DuMont

03/17/2008 Posted by bobbyhbobby

This was my first time at DuMont and I have to admit it was a pretty good dining experience. I called ahead to see how long the wait was and the hostess said about an hour and then took my name down. Showed up about 15 minutes early, grabbed a drink at the back patio bar, and our table was ready exactly on the hour. Despite it being a fairly a chilly, they've got outdoor heaters that make you forget you're even outside. We started off with the crab cake - excellent. Firm, but not too crisp. comes with fresh sliced avocado salad on top of a spicy, tasty salsa verde. Then we had the burger and the mac n' cheese. Burger was good, juicy, not the greatest though, a little small for the toasted brioche bun. Fries not the greatest either, soggy. But they serve the burger with Maille Dijon mustard on the side, which if you care, is one of the best French dijon mustards out there. The Mac N' Cheese was outstanding. Served with a crispy bread crumb top and underneath is a creamy mac n' cheese with very small pieces of bacon. Service was attentive and prompt, and the place was charming.

Pros: Good Mac N' Cheese, great service, good value

Cons: Need to call ahead on weekends, could use a stronger wine list.

02/17/2008 Posted by itookawalk

i just finished my second dining experience at dumont with mixed feelings. my server suggested a great local wine, a great first course (white asparagus salad with hard-boiled eggs and truffle dressing...delicious!), and after i asked if he'd tried the wild striped bass on special he said no but recommended it anyway. the bass was to be served with leeks, wild mushrooms, and fingerling potatoes (not cheap, by the way). upon arrival, no potatoes. so i asked if they were still available and he said yes and that he would check with the kitchen. he returned 10 minutes later to ask if i wanted another glass of wine and didn't mention the potatoes. when i asked again, he seemed flustered and told me that he'd passed on the information to the kitchen, then asked me if i still wanted them, but before i could respond he took my unfinished plate and left. in the end i received a free creme brulee (which was ok). i wonder what happened to the mysterious fingerling potatoes. i'm not even that upset that they were missing...i was annoyed that he clearly forgot to say anything to the kitchen and then tried to cover it up by asking me if i wanted something else as a replacement. the fish was very bland too...don't waste your money.

Pros: great atmosphere, warm outdoor area even in winter!

Cons: awful server

11/08/2007 Posted by karmaonion

I had heard so much about the burgers here that I had to try DuMont. Initially, I was disappointed when my medium burger was a deep red and I had to request that it be cooked longer (and so did my friend). But after this, we not only received entirely new, well-cooked (and delicious) burgers, we also got a free creme broulee for our troubles! Such great service and really delicious food. Highly recommended.

Pros: burger

Cons: small

10/17/2007 Posted by cookofdisquiet

The ambience is not overwhelming and the service is friendly! A great place to feel comfortable with an affordable menu and my my do they believe in good portions!

08/25/2007 Posted by verybecca

I was starving and cranky when I went here with my fiance...we're getting married in 8 days and nothing is going right, but we decided to treat ourselves because we had heard that the food was very good here and I am so glad we did! We sat at the bar because the tables seemed a little too crowded with laughing couples (lots of couples) and we were able to chat as though we were the only ones in the place. We ordered a duck confit salad to share and it was absolute perfection! I always order duck confit whenever it's on a menu because it's my favorite thing. I had a glass of white burgundy and it was also perfect and smooth. I ordered the ricotta ravioli special, which was in a creamy, fresh broth with fresh sage and tarragon and tomatoes - it was a small portion but extremely satisfying nonetheless. He had the skate (which is usually hit-or-miss) but it was fresh and had the most perfect crust on it and came with a mound of perfect mashed potatoes and whole, roasted garlic cloves, which I soon attacked. We left there incredibly happy and as a result, the rest of our night went swimmingly well -wink wink.

Pros: Great food, nice wine

Cons: Crowding

07/05/2007 Posted by loopydoopy

THE SERVICE IS SHOCKINGLY BAD. YOU FEEL LIKE YOU'RE IN A BAD "SNL" SKETCH. WILL SOMEONE PLEASE TELL THE OWNER OF DUMONT, IF HE'S LISTENING, THAT HE NEEDS AND HAS NEEDED FOR QUITE SOME TIME, A MAJOR STAFF OVERHAUL? EVERYONE, PARTICULARLY THE WAITOR BY THE NAME OF NICHOLAS, ACTS AS THOUGH THEY ARE TOO GOOD TO BE THERE. THEY NEVER CHECK TO SEE HOW EVERYTHING IS, AND WHEN YOU HAIL THEM, THEY GIVE AN ATTITUDE AS IF YOU'RE DISTURBING SOME "ARTISTS MOMENT" THEY WERE HAVING. NOBOBODY CARES ABOUT THE FACT THAT YOU'RE REALLY "TOO GOOD" FOR THIS JOB OR WHATEVER ELSE YOUTELL YOURSELVES BEFORE YOU GO TO BED AT NIGHT. WE ARE ALL ARTISTS IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD. AND WE ALL FIND WAYS OF GETTING BY. IN THE MEANTIME, JUST DO YOUR JOB. OBVIOUSLY I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT FEELS THIS WAY. LOOK AT MOST OF THE REVIEWS. THIS MUST BE ONE OF THE ALL TIME WORST OWNERS/MANAGERS IN THE HISTORY OF RESTAURANTS. BOYCOTT DUMONT/DUMONT BURGER/DRESSLER...UNTILE HE FINDS REAL WAITORS, (NOT THE MORONS CURRENTLY STAFFED), FOR DUMONT.

