Best Pizza Pontillo’s Pizzeria. Many area locations. pontillospizza.com Runners up: Mark’s Pizzeria | The Pizza Stop | Salvatore’s Best Burger Bill Gray’s. Many area locations. billgrays.com Runners up: The Gate House | Restaurant Good Luck | Swillburger Best Barbecue Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. 99 Court Street. 325-7090; dinosaurbarbque.com Runners up: Good Smoke | Sticky Lips | Texas […]
Rochester Restaurants
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A long time coming, Bitter Honey opens on Railroad Street
Zack Mikida’s enthusiasm is contagious. On the day we sat down to talk, everyone who walked into Bitter Honey (127 Railroad Street), Mikida’s new venture with SCN Hospitality (The Revelry, Branca), whether it was an employee or a customer, was greeted with a high five or a hug. Bitter Honey has been a long time […]
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Upcoming kitchen incubator The Commissary to give food businesses a leg up
In the lobby of the Metropolitan, formerly known as Chase Tower, the buzz of power tools echoes off the high ceiling as hard-hatted construction workers intermingle with downtown nine-to-fivers coming and going from the new arched glass entrance on South Clinton Avenue. One of the most recognizable landmarks in the Rochester skyline, the Metropolitan is […]
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Roll with it
My first question to John Syouthoum, the owner of Roll’n Yen Thai Fried Ice Cream (656 South Avenue), is “Why is it called ‘fried ice cream’ when it’s not fried?” The house-made ice cream is spread out on a flat surface and then scraped into rolls and placed in a cup — there isn’t a […]
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A renovated Dicky’s reopens and returns to the family
Residents of the Highland Park neighborhood, many of whom grew up there and decided to raise their own families in the area, are well familiar with the green building on the corner of Meigs and Caroline Streets. The building was built in 1880 and purchased by the Salvaggio family in 1922. Richard “Dick” Salvaggio opened […]
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Cheap Drinks: North Winton Village
The North Winton Village neighborhood has seen a resurgence over the last few years, with young professionals migrating to the area in droves. If you’ve driven past The Winfield Grill lately on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon and seen the hordes of tipsy 20- and 30-somethings pouring out of there after brunch, you know what […]
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Mexico comes to Corn Hill
No matter where the owners of Paola’s Burrito Place end up, the Rochester public seems to find them. The family’s new venture, Mi Barrio Burrito Place (319 Exchange Boulevard), opened in June of this year. “It’s a different location with a different name, but the same owners and the same great food,” says Jesus Enriquez, […]
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Swillburger opens seafood and hotdog offshoot in Pultneyville
When Brian Van Etten and Jeff Ching visited the Landing at Pultneyville last spring, they immediately saw the potential in the distinctive red building with its lakefront location. Van Etten and Ching co-own the South Wedge burger joint, bar, and video arcade The Playhouse/Swillburger — Ching also owns the Owl House on Marshall Street — […]
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Round-up: nightcaps and nibbles
It’s 9 p.m. on a Wednesday, and you’ve just gotten out of a movie or show, but no one’s ready to call it quits just yet. While it may not be the right evening to paint the town, a slice of something sweet and a glass of wine might strike the balance between opening the […]
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A hideaway no longer
There is a new entrance to Hogan’s Hideaway (197 Park Avenue) closer to the thoroughfare on Park Avenue. It’s just one of many changes that new owners Max Gordon, Maurice Kusminsky, and Drew Nye have made to once again make Hogan’s a destination on Park. The owners will hold a grand re-opening on Thursday, June […]
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Bringing the funk, bringing the waffles
When waffle kingpin Adam Gold heard that the former Water Street Music Hall was available, he got on the blower with a quickness. Roughly seven months later and Funk ‘N Waffles — Gold’s eclectic venue featuring live music and a kitchen serving up a large selection of sweet and savory waffles — was here. But […]
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Relish opens in former Open Face location
The space that houses Relish (651 South Avenue) is hardly recognizable from its former iteration, Open Face Sandwich Eatery. Owner Stephen Rees has brightened up the place with white walls and light accents and had recently finished painting the ceiling when we recently sat down to talk. “At this current juncture, it’s just me making […]
