Biaggi's

Sunday was a shopping day, or at least an attempted shopping day. After a visit to both the Waterloo outlets and Eastview mall, I only walked away with a sweater. Still no closer to getting our Halloween costumes together.

Anyway, anytime we find ourselves in the Victor vicinity (what's our vector, Victor?) we home in on Bellini's. Something about all the big box stores must create a craving for semi-fancy, heavily Americanized chain Italian. Apparently this is not a desire just limited to myself. Besides Bellini's, there is Biaggi's and an Olive Garden (the grandmother of this food genre) within a 2 block radius of the Eastview mall. Perhaps this flood on the market could explain why there were dumpsters in front of Bellini's, surrounded by caution tape and various bits of disassembled metal. Apparantly Bellini's is now out of business. Or doing a serious remodel. Or something. Anyway, not open to us. (Benucci's in the Pittsford Plaza, which also fills the same purpose, is also in a remodel. Is this the start of a horrific trend?).

This left us no further recourse but to try Biaggi's Casual Italian Eatery, which appears to be the more chain-y, jacked up on Cheesecake Factory/Las Vegas/Disney architecture juice. (You know what? I'm gonna start calling that the Cheesecake Factor. Feel free to spread the phrase into your everyday parlance). Despite the imposing 15 foot ceilings, the food was pretty decent. I would have preferred a pannini, but that just wasn't in the cards (or the menu). Strangely, most of their dishes come with cream sauce. Even chicken parmesan and lasagna. But thankfully, you can ask to switch to marinara for something more traditional/non-crazy.

The soup special (mushroom barley) was very good, though 5 or 6 bucks, which is even more extortive when they ask you if you want soup or salad after you order your entree, such that it sounds as if you have a choice between the two included in the cost of your entree. I didn't fall for it but I don't appreciate when places do it either. The soft drinks were also almost 3 dollars. I can put away a lot of Diet Coke in the course of a meal, but the amount of Diet Coke necessary to make a $3 price tag justifiable equals the entire volume of Biaggi's itself. Flooded up to its faux stucco vaulted ceilings.

The Boy had the chicken parmesan (substituting marinara for cream sauce) as is his long-established Italian dining custom. Bonus points for the spring of actual, fresh basil on the top. I mixed it up with Penne Sardi. Penne in a too-thin sun dried tomato cream sauce (surprise, surprise) with chicken, onions, and mushrooms. Topped with bread crumbs. Kind of a casserole, but better. I was pleased, but not overwhelmed. The onions were cut too large and I really wanted more mushrooms. But the penne was cooked well (as was the Boy's angel hair) and there was lots of chicken. So even though our minds weren't blown, and it was a little on the pricey side, we did leave decadently full and slumberous. Just the condition you want to be in when going shopping.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries

Largely due to the fact that Bentucci's is renovating their restaurant, the Boy and I found ourselves in Pittsford Plaza on a quest for dinner. On our way to dropping $20 a piece on our glutfest at the Wegmans buffet, I was confronted with a fact that had escaped my memory: Five Guys Burgers and Fries had opened in the PP about a month ago. So we headed over to check it out.

First thought, I love a place with so few options. Really. I hate when places try to anticipate nearly every type of diner inclination and serve nachos next to pasta next to steak next to Chinese (yes, it happens). A jack-of-all-trades is a master of none. In My Perfect Dining World, places would limit themselves to ten items or less. Do them well and people will either be open to the singular experience the chef/cook is crafting or know to skip out because they're not into it. This is really the whole philosophy behind prix fixe meals.

The Boy's first thought was the boldness of having so many boxes of peanuts in their shells lying around, considering the dangers of peanut allergy reactions (how is he the one thinking like a lawyer?).

I ordered the cheeseburger with everything, plus jalapenos. My norm when confronting any new burger is to order it "all the way." The Boy got the bacon cheeseburger with grilled mushrooms and grilled onions and barbeque sauce. We got an order of the cajun fries too. (Sidenote: someone ordered right before us and left to go run an errand before picking up their food. This apparently confounded the staff, which quickly went from a friendly "Order Up" to a Gestapo-like: "You there, what's your number? Are you sure? Are we sure it's 86 instead of 88? How can this be?" I almost ate the woman's food out of fear and guilt for it not being mine.)

So this place definitely trades in nostalgia (a la Johnny Rocket's or Steak and Shake or even Sonic). Once you order, you get a number, you get your fountain drink, and you wait for your food to come packed in a bag, regardless if you're just taking over to the tables on the other end of the room. The tables were a little littered when we were there, which reminded me of eating off picnic tables. They definitely wanted to bare bones in the decor and set up. Really commited to the idea of fast food and no frills and all that. Except with a nice long list of toppings to make up for only having burgers, hot dogs (and one grilled cheese which I'm sure is American cheese in a hamburger bun).