07/04/2007 Posted by kmacfadyen

There were four tables in our general vicinity and each one had complaints, be it hairs in the food, extremely slow service, or a general "eff you" attitude from the staff. I gave this place a second chance after an initial bad experience, and now I've convinced myself that I won't be heading back to Dumont, or any of its affiliates (Dumont Burger, Dressler). An hour went by between our appetizers and meal, which finally came out 15 minutes after we tried to cut our losses and ask for our check. I was told, "Sometimes it takes a long time to cook a hamburger." .... a hamburger? Really? Considering it was raw when it finally got to me, I'm guessing that that wasn't the holdup. The waitress insisted that she'd get the manager (she never did), and then said that the drinks would be taken off the check (they weren't). Meanwhile, the girl sitting next to us left before her main course even came. Also, and not to pile on, but the first time I went, I ordered the crab cakes and asked if there was cilantro in the salsa verdi, and the waitress said there wasn't... Of course, the crab cake was sitting on a pool of cilantro sauce. Not to sound petty, but don't say a dish doesn't have an ingredient if you don't know. Avoid the headaches. This place isn't worth it. There are too many better options in Williamsburg to waste the time or money at Dumont.

Pros: mac and cheese is okay

Cons: The service is horrrrible.

06/17/2007 Posted by fauxserious

My brunch today at DuMont had to be one of the most annoying restaurant experiences ever. We visited the restaurant after the brunch rush to avoid a long wait, there were several open tables in the front of the restaurant. We ordered coffee at the same time we were offered water. Apparently this was too much to handle, when ten minutes later our waitress came back and asked if we wanted anything to drink. We again ordered coffee. 20 minutes goes by and our waitress comes to take our order, we place our food order and ask again for coffee. Our waitress was one of those really irrritating professional eyecontact avoiders. She shuffled around staring at the floor, making sure no one could catch her eye if they were waving both arms in the air. Finally the coffee arrived. We wait. The three tables who arrived during our first waiting marathon were served their food. We Ordered an omlette and poached eggs, nothing that takes too long, or has to be cooked to temperature. Eventually, 45 minutes after we sat, a friend sat down at a table near by, we chatted and the four of them placed thair order. Some inumerable ammount of time goes by as I try to catch the attention of our waitress. My friends table gets thier food. Just when I'm about to start eating her food, ours arrives, no joke, 90 minutes after we sat down in a half empty restaurant. Not only would the waitress not visit our table once our food started to take an insane ammount of time, no one mentioned it, or updated us or anything. It wouldn't have been so bad if a manager came over and said the kitchen mixed up our food it would be right out or something, but just sitting there waiting, being ignored is SO annoying. Eventually the waitress came by and poured tea in our coffee and into all the coffee's of my friends at the next table. The last time I went to DuMont they wouldn't let me sit at a table for two til my guest arrived at 5:30 pm on a Tuesday in a completely empty diningroom. I'm done with Dumont.

Pros: the food is okay, but not worth the stress

Cons: service, service, service! bad waitress, bad managment, bad hosting

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

05/24/2007 Posted by mattmeister

my favorite things were your steak with peppercorn sauce or the brunch. both are unbelievable. Also appetizers are delicious. The garden is nice and whenever I go here I cant stop drinking the coffe. Dumont always puts me in a good mood.

05/08/2007 Posted by microbekiller

Honestly, I've read a lot of complaints about DuMont's poor service, and I don't know if the restaurant has taken it to heart or if I'm just lucky, but I have consistently received exemplary service here! The wait staff has been quick, attentive and friendly. I try to avoid the busiest times, but even brunch on the weekends has been great. Yes, there's a bit of a wait then, but we don't mind waiting at the bar. This is a terrible place for groups larger than 4 people. The food is so good I keep going thinking I'll have their famed burgers but once there, the specials always look so delicious I get them instead (wild mushroom ravioli in a walnut/butternut squash sauce, hanger steak sandwich). I have never eaten a bad meal here and I've never been unhappy with the service.

Pros: Delicious food, nice atmosphere, good service

Cons: Small, might have to wait for a table