Welcome!

Welcome to the Rochester Restaurant Reviews blog!

This blog is dedicated to reviews of restaurants in Rochester, New York.

I started this blog because I want people who live in Rochester or who are visiting Rochester to know where they can find a good meal and what restaurants they should avoid.

I got tired of getting glowing recommendations from friends and family or reading a good restaurant review---only to be disappointed when I visited the restaurant myself.

I don't like bad food. I don't like bad service. And, I don't like leaving a restaurant feeling that I was ripped off, because the food wasn't what it should be, what it could be.

And, because I am a lifelong foodie in addition to being a professional chef and baker, I have high expectations when I eat out---but, shouldn't we all?

These won't be fancy schmancy, food-critic type reviews. I'm not a writer, I'm a lover of good food. I probably won't say much about the ambiance or the wine list or what the waitstaff was wearing. I'm just interested in the food and whether it's good or not. I'm going to give you the barebone facts---is it good or not? At the beginning of each restaurant review post, I'll give you the name, address and phone number of the restaurant. I'll also include a website link, if they have a website. Then, I will give a very simple rating:

• "Thumbs Up!" (A good restaurant and/or good food and worth checking out.)
• "Thumbs Down" (Don't waste your money or your calories on this one.)
• "On The Fence" (This means there are some good things and bad things about the restaurant. I'll tell you what I think, you decide if you want to try it out or not.)

There is good food to be found in Rochester. But, in my opinion, it's hard to find and the truly wonderful restaurants are few and far between. It is my goal to expose the bad ones and praise the good ones, so you, the reader, can go out to dinner, forewarned and forearmed.

Bon appetit!

Alexandria - Reviewed

Alexandria's Mediterranean Cuisine
120 East Avenue
232-6180

Rating: Thumbs Up!

If you like Mediterranean food, then forget about Aladdin's and Sinbad's and give Alexandria's Mediterranean Cuisine a try.

I have found the food to be much fresher and much tastier than the aforementioned restaurants.

They serve the absolute best falafel I have had in Rochester. Not heavy, dry and oily, like the falafel found in most other Mediterranean restaurants in the area. Instead, they are light, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.

The pitas (served on either whole wheat or white pita) and quite large (compared to other skimpy pitas I've had in town). And, they don't cut corners on the fillings. I have had the chicken pita many times and it is always filled with delicious chicken.

I haven't even tried any of their main dishes yet, simply because the appetizers and pitas are so good. But, if their main courses are as good as the food I've had so far, I'm sure they're wonderful.

If you are a meat eater and like hummus, you should definitely try the hummus that is topped with a delicately seasoned ground beef. (Sorry, can't remember the name right now!) They make the smoothest, creamiest hummus I've had locally. When it is topped with the lightly seasoned ground beef, it's appetizer heaven.

Now, I have heard many people say that the service sucks. Personally, I have not experienced bad service any of the times I've eaten there. Perhaps management caught on and hired some new people. I think even if I did experience bad service, I would still go back (or maybe get take-out), because I really do think it's the best Mediterranean food in Rochester.

Don't be deterred if you enter the restaurant and it's empty or practically empty and you're waiting around for someone to seat you---that happened to me the first time I went there. It's odd, because every single time I've been to Alexandria, there's either no one in the restaurant or just a few people. I'm sure they must have times when they are very busy, or else they wouldn't still be in business....but I've never seen a busy night yet. So, just try and be patient if no one attends to you immediately, I do feel that the food is worth the wait.