Five Guys has quite the reputation of being the best burger around. They make sure you're aware of this fact by plastering the walls with articles and quotes from The Washingtonian and the Long Island local paper, etc.

I have to say the meat quality was excellent. The bun could have better and could have been toasted. There definitely could have been less raw onions (coarsely chopped) involved -- but then again, I really shouldn't have ordered both raw and grilled onions (probably best not to go "all the way" here). The cheese was just American cheese. Basically everything here was good in the most basic sense of what a fast food cheeseburger is. Like a particularly good Wendy's, minus the drive-through. Except the medium-cut, skin-on fries, with Cajun spices, where much much better than Wendy's (which always mysteriously need salt, despite the fact that I don't add salt to anything else ever).

Oh, also of note: the regular is a double. I guess the little burgers are human-sized. Still, I ate the whole thing. And will probably skip all meals today because of it.

All in all, it reminded me of In and Out (a place I was never rabid about unlike most other Southern Californians). Of course, In and Out also has the gimmick of a secret menu, and milkshakes. And the burger's flavor also kept reminding of something I couldn't quite put my finger on, something that was buried so far deep that it was almost subconscious -- until this morning. It really tasted a lot like Rush's in Columbia, South Carolina (which used to be my favorite restaurant of all time). Of course, Rush's burgers are even better with their milkshakes. Moral of the story: start making shakes, Five Guys.

Not even close to Steak and Shake. But then again, Steak and Shake isn't even close to Rochester.


ADDENDUM: Just minutes after I posted this, Village Voice's food blog named Five Guys #6 in the ranking of the Best Fries in New York City.

Ming's

Ming's, at 1038 S. Clinton in Southwedge, has been consistently ranked as some of the best Chinese in town. So the other day, when the weather started to turn cooler and we were both feeling worn down and fluish to make something and too sweaty from working out to eat anywhere nice (like Chen Garden), we decided to try out a new place for some old familiar comfort food.

I ordered the General Tso's, the Boy got Bourbon Chicken. We each got fried rice and we also split a large Egg Drop soup. Once we'd ordered in the teensy restaurant, I decided it was best to air ourselves out outside rather than torture the other diners unfortunate enough to share our post-workout space. After about 15 minutes, our food was ready. And unfortunately, during that 15 minutes we did watch a lot of it being prepared -- which included at least 5 minutes of The Boy's Bourbon Chicken sitting on the very side of the cooking space while Larry, one of the cooks, cleaned out a wok, splashing water and whatever cleaning product ponderously close to the Boy's food. We'll just assume with such an open kitchen, free for all to inspect, that Larry really knows what he's doing and the Boy's plate was hygenically sound. He's still alive at any rate.

My General Tso's was a little goopy, with maybe not enough sauce on some parts (to remind you of the huge amount of breading that's involved) and then of course, tons at the bottom of the container. It was a passing Chinese dish, nothing great, and unfortunately served to remind me of how unnatural some of my favorite Chinese dishes are. Of course it looks nothing like what they serve in China, and it also looks nothing like anything that came out of a farm or the natural world (except the sliced bell pepper which tasted pretty fresh). Lots of breading, fryer oil, white sugar, and red dye.

The Boy ordered Bourbon Chicken largely because he wanted to avoid the things I just mentioned -- he didn't want something fried. The bite I tasted was just like any other mall Chinese/Japanese/Cajun outpost. Nothing remarkable, but not altogether disappointing either. Same for the fried rice, passable at best. No egg that I found, scant veggies, decent amounts of pork. Not much to remember really.

The egg drop soup couldn't hold a candle to Chen's (which always has a distinct soy sauce flavor that I've never seen anywhere else). It was too gelantious -- and being as I'm not a fan of eggs, this is a very disturbing quality. Too much of a semi-solid for me, without any depth of flavor, just a pepperiness. The Boy equated it to some kind of military-hospital-refugee camp substance used to keep people alive and to avoid malnutrition.

I'm not sure about the relationship this Ming's has with New Ming's on Monroe, but for my money, New Ming's is a much much better quality restaurant. It certainly (after the remodel) attempts to be a higher level -- with wine and beer, fancier dishes, brown rice, etc. I'm all for occasionally trips into the down and dirty, especially when it means you get something really tasty, but not in this case.

Tony D's Pizza

Tony D's coal fired pizza has been in Corn Hill Landing for awhile now. We went there not long after seeing a review in City Newspaper. I wasn't that wild about it at the time. If memory recalls, I had the carciofi -- artichoke -- pizza. This was before they had their liquor license and maybe they were just figuring stuff out. (Also, it was raining and I almost died slidding on their slick floors in my boots).

