A West Pensacola property once earmarked for a modest food truck park is getting a far bigger makeover. Ray Sehweil, the founder of Taste of Jerusalem, plans to open Jeftco Times Square at 2200 W. Cervantes St., a hub promising six different cuisines, an order-inside building and a drive-through for customers who'd rather not leave the car.
Sehweil is taking over the property where the former City Limits Food Park had once been planned, according to Pensacola News Journal. The site will feature six food trucks covering Chinese, tamales, Mexican, Indian, hot dogs and what the project calls New York favorites centered on halal chicken. Beyond the trucks themselves, the plan includes a building where customers can order inside, a drive-through lane and specialty beverages.
A Restaurant Veteran's Next Project
Sehweil says he's bringing decades of industry know-how to the venture, with 32 years of restaurant experience behind him, per the same report. He's framed the project as doable with the right team, pointing to staff who have worked with him for nine to 12 years. Sehweil has reportedly been testing menu items on his own employees for months, a process he says grew out of necessity: workers had grown tired of eating Chinese, Indian and hot dogs on repeat.
That testing period appears to have shaped the lineup heading into launch. Sehweil plans to maintain food quality and affordable prices across the concepts, and he's promised buy-one-get-one specials at each food location once things are up and running. He also wants the spot to function as a late-night destination with ample parking and outdoor seating for customers who stick around.
China 123 Express Expected First
Of the six concepts, China 123 Express is slated to be first out of the gate, with Sehweil telling the paper he expects it to open in about a month. The remaining concepts would follow within roughly three months, according to the rollout timeline Sehweil described. China 123 Express's own website confirms it is preparing to open at the same 2200 W. Cervantes St. address and describes itself as serving wok-fired Chinese-American dishes, though the site notes that an opening date and hours have not yet been announced.
Menu previews shared with the newspaper give a sense of what's coming. China 123 Express lists orange chicken and Mongolian beef at $10.99 each, plus honey walnut shrimp at $11.99. 123 Tamales is expected to offer creamy coleslaw for $2.99, pinto beans and rice for $3.99, and skillet cornbread for $2.49. India 123 Express's planned menu includes garlic naan at $3.99, vegetable samosa at $5.99 and gobi manchurian at $9.99, while Mexican 123 Express lists a carne asada steak plate for $13.99, a chili relleno combo for $11.99 and shrimp fajitas for $12.99. The report notes that menu details across the park remain subject to change.
A Different Plan for the Same Cervantes Street Lot
The address has history with food trucks. Back in 2022, the same 2200 W. Cervantes St. property, next to the Elbow Room, was the planned site of The City Limits Food Park, which was to bring three food trucks, with more to come, according to an earlier Pensacola News Journal report. Jeftco Times Square is planned for the same corner as the earlier food-truck park.
