Jimmy Bravo

i was w. some friends of mine passing through the neighborhood. Got hungry so I Unilocal to see what good eats were in range. jimmy bravos. it only has 5 reviews it seems kinda skeptical. Checked out the pictures n read all the reviews and decided to give it a try. pictures don’t lie! those dogs were huge! aside from the portion, the food was fantastic. I have high expectations believe me. best dogs I ever had!

I placed an order through
, I ordered a chicken sandwich, burger & mango shake.
After a few minutes of my order being placed I received a phone call stating that the restaurant ran out of chicken. The gentleman was very apologetic and he said pick whatever I want, so I went for a burger with cheese, lettuce and tomato. I waited for my food for about an hour. I get it, it’s Friday night orders take long … However, the quality of the food was terrible ! The burger tasted like it was sitting on the counter for about an hour, and to top it off I received a note on my food container saying «almost closing, ran out of lettuce, sorry «.
Sorry Jimmy Bravos, that’s completely unacceptable ! Your restaurant closes at 12am, my order was placed at 10:15, that’s not almost closing, and number 2 I paid full price plus tip for a meal that I didn’t get to eat because of its poor quality. If the restaurant is unable to keep the food warm while in route to a delivery then there’s a problem.

Cool lil spot… The vibe is nice.

Sometimes livingsocial brings you to a place that is just damn right tasty.
This is one of those places.
Appearing to be a family owned business, this small and comfortable hot dog joint delivers on taste, service, and menu creativity.
We started with the shrimp fritters — crisp, fresh (JUST battered/​NOT frozen shrimp) and a spicy mayo.
Then came the behemoth sized hot dogs.
The lady had the mac & cheese dog. While double carb may be a culinary faux pax in some circles, the magic of bread and pasta was perfect here.
I had their foot long — wayyyyy too much to eat in one sitting but the value was definitely there. The crispy onions and short ribs made this hot dog just right.
TL;DR: tasty food, good service
We shall be back.

Good place for gourmet hot dogs, burgers, and sausages! Definitely not you’re run in the mill. Creative and delicious spin!
I also LOVE their short rib sliders!
Great addition to West Side Avenue! The hubby and I have it on our line-​up of choices for delivery. Have ordered from there when family was in town. Hope to check it out in person and dine-​in!

Went the first time and had the Hawaiian burger, which was decent. Went back to try a hot dog and the Asian (no sweat chili) was much better. This place has potential and could be a great place if it develops the menu further.

I was hungover and tired with a craving for food of this sort. My friend had ordered from here several times and enjoyed it, so I figured I’d give it a try. Unfortunately, I can’t say I share his affinity for this place.
I ordered a few things for delivery: Santa Fe dog combo, truffle fries, and Thai chili wings. Delivery was here within a reasonable time, although there was a bit of confusion about payment, as I’d pre-​paid via
. But as soon as I opened the bag, I was disappointed. The hot dog, as many others have said, came on a massive roll (more like a Portuguese roll) and didn’t complement at all. The advertised jalapeño aioli was nothing more than a huge glob of mayo (gah) and the green salsa was nothing more than sauteed onions and tomatoes (obviously not green). The dog was large but greasy and the only edible part of the entire concoction. The truffle fries were also a letdown. The description on both the hard copy take-​out menu and the one on the computer promised the following: truffle oil, truffle salt, and chives. These were lukewarm, previously frozen steak fries with an odd smattering of shredded cheddar (see pic) and a very conservative drizzle of truffle oil, only noticeable on a few of the fries. And that was it.
Also, they forgot both the fries and soda that came with the combo. Normally, I wouldn’t have bothered calling, as I was going to finish eating way before the missing items were sent back out. However, I really wanted the soda and was blatantly disappointed/​annoyed with the items sitting in front of me. At least the guy on the phone was nice and apologetic. The missing fries arrived a short time later, though smushed in a styrofoam container and therefore super soggy. I did not get a can of soda but rather a freaking watery fountain soda (all the ice had melted).
The only things that saved this complete disaster were the wings. Although their Thai chili sauce was not what I expected (it was more like a smoky hoisin-​inspired sauce instead of the bright red chili sauce in the bottle), it was good. Wings were meaty and crisp. I didn’t use the blue cheese but they provided more than enough, which would have been good if I’d needed it.
I would like to give this place another chance but given the experience I had and the other reviews, I’m not sure if I will. When the items received do not come close to matching the descriptions given, that’s a problem. It’s a shame because their menu sounds awesome, but the execution really needs some work.