Well, after a few raves from friends (and after running out of any other casual Italian places to try), we visited again last week. I don't know if it was just happenstance but this time the food was much much better. The pizza is crispy and the portions are huge.

We started with a meatball appetizer. The meat quality could have been better, and I wasn't wild on the sauce, but the balls were huge and satisfying. (that's what she said). The sauce tasted just like tomatoes, but it did have a certain brightness. I would have liked something thicker, but it worked.

We then each got pizzas: I had the special and the Boy had the Vognole -- clams. The Vognole had clams, garlic, parsley -- all the usual clam pie contenders. Doesn't hold a candle to Pepe's of course, but it was balanced and satisfying. I think it's my favorite on the regular menu. Maybe some of my initial hesitation about loving the restaurant stems from the fact that nothing really grabs me on the menu, despite my rather broad-ranging love of pizza toppings. I was debating to make my own (although half of the great toppings aren't available on the make your own list) when the waitress shared with us the specials.

The special pizza that night was spinach, Italian sausage, garlic and ricotta. Why, yes please! Had I not gotten that last-minute option, I might not have had such an enthusiastic reaction. Always trust in the specials, people!


It would be remiss of me not to mention that they do now have their alcohol license. They have a decent stock of bottled beers (including Peroni in keeping with the Italian theme). And their wine list is rather extensive and of average price. I had been meaning to try a Primativo and was elated to find one by the glass for $8. It ended up being a little too drab with too quick a finish, but at least I got to give it a try!

One day I will have to also give their desserts a try -- the cannoli and the HUGE chocolate mousse cake both looked fantastic!

Taste of Texas

Taste of Texas, in downtown Spencerport, was recently reviewed by City Newspaper's food critic, James Leach. The Boy was overwhelmed with excitement when he first heard there was a new barbeque joint for us to try -- and one that received a rave review. So the other weekend we headed over to Spencerport, which is one of those downtowns chock full of "what a cute ___" places -- ice cream shops, waterfront bars, etc.

The good press was definitely helping out TofT because there were already people waiting when we got there, a few minutes before they opened the door at 1pm on Sunday. And about a dozen more came in by the time we were done. The service was very quick -- mostly because you order and the bar and the waiter/bartender/cowboy shoots the order down a zip line to the kitchen, where the alligator clip it's clamped to charmingly hits a cowbell. Perfect!

The food comes right out (or at least when you're there right after opening), and you pick it up, along with your fountain drinks, (beer, of which they have a large selection, is handed over at the cash register), sauces, soups if you ordered it, and even free loaf bread. I really liked that, as most no-frills (aka "legit") bbq places just provide loaf bread and nothing else.

I ordered pulled pork because the review said it was phenomenal. My two sides were fried okra and baked beans. The Boy had ribs, with Aunt Carla's broccoli and cheese and Aunt Nancy's cheesy potato. His complaint were that the two were perhaps a little too cheesy, cold, and heavy -- more in line with a school cafeteria casserole. I'd point out that maybe one shouldn't get two different side dishes with the word cheese in them. However, my fried okra was a bit of a disappointment as well. I was perhaps overly optimistic that it would be traditional Southern fried okra, battered by hand in the restaurant. Unfortunately, it was more in line with some kind of chain restaurants "poppers" or "bites" -- too much batter and not enough flavor. My spirits took a major nosedive when the waitress asked me if I wanted ranch dressing to go with my okra.

Both the ribs and the pulled pork measured up pretty close to Dino and Sticky Lips (although the pulled pork looked greasy, it mysteriously actually wasn't). The barbeque sauce was really, really good. A great match of sweet and spicy for my personal palate. However, the pork had definitely been dressed in the sauce with a generous hand. As were the ribs. I am an unabashed devotee of barbeque sauce, but this was a little much even for me. I think a word of caution for future visitors would be order sides that are acidic -- like the vinegar-dressed coleslaw. Fried and cheesy didn't seem to cut the sauciness, and while the baked beans were phenomenal -- the highlight -- with real bacon mixed in, they were too close in flavor to the sauce. My poor mouth just needed something different after awhile.

Roman Holiday Gelato

Post #150 goes to my all-time favorite: gelato. Prior to seeing Inglorious Basterds Friday night at the Little, we headed over to Roman Holiday Gelato for a treat. They have about 6 gelato flavors and another 6 sorbet flavors.

Now for the uneducated, gelato is denser than ice cream and usually doesn't have eggs (the French style of ice cream contains eggs). Gelato is supposed to have less butterfat than ice cream, but also less air. Conversely, frozen custard (like Abbott's) has less air than ice cream, but a higher percentage of butterfat. Sorbet is dairy-free and usually fruit flavored. Enough with the science...

