Great Northern Pizza Kitchen

1918 Monroe Avenue, Brighton
Visited April 3, 2010
Written by Tyler



I know, Brighton isn’t exactly on the west side, but somehow it managed to fall in our “gray area.” I have family in Brighton, so we stopped by Great Northern after visiting them on an unseasonably hot spring day.

Great Northern has three locations in Greater Rochester; this one, Henrietta and Bushnell’s Basin (between Pittsford and Victor). There used to be a location Greece which I had been to, and I remembered its gourmet slices and soft crust and wanted to see if things were as I remembered.

My mom had been craving a salad she recalled having at Great Northern, so this was an opportune time to dine here again.

Brighton's Great Northern is in Twelve Corners Plaza in a busy inter-section. There is plenty of seating, especially in the back, in a fairly dimly lit dining room. There are several pizzas on display, plus calzones and pasta, among other items.

By-the-slice appears to be the preferred way to order pizza here, and the workers simply cut a slice from whatever variety you want (that is on display) and heat it for a few minutes. There are also soups, salads, wraps and sandwiches available.

The slices are quite large, as expected, but fairly thin. Jake and my grandma each ordered a “Sauced’ Up Buffalo” (chicken wing) slice and I opted for “Bar-B-Que Chicken” slice. I would have liked a little more chicken and more of a barbecue flavor on mine, as well as a more fresh taste, while Jake thought his actually had a little too much bleu cheese.

Thankfully, the crust turned out to be the real prize. The crust was larger than that of most other slices I have eaten, and very soft, though not exactly doughy either. It was a good end to an otherwise average slice.

As expected, my mom enjoyed her Caribbean Chicken salad, which included pear, golden raisins and almonds, with a honey-lime dressing. It came with a side breadstick, which I ate most of – and was one of the best I’ve ever had; a lot like the pizza crust, but with a more typical breadstick texture.

We also sampled the large cookies, which sat on the counter in three varieties. The cookies appeared very, very, extremely soft, which equals very, very, extremely good to my tastes, and the cookie ended up being just that. I should have bought some more for the road.

There are so many specialty/ gourmet slices available you wonder how they do it. There are 14 types of chicken pizza, 13 types of veggie pizza, seven with different combinations of the traditional meat toppings, four types of pasta pizza, and other interesting choices like “Potato Skin Pie.”

Although many of the specialty slices included a lot less of the ‘specialty’ than desired, I rate Great Northern highly because of its variety (I could probably go back every day for a year and not get the exact same thing twice), and they were still decent slices. It would be interesting to see how a fresh-baked, made-to-order pizza from here would taste.

With that said, I will definitely return to Great Northern, even if just for its delicious cookies, crust and/or breadsticks.

Ratings:
Service/Atmosphere: The service was quick and friendly, and it had a good atmosphere for a gourmet pizza joint, very fitting for the area.
Food: The actual pizza didn’t quite meet expectations (wasn’t too fresh, a little lagging in toppings), but there are a few things (most notably the crust) that surpass expectations. There is a ton of variety here, and if you are a fan of oversized and soft bread products (like me), you’ll love it.
Value: A little on the pricy side, though most specialty items are priced higher at any pizza place, but the portions are filling.
Overall: The variety and large portion size, along with being a dough-lover’s dream, help Great Northern rate highly despite not quite meeting expectations on the slices. Like I said, it would be interesting to see how a fresh pizza from here is.
Grade: B+

Menu: http://www.greatnorthernpizza.com/menu.htm

Jackson’s Bakery

614 Stone Road, Greece
Visited April 1, 2010
Written by Tyler



No place on the west side may have been busier than Jackson’s Bakery during the recent Easter season.

If you’re not familiar with the bakery and were wondering what caused the swamped parking lot in (one of) the old, semi-rundown plazas near the corner of Stone Road and Dewey Avenue, here is your answer.
Jackson’s is considered by many to be the best bakery on the west side, and perhaps even all of Greater Rochester, although you can’t tell from its appearance and location.

Most of the buildings and houses in the Dewey Avenue area are relatively old, and Jackson’s is no exception, but it adds to the experience.
When you enter, you get a feeling of what it was like to go to a traditional bakery back in the day. The place looks like it hasn’t changed since the 1950s, as exhibited by the white boxes tied with string (which comes from dispensers) and the old-fashioned cash registers.

They only offer desserts and breads here, so we will refrain from grading it, but we will say it is going to be hard for any bakery to top Jackson’s.

My dad has sworn by Jackson’s torte cakes for years, getting them often for parties or even randomly when he is in the area.

Aside from trying the buttery cutout cookies and Easter-specialty hot cross buns, I had to pick up some of Jackson’s famous White Mountain rolls for Easter dinner on this visit.

These soft dinner rolls dusted in flour are very popular, especially during holidays, and were in high demand when we visited. Luckily, we pre-ordered our dozen-and-a-half beforehand.

Another interesting item are the frogs, which are cupcakes completely surrounded by a mountain of frosting to give it the characteristics of a frog. A sign said they were “back by popular demand,” so I grabbed one for my family to sample.


Jackson’s offers pretty much any sweet baked good you can imagine; cakes, pies, cupcakes, cannolis, Danishes, pastries, turnovers, etc., and everything on display is appetizing and priced very reasonably. I might even eat a cardboard box from Jackson’s if I didn’t know any better.
There is nothing fancy about Jackson’s, unless you consider a very old-fashioned bakery to be fancy (or at least unique), but it’s a great experience to visit a traditional place like this every now and then.
It’s a throwback, but I’ve only heard positive reviews of Jackson’s, and it’s stayed open and popular for more than 60 years. It’s basically guaranteed to be a home run whenever someone’s sweet tooth needs to be satisfied.