58 Main Restaurant

58 North Main Street, Brockport
Visited July 13, 2011
Written by Greg




Recently, while looking for another place to review, and wanting to go somewhere we didn’t know much about to ensure an unbiased review perhaps, Joe, Drew, Chad, Tyler and I ventured into Brockport to patronize 58 Main, presumably at 58 Main Street, just north of the canal.

It’s not a real big place, and it feels even smaller inside. There is a wooden deck outside to eat at, but we were seated inside in the main dining room, next to a very odd abdomen-high wall separating the bar area from the rest of the room.

The half-wall also had regular plastic window slat blinds hanging from the ceiling to it as a means of further separating the two areas, but it just looked weird and felt awkward with tables immediately on the other side.

There are a few TVs scattered about on the walls, and some memorabilia. There isn’t a whole lot of atmosphere to speak of really.

It’s definitely a restaurant, but I, and did others in our party, didn’t feel like there was a whole lot of character to the place. Tyler described it as feeling like it has an identity crisis; is it a burger joint, bar, somewhat upscale, party house, or a barbecue joint? There is also a somewhat extensive breakfast menu available from 6 a.m. until 5 p.m., further complicating the identity.

I would say its barbecue personality sticks out the most, but the menu is very diverse and doesn’t focus on one particular specialty or genre, if you will.

There are certainly a wide variety of barbecue items, but also general Italian cuisine, and home-style American, dishes too. Nevertheless, we were seated and waited on promptly, and the dining area was of average cleanliness.

Getting down to business, I ordered a Reuben Wrap, but received just a regular Reuben sandwich. I wasn’t upset, so I didn’t bother sending it back.

It was about what I expected it to be: moderate size, served with Thousand Island dressing (a must for a Reuben), and came with sides of coleslaw and fries, which were also both very generic. Altogether it was a run-of-the-mill meal. It didn’t excite me, but it didn’t disappoint either.

Tyler ordered a chicken barbecue platter (surprise), and said the chicken was nothing extraordinary. He did, however, enjoy sampling the various barbecue sauces, which were pretty good.

We all agreed we like when restaurants have numerous barbecue sauces on the table so that you can try each of them and pick your favorite.

Tyler chose sides of cornbread and bakes beans. Of the cornbread, he said it was “Different in a good way,” but thought the portion size was far too small and should have been served warmer, rather than lukewarm. He liked that the baked beans had pork in them, and I did as well, but their flavor in general didn’t stand out.

Drew ordered a pulled pork sandwich, which he found to be very generic compared to those of all the other places we’ve reviewed, including Dinosaur, which continually surfaces in our conversations of having the only exciting pulled pork in the area.

Drew felt like the service was unusually slow, and was put off by the fact he was only given one drink refill. I didn’t think the service stood out by any means, but didn’t consider it below par either.

Concrete Charlie ordered a 58 Main Plate, which pretty much describes itself I would hope. He ordered his with hamburgers, macaroni salad and home fries. It looked pretty well-made, and I finished it for him after he had his fill.

We both agreed that there was far too much diced carrot in the macaroni salad, and it was raw, which made the salad much too crunchy. The hot sauce on it didn’t stand out as an original Garbage Plate’s might, and the home fries were probably a little on the undercooked side, but Chad seemed somewhat satisfied with it.

58 Main won’t reach real high on our rankings. We found it very comparable to Nola’s in Charlotte in terms of food quality, though Nola’s menu is more focused and exciting, and has a much better atmosphere. We all also agreed that 58 Main was on the overpriced side, by maybe a dollar or two.

Ratings:

Atmosphere: It wants to be a barbecue joint, but its diverse menu and lack of stand-out barbecue holds it back.

Service: Average service, a tad on the slow side.

Food: Not great, not offensive. Somewhat generic.

Value: Decent portion size, but a tad overpriced.

Overall: A diverse menu with nothing that really stands out, causing a lack of identity. No complaints, but nothing that will have us rushing back.

Grade: C+

Greece Ridge Family Restaurant

3400 West Ridge Road, Greece
Visited Aug. 23, 2011
Written by Tyler




In general, we love family restaurants, as we’ve mentioned before. Usually there are a lot of similarities between them, but each decent one (B- or higher) has a few characteristics that makes each unique.

Most offer breakfast all day, but we saw no trace of breakfast on our menu at Greece Ridge, and couldn’t even find the restaurant’s hours to figure it out.

