New owner of JK’s no stranger to Danbury — or to restaurants
DANBURY — The new owner of the downtown eatery JK’s that was run by the Koukos family for 98 years is no stranger to restaurants or to Danbury.
Veteran restaurateur Nilton Coelho, whose eateries include Banana Brazil on Main Street, has taken over JK’s Original Texas Hot Wieners on South Street.
It remains to be seen what Coelho has in mind for one of Danbury’s legendary eateries that is only a 10-minute walk from his own flagship restaurant in the heart of the city’s downtown.
Efforts to reach Coelho in Danbury and at his other Banana Brazil restaurants in Waterbury, Hartford and Meriden were not immediately successful on Friday.
Nor was it clear whether renovations underway at JK’s restaurant were part of a larger overhaul that will include changes to a menu that for decades featured quintessential family fare at fair prices.
A Realtor who sold the restaurant at 126 South St. to Coelho said he didn’t know whether JK’s traditional menu of cheeseburgers and grinders would survive the ownership change,
or whether the restaurant would come out of the renovations featuring the barbeque and grilled meat specialties from Banana Brazil menus, except that the finished product would be exceptional.
“He’s going to kill it either way,” said Tyler DeVecchis, a realtor with Berkshire Hathaway in Wallingford.
The restaurant, which was launched on White Street in 1924 and has been on South Street for 48 years, was on the market in July for $2.2 million.
“Many businesses, especially during pandemic times, did not make it; this particular business thrived throughout the shut down and still continues to grow and could expand to even more,” said a listing by Coldwell Banker Realty at the time.
“The hours, menu, catering, off site special events, in house special events, takeout, delivery, food truck, and many more ideas could grow this business and even become a franchise,” the listing said.The restaurant sold for $900,000 on Aug. 31, according to records at the Danbury Assessor’s Office. Meanwhile the Coldwell Banker listing had the sale price at $1.2 million.
“For almost 100 years, this location has been a brand and a staple in town, and you could be the one to capitalize off of its legacy and make it your own,” the listing reads. “The family who owns this would love nothing more than (to have) capable and willing people to pass off the years of dedication … with the same dream.” Peter Koukos, whose grandfather and grand uncle started JK’s Original Hot Texas Weiners, declined to comment on Friday about the restaurant changing hands.