Two stops on the L into Brooklyn- exit the station and voila! What could be easier? Dumont sits a half block down from the Lorimer stop on the L train. Make sure to ask to be seated in the “garden” which is an outdoors “backyard” to the restaurant; set up with numerous tables and a fully stocked bar. If you didn’t know any better you would think you weren’t in NYC in the middle of the hustle and bustle.
Although seemingly limited upon first glace as my dining partner pointed out after his first perusal of the menu (back at home in Manhattan), there is certainly something for everyone. We were a party of Four- and tried our best to sample the menu but it was too hard to stay away from the Crab Cake appetizer and the DuMac and Cheese main dish. Which were ordered in two-fold by the table. Josh and I opted to share the Crab Cake to start followed by the DuMac and Cheese and the Dumont Burger with aged sharp white cheddar cooked to a perfect medium rare.
The Crab Cake was served with Avocado and Salsa Verde. An amateur mistake is to overload the crab cake with breadcrumbs; this crab cake had the perfect ratio of Crab to mixture of everything else. It was topped with a mound of lump avocado (borderline chunky guacamole) and the whole thing was pretty tasty. It was not too greasy and a good size. The Salsa Verde was drizzled around the plate and could have been a little more abundant.
DuMac & Cheese - Cheddar, Gruyere, Parmesan, Bacon & Radiatore.
For those of you who are not familiar with Radiatore, it is pasta shaped like a miniature radiator- clever! This type of pasta was a perfect match for the blended thick and creamy cheese sauce. Each nook of the pasta severed to perfectly capture and hold the sauce. If there was bacon in this dish- I didn’t see any but that aside this DuMac was like a guilty pleasure. For someone who doesn’t eat Mac&Cheese regularly and hates EasyMac, DuMac’s take on this traditional dish was well accepted by the table. Fresh out of the oven and all nice and crispy on top, I couldn’t resist that first bite. It did not disappoint; except for maybe a little salt and pepper this dish needed nothing more it was perfect in all of its thick, creamy, cheesy goodness.
Right and left DuMont Burgers were flying out of the kitchen. From a quick look around, it appeared to be the dish of cho
ice among diners. The burger looked like a hockey puck on a large circular brioche bun. Fortunately, it resembled a hockey puck only in look not in taste. We opted for sharp white cheddar to accompany our burger. It was good! Juicy and well complimented by the brioche bun. I enjoyed it but perhaps it was a little over-shadowed by the DuMac which it sat next to on the table. Either way I have no complaints. I enjoyed the burger and the crispy fries it came with.Get over your delusions of the long trek into Brooklyn and step into the reality that 20 minutes on the L train can lead to a good meal that’s easy on your wallet.
