34 Park Street, Essex Junction, 876-7431
An important part of my job as a food writer is listening to the recommendations of others. I would have been unlikely to try this hole-in-the-wall in downtown Essex Junction if a family member and longtime line cook hadn’t wholeheartedly endorsed it.
But for all their good intentions,recommenders sometimes lead me astray. Unfortunately, I was not as taken with the Hungry Dutchman as I had hoped to be.
Much as I would have loved some pannekoeken or Indonesian curry, the “Dutchman” only refers to the brothers who own it, Timothy and Thomas Roorda. They run the kitchen, while an older woman genially takes orders.
Instead, the menu offers a wide selection of American favorites: pizza, subs, fried appetizers and comfort-food dinners.
There were so many options, it was difficult to choose dishes that I felt might do justice to the place, so I stuck as much as possible to what had been recommended.
That meant wings were right at the top of my list. Specifically, the Caribbean jerk wings, which my friend had said were among the best he’d ever tasted.
The chicken itself was perfectly crisped, but for me, the sauce ruined the petite wings. It was gloopy and oversweet, it reminded me of General Tso’s chicken, without a hint of the Caribbean. Kudos, though, to the Roordas for making their sauces in-house. There are about a dozen different ones for the wings alone.
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After having no luck getting take out THEE TIMES from a certain Irish bar in Williston I thought I’d give these guys a go. First up we ordered blue cheese burger, fish and chips, and nachos. Burger cooked perfect medium rare and not greasy like a lot of places. Hand cut chips were amazing. Fish and chips were gorgeous. Perfectly cooked fish, lovely crunchy batter, thick cut fries presented in a large foil take out tray. Nachos were also excellent; fresh, large portion, and tasty. Not covered in a grease vat of cheese. Really lovely. Were these freshly made tortilla chips? Certainly tasted that way. Second time around we ordered a burger with bacon, again cooked perfect. Large philly cheese lacked as many peppers and onions I’d like but tasty. Nachos this time did not seem to be made from the same tortillas which let the dish down a bit. Third time we went for philly cheese pizza and wings. Pizza was tasty but thicker crust than I’d like. But, I like thin, thin crust which is hard to find around these parts. Would buy again if craving the carbs. I wouldn’t get wings again. Just not my cuppa tea but maybe it was because we got grilled? I don’t know. I don’t get the whole wings thing so they could be gorgeous for all I know about them. Like Alice says, kudos on making all those sauces. In a nutshell I like this place. I hope they keep their standards up — you can tell the food comes from a clean kitchen. They’re friendly folks, and to top it off they’ll even deliver. Essex J needs a place like this. Keep it up, boys!