Jimmy's Bar & Oven

There is really not many things more annoying that leaving a restaurant full yet unsatisfied.

Tried a new place tonight that was recently on the Phantom Gourmet. Great look, good vibe, fresh local ingredients, in a good spot for people watching. It was " eh " at best.

Tons of potential but just kept missing the mark. The service was ok, the girl was friendly but not all that interested in the service as was evident by the how long it took her to get there after we were seated.

Appetizers were kind of a mixture of New England staples ( fried calamari, mussels ) and what seems to be very popular, albeit maybe over popular at the current moment ( fried pickles ). A ton of places seem to be trying to jump on the fried pickles bandwagon. Thus far I have only been able to find one place in all of New England that has nailed them. This place isn't it! They were too thin, the batter wouldn't stick, a little too oily and not all that flavorful. But they were serviceable. They were sliced into thin half dollar sizes. This better than the places that cut them into spears ( yuck ) so while they weren't the greatest they weren't the worst.

I ordered the Chicken Parmesan ( Chicken Parm ) and after what seemed like an eternity a pizza was brought to me. I politely said " I ordered the Chicken Parm entree " then kid took it back to the kitchen only to have the server quickly come out and inform me that I had " not in fact ordered the entree I had ordered the pizza! "

Now, I know what I ordered because I was sitting there when I ordered it. I know I wanted the entree because I was unaware of there existence of a Chicken Parm Pizza. But being faced with having to wait another 30 minutes I accepted the pizza and apologized to her for her mistake ; )

The pizza was not bad. Just like the pickles it wasn't BAD. It just wasn't all that good. The sauce was fresh, but a little under seasoned. The chicken was heavily breaded but didn't have much discernible individual or distinct flavor and they cheese was cheese. A decent pie, but it had did not live up to the expectations.  

Two iced teas, an order of fried pickles and two ( we'll call them medium pizza's ) came out to $50.00.

Now, I will say this. I will give the place a second try. This place gets the Dave Andelman stamp of approval so I may be being a little too harsh. But as I said, I left full yet unsatisfied.

Food quality has really gone down hill. It is a shame because when they first opened the food was very good! I really was rooting for this place but I will not throw away money on mediocre service/quality.  Get some cooks in that kitchen that put some love in their dishes!

I really like Jimmy's. They have solid pizza options with nearly everything made in house, dough, sauce, even the mozzarella! And they use very high quality ingredients, I can tell because cheap pepperoni will give me heartburn, but they are among a select few restaurants where I can eat peperoni without fear. And yes, get the chicken parm pizza! It's delicious!

In addition to their delicious pizza, they always have a great rotating selection of local brews on tap. The service is always friendly, but not always very timely or informed. I once had to show our bartender the menu the menu while trying to order the wedge salad. And when seated at a table instead of the bar, sometimes the wait staff are a little slow to really get into a groove with the table. But again, that stuff is so minor by comparison that its easy to look past.

My only real complaint about Jimmy's is the noise. It's a concrete box. They play their music way too loud and should have some sound buffers installed. I brought my parents here and even sitting out on the patio it was too loud for them and we moved next door to The Abbey. My boyfriend and I even went on our first date here, and I think we were sitting in the quietest section of the restaurant, the corner of the bar by the windows. And I remember we had to talk a bit loudly over the noise of the packed restaurant and music.