I got the coconut gelato and the Boy got profiterole (which I believe actually had a profiterole inside the scoop). The coconut tasted very fresh and had a natural coconut flavor. I give Roman Holiday some enthusiastic thumbs up. And I once had one of those punch your visit cards to a gelateria in Florence, Italy and I went through the whole thing in just a few weeks. They were making different flavors daily depending on what was fresh, so it IS tooootalllly reasonable that I walked there nearly every day. No really! Anyway, thus I know "real Italian" gelato enough to know that Roman Holiday fits the bill (and has such cute decorations from the Audrey Hepburn/Gregory Peck movie of the same name). I wonder how often they change their flavors?

Sorry for the shaded picture but sometimes I feel a little creepy taking pictures of food inside the restaurant.

Bellini's Italian Eatery

Despite all the pride I have from making our meals from scratch, despite all the joy I get from going out to really great dining experiences like at Good Luck, despite all the love I feel for local restaurants and the Farmer's Market... Sometimes you just need some cheap and fast Italian food for lunch. And a chain restaurant in a strip mall across from Eastview Mall will do surprisingly well.

I think it was in the first week that I moved here that I started craving just plain traditional Italian-American comfort food. Could not be found. Finally hit upon Mr. Dominic's, which does fit the bill, but it's all the way in Charlotte and tends to be unspeakably crowded during the summer beach-traffic months. Wanted something closer to town, a quiet, dark place to pop into on a Saturday for lunch. Benucci's in Pittsford Plaza appeared to meet my qualifications, but the food was never really up to par (and I'm not yet desperate enough to try Mario's down the street).

So this weekend the chicken parm craving struck the Boy. Without any idea of a new place to try we headed to Suburbia for some low-grade shopping and the notion in the back of my head that I could break him down to go to PF Chang's instead. But I spotted a sign for Bellini's Italian Eatery across from the mall. This seemed like the kind of place we were looking for, and indeed it was. Dark and quiet inside, with a somewhat fancy, wood-paneled interior that wasn't too stuffy. Kind of a cozy hotel bar type feel. Just a tinge of cheesiness with giant wine bottles and artificial grape leaves.

The food was simple, inexpensive, and pretty excellent. I had a Balsamic Panini (panino, but I'm done trying to explain to people that panini means two sandwiches in Italian). It had chicken, carmelized onions, and lots of mozzarella of course. Cooked perfectly. And with a side of sweet potato fries and garlic aioli. I didn't even know those little guys were coming, but any sauce is always effusively welcomed to my plate. As are sweet potato fries. The Boy had the chicken parmesan he so desired. The sauce seemed a bit thin to me, and penne is a strange choice for thin sauce and for chicken parm. But there were no leftovers. Definitely worth it to try this place again. I'm not gonna lie, sometimes we really love to "slum it" and spend a Saturday in the suburbs, going to big box stores and eating at chain restaurants. And this particular chain restaurant definitely wins out over the Olive Gardens of the world (yes, we even tried there once. Blech.)

Aladdin's Natural Eatery

I can't imagine why I haven't posted a review of Aladdin's Natural Eatery yet. It's one of our favorite restaurants, but for whatever reason, we haven't been lately. I'm a huge fan of all Greek food, but the Boy isn't, so Aladdin's is our perfect compromise -- it has pitas, falafel, spanakopita, moussaka, hummus, gyros, etc. for me, and plenty of pasta alternatives for the Boy.

He's partial to the tortellini alla vodka pictured here. He gets it with chicken (which I don't love there since they use dark meat) and even sweetly asks for broccoli to be added, which they always agree to. They have many other variations (choose your own type of pasta, your preferred meat (or not) and your preferred sauce. I've found that some of the funkier pastas are not prepared as well, but I've never been disappointed with the usual flour ones.

I tend to stick with the vegetarian sampler, which is in the appetizer section and allows you to choose 4 of the appetizers to create your own meal. You'd be surprised at how filling it can be, plus it's only $8 ($6 if you get 3 choices and $5.75 if you only want 2). I go for the falafel (which is perfect), the spanakopita, the hummus, and the tabouli. I sometimes get the baba ganouj, but honestly, I don't like it as much as most.

They also have a variety of soups (though I warn you not to get the tzatziki -- which is a lot of the very creamy, cucumber sauce) and salads. The salads are huge! Their lentil soup is great. Their vegetarian chili is also great. And they have a combo of both -- Lenchili -- which is (following the transitive property) also great. You can even have it topped with chicken or cheese. It's a wonderful way to survive the winter months.

They have a dessert case on the first and a half floor (at the one on Monroe) which holds some pretty to-die-for treats. I have wiled away the time there just waiting for the opportunity to order one. And it was well worth it.

