Barry went to William Paterson University, but has never been to downtown Paterson or seen the famous Great Falls! I decided that had to change and so we did a day trip up to the falls and to the Paterson Museum that recently reopened after minor renovations. Since we were leaving our home in Summit around noon, I decided we’d also do something I’VE always wanted to do – eat a hot dog (ripper) at renowned Rutt’s Hut in Clifton AND a burger at “the world’s best” in Hackensack – the famous White Manna Hamburgers!
We started the trip on old scenic route 21 along the Passaic, beginning in Newark. The city is going through a lot of changes and is looking good! The river meandered up north and we finally saw the “Rutt’s” sign from the road. Rutt’s has been a Jersey institution since 1928.
Rutt’s is Barry’s favorite hot dog and he hurried inside the back door entrance to the old-school standup counter.
The yellowed counter menu shows a variety of choice including cheese sandwiches and their “famous” Greek salad, but Barry will make this easy for you – you’re getting a dog (or two), which they’ve been deep-frying since the Hoover administration!
The dogs come out, crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside. Slather them with spicy mustard and their homemade mustard-based relish. The taste is indescribable! Along with their homemade onion rings, it’s a true Jersey experience.
We saw one man chowing down on a burger there, and Barry was tempted to ask him why, when the world’s best dogs were being tossed onto paper plates five feet behind him. I surmised that he’s probably a local that has been weaned and raised on Rutt’s, and just wanted something different. We’ll go with that.
We then headed over to our main destination – Paterson Museum and the Great Falls. The museum – housed in the former Thomas Rogers Locomotive factory since 1982 – was organized by the City of Paterson in 1925.
There are plenty of cool artifacts showing the extensive manufacturing history of Paterson, including original equipment used to build and maintain trains.
Who knew that the famous Colt pistols and rifles were made here? Also on display are silk and textile looms and Holland submarines, and even a tribute to Paterson native Lou Costello (Who;s on first?) Karen’s favorite was an exhibit of sundries and remedies you might have found in a Paterson apothecary shop at the turn of the (last) century.
We then made a very short drive to the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park. The impressive waterfall is 77 feet high, on the Passaic River, and is definitely worth a look. The raised walkway right across from the fall’s highest point is a great vantage point and a terrific place to cool off from the spray on a hot summer’s day.
Getting hungry again, we headed toward the final stop of this trek, White Manna Hamburgers in Hackensack.
The building is tiny and inside is a small, quaint, all-encompassing counter, with 20 seats in two rows along a semi-circle surrounding the cramped grill, which is maybe 4 feet by 3 feet. The beef, delivered fresh daily and rolled into small balls, is pressed onto the grill along with sliced onions, which cook together. The sliders are then encased in a potato roll and, like Rutt’s Hut, served on no-frills paper plates.
The griller has no pen, paper or computer printouts to check orders; you tell him what you want and then let him do his thing (he did get my order wrong though, and had a little bit of an attitude when we pointed it out; but the reordered patties came out quickly enough).
We were expecting to be blown away; the burgers were tasty, but not quite “the best thing I ever ate,” according to one celebrity chef in a video on their website (which includes several such videos from various cooking shows featuring several folks familiar in the Food Network universe). We have to say White Manna didn’t quite live up to the hype.
So Barry has finally seen Paterson’s Famous Falls and I’ve checked off eating at BOTH Rutt’s and Manna’s in one day. All in all a great day trip!