I been here a couple of times now. A great twist on your normal Americana burgers and dogs. The food is plenty, people there are cool, and the price is right. Their signature gourmet burger and dog is outrageous. This is a place to stop by if your in the area and want a bang for your buck

Like this place. I’ve only ordered delivery from there, and their food is good. when it is made with all the ingredients.
I’ve ordered their Brunch burger (Topped with fried egg, peppered smoked bacon, maple mayo, American cheese, green leaf lettuce, tomatoes, and onions) several times. The first time was really good. The maple mayo was really good mix with all the other components! Their ingredients are really good in quality, even though the buns are HUGE. kind of messy, so I use a fork and knife :(
I give this place 3 stars because of the their inconsistency. One time, I had no maple mayo. One time, no onions and tomato. One time, no cheese. You get the picture. That defeats the point of ordering a brunch burger! For all the hassle, I’ll just order a plain burger.
We also ordered the Baltimore Dog (A Deep fried dog with
melted cheddar and grilled onions) which was a bit salty. again, with the big bun. Wasn’t too big of a fan, but whatevs.

Better than expected! We had contemplated picking up from Jimmy Bravo’s but never got around to it – once we saw them on GrubHub we knew we had to try them! Hot dogs are one of those things that we both love, but never think to buy at the grocery store, or even get when eating dinner out. As is our usual habit, we ordered a bunch of things to share. We came to regret this, as the portions are pretty big. But somehow, we managed to sample the following:
Mac & Cheese — large shell noodles, tons of cheese. very satisfying. didn’t really taste any truffle, but it’s still delicious!
Short Rib Sliders — AWESOME. meat was very tender, the sauce was really nice — not too sweet, and not drowning the meat. Carmelized onions added a nice flavor, and the bread was very tasty as well.
Sonoran Dog — very tasty, but as other reviewers have said, too many toppings and the bread is a bit much for a hot dog.
San Francisco Dog — like a chicago dog plus chili. I enjoyed it, so did the boyfriend but it was a MESS.
Dallas — pretty good, but I don’t particularly love chili. Boyfriend loved it.
Brunch Burger — SO GOOD. SO GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD. A burger with cheese, a fried egg, bacon, maple mayo (not overly sweet, don’t worry!), lettuce tomato and onion. The burger was cooked as requested and the bun was toasted and not too big for the burger. THe burger patty itself was very juicy and flavorful. I’d absolutely order this again :)
Pina Colada Smoothie — to me it tasted like piña colada with a ton of bananas thrown in. and that sucks because I don’t like banana flavored things (only actual bananas, and they have to be slightly green and VERY firm. i’m weird). But if you like that kind of thing, you’ll love this smoothie. Texture was nice :)
Overall, it’s a good value and has some solid hits on the menu. We’ll be back for the short rib sliders, mac & cheese, and burgers (Hawaiian Burger must be sampled!).

I ordered the Red Velvet Cake, Fried Calamari, and Shrimp Fritters. The best aspect of this order was the delivery guy. He arrived quickly and seemed like a nice guy.
The food:
The Red Velvet Cake was drenched in Strawberry sauce. I have never seen RVC prepared like this, but I tried it anyway. The sauce was the best part. The cake was extremely dense, dry, and had this old refrigerator taste. Two bites of it was more than enough.
The Fried Calamari did not taste fresh at all. There was a rubbery texture and it just looked like this came from a frozen bag.
The Shrimp Fritters were tasty, nicely breaded, and fried, but then I noticed NONE of them were cleaned. Every single one still had the ‘vein’.
I will not order from this place again. I joined Unilocal JUST to warn others.

