Nick Tahou Hots

320 West Main Street, Downtown Rochester
Visited June 2, 2011
Written by Greg




Last Thursday, after catching a game at Frontier Field, we decided to eat at the Main Street Nick Tahou’s – the original building and place where the culinary Holy Grail known as the Garbage Plate was born.

The place looks pretty run down from the outside. Pulling up, there were only two cars in the parking lot behind the building, and it wasn’t obvious that the place was open. But it was, and upon entering we were somewhat surprised that there were only two other people dining there.

There wasn’t any food on the grill, so they must not do a whole lot of business on weekday evenings. That, or people just don’t go there anymore because of the negative gossip surrounding this particular location.

Nevertheless, our group of 10 or so ordered, and the kid running the grill quickly slapped burgers and red hots on for us. It took longer than usual (compared to Steve T.’s, that is) for our food to be prepared, but it looked delicious when we finally got it.

We should note that the ingredients used to construct the Garbage Plate are by no means impressive. They’re very basic burgers and red hots, very basic home fries, and very basic macaroni salad and beans. The burgers are typical quarter-pounders; the home fries are thoroughly cooked to a good balance – not too soft, nor uniformly brown and crispy. The mac salad is fairly creamy, but doesn’t have a whole lot going on besides the basic macaroni plus a few other diced ingredients. There’s very little, if any, seasoning on the individual ingredients (other than salt and pepper, maybe) but that’s not really the identity the Plate chooses to take on.

However, it’s the combination of these elements, and the addition of condiments such as onions, mustard, ketchup and the world-famous meaty hot sauce that makes the Garbage Plate the irresistible mound of greasy oral pleasure that it is. The plates we had there were very comparable to those found at Steve T.’s, however I was a little put off by the fact there was no Frank’s Red Hot dispenser (only ketchup and mustard), as there is at its Lyell Avenue cousin.

The inside was surprisingly clean, compared to the outside of the building and what I was expecting. There is plenty of seating, and the booths and table tops were very clean, and the whole place very orderly.

The menu there is actually decently extensive I’d say – and Tyler says a basic Tahou’s cheeseburger is actually quite tasty – but you pretty much only go there for a Garbage Plate. Ordering something else would be like asking da Vinci to do the calligraphy for your wedding invitations. Yeah he can do it, but so can the old lady across the street. It’d be a waste of his talent.

Burgers or hots are the most commonly ordered varieties, but Tahou’s also offers Italian sausage, chicken, fish, veggie burger and grilled cheese plates, as well as a few breakfast options. Of course, Tyler ordered a chicken plate, which only includes one (frozen/breaded) piece.

As noted, Tahou’s is somewhat related to Steve T.’s in Gates, and there is a second Tahou’s location – with Chad says he’s very impressed with – on West Henrietta Road.

Anywho, we were generally pleased with our experience at the original location. It was a lot cleaner and quieter than we were expecting (and safer, with the exception of Joe being swindled out of $0.50 by a well-dressed gentlemen who stuck his head in the door looking for bus money), and the food was on par with our expectations.

If we hadn’t already been downtown we probably wouldn’t have gone there, as it’s not in the greatest of neighborhoods, but now we can all check it off our respective bucket lists or whatever.

Ratings

Service/Atmosphere: The service wasn’t very fast, but, to be fair, we had a big group. The location is sketchy, to say the least.

Food: Not the best quality, but the finished product is incredible.

Value: Plates range from $6.50-8.50. You get what you pay for. It’s a large meal.

Overall: What it lacks in aesthetic pleasure, it makes up for in taste and novelty. Eating a Garbage Plate is essentially a rite of passage for Rochesterians. Just don’t eat one every day.

Grade: B+

Pizza Stop

123 State Street, Downtown Rochester
Visited April 25, 2011
Written by Tyler




Pizza Stop is widely regarded as having the best New York-style pizza, and perhaps the best overall pizza, in Rochester. I had been to Joe’s Brooklyn Pizza in Henrietta, which has family ties to Pizza Stop, the previous summer, but finally made my long-anticipated visit to the original the day after Easter following a downtown interview. It will not be my last visit.

I walked in amid a decent lunchtime crowd in the small pizzeria, with a decent handful of tables for those eating in. There was also quite a variety of slices available.

Pizza Stop appears to be solely a pizza joint, not offering subs, wings or anything else. It offers pizzas in many sizes, styles and with many toppings, but is mainly a place to grab a quick slice or two. The thin New York-style pizza is not my preferred style of pizza, but it’s impossible not to like Pizza Stop’s version.

I opted for a regular-sized Buffalo chicken slice and a thicker pepperoni Sicilian slice.

I started with the Sicilian slice, which was almost identical to the slice I got at Joe’s last July. It was quickly reheated in the oven after my order, giving it quite a toasty crunch. I normally like my pizza quite crispy, but this was actually just a bit too crisp on the outside crust for me.

The interior, however, was bready enough to make the slice pleasant to chew. I’m not a huge cheese guy, but there was just the right amount on this slice.

Along with the sauce, all of the primary components worked together well to produce a good slice, but I would have preferred a little more sauce and a little less crispiness to the slice.

While I did have some minor reservations about the Sicilian slice, the Buffalo chicken slice was just about flawless. What the crust lacked in thickness it made up for in quality. It was toasted just right and was complemented by the perfect proportion of cheese and Buffalo chicken pieces. None of the contrasting flavors drowned out any of the others, and made for possibly the most balanced slice I have ever eaten. Most of the Buffalo chicken slices I’ve eaten have been relatively soft and doughy, but this one was baked to a perfect crisp.

I accidentally deleted my photo of my slices, but I found some photos of similar slices online, courtesy of the Rochester Pizza Blog, which has raved about Pizza Stop to a different level than of any other pizzeria in the area.

I had heard that Pizza Stop had questionable customer service. There was a sign saying something along the lines of, “This isn’t Burger King, you don’t get it your way,” and they don’t blow you away with friendliness by any means, but there is nothing to complain about. The staff does its job, respects its customers and efficiently churns out high-quality pizza.

When I return to Pizza Stop or Joe’s, I will definitely get another Buffalo chicken slice, but I’m also very intrigued by the Grandma’s slice, which appears to come topped with a spiral pattern of fresh extra sauce on top of the cheese, along with oil, two cheeses and several herbs. Sounds right up my alley.

Make sure if you want to try Pizza Stop, you catch it while it’s open. It closes at 5:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, and 7:30 p.m. on Friday, but is closed on the weekend.

Like I said, I prefer thicker and saucier pizzas, but that’s just me. A lot of people prefer the thinner New York-style, but everyone will probably love just about any pizza from Pizza Stop.

Ratings

Service/Atmosphere: Seems like a place very popular for a workday lunch, with the closest feel of being an authentic New York City pizzeria in Rochester.

Food: Perfect balance of all the components of a pizza, and baked to perfection.

Value: $6 for my two slices seemed fair.

Overall: You can tell Pizza Stop a passion for pizza, and its staff is well-aware how good its product is. After eating here, it’s not difficult to see why this place has such a great reputation.

Grade: B+, but consider it higher if you’re a NY-style pizza connoisseur or purist.