Wanderer Hut
Wanderer Hut
Get a little taste of Poland at HoliMont Bike Park
Photos / Wanderer Hut
If you know me, you know that I love food, and you know that I enjoy trying foods from every culture. One of the most comforting homestyle cuisines has got to be Polish food. From cabbage rolls to potato pancakes, it’s all stick-to-your-ribs, satisfying eats - something that’s been missing in our local area, until now. Enter The Wanderer Hut, a polish food truck out of Salamanca, NY, that’s been setting up shop at HoliMont Resort on the weekends. Let’s learn more about them…
eNOW: How did The Wanderer Hut Truck get started?
NATALIA: Wanderer Hut is a family-owned business run by Mariusz and myself, the owners. The food truck started in Salamanca as Mariusz's American dream. Ever since he was a young boy in Poland, Mariusz had a special bond with his mom and loved to cook with her while she prepared food for her catering business. As he aged, he went into the priesthood but always had fond memories and his love of cooking with his mom. When he got to Salamanca, he saw an opportunity to open a food truck as a form of outreach for the church and combine his two passions. He approached the church council and they were supportive of his ideas.
Mariusz did not feel he could do it alone. He asked me, his longtime friend from Poland, for help. I was working as an engineer and also had the same passion, but leaned towards baking. With my help, he was able to open Wandererhut on July 3rd, 2020 in the parking lot of Our Lady of Peace Parish in Salamanca where Mariusz served as the priest.
With Covid having taken over the country and people not being able to eat inside restaurants, food trucks became more popular and Wanderer Hut was no exception. In addition to the parishioners of the church who frequented Wanderer Hut, people who had never been to the church started coming to the truck where they were able to enjoy a good meal while sitting outside with others. Additionally, some people who got to know Mariusz started to come to the church. After a little over a year and a half, the diocese started to make changes to priest assignments, and Mariusz was moved to a different church. Mariusz and I had fallen in love with Salamanca and wanted to keep the truck there. Members of the Salamanca Rail Museum welcomed us to set up in their parking lot where we have been serving his mom's authentic Polish recipes and her European sweets since. Now it is a family-owned place.
eNOW: That’s a very nice origin story, but I know that the food industry is a lot of work. What is an average day in the food truck life like?
MARIUSZ: Running a food truck is not a regular 9-5 job. Even when we are not open, we are still working. We spend our day either at the food truck or getting supplies, and our evenings preparing food for the next day. We enjoy what we are doing and our food is truly made with love
eNOW: You seem to have a semi-regular schedule. Can you share that with us please?
NATALIA: We are open Tuesday through Thursday, 11:00am-2:00pm at the Salamanca Rail Museum; Fridays 11:00am-4:00pm at the Tractor Supply in Olean; and Saturdays and Sundays, 11:00am-4:00pm at HoliMont Resort in Ellicottville. There are always some exceptions based on other events. The best way to know where we are is to follow us on Facebook.
eNOW: What type of foods do you offer and can you give us some details on them?
MARIUSZ: Most of the recipes are based on traditional Polish and European cuisine with a modern innovative twist. We make them just like at home, everything is made by hand from scratch. When we can’t make it, we always try to source it from some of the best local businesses. We are proud of our food and make the pierogi (a dumpling like dough full of mashed potatoes and farmer’s cheese), bread, potato salad, desserts (like their decadent Wanderer Cake, which is a chocolate lover’s dream), and dressings fresh everyday. We want to give everyone an amazing Polish food experience.
eNOW: You can also offer catering. What type of jobs do you do and what are those menus like?
MARIUSZ: We are open to all types of jobs. We have done anniversaries, graduations, birthdays, and funerals, just to name a few. Although most of the time we are asked to serve our signature items, we love making your event special and will work with you to develop a custom menu for your event. We love to bring your vision to life.
eNOW: What are your plans moving forward over the rest of the year?
NATALIA: We would like to expand into a bigger truck and be able to share our food with a larger audience in the western NY area. We have also considered opening a small place where people can sit, enjoy our food and each other's company.
eNOW: Anything you would like to share with our local communities?
NATALIA & MARIUSZ: We would like to thank everyone for their continued support, especially Salamanca Rail Museum, HoliMont, the Salamanca community, and all the other communities and organizations that welcome us at their events. We are grateful for every order and every supportive message we receive. The last four years have been amazing for us. You are all a big part of our lives. Thank you!
So if you’d like to try something a little different, but something that definitely still fits in the comfort food category, follow The Wanderer Hut on Facebook to see where they are located daily or stop up to HoliMont on the weekend and grab yourself something delicious.