Actually, even the name of the restaurant is also a question mark. The sign says, “Greece Ridge Family Restaurant” but the menu says, “Greece Ridge Restaurant and Café.”

Whatever it is, it looks like a run-of-the-mill diner, and it is exactly that.

The menu was quite extensive and took a while to ponder, but I ultimately opted for a hickory ham and chicken sandwich at the last second, and Drew ordered a barbecue cheeseburger.

The service was insanely fast, as our meal arrived in just a few short minutes. As great as that was, maybe it was a sign.

For the most part, my sandwich’s components were very simple. Nothing had a ton of flavor. The grilled chicken breast was one of the blandest ones I’ve had, with no seasoning evident. The only thing that wasn’t completely generic was the roll.

That being said, I still ate the sandwich very fast, using honey mustard that also didn’t as much flavor as I would have liked.

All Drew could say about his burger was that it was weak, bland and didn’t sit well afterward. He had fries along with his meal that looked like they also fit that description.

We agreed most of the items were a tad overpriced, with most sandwiches around $7-9. Mine was around $9 including a side item.

I had a basic side salad, which was alright, but I was disappointed this family restaurant didn’t have home fries on its menu. I have never seen that before at this type of place.

To be fair, there were several menu items that sounded appetizing, like the Cuban sandwich or some of the various paninis. Whether they are or anything unique or not is another story, as everything we had was generic.

On a positive note, the service was phenomenal, and it had a decent at-home feel inside.

There’s no rush to return, but I wouldn’t completely rule it out.

Ratings

Service/Atmosphere: Service was excellent, and the inside appeared and felt homey, just as a family restaurant should.

Food: A lot of intriguing options, but it seems like a lot of generic ingredients.

Value: Slightly overpriced, but nothing ridiculous.

Overall: Very generic, with nothing about the food that made it stand out. Positive marks for service, atmosphere and selection, though.

Grade: C

Jack'ss BBQ & Pizza

3055 Buffalo Road, Gates
Visited Aug. 2, 2011
Written by Tyler




One evening while cruising the Gates-Chili restaurantopolis, Drew and I discovered an intriguing combination of cuisines – pizza and barbecue – that just about stopped us dead in our tracks.

Maybe that’s an exaggeration, but I at least did a double-take upon seeing the sign for Jack’ss. We knew we had to make the trip back out there soon and get involved, so we brought Greg along two weeks later to test it out.

It’s difficult for most small restaurants – especially brand new ones – to truly specialize in more than one general group of food, so we didn’t expect too much from Jack’ss.

We entered and ordered at the counter. No one else was in there at the time, but we were still surprised at how quickly our food was ready.

One interesting note about Jack’ss is that you can order any topping(s) you like on a pizza slice, unlike most places where the slices are premade and sitting in a warmer with no work left to be done until they are eaten.

I took advantage of that and got a slice with ham. The slice had a great balance of crust-cheese-sauce. It was piping hot, but tasted good thanks to the sauce.

The thin ham didn’t add a ton of flavor, but the crust was done perfectly. It was thick and crisp, without being too toasty or crunchy, and I thought it was decent pizza overall.

Greg opted for a steak-and-eggs sub with peppers, onions, mozzarella and hot sauce. Sadly, the sandwich came without the hot sauce (unless of course Greg just didn’t notice it, but I’ll take his word for it).

Amid his mild disappointment, Greg said he was surprised at how well-constructed the steaming-hot sandwich was and how good its roll was. But despite the hearty hoagie’s appearance, Greg said the flavor was bland.

“The steak was hardly seasoned – not even a hint of salt or pepper – and the same could be said for the veggies on it,” he said. A little more cheese would have been a perfect amount, and I'm sure the hot sauce, had they remembered it, would have taken it up a notch.”

On a positive note, Greg continued by raving about the roll.

“A crisp but not burnt exterior, fluffy but fully cooked interior, that was neither too soft that it became soggy and fell apart nor too hard that it was hard to bite,” he said. “It had a somewhat wheaty flavor that I really enjoyed, too. A real classic roll.”

Drew was the only one who sampled the barbecue selection, ordering his usual pulled pork sandwich. He also agreed the roll was very good, especially because it was toasted.

As for the meat itself, he noted it was slightly better than the typical pulled pork sandwich at similar restaurants.

"Usually when you order a pulled pork sandwich at a family restaurant or diner, it’s usually about the same stuff – pulled pork they froze and microwaved,” Drew said. “(This was) obviously not Dinosaur pulled pork you’re getting, but it’s better than the average family restaurant’s."