Aladdin's has two locations: one on Monroe Ave. and the other down by the canal in Pittsford. They're open everyday from 11am until 10pm. They have outdoor seating both locations (at Monroe it's overlooking the Avenue). I'm not really sure how "natural" they are compared to other restaurants, but there aren't a lot of obviously packaged types of items. Since there are no real rules for evaluating "natural-ness" I think it's just nice that they embrace the concept.

At the Beach

Since summer is basically here, a lot of us will probably be making trips to the beach, right? Except in Rochester, trips to the beach involve driving north. To Lake Ontario. So if you find yourself out at the Lake, without a grill, here are a few of my favorite spots to visit for a bite:

Mr. Dominic's - look for it to get super-busy on the weekend nights. Get there early and enjoy some truly great classic, no-frills Italian American cooking. They have lots of specials and do tremendous things with seafood. Plus it has that vinyl tablecloth, Frank Sinatra, cigar smoke, old timers at the bar vibe that I love.

There are lots of other restaurants in Charlotte (Coney Island of the West) on Lake Ave, including a Cheeseburger, Cheeseburger (and a sushi place and a Johnny Rocket's I think in the forlorn, abandoned Port of Rochester), Nola BBQ, and an Abbott's of course. The LDR Char Pit is also renown for their steak sandwiches. I've never really been to these places, so I can't vouch for them.

Heading across the Genessee east to Durand Eastman Park, you won't find much. But you can always DIY by bringing a grill out there (or using the ones provided at the park).

And once you hit Culver, there's a fair amount of treats around Seabreeze. Don's Original and Vic and Irv's provide the perfect nostalgic treat - simple, smushy, greasy burgers and homemade onion rings. Marge's is across the street if you'd prefer treats of the alcoholic variety. Plus, with your feet in the sand, you may actually feel as if you have wound up somewhere slightly more tropical.

Now, if wasn't the summer, you could take the bridge across Irondequoit Bay to Webster, home of my personal favorite, Bayside Pub. However, this now requires a tedious amount of driving either over or around the bay since the bridge is closed to allow for boat traffic into Lake Ontario. Bayside is still worth the drive for a nice view, great wings and chili cheese fries, and $7 pitchers. Just remember-- it's cash only!

More Good Luck

My love affair with Good Luck continued again last Friday, when we went out with Jay and Kate for their last night in town-- of course we had to go to the best restaurant in town to celebrate (with a little stop to shower for those hard-working movers).


The picture to the left is meant to embody the entire catalog of dishes we ordered -- roast chicken, burger and fries, calamari. It is the epitome of what I love about GL. It was a special: Atlantic char with beet yogurt on a bed of lentil, butternut squash curry. Super-crazy looking, fresh, and delicious. Char has a pretty strong fish taste, so it stood up to the beets and the heat from the curry. In fact, I was almost disappointed that this dish wasn't any crazier tasting than it was. The flavors worked really well. But at least the picture shows how out-there it looked.


All our other choices were more classic and equally impressive. I have much love for the roast chicken especially. It was cooked perfectly, which is why I refuse to make it at home. Too difficult to leave to anyone's hands but the professionals. The same rule also applies to my foray into cheesecake baking, but decorum prevents me from relaying that particular exploit from this weekend...

Frank Pepe's

Hey kids, the only thing I really have time for on this catch-up post-holiday very-Monday Tuesday is a quick post about Frank Pepe's in New Haven.

It is the best pizza ever. It can make you fly, open the doors of perception, make you invisible, transport you through space and time, basically make you shovel giant delicious mouthfuls of it into your mouth without noticing your immediate surroundings. Until you are so contendedly distended that you roll down Wooster Street in semi-comatose glee. The end.

We didn't wait as long as most do, mainly because this was Yale's commencement weekend and the only upside of that is that no one wants a table for two on such occasions. I've included the menu for Pepe's so you can get an idea of the scene -- pretty much unchanged non-ergonomic restaurant interior, and as the menu indicates, just pizza. You get pizza and soda or beer. Because that's all you need. Ever.

We got a large, half white with clam and the other half red with bacon and onions. I have trouble committing to a favorite topping combination, but not anymore so long as clam pizzas are available. That garlicy cheese bliss is all you really need. I won't bore you with a description of my eyes-rolled-in-the-back-of-my-head reaction. Though after taking down about 6 slices of the clam, I must say the bacon and onion made an impression as well. The fact that I could eat any of it all means it was far superior to all other pizzas previously consumed.

So why so great? I think mostly it has to be the crust- thin but with chewiness that allows you to savor it longer. But of course doing one thing really well means attention to quality and being able to replicate that. So the fact that the bacon was almost whole slices, not just bacos, and that the onion was chopped very finely and cooked beforehand shows you that Pepe's isn't just sliding by on reputation alone.

