Jimmy’s is coming to 317 East Kettleman Lane in Lodi, according to a liquor license application filed with the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. PR director Lauren Jennings confirmed to What Now Sacramento the new restaurant is targeting a mid-July opening. The new restaurant comes from owner Pete Murdaca, whose family operated Pietro’s in the same space for decades before moving the Italian restaurant to a larger location.
The upcoming restaurant will not operate as a pizzeria, but Italian food will still be at the center of the concept. Associate director, Kelsey Perry said the menu will blend Italian-American classics, steakhouse-inspired favorites, and a raw bar, drawing inspiration from traditional supper clubs and neighborhood restaurants where people gather with family and friends. Guests can expect sizzling steaks, house-made pastas, fresh seafood, cold martinis, and shareable dishes designed to bring people together around the table, according to Perry.
The address carries serious weight in Lodi’s dining history. The restaurant will be called Jimmy’s in honor of Pete’s father, Jim Murdaca, who helped open Pietro’s Trattoria in 1985, a restaurant that became a cornerstone of the local food scene for nearly four decades. With its flourishing patio gardens and intimate interior, the building itself became almost as beloved as the menu it housed. Jim and his wife Annette renovated the space four times over the years before retiring in 2021 and handing the business to their son Pete, who had worked as head chef for years and trained at culinary school in Italy before taking the reins.
Pietro’s recently relocated from its longtime Kettleman Lane home to a larger space at 282 Rocky Lane in Reynolds Ranch. The move allowed the family to expand while keeping the original building for a new concept. For a building that has meant Italian food and family to Lodi for 40 years, the next chapter looks like it may be its most ambitious yet.