From my own observations I was pleased to see that Jack’ss had actually put some thought in to Greg’s and Drew’s sandwiches, rather than serving up generics.

The rest of the menu included several specialty pizzas and salads available, along with common grill and fryer items, subs (including a separate steak-specific section), and a few pastas and calzones.

The barbecue menu isn’t particularly extensive, and I was disappointed by the lack of sides available, but it includes several variations of both ribs and chicken.

We all agreed the service was good and the menu had some things that stood out a bit. Jack’ss was nothing that blew us away, but we were somewhat pleasantly surprised by it.

It’s nothing we would go out of our way for, but if we’re nearby we know we can stop by Jack’ss for a reliable meal.

Ratings

Service/Atmosphere: Very clean restaurant with quick service in a quiet location.

Food: Unique variety, slightly above average. We were fans of the dough used in the sandwich rolls and pizza crust.

Value: Overall it seemed the prices matched the quality and portion size of the food.

Overall: Nothing spectacular, but we were pleasantly surprised. It’s a brand new restaurant with potential if it can attract a following.

Grade: B-

DiRosato's Pizza and Pasta

3869 Lyell Road, Gates
Visited July 19, 2011
Written by Tyler



Believe me, we are well aware that just about every restaurant we visit falls in the ‘B’ grade range. One evening, Drew and I set out to find a bad restaurant.

We couldn’t find a place that looked comfortably sketchy enough (if that makes sense) in Gates, so we settled for what we figured would be a decent meal at DiRosato’s, on the corner of Lyell and Elmgrove roads.

I hadn’t been to DiRosato’s in about eight years, and noticed a lot of changes to the inside of the restaurant since. It no longer had sort of a sports-bar feel it had last time I visited, but now seemed like a typical dine-in pizza place with some semblance of a bar on the other half, as well as some outdoor seating.

We walked in expecting to order at the counter like at a normal pizza place, but it turns out this is supposed to be a sit-down restaurant with table service, so we took a seat to be waited on.

After perusing the extensive menu, I decided on a Buffalo chicken sandwich and a slice of pizza, while Drew opted for a grilled chicken calzone with a side of potato wedges. Much to Drew’s dismay, they were out of potato wedges and he had to settle for curly fries.

My slice and his fries were first to arrive. I was impressed by the pizza’s appearance, and it had a decent crust-cheese-sauce ratio. The cheese was alright, and the sauce didn’t really have any kick to it. The combination of those two was decent, but the crust was the best part.

It was thick and doughy in most spots, but had a nice crisp on the bottom and on the edge. Overall it wasn’t spectacular, but it was good and I’d definitely stop by and order it again.

Drew’s fries were predictably generic and seemed to have more batter than potato. He was also disappointed that the waitress never brought out his ketchup until he was almost done.

Which brings up my next point, the service was kind of awkward. Like I said, we walked in not expecting to be seated and waited on, and when we were it was a bit slow considering there were only two other tables occupied. To the staff’s credit it was friendly and helpful, just a little slow.

Anyway, I was impressed by my sandwich when it came out. It was the perfect size and came on Martusciello’s bread, which always equals bonus points. The chicken tasted good and looked like some effort went in to preparing it. The sandwich tasted good overall, but was maybe just a tad dry for my liking.

I thought Drew’s calzone looked really good – with a doughy exterior – but he said he’s had better. It had a lot more cheese (mozzarella and ricotta) than chicken, and was pretty dark – almost burnt in a few spots – on the bottom.

Drew said the chicken was nice and juicy, but he wasn’t thrilled about the dark bottom crust. He also wanted a mild Buffalo sauce with the chicken, but it instead came on the side. I got to sample some of the crust and thought it was good, but the calzone could have used more chicken and less cheese.

Drew took a huge peanut butter cookie for the road and enjoyed it, saying it was very soft and filling. I didn’t try any, but it looked really good – as did the few other cookies at the register.

Overall DiRosato’s fell in the ‘B’ range, as expected. It could have been better, if not for the awkward service, atmosphere and a few flaws with our orders.

It’s hard to tell what type of restaurant DiRosato’s is trying to be. On one hand it looks like a typical pizza place, but it’s also working on becoming sort of a bar and a family restaurant at the same time – adding to the overall awkwardness.

However, the food was pretty good. The sandwich, pizza and calzone all had features that made them somewhat unique from similar items at comparable restaurants.

DiRosato’s also offers several pastas, plus typical grilled and fried items, subs, wings, wraps, salads and tacos.