I must admit that after my no-holds-barred take-down of this pizza (a large with only two slices left to take home) I did go into a bit of a shame spiral. Moments of decadence can unfortunately have that side-effect. And thus I did not make it back over to Little Italy to try out Sally's. So the feud must continue without my weighing in. But we'll be back in New Haven soon. And I'm already training for another pizza.

Big Deal Pizza

Big Deal Pizza just opened up this week on Monroe Ave, near Meigs. Their number is 697-2491.

The crust was medium-thin and chewy, which I like (the Boy is strictly Team Crispy). The sauce was a little too sweet for both of us, particularly when it was in clumps at the top of the crust with nothing else to even it out. Maybe a bit too cheesy. But the toppings were phenomenal -- really fresh veggies and perfectly cooked bacon for ours. Sidenote: we were told we were the first to order broccoli, red pepper and bacon. Score!

The service was excellent -- very friendly and ready right on time. All the young guys running the place seem very interested in making return customers.

I've forgotten to bring the menu with me to give you guys the scoop, but they have a pretty extensive menu. They make subs in house, have calzones and pasta, serve Big Slices, and even have a bakery section. The bakery has mini cannoli (so hard to resist!), cupcakes, cream puffs, and cookies. Our large pizza was around $20, so maybe the prices are a bit high, but we did get three toppings.

BD is currently cash only (with an ATM across the street at Nick's Market), but they are setting up the line for credit card transactions ASAP.

Good Luck

My central argument for this post will be that Good Luck is the best restaurant in Rochester (that I've ever been to). So if you get too overwhelmed with the giddy superlatives or doubtful of my ecclesiastical endorsement, feel free to skip a paragraph, cleanse the palate with some acerbic wit (maybe Oscar Wilde or Christopher Hitchens) and just remember the thesis I'm positing here: Greatest. Restaurant. Ever.

Ok, probably not "ever." Probably in Rochester, of the places I've been to, in my current state of mind. And still, just probably. But if I had a restaurant (let's call this "the restaurant in my mind") it would be sort of French countryside-inspired. It would have high ceilings with exposed beams. It would have speciality cocktails with crazy seasonal ingredients. It would have a wild fusion menu. And a laid-back vibe. It would have a lot of those funny little idiosyncracies that made Good Luck so charming. At this point, the RIMM would be straight ripping off Good Luck. Because I loved the dish cloth napkins, the fresh herbs, the antique industrial mixer, and the little hand mirrors in the ladies' room. I loved the precious library check-out cards for the wine list. And the (real silver?) antique-y mismatched silverware. And I really loved the "food to share" concept-- though they need to really spread the word on how that works. ["Food to share" isn't family-style or tapas, it's like each dish is enough to feed one person, but they bring them to the center of the table at varying intervals so all can be shared. And there are sides like salads and fries mixed into the menu as well].

So let's get down to it: the food. I have to admit I went here on the premise of doing the Restaurant Week prix-fixe. But that option (pizza) wasn't all that appealing after our fabulous calzone night (see below). I didn't see anything I was immediately entraced by. I loved the idea of ramps and nettle pesto (two very in-season green things that aren't really farmed, but just plucked from the ground, and thus adored by foodies right now). But I didn't really want pasta. None of the meat dishes really grabbed me: the hamburger seemed too pedestrian (although it looked like the vast majority of their business) and the black cod seemed too heavy. The Boy went with bone-in pork loin and I got two vegetarian dishes: chickpea and eggplant fritters and butternut squash curry. The pork came with basmati rice and a red lentil sauce, so our meal turned out to be very Indian, though totally unintentionally. And it was also better Indian than I've had anywhere, including the stuff I've made at home and been quite impressed with. (You'll note in the picture that my plate has been scraped clean).

You can really taste the freshness, the quality ingredients, the multiple layers of flavor. These dishes are thought-out and show a certain amount of inspiration (well, for Rochester anyway). I am totally going to put cashew butter in my next curry, that's for sure.

Now, I'm cynical enough to know nothing is perfect; restaurants are never all that consistent, so all other experiences (including more of my own) will likely differ. The service was a bit rickety, so it could be more of a problem on other occasions. We didn't have the best seat in the house, so I could see when being squeezed so close to another table would be maddening. And there have got to be times when the prices seem extravagant. They teetered over to the reasonable-high side last night. But we left relaxed (and not a little jubilant), with that wonderful not-too-full feeling. And even the rain didn't ruin it. I think we had Great Luck.

Good Luck is at 50 Anderson Avenue, which is a tiny hidden street just before Village Gate off Goodman (coming from University). There is parking just past the restaurant, which has a black awning with no obvious signage. It is open 5-2am Wed-Sat. They have a huge bar, and a late-night menu.

John's Tex Mex Eatery

John's Tex Mex Eatery (formerly and colloquially Taco John's) is at 489 South Avenue, intersecting with Alexander, in South Wedge.

