901 Bryan St. 214-823-6180

Bryan @ Fitzhugh

[Kevin72]

In the December 8-14 Issue of the Dallas Observer's Dish column (newstand version only, not available online), Mark Stuertz reports that Jimmy's is auctioning off a batch of their Sicilian Pasta sauce on e-Bay to commemorate the reopening of the store. Proceeds benefit the St. Vincent de Paul society.

[Kevin72]

Our Sunday jaunt to Jimmy’s:

We also had lunch there while we waited for noon to come and be able to buy wine:

My wife had a spicy sausage (left); I had Italian beef (right).

The owner was there and beaming with pride but also seemed worn out. He said that they had their best day of business ever on Saturday and were practically turning people away at the door. The local news has been very supportive of the re-opening and has done a number of stories on it; he said that the Dallas Morning News had done three stories just in the past week!

This was only phase one of the reconstruction; he said that a Phase Two is coming sometime in the spring and includes the aforementioned wine room. As it is, they’ve already amply expanded their wine selection, and it remains Italian only. Also in the next phase will be better lighting; currently they have a few overhead lights but he hadn’t accounted for needing more with the expanded space.

It’s a huge improvement over the original (“Not something I’d ever want to go through again”, the owner admitted), which was originally small, cramped, and only about half of its space was dedicated to Italian foods; the rest was a standard convenience store. Now the split is maybe 70-30 or more in favor of Italian. Having gone for the first time now in over a year, I’m a little frustrated at seeing all these different products that would have been of great use to me for my yearlong Italian cooking project.

Here’s the haul for the Holidays though:

No cotechino yet; he said that it’s on order and should be coming in soon. Guess I’ll just *have* to go back and check on it next week.

[planojim]

took the family down to Jimmy's yesterday (Dec 26). Very frustrating. The store itself looks great. Much much nicer than the original. But, they were out of almost everything I went there to get. Now, maybe this was because of the holidays, or at least I hope that was the case, but the conversation pretty much went like this,

them "can I help you?"

me..."yes I'd like some prosciutto de parma"

them, "we're all out."

me, "how about some jamon serrano?"

them, "we're all out"

me, "OK, I'll take about a pint of green olives with the pit"

them, "we're all out"

me, "Ummm...maybe some hot Italian sausage"

them, "we're all out, but we have sweet"

anyone else have a similar experience, or did I just catch them at a bad time?

[Kevin72]

I think they were pretty picked clean from the Holidays and the unexpected media coverage which seemed to really boost interest for them. Normally, they're really good at restocking: I went back the weekend after my first visit for the cotechino and they were fully replenished. I would guess that they just are having troubles getting back into the groove.

[Kevin72]

Jimmy's continues to impress. They have expanded their wine selection by a rack or two and now have it organized by Italian region. And, EVERY region is represented. In addition, they carry frozen porcini, a product I've never seen anywhere locally. Good show.

[Kevin72]

Jimmy's has, or had as of Saturday, in stock several packages of Niman Ranch Guanciale (cured pig's jowl and the best way to make bucatini all'amatriciani or carobonara sauce). It's a couple pounds and in two pieces. I've bought one before and split each piece in half then tossed them all in the freezer. Fairly cheap, too: I think in the neighborhood of $20.

[Richard Kilgore]

Has anyone been to Jimmy's lately? Anything new?

[Kevin72]

They regularly carry buratta, the cream and whey filled mozarella-like cheese from Puglia that's become quite the rage lately. It's imported and even comes in the green leaf-like wrapping that's customary in Italy. You can order your own by getting on their mailing list or going by Fridays and Saturdays and asking if they have any extras on hand, which they usually do.

[bobag87]

I don't know if anything is new, but it is still going strong. We go in every couple of weeks or so for sandwiches or to buy some ravioli for dinner at home. Always seem to leave with a lot more than I intended to.