While we wouldn’t make a trip out to Gates (or the supposed second location in Greece) specifically for DiRoasto’s, we would definitely stop by if we’re in the area.

Ratings

Service/Atmosphere: Awkward.

Food: I really liked the crust on the pizza and calzone, enjoyed my sandwich and thought there were a lot of intriguing choices on the menu.

Value: I don’t have the prices of the top of my head, but they were very reasonable and the portions were decent.

Overall: The restaurant seems to be in some sort of identity crisis, and the service and atmosphere are kind of awkward. A few things held DiRosato’s from meeting its potential, but as it is the food is good and comes at a good value.

Grade: B-

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que

99 Court Street, Downtown Rochester
Visited several times
Written by Drew




When visitors come to Rochester, they need to shop at Wegmans and eat a garbage plate. Barbecue most likely isn’t the next thing that comes to mind for those visitors, but it probably should be.

New York – and any state north of the Mason-Dixon Line, for that matter – isn’t known for its barbecue. But there is one exception: Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, which originated in Syracuse, has had a second location right here in Rochester since 1998, and has since expanded to New York City (Harlem) and Troy (just north of Albany).

First off, I would like to apologize for our absence on RWG the last month or two. I have been working 40+ hour weeks, in numerous jobs. With that said, I have attended a several Red Wings’ games on my spare time, a few of which with my friends. On three separate occasions, my friends and I traveled into the city to eat at one of the state’s most know barbecue pits, Dinosaur Bar-B-Que.

Located literally right on the border of the gray area and fair territory, the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que overlooks the mighty Genesee River. This barbecue pit resides within an abandoned 1905 Lehigh Valley train station. When walking into the establishment, your eyes are drawn to every nook and cranny in the restaurant. Tons of memorabilia ringing of Americana hangs on the walls. Enough with setting the stage, let’s get to the food already.

Voted America’s best BBQ in 2009 by Good Morning America, Dinosaur sets the bar high when it comes to barbecue in the Northeast. Over the past few months, I have been craving barbecue, and after having the Dinosaur, nothing else even comes close.

Josh and I went to the Dinosaur prior to a high-school baseball game back in the spring, and little did I know I would be returning two more times in the following weeks. All three of my visits I ordered the same thing, the Original Pulled Pork Platter (pardon the alliteration). For $9.50, the platter includes a hefty pulled pork sandwich with two sides. I chose their macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes for my sides all three times.

The pulled pork sandwich came piled high on one of their signature sesame seeded buns. One of the biggest things that puts Dinosaur’s pulled pork sandwich above the rest is the meat doesn’t come too saucy. The structure of the sandwich is well put together, seeing how the bottom half of the bun wasn’t saturated. Now don’t worry all of you “I like my BBQ saucy” fans, on the tables inside of the Dinosaur you’ll find many different BBQ and hot sauces to utilize.

As for my sides, the macaroni and cheese has to be some of the best I have ever had. It had a very cheesy consistency to it, and a bit of a bite. To the best of my knowledge, the macaroni and cheese is topped with Dinosaur’s rub seasoning, which includes some sort of hot seasoning.

Their mashed potatoes were more so the smashed variety, but still very good. The first two times I went there I ate all of my sides first because they were irresistible, on my third I ate them last, because I wanted to finish my sandwich in its entirety. After I finished these meals I was definitely full, and very content with my investment.

Josh ordered something that I would never have guessed he would have ordered, Jumbo Chicken Wings. Thirteen large chicken wings filled his basket with the steam and aroma of their barbecue sauce filling the air. Josh described the chicken wings as different than the normal chicken wing, but in a good way. The wings had a charcoal taste to them, since they are not deep-fried like almost every other chicken wing in the area. He went on and described their sauce as spicy. Josh finished all 13 wings, with much help of several beverages.

On my first return visit, Chad and I stopped at Dinosaur prior to a Red Wings game. We overestimated how much time we would need. We literally walked in, sat down, ordered and had our food in front of within five minutes; some of the best food service I have ever been a part of.

On our most recent visit, Chad, Joe, Kameron, and myself had quite a time eating there. As always, I ordered the exact same thing and Chad did the same. Joe and Kameron got involved with some appetizers. Both Joe and Kameron ordered three Jumbo Wings. Joe’s wings came ‘Wango-Tango’ style. When asked about the wings, he responded simply, “Delicious.”

