Posted by Michael Stern on July 08, 2002
We always assumed that the Dutch Kitchen got its name because it is somewhat near Pennsylvania Dutch Country. During our last visit, manager Tom Lekulic confided that when his father-in-law, John Morgan, moved the original dining car to this location, the move and start-up costs were so expensive that he could not afford to buy a new sign. So he simply used the old sign that had been on the diner – “Dutch Kitchen”; and so it has been for thirty years!
An extremely convenient place to eat along I-81 just south of the junction with I-80, the Dutch Kitchen is part-diner (the original building, now the smoking area), and part family-style restaurant decorated to the hilt with country crafts for sale. We never can leave without at least one needed speckle-ware pitcher or silly kitchen homily to bring back as a gift for a friend.
The menu is a large one that ranges from bacon and eggs in the morning and hamburgers at lunch to such real local specialties as homemade chicken and turkey pot pie (a kind of stew with big soft noodles), smoked pork chops, ham and cabbage casserole, and dessert of gooey-bottomed shoofly pie. The turkey dinner is especially delicious, made from daily-roasted turkeys, a mild bread “filling” (the regional term for stuffing), genuine mashed potatoes, and access to an awesome salad bar. “My ancestors were Pennsylvania Dutch,” explained Tom’s wife Jennifer Lekulic. “That’s why we put out the chow-chow and all those vegetables.” Oh, what vegetables! Pickled melanges of carrots and cauliflower, corn and beans, beets and peppers. There is also a bowl full of fantastic apple butter, which is like apple sauce but serious apple sauce – dark and spicy.
Although we always have shoofly pie for dessert, we were intrigued by another item that Tom recently added to the menu, the “atomic banana split.” Tom is a self-confessed banana split fanatic, and this heap of ice cream, syrup, bananas, and whipped cream, arranged vertically rather than horizontally, is of truly atomic proportions.
Overall: Worth driving from anyplace
11 out of 13 people found the review helpful. Was it helpful to you?
Reviewers "Must Eats" List
turkey dinner
($8.00)
chicken and turkey pot pie
($10.00)
salad bar
(N/A)
shoofly pie
($3.00)
"The salad bar reflects the Pennsylvania Dutch heritage of proprietor Jennifer Lekulic: "seven sweets and seven sours.""
Michael Stern
"A frequent specialty of the house, this casserole contains big hunks of sweet pink ham, silky cabbage, and soft potatoes. Talk about comfort food!"
Michael Stern
"The Dutch kitchen started as a small diner, which is now almost completely enclosed by the larger restaurant and dining room. For travelers along I-81 in southern Pennsylvania, it is a landmark."
Michael Stern
"A big family dining room with tables has been added, but you can still eat at counter or in booths of the original dining car that was the Dutch Diner in 1971."
Michael Stern
"The Dutch kitchen roasts whole turkeys every day for turkey dinner. The slices are set atop homemade filling, and the mashed potatoes are REAL."
Michael Stern
"A hunk of corn bread comes alongside the casseroles. It is moist, flavorful, and nearly as sweet as cake."
Michael Stern