Their whole approach is a very simple, healthy style of Tex Mex. They're incredibly cheap for the amount of food you get -- I always have the second half of my small burrito for lunch the next day. The menu offers tacos, burritos, burrito bowls, some salads, a few dinner plates, and the Mexican plate, which is an absolutely loaded plate of nachos that maxes out at $7.

John's doesn't do the whole aspartame soda industry thing. You can get Boylan's natural sodas, Nantucket Nectars, water, or choose from a substantial list of beers and a few wines. They also have mimosas by the glass and by the liter carafe.

The highlights are the choices of toppings you can get (roasted red peppers, spinach, jalapenos, etc.), multiple vegetarian options (I almost always go with unbeef), and the best guac you'll find this far north. The mexican mush is this bean/potato concoction that works great as a side and can be used for taco/burrito fillings too. I also just had the mashed potatoes and plantains for the first time, and those were amazing! Really smooth, mellow, and slightly sweet. They also have a couple of homemade hot sauces and a couple of less popular brands.

If you're looking for traditional Mexican or a nice place to entertain your parents, you're in the wrong place. The bright red walls are covered in a mural, and they have the most awesomely eclectic music selection I've ever witnessed beyond shuffling my iPod. The atmosphere, waitstaff, and prices cater more to a student crowd. A review of John's is long over-due here, because we eat there literally once a week. I'm just always too distracted by the food to remember to take a picture for the blog. Sorry for this one, it's of the leftovers!

Cooks' World

Cooks' World isn't a restaurant, but it is a local kitchen supply store on Monroe Avenue. Although it's a relatively small converted house, they seem to have every gadget known to man housed within. Plus, they have a pretty impressive website to order online or keep track of sales and specials.

CW sells all the major high-end brands: Le Creuset, All-Clad, Kitchen Aid, Wustof, Cuisinart. They also have a decent selection of coffee beans, gourmet spreads and seasonings, aprons, and cookbooks (even a library where you can exchange). There are so many tools that it almost becomes a game of trying to identify their purposes.

It's a great place to keep in mind when you decide to cook at home more often (or decide to cook at home with something more reliable and longer-lasting than a George Foreman). Of course, it's also a great place to buy gifts. And if you're obsessed with buying an ice cream maker (as I am), it is the perfect place to find multiple options, all at discounted prices, to drool over.

Joe's Brooklyn Pizza

One of Rochester's greatest culinary weaknesses is pizza. I thought I was strictly in the "even bad pizza is good pizza" school of thought until the last couple of places we've tried. And The Boy hails from the birthplace of "American" pizza and thus is impossible to please. So last week when I was craving a bacon and artichoke pizza, I knew I would have to do some research to try to find a place that would not disappoint for a change.

I turned to a fellow blogger, who seemed to rate Pizza Stop and the sibling-related Joe's Brooklyn Pizza as the tops in the Roch. We went with Joe's mostly because it's on Jefferson Road in Henrietta, so I figured I could find it and it would have more seating than the downtown Pizza Stop.

Expectations were not high, since this was in the same strip mall as Moe's and Five Guys Burgers and Fries. Perhaps a little too clean and well-lit to be authentic. However, they had the classic NYC set up with lots of different pizzas to order slices from and then a good list of toppings to create your own pie. I also personally think every great pizza place should have a smart-mouth working the register to bust your balls. The guy running the front was certainly a lot less surly than my favorite spot in the Bronx, but he was just as chatty and downright friendly and helpful.

Joe's has two different crusts: Brooklyn (which is thin but not as thin as The Boy would like) and Sicilian (which they say is thick, but typically just means square). It came out hot, with a little too much cheese, and an excellent bright sauce. I probably would have preferred a white for the pizza we ordered and may try that another day, but the sauce was good. The crust could have used a little more flavor or could have been thinner so as to be crispy. It was definitely foldable, and thus true to the Brooklyn style (if you disagree, they'll give you a full refund). As for toppings, we also got roasted sweet peppers, but those weren't quite roasted enough. The bacon was also a little under-represented, but when you get three toppings, you know they've got to scale back somewhere.

All in all, this is definitely my favorite pizza place in Rochester. Unassuming, buzzing in the evenings, and serving up simple, quality pies without the high prices or the attitude.

Pittsford Seafood Market

The Pittsford Seafood Market is mysteriously not in Pittsford, but on Monroe Ave., between Averill and Goodman (across from Acme). They used to have a more swank restaurant, but they've since sold it and it is now a bar called the Angry Duck (I have no idea).