For his entree, Joe ordered a half rack of ribs with corn bread, baked beans, and macaroni and cheese. Joe exclaimed that the ribs he ordered came to him perfectly. The meat fell right off the bone, and there was no need for him to put extra sauce on them because they already had the perfect amount on them. He went on to agree with my feeling on the macaroni and cheese. Joe would like to add that all-in-all he spent $22 on his meal, and didn’t have any qualms with that price.

After visiting the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que several times in the past few months, as well as other barbecue place in the area, I could say hands down the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que is the best barbecue in this state, if not the entire North.

It rates No. 1 overall in the Rochester area on UrbanSpoon’s restaurant rankings. It also takes the top spot in Syracuse, home of its original location, and No. 16 in New York City.

After feasting at Dinosaur several times over the years ourselves, it’s not difficult to see why.

Ratings:

Service/Atmosphere: It doesn’t get much better than this. Americana at its finest. I’ve rarely had to wait an extended amount of time here. If going during weekend dinner times, expect a little bit of a wait.

Food: Simply, some of the best barbecue and sides I’ve ever had.

Value: Priced a little high, but as Joe put it, he doesn’t have a problem paying for better quality food.

Overall: There is a reason why GMA voted the Dinosaur the best barbecue in America.

Grade: A-

Fedele's Deli

75 Lake Avenue, Hilton
Visited July 15 & 18, 2011
Written by Tyler




If a sub shop isn’t going to bake its own bread, the least it can do is bring in and serve the best bread in the area, which is exactly the case at the new Fedele’s Deli in Hilton.

Several restaurants have come and gone through our hometown, so we were interested to see how Fedele’s – which opened in June in the former Forest Hill Catering location – stacked up.

Drew and I gave it a shot one day during work. I ordered a grilled chickend sandwich, as usual, and he ordered a Buffalo chicken sub.

My chicken itself was nothing extraordinary, but being served on a Martusciello’s roll makes any sandwich delicious. The sandwich went from being ‘average’ to ‘good’ solely because of the bread.

Drew’s sandwich was much the same. It was simply chicken tenders, some wing sauce and some ranch dressing. It was nothing you can’t get at any sub place (though still tasty), but the addition of a Martusciello’s roll made all the difference.

Joe was so excited when I told him there was a place in Hilton serving Martusciello’s bread that he went to Fedele’s for dinner that night himself. He ordered an Italian assorted sub, which he was pleased – though not blown away – by.

I got Fedele’s again with my family a few nights later. I ordered the same thing, but got it topped with wing sauce. I couldn’t wait to have what was sort of a hybrid of what Drew and I each got the first time.

But you can imagine my disappointment when I opened the box and saw my sandwich came on a generic sandwich roll, rather than a Martusciello’s roll, making for an incredibly generic overall sandwich.

Fortunately for the others, their subs came on Martusciello’s bread. My mom and sister split a ham and cheese sub, and my dad had a steak sub with mushrooms and mozzarella.

My dad seemed to enjoy his. The chunks of steak were very thick compared to comparable subs from other places, and the sub was loaded with mushrooms.

Fedele’s puts more meat on its subs than Subway, but not nearly as much as DiBella’s. My mom agreed with me after eating hers.

If you’re a bread lover, like me, you will like Fedele’s. The contents of the subs are no better or worse than similar places, but the use of Martusciello’s bread – widely regarded as the best in Greater Rochester – puts Fedele’s subs a cut above the rest in Hilton.

A restaurant can’t have too high of a grade if that’s the main thing that stands out, but I see potential in Fedele’s. The owners seem very enthusiastic and frequently update their Facebook page.

The menu is relatively limited – cold subs, hot subs, a few fryer items, a few salads and a few items off the grill – but there are daily specials, which appear to change on a week-to-week basis. In other words, it looks look a lot of experimentation with different menu items is going on, and maybe some of them will catch on full time if popular enough.

Oh, and Friday is dessert day. According to Fedele’s Facebook page, the Oreo cheesecake sold out yesterday.

Again, I see some potential here. Fedele’s might be on to something. God knows we could use a little variety in our food out in Hilton.

Ratings

Service/Atmosphere: I haven’t actually been inside yet, but it seemed like the food was ready soon enough.

Food: Not much different than a typical sub shop – until you get to the bread. We’ll definitely have to try out some of the daily specials soon, because those just might be what gives Fedele’s a little variety, relative to other places in Hilton.

Value: Prices are right about where they should be, and match the portion size well.

Overall: Needs to have more than amazing bread brought in from somewhere else to make it great on a larger scale, but this place is brand new and has a lot of potential. I’ll be back soon.

