Ruth & Jimmie's Given New Life as Premier Event Space, Downtown Abbe

Remember Ruth and Jimmie’s Sporting Goods and Cafe in Abbeville, Miss.? They had a 12-stool lunch counter, banana pudding on Saturdays, and the best fried okra in north Mississippi.

For nearly 25 years, Ruth and Jimmie’s was the life of downtown Abbeville, but closed in the mid-90s. Since then, the building was occupied on and off, most recently by Yocona in Exile after the Yocona River Inn burned in 2009.
The building was recently renovated and reborn as a premiere event space called Downtown Abbe (a play on the popular PBS program Downton Abbey).
Located just nine miles north of Oxford on Highway 7, Downtown Abbe is available for events, receptions, private parties, art exhibits, classes, or meetings.
The renovations intended to keep, but spruce up, the building’s original Southern-style. It is a long, rectangular space with the original bead-board walls and old hardwood floors. There is also a side yard that can be used as an outdoor event space for grilling or tents.
Downtown Abbe is the perfect mix of old and new, as those of us who still crave Ruth and Jimmie’s host events in a space that holds so many memories.
Downtown Abbe is located at 1 Business 7 South in Abbeville, Miss. Visit their website at www.downtownabbe.com. For information about booking Downtown Abbe for a future event, contact Lisa Chandler by phone at 662-801-1304 or by email at lisa@downtownabbe.com.





– Kate Sinervo is managing editor for HottyToddy.com. She can be reached by emailing kate.sinervo@hottytoddy.com.