About

ABOUT JIMTOWN

Welcome to Jimtown Store, a Sonoma County landmark nestled in the vineyards of the Alexander Valley, one of Northern California’s premium wine appellations. We’re a café in a country store, serving breakfast and lunch. We offer table service and food to go. Our shelves are stocked with house-made treats and local food products, old-fashioned toys and candy, housewares, gifts, vintage collectibles and a few distinctive antiques.

A SENSE OF PLACE

We have a Healdsburg zip code and consider it our town, even though we’re 8 miles from the plaza. Geyserville, our neighboring village, is 8 miles to the north. The Russian River winds its’ way from town to town, defining the topography, providing fertile land for growing grapes and farming.  Jimtown has been a community fixture since 1895, when Jim Patrick founded his eponymous general store to serve as post office and meeting place for residents of the valley.

We’re still a local destination and information hub. Neighbors catch up over coffee, wine industry folks host meetings and break for lunch, children come for afterschool snacks and tourists rest and recharge between wine tastings looking out at our wide vineyard view.

Navigating Highway 128 to reach us from Healdsburg, or from Calistoga through Knights Valley, means giving a wide berth to cyclists and tractors pulling gondolas loaded with grapes at harvest. From any direction the scenery is breathtaking and feels timeless.  One can imagine why the native Californians loved it so much and we never forget that we are privileged to be stewards of this historic valley.

OUR FOOD

Our kitchen prepares seasonal soups, salads, entrees, signature sandwiches, and desserts daily. Ingredients come from our garden and neighboring farms. Inspiration comes from favorite American family recipes drawn from the culinary traditions of generations of immigrants, including recent arrivals from Mexico and across the Pacific. We honor the local growers by preparing dishes with restraint, letting the flavors complement each other and the wine our neighbors make.

Jimtown also caters events from pickup family-style lunches to vineyard suppers, full service BBQ’s, family reunions, rehearsal dinners and weddings.  We participate in many fundraisers for local nonprofits that focus on the arts, education, sustainable farming and the environment.

OUR RECENT HISTORY

In 1989, the late John Werner, a former Silver Palate partner and his wife, artist Carrie Brown, came across the shuttered store while visiting from New York City. After learning that it was for sale, the couple bought Jimtown. John and Carrie set out to restore the abandoned landmark to its former glory and add a few twists of their own.

Fashioned into a celebration of vernacular Americana, Jimtown reopened on Memorial Day weekend, 1991. The one-acre property includes the renovated general store/café and Carrie’s cottage, both designed by noted San Francisco architects Richard Fernau and Laura Hartman.

The historic galvanized metal barn that once sold hay, feed and farming supplies now serves as party barn for special events. The hundred plus year-old redwood barn is a workshop and storage for props and antiques. Jimtown recently graced the cover of the Wine Spectator and publications from the NY Times to Better Homes and Gardens have written enthusiastically about this culinary oasis tucked away in the heart of Alexander Valley.