Early Saturday morning, we started our day knowing we would be deep in Brooklyn and decided to visit Delroy’s Cafe and Wine Bar to try the Jerk Chicken Dumplings that our GrungeCake apprentice Sade raved about previously. Personally speaking, being of African and Caribbean decent, I love spicy food. I was ready for the deliciousness I was sure would ensue from this trip. Since I’m also a foodie, I had already conjured grand images and flavors in my head. I imagined a seasoned filling, maybe lightly fried (who doesn’t like fried food?), served with a mango chutney dipping sauce on the side. Oh, how wrong I was?!

We stuck it out through our morning class with no breakfast whatsoever, and afterwards headed to Delroy’s arriving around 3pm for lunch. We were greeted warmly by the staff and seated by the pleasant hostess. As we perused the menu selections we noticed there was a Waynie’s Waffles menu before us and we became slightly confused. Once we spoke with the hostess, she informed us that Chef Wayne of Waynie’s Waffles is the Chef on duty between the hours of 11am – 7pm, and after 7pm Chef Bryan the creator of the Jerk Chicken dumplings attends to the evening customers. We were very surprised upon hearing this, as we informed our hostess we made the trip especially for those dumplings. She understood. As she finished speaking with us and filling our water glasses, she informed us that she would put in a call to Chef Bryan at once. At one point she even left the restaurant on our behalf, and came back with great news. Chef Bryan was on his way, and would be there momentarily. Our stomachs silently celebrated, once we knew we would be able to satisfy the craving after all.

We visibly settled in, relaxed, looked at the menu and decided while we were waiting that we would sample 2 waffle dishes of Chef Wayne’s recommendation. We settled on Hot butter Rum Bananas, and Hot Apple Cinnamon. The Belgian waffles with fresh, house made toppings were an unexpected treat in our foodie adventure! I’m no fan of bananas but both toppings were smooth, flavored to perfection without being too sweet, lightly sprinkled with powered sugar and served with strawberry garnishes. During our waffle sampling Chef Brian came in, greeted us warmly and introduced himself, and let us know that the wait would not be long.

We chatted and finished up the waffle dishes and had a brief conversation with Chef Wayne, as we expressed that we were with GrungeCake Magazine and we were interested in writing about our experience here. Wayne accommodated our brief Q&A.

What is the essence of Waynie’s Waffles?

Waynie’s Waffles is a fusion between European (Belgian Waffles) and Brooklyn cuisine.

When you say Brooklyn, how would you describe the essence of Brooklyn cuisine?

For example the Hot Butter Rum Banana is similar to bananas fostered here in the States, but with the rum accentuated flavor gives it a more, I’d say: Caribbean or urban type of flavor.

[We all laughed]

Is that the essence of Brooklyn?

[Laughs] Yeah, rum. Alcohol and food, yeah. That is the essence. The essence of Brooklyn is really the integration of Caribbean and American flair into what they are currently doing. Like if you go to a stadium, they’ll have fish tacos, and cheese steak, you know we combine everything because New York is a mosaic. So, we have to try and encompass everything, but still have your foundation.

When was Delroy’s Cafe Founded?

Delroy’s was founded 9 months ago, in February.

How would you describe Delroy’s to possible customers?

I like to say Delroy’s is sexy and classy. I feel like my waffles are sexy, and Chef Bryan’s selections are classy.

We thanked Chef Wayne for speaking with us, since our dumplings were being served, and we began to dig in:

An exquisite taste of the caribbean

As I looked down at my plate, the dumplings were nothing like what I previously imagined. They were not fried, at all. There was no mango chutney dipping sauce to slosh my dumplings in. Our meal was presented with 4 dumplings, delicately steamed to perfection and the display was traditional and exquisite. The Jerk sauce, which was lightly spiced and sweet, was drizzled on the plate, and the dumplings were placed on top – and each dumpling was finished with a dabble of mango chutney sauce and green onion garnish on top. We were all impressed with the plating and the flavor was a classy version of traditional caribbean cuisine. We loved Waynie’s Waffles and Chef Bryan’s Jerk Chicken Dumplings!

Delroy’s is located at 65A Fenmore Street, and the hours of operation are Tuesday thru Friday 4:30 – 9PM, and Sat – Sun 11AM – 7PM. Make sure to go and check them out for a mozaic of exquisite Brooklyn cuisine!

[gmap address=”65 Fenimore St Brooklyn, NY 11225″]