After three long years since its conception, the 10 South Rooftop Bar & Grill will open its doors to the public Wednesday. With a bird’s eye view of the Mississippi River and the landscape of the City of Vicksburg’s historic downtown, the newest restaurant in town is sure to offer locals and visitors not only spectacular views but a menu that boasts entrées to please every palate.

“It feels like a wonderful mix of anxiety and exhilaration,” said Jay Parmegiani, the owner of the restaurant.

The 10 South Rooftop Bar and Grill sits atop the old First National Bank building on Washington Street that has been converted into luxury apartments.

Parmegiani said initially he had no idea it would take so long to open the restaurant, and if he had, he would never have undertaken such a massive project.

“I would have not done it if I had known it would take three years, but I am extremely grateful my business partner, Tom Cantwell, persisted, and we were able to work through it,” Parmegiani said.

As the owner of the Roca Restaurant & Bar, which is inside the Vicksburg Country Club, Parmegiani said he had a “firm grip” on what it took to open a restaurant but did not expect the delays with the construction.

“There was a lot involved. We had to add a floor, beams, plumbing, decking, the whole nine yards. I latched on to a really big elephant and have been holding on since,” he said.

It was this limited knowledge of the construction world that Parmegiani said caused him to continue telling his friends and patrons 10 South will be opening in about “six to eight weeks” during the course of the extensive time delays.

“When I said six to eight weeks, I was sincere because many times I was under the impression it was only going to take about two more months,” he said.

Taking the countless months of his continual “six to eight weeks” reply in stride, Parmegiani has his employees wearing t-shirts bearing a six to eight weeks logo on the back.

“My husband is so very motivated. He has such a passion for what he does. He was going to make this work no matter what. This was his dream,” Jay’s wife, Kara, said.

Along with his undeniable tenacity, optimism and humbleness, Parmegiani claims 10 South was a team effort including support from his family.

“There is no way this would have been possible without the support of Kara,” he said, adding his team also had “his back.”

The team Pamergaini referred to included Cantwell and his wife Stephani, Crystal Sanders, who will serve as the general manager of 10 South, and Kevin Roberts, the chef.

“Kevin cooks just like me if not sometimes better,” Parmegiani said. “No one will ever know how much he put into the menu. He took interest in the menu, and I stepped back and let him roll. He is consumed by food. He gets it.”

“I have been preparing for this my whole entire life,” Roberts said of becoming chef for 10 South. “I am on cloud nine. I am living the dream.”

Roberts, who is a Vicksburg native, said he decided he wanted to become a chef when he was a child.

“I started watching all the great chefs of the world on TV, and it was when I made barbeque macaroni cheese that I decided I wanted to become a chef,” he said.

With a patient mom who allowed her son to turn her kitchen into a testing zone for recipes, Roberts said, he eventually began traveling the continent that allowed him to taste all the foods of the world and gave him the opportunity to work in a variety of restaurants including places such as California and Alaska.

“I know what tastes good, and I know what smells good to me,” Roberts said.

One of his favorite recipes he created for the 10 South menu is fried green tomatoes, he said.

“Trying to make fried green tomatoes kept me up late at night. I was trying to figure out how to make it better,” Roberts said.

The fried green tomatoes dish is a must for everyone who visits 10 South, Sanders said.

“It has a buttermilk biscuit crust with spicy tomato crawfish gravy. It is delicious,” she said. “It has taken Kevin two years to come up with the menu,” Sanders said, “and sometimes three months to perfect a dish.”

Other items on the menu include barbecue shrimp and grits, honey roasted chicken Salad, “61” Coffee – cayenne-rubbed New York strip and Moon Pie bread pudding.

It has been more than 20 years since Vicksburg was home to a privately owned restaurant with an unobstructed view of the river. Delta Point Restaurant and Top of the River, which both offered views of the Mississippi River, are no longer, but neither offered as spectacular a view as 10 South.

“My face has been out there, but there have been so many people that have helped make 10 South a reality, and I want to thank the locals for being patient,” Parmegiani said.

Soft openings were held prior to Wednesday’s official opening, and the responses from Parmegiani’s patrons were glowing.

“This is a great addition to the destination feel for Vicksburg,” said Jeff Richardson.

“Good company, good food, great views, who could ask for anything more?” said Dean Andrews.

“Finally, we have a place in Vicksburg with this beautiful view,” said Fred Farrell.

The hours for 10 South Rooftop Bar are 5 to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday and Sundays, and from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturdays. The restaurant will be closed Mondays, and lunch will be offered starting on Tuesday, June 23.