1201 Grand Ave., Sacramento, CA 95838. (916) 922-7501.

There's something about Jimmy's that makes me want to play that old Jay-Z tune, "Heart of the City," as I roll up to it. The pistachio colored building in one of the rougher parts of Del Paso Heights has seen better days. It's weather worn storefront sits quietly back from Grand Avenue, almost like an observer to the neighborhood that surrounds it. There's a tired looking gentleman sitting patiently in the parking lot under the white "Jimmy's" sign running a recycling station and the front door is covered with a multitude of signs of what is and what is not allowed upon entering. Driving by you'd think it was like any other neighborhood quickie mart, only Jimmy's isn't...



Once inside, the front part of Jimmy's is a convenience store carrying a smattering of snacks, sodas, along with a few hard-to-find Cajun food brands like Blue Runner, Camellia, and Cajun Injector. The back portion of the store though is where the action's at. The back serves takeout to its customers- breakfast, lunch and dinner. The entree menu ranges from: fried/smothered chicken, catfish, red snapper, ribs, meat loaf, ox tail, chitterlings and gumbo. The sides menu is equally as impressive: grits, mac and cheese, red beans, black-eyed peas, yams, greens, cabbage and potatoes. I have a soft spot for homemade meat loaf so I ordered one of their personal sized meat loaves, a big serving of greens  and a whoppin' dollop of mac and cheese. (The meatloaf came with a choice of rice or potatoes, which I skipped.) The total for my lunch was $6.75 and I had more than enough for two meals. Everything was delicious...the meatloaf was seasoned well (and slightly peppery which I liked), the mac and cheese was thick and creamy and the greens were cooked perfectly. Next time I'd like to try some of their gumbo and perhaps one of their desserts- yellow cake, banana pudding, or sweet potato pie. (I'd also like to talk to the owners a bit, I'm almost certain that the place is run by an Asian family. An Asian family cooking up soul food in the middle of DPH? How unusual, but hey if it tastes great, it tastes great.)

So Jimmy's may not exactly be in the heart of the city geographically speaking, but it's definitely serving up some love to the city from that tiny little kitchen in the hood...one to-go container of soul food at a time.

From the minute you set foot into Brenda Moore's Oh Taste & See, you'll feel like you've somehow been teleported to Great-Grandma Mabel's kitchen in the South. Sandwiched between a thrift store and an ice cream parlor on Stockton Blvd.; this small eatery is easy to miss but well worth taking the time to find. The interior is nothing fancy; it's painted a homey light blue, adorned with sheer white and blue drapes just like your granny would have and accented with a few framed photos depicting the "best of gospel." Simple, clean and bright. Seating's a bit limited- there are a few booths along the wall and a smattering of tables which seemed to be steadily occupied.  I'll get to the amazing soul food cuisine I ingested during my visits but first I'd like to point out the hospitable service my dining companion and I received upon our arrival. EVERY employee we came in contact with was friendly and smiling...and not in that creepy, gritted teeth retail zombie way either. They were just as sweet as the sweet tea I gulped down. The table we chose was immediately wiped down and dried, our orders taken promptly and we were checked back on often. And how can you not smile when the staff punctuates their comments by affectionately calling you "sweetie," "honey," and "boo"? I loved that we never had to ask for anything, it was just anticipated and brought out.

Now don't go thinking I forgot about the food. Oh Taste & See has a plethora of made from scratch choices on their menu. Each dish is named after a biblical reference such as Adam's Ribs, Blessed Faith (Fried or Smothered) Pork Chops and Judas Neckbones. And that's just the tip of the menu! You can also get snapper, catfish, fried or smothered chicken, hot links, BBQ, oxtails, chicken fried steak and meatloaf. On Fridays and Saturdays, Brenda also offers up chitterlings and gumbo. Are you salivating yet? Lunch items come with a choice of one side and fresh cornbread. Dinner comes with 2 sides and cornbread. The sides menu is just as heavenly sounding as the entrees: rice and gravy, mac and cheese, greens (collard or mustard), black-eyed peas, cabbage and potato salad.

On my first visit, I jumped into the fried red snapper with collard greens and some sweet tea. The batter on the snapper was perfectly brown and crunchy. I love that though the fish was fried; the inside was uber-moist and there was no oily mess oozing out. All I needed was a splash of Crystal hot sauce and I was ready to go!  My side of greens were seasoned nicely and there was no mushiness; I could have eaten an entire plateful. My dining companion opted for the fried catfish and sweet potatoes and she seemed to have enjoyed the eats as much as I did. I was pretty full by meal's end but I did sneak a bite of her sweet potato pie. One forkful and I could here Alabama's "Song, song of the South. Sweet Potato pie and I shut my mouth...." singing in my head. Delish!

Oh Taste & See was so 'slap you on the butt' good that I felt that I needed to return just a few days later, on a Friday to try their gumbo. Unfortunately, gumbo wasn't going to be available until the end of October so I went with the 2-way plate and got snapper and catfish along with some potato salad and collard greens (yep, greens again! I just can't get enough) and washed it down with some "Blood of Jesus" Kool-Aid. Just like the first time, everything on my plate was deee-licious! My lunchmate went with the 3-way and got snapper, fried chicken and ribs along with some fresh green beans...there was enough on her plate for lunch and dinner. In fact, things were so finger lickin' good; I placed a take out order because I figured Mr. S. and the kidlets would love some soul food for dinner. My waistband was cutting into me; otherwise, I would have had to indulge in some of their peach cobbler. Mmm-mmm-mmm!

Hey! Are you still sitting there? What are you waiting for? Get on over and GO SEE Oh Taste & See for yourself! They're open every day but Mondays and even have a special midnight to 4am menu that runs on Fridays and Saturdays.