We've been to the PSM many times to buy raw fish to take home and make ourselves. They have the standard shrimp, tilapia, haddock, salmon selections, plus live lobster year-round, and mussels and scallops. Each visit, I was always tempted by the fish fry smells twirling about inside (it sure beats the smell of raw fish that most fish markets have). So this time, we went for it. The prices are very reasonable -- $6 for fish and chips or a salmon burger. You can order by the pound, order something raw and they'll cook it for you however you like. You can order fried chicken (but why?), baked or fried items, or dinners that come with sides. Everything is packed to-go, but there are a few booths and tables to eat inside.

We got the seafood combination dinner for $11, probably the most expensive thing on the menu. However, it was so much food, it easily fed both of us. It had two pieces of haddock, two fried scallops, two butterflied shrimp, two onion rings, some clam strips, and three fried sardines. The batter on the fish and shrimp was amazing-- like the best I've ever had! Very peppery, and well-breaded. And the crinkle cut fries and cole slaw do not disappoint. I saw hushpuppies on a picture on the menu, so I'm going to have to investigate that further.

All in all, I was immensely impressed with the quality, the flavor, the freshness-- not to mention the ambience of a kind of run-down Greek market with various maritime accoutrements tacked up on the wall. Plus they have a decent beer selection (Amstel, Corona, Genny, and the like), with two Greek beers-- all for $2.50 a bottle. We'll certainly be back just for that.

They also carry many traditional Greek products -- definitely the place to go for fresh feta -- as well as Creole seasonings and hot sauces, in the center section "store" part of the market.

Hogan's Hideaway

Hogan's Hideaway is on Park Ave. at the corner of Goodman St. It has murals on the side and the decor inside is of a "funky antique-artsy" vibe. There's outdoor seating in warmer months, a very dark rear bar (that seems alluring and ever so slightly divey), and lots of seating in the front. There's a tiny parking lot behind the building.

HH has an extensive wine selection, two home brews from Custom BrewCrafters (Park Ave Ale and Hogan's Pale Ale), and a list of specials that rotates weekly. They have great homemade dressings, fresh bread made in house (a whole wheat loaf with thyme and other spices), and French Onion soup that tastes like the real thing and comes in a crock. There's a quiche of the day and a stir-fry of the day.

I love the transitory nature of it: HH can be dark, and crowded for a sophisticated, modern dinner with a glass of superb wine. Other times it's more like a lunch spot- light and airy in the front with all the soups, salads and sandwiches on the regular menu. And the dynamic changes again depending of if you're at the bar or eating on the back patio. Hogan's Hideaway can be whatever you need it to be-- like a prostitute. But one you can take out-of-town guests to.

Unfortunately, the shape-shifting nature of HH has an adverse effect on the food (and may explain why I can never remember exactly where it is on the corner-- it's a tear in the time-space continuum). I think the weekly specials are probably consistently great (though pricier). However, whenever I venture into the regular menu, the dishes are a little less so. The burgers were good, but the crabcake sandwich just so-so. The veggie melt lacks something to really pull it together, and the eggplant parmesan (even with marvelous homemade noodles) needed a little kick of garlic or salt and less mozzarella. And even that fabulous creamy honey dressing can't make up for plain old iceberg salad-out-of-a-bag.

Overall, I think there's enough variety to require multiple visits to suss out what is best on the menu. The pleasant surprises will probably outweigh the tiny disappointments. You'll probably be most satisfied if you check out as many online reviews as possible to find out what to avoid and what to steer towards.

Chen Garden

The City Newspaper reviewed my favorite Chinese restaurant in Rochester today: Chen Garden.

My insider tip: When the wait looks long, just eat at the bar. You can get anything off the menu, plus Sam the owner and various other characters usually hang out there.

Another insider tip: A guy I work with is a devout weekly customer and swears Wednesday and Saturday nights are when the food is best.

Mamasan's

Mamasan's is located at 2800 Monroe Avenue, right across from the Pittsford Wegmans. It is a fairly large, mid-scale Thai restaurant. Most noodle or rice dishes are in the $10 to $16 range, with the option of adding tofu, chicken, pork, beef or shrimp. The service is incredibly quick and I've never seen it busy.

Mamasan's was a god-send one night when nothing seemed to suit us and it was already 9:00 pm. We had been meaning to try it out, but I thought the outside looked kinda fancy. The inside has definitely been decorated by a professional (with kind of odd, modernistic, space-station tastes), but it's not high-brow.

This photo is of Mamasan's noodles, which is a favorite for its sweet sauce (I think it's a better Pad Thai than their Pad Thai, which is probably better than any other Pad Thai in Rochester). All the dishes have tons of vegetables and you can even add more for an extra $2. The Thai curry is another favorite.

The spring rolls were too rubbery, and I haven't managed to experiment with some of the other dishes yet. The sodas don't have refills, but they do offer a decent selection of beer (including Thailand's Singha) and wine.

Final Word: with fast service, plenty of options, and fresh-tasting food, it's well worth price.