«Jimmy» himself contacted me recently (¹⁰⁄₂₀₁₂) after seeing my review and made an offer to refund my money or provide a free meal on the house, and if satisfied with either the refund or the free meal, I was asked to consider to take down my original review. I thanked him and told him I appreciated the message, because I did, but that neither offer would not warrant me «taking down» my review, as it was my actual experience as a first time patron. If I decide to go back aside from the offer, I will gladly provide an updated review.
—–
I’ve let their food settle in my stomach for a while before writing this review, and I’ve let enough time pass to see if my boyfriend and I would eat here again. We haven’t, and we will not. Kind of a bummer, actually.
I love hot dogs, so the first time I passed this place on the bus, my eyes lit up, and also because it’s not a typical joint for this part of Jersey City. Then I came home and Unilocaled it and, while this was a few months ago, it still had a ridiculous amount of five star ratings. Please. I should have known then. Those ratings are from Jimmy Bravo friends, paid fans and/​or people who have 1 – 5 reviews, and they live somewhere in the city. You’re telling me they came to WEST SIDE AVENUE in Jersey City to eat these hot dogs? Do not trust them. Trust me. No one paid me to eat here, and I live a few blocks away. That’s how you know I am for real.
It’s been a while so I don’t remember what I got exactly, but I’m pretty sure it was the San Francisco Dog, fries and onion rings. My boyfriend got another hot dog.
1. The food was not ready at the same time — fine — but they sat in the window while the hostess/​waitress/​etc. sat at the front desk/​chair as I stared longingly at my food that grew colder by the second. There is nothing worse than seeing your food just SIT around.
2. Onion rings were straight up generic brand style onion rings. See here for example:
3. Buns were freakishly large for the hot dog — is that the gimmick? Is that what is supposed to make Jimmy Bravo’s hip? It was like a big ass hoagie roll and just plain silly. A variety of toppings? Fine. TOO MUCH OF EVERYTHING? Too much. The dog tasted like relish only, that I remember.
4. The back room… I can’t even. I don’t know what was going on.
Do I need to keep going?
Meh is right. Maybe next time this part of town will get it right.

I ordered from them a few times while I worked in that area. The burgers aren’t very good (they taste frozen), the hot dogs are decent, but the fried stuff: sweet potato fries, calamari, etc. were very good. Large portions, too, so you feel you’re getting a decent price for your money.
I’d like to give them a 3.5star, but c’est la vie. Again, it isn’t bad, and you get a lot of food, so it’s definitely not something to avoid, but it isn’t something I’d go out of my way for with the possible exception of the garlic aioli they use with the calamari.

Within a very short time of opening this place had already garnered a handful of 4 and 5 star reviews on Unilocal.That’s an unheard of feat for a restaurant in this neck of the woods, but rather than call bullshit I will give them the benefit of the doubt. I just can’t help but point this fact out.
Anyhow, Jimmy Bravo’s shows signs of promise but overall left me underwhelmed. The bottom line is if I was really craving a dog I’d probably just drive out to Newark for a real italian dog. I found the bun to be quite a dry affair and little bit too big for the dog. I had the mac ‘n cheese dog and the mac was okay but I felt like they laid it on a bit too sparingly. Similarly the chili cheese fries left me saying «meh».
I hate being dismissive of any place in the neighborhood because as we’re all aware there aren’t too many options around. I will come back sometime and hopefully things have picked up. As I said, the place showed promise — I hope it comes to deliver on it.

Though this new restaurant just opened two months ago, I might have to say that it’s due for some show time. The signature hot dogs were full and fresh plus affordable, for less than $ 5. Hope this restaurant gets more recognition, because it has potential.

Man, these guys are so close to having something here. Sadly, almost everything falls short. We’ve ordered from them three times now, and the food has been consistent, so I feel like I have enough data to write a review — I don’t give 2 stars lightly.
It’s the BUN
The biggest problem with the dogs/​burgers we’ve had has been in the bun department: too big and too dry. I feel like I’m eating through a ton of bun before I get to the good stuff. The good stuff is ok and I like many of their gourmet dogs, like the ruben. But I always finish feeling like the meal missed the mark.
Other Menu Issues
The truffle mac & cheese is decent, but you can barely taste the truffle. Fries are not included with the burgers? Come on, I’m paying over $ 7 for a burger!
Delivery
They say they deliver, but the times when I’ve called to order delivery, it’s seemed like an inconvenience. Their website says they plan to be on Seamless soon, and that would be a very good thing.
or GrubHub would be even better.
Atmosphere
The cheap outdoor plastic chairs scream «don’t sit and enjoy your meal.» I’ve never seen many people in the restaurant when I’ve stopped by — and I’m sure the atmosphere is responsible.
Final Verdict
Great potential, but they need to do a little more work to truly realize it. I hope they fine tune their store and food before they go under.

Great hotdogs! So far we’ve had: brunch hotdog, deep fried hotdog, Jimmy Bravo footlong and a Philly hotdog.
We’ve also had their chili cheese fries and cheese fries which I am not a fan of. The potato wedges (not fries) are too thick and big and the cheese isn’t enough and it dries up quickly.
We recently tried the calamari, which wasn’t crispy anymore (you have to poke holes on your styro lid to let the moisture out-​like fried Chinese food) when we picked it up but it was still very, very tasty! Overall, 3.5 stars!

