‘Undercover Boss’ Restaurant Opens in Newburgh, Poughkeepsie

A popular restaurant chain with a cult following was featured on "Undercover Boss" and now has two new Hudson Valley locations.

It's been a rough few years for Hudson Valley restaurants. BurgerFi, Hudson's, The Valley Diner, Mole Mole, Dairy Island, Ruby Tuesday, the Table Talk Diner, Bonefish Grill, Golden Corral and so many other restaurants have all shut their doors in the Hudson Valley. But after a long stretch of high-profile restaurant closures, theregion is finally seeing an uptick in new restaurant openings.

McDonald's is building a brand new drive-thru on Route 9, Popeye's is finally beginning construction on its Wappingers location, Dunkin' is erecting a huge new store in Red Oaks Mill and Jersey Mike's continues to introduce new locations in Orange and Dutchess counties.

Another popular chain has also recently introduced two new locations in Newburgh and Poughkeepsie.  You may recognize the name Golden Krust from an appearance by its founder on Undercover Boss. Lowell Hawthorne is the man behind the Jamaican restaurant chain with a huge cult following. He appeared on the seventh season of the NBC reality series, dressing in disguise to check up on his employees.

Hawthorne founded the first Golden Krust in the Bronx back in 1989. The restaurant was an instant success and eventually led to the opening of its first franchise in 1996.  Since then over 120 restaurants have opened in ten states. Golden Krust also has a huge retail business, providing food to schools and retail outlets. It's considered the most successful Jamaican business in the country.

Golden Krust is known for its authentic Caribbean food. The restaurant's Reggae Fest Meals feature proteins like jerk chicken, oxtail, curried chicken and goat served with a choice of rice, steamed vegetables, and fried sweet plantains. The menu also consists of patties, which are pastries filled with spices baked inside a flaky shell. Authentic side dishes like plantains and festive, a dumpling that might remind you of fried dough.

In October Golden Krust opened its doors on Route 17K in Newburgh near Target. The restaurant's franchise owner, Unique Gray, celebrated the announcement with a video on the company's YouTube channel.

Golden Krust also operates two other locations in the Hudson Valley. The restaurant can be found at 700 Main Street in Poughkeepsie, just a few blocks west of McDonald's. The Peekskill location opened on September 10 at 845 E Main Street.