Grade: B-

Tony's Birdland and Pizzeria

2680 West Ridge Road, Greece
Visited June 7, 2011
Written by Greg




Tyler, Kameron and I recently ventured down Ridge Road in Greece looking for a place to eat and review, and after much deliberation and menu previewing settled on Tony’s Birdland and Pizzeria.

We were the only patrons there when we entered, which wasn’t too surprising, I guess, being late afternoon. It wasn’t the cleanest place we’ve ever been to, but probably not the messiest either. One of the two employees promptly yet casually attended to us.

There isn’t a very large dining area – just a few tables and booths – but the kitchen and food prep area consumes most of the space, and by the looks of the extensive menu, they probably utilize every square foot.

I ordered a Buffalo chicken wrap, and Tyler ordered two slices of pepperoni pizza and a grilled chicken sandwich.

He noted that for $3.49 the chicken was a great value, despite not being anything particularly unique. Tyler also enjoyed Tony’s own signature sweet-and-sour sauce, which added more flavor to the subsistent sandwich.

He also considered the two slices of pizza a great value at $1.99, and I agree after tasting one, and considering their liberal size. Tyler says they had enough sauce, while not too much cheese, with a crust that was right in between too doughy and too crispy. His two primary reservations were that the pizza was a tad greasy and lacked a good crunch in the crust.

My wrap was a little frustrating. It was a fairly decent-sized wrap, but was poorly put together. When I picked it up the thing, it just fell apart into the foam tray. Also, it had way too much bleu cheese on it.

I could barely taste any of the Buffalo sauce because all of the bleu cheese just negated its hotness and flavor, and I love me some buffalo sauce. The wrap did have a nice ratio of chicken to lettuce and tomato. Also, the tortilla wasn’t a plain white tortilla; I believe it was some sort of sun-dried tomato tortilla, if I’m not mistaken, which provided an unexpected, but appreciated, element.

While my wrap was frustrating, it was still a decent value at $5.99, which is a dollar or two cheaper than comparable wraps I’ve had. I also ordered a side of onion rings, which were pretty standard (read: generic), but dipping them in the Tony’s sweet & sour sauce made them more enjoyable.

Kameron ordered the Jamaican Beef Patties, which were unique, to say the least. They were beef patties inside of a flaky pastry shell, with Jamaican seasoning on them. They were certainly not what I expected, and to be honest, tasted like something one might find on a cafeteria menu somewhere.

We agreed that they tasted alright, but their flavor was rather one-dimensional, the beef had a weird mushy texture and the pastry was pretty dry. They did, however, liven up when dipped in sweet & sour sauce (noticing a theme here?).

Kameron also ordered a Tony Plate, with cheeseburgers, baked beans, home fries, meat hot sauce, ketchup, mustard and onions, with a side of sweet and sour. He also recognized the trend.

“The beans were bland and the burgers weren’t anything extravagant,” he said. “But once I put their sauce on the plate, it kicked the flavor up a lot.” Go figure.

We weren’t disappointed by Tony’s. The service was friendly and somewhat quick, and the food is an above-average value. But most of the food was something that you could find anywhere else (save for the pizza and sweet-and-sour sauce).

You probably noted by now that nearly all of our food items were better when dipped or slathered in their sweet-and-sour sauce. It is my personal opinion that food should be pleasing and attractive without the addition of non-included sauces and condiments. Condiments should be the cherry on the cake, and used at each individual diners discretion, not the flour in the cake batter (or a necessity, if you will).

Anyway, Tony’s menu is rather extensive. The chicken dinners seem to be popular, as does the pizza, obviously. Salads, wraps, appetizers, calzones, wings, subs and grilled items are available, and all at relatively low prices.

It’s probably in our best interest to sample the fried chicken next time, as that is part of Tony’s namesake. Overall it was a good value, and we’d probably go back if we’re in Greece and don’t feel like tapping into the plethora of national chains lining Ridge Road.

Ratings

Service/Atmosphere: Exactly what you would expect from a typical pizza shop.

Food: Pizza and (presumably) the fried chicken stand out, but everything else seems to be pretty standard. Homemade sweet-and-sour sauce helps anything, though.

Value: Some of the best prices around. A lot of bang for the buck here.

Overall: A great value, and a lot to choose from. It’s nothing that will wow you, but it’s a safe pick.

Grade: B-

Note: Tony's has a second location, at Northgate Plaza on Dewey Avenue in Greece