Something new to the neighborhood and different from the usual chinese and spanish food, I had to try it out and report back to my office peeps. I bought food to take home and sample.
Truffled mac and cheese starter. $ 4.95. Made with medium pasta shells, a light panko crust on top, real creamy and homestyle and comfort foodie-​ish. Tasted like several different cheeses were used, and real butter. Too good to put on a hot dog.
Shrimp fritters starter. $ 7.95. AWESOME. fried fresh shrimp, not greasy, but crispy. Drizzled with a sriracha mayo sauce & has 2 slices of lemon to squeeze. lemon works, mayo works, just enuf shrimp to share, or make a lunch out of. Nice flavor, I’d get it again for sure.
Short rib sliders starter. $ 5.95. Excellent flavor. Soft texture, cooked perfectly. The barbecue sauce it’s in is married to it, and it ain’t no Kraft. tastes like a scratch-​made sauce, not cloyingly sweet. This is the stuff you can top almost anything with, and they do. If they sell a cup of it, I’m on it. Roll was buttery, soft and flaky, and worked well with the meat. A sprinkle of fried ‘tabasco’ onions sat on top of the meat, and helped bring a light crispiness to the slider. This is also shareable. Would sit right with a cold beer.
Hawaiian burger. $ 6.95. Serious grillin. Soft buttery roll. Grilled pineapple slice, red onion, real hearty cheddar, thick slice of tomato, one crisp leaf of lettuce. Meat was lean and heavy, with a taste of being on a charcoal grill; tastes like summer. They’ve got a great burger selection, and if i ever crave a good burger, I’m headed there again.
Jimmy Bravo special foot-​long hot dog. $ 7.95. Great tasting, great grilled hot dog, topped with the short rib, and the fried ‘tabasco onions’. The flavors worked well together and I’m not a ‘crazy things on top of a hot dog’ kinda gal, but this tasted good. Only thing that threw me is the huge hoagie roll it was placed in. it took it from ‘hot dog’ to sandwich, 2-​person meal. The roll was ok, large, soft inside, crusty outside, but I’m not sure I liked it with this, I would of liked a more custom-​shaped roll for this hot dog. This thing is huge, and can be cut in 3 or 4. Both ends of the hot dog stuck out of my takeout container. It made me curious about the other styles of hot dogs they sell.
Why not 5 stars? Well, the hostess was a lil bored/​disinterested/​cold/​distracted by her phone, her kindle fire, her food. I ordered, and there was no, ‘please have a seat, wait, pay when you get it’ or whatever. I didn’t like the fact that she was far from the kitchen and yet was the person who packed my food into the bag by the front door, without enough room to really do so; she packed the containers from off her chair, no gloves, hair flowing. Handed me my food before I could open my wallet, because she had no room to put it down, so I had to bring it to a table and then go back n pay her. Sigh. Hey, it’s a new place, I’mma hope they will get better at that process.
Also, while waiting for my food, weirdly enough, an older asian woman came from the back and handed me a business card and told me she was selling jade jewelry in the back. say wha? I don’t knock anyone’s hustle, but really? She asked if i wanted to go look, and I stammered, ugh, nuh, nooo, not right now. and she walked behind the bar and began cleaning up. okey dokey. LOL
Bottom line: good food. I’d go back. I hope they stick it out and stay a while. At least til the summer is over, I think that’s when they will really made an impact. Not sure the work buddies will wanna trek there for lunch, but it’s a great after work drink and nosh spot.

Just had lunch there today, and it was very good! Exceeded my expectations on every level. The food was fresh, very tasty. Can’t get a much better bang for your buck. Service was impeccable, and atmosphere was very friendly and inviting. The hot dog was a meal alone, foot long, covered with marinated pulled pork and crispy onions. Very flavorful, the pork was a meal on its own.
As a ‘local’, I look forward to making it a normal dining spot. Only thing missing was beer on tap, but that would be nit picking. Very goof!

Delicious gourmet hot dogs and sausages, and a laid back atmosphere. This is what JC has been missing! Split the truffle mac and cheese dog, and the ginormous jimmy bravos special with bbq short ribs. Both were delicious, but I’d give the nod to the special. Will def be back for the brunch dog.