So, a while back I wrote up a lil something somethin’ about a not so little town called Rochester. In that post I talked about all the delicious food that I tried while away at school, it was really a great time!

Cause One Time Wasn’t Enough

But what if that wasn’t the end of it? What if I had to go back? Well, you may have guessed it from the title but that’s exactly what I did. This is the Rochester Rundown Pt. II! All restaurants are linked as we go, feel free to check them out they are all 100% delicious, 200% fantastic, and I can 300% guarantee I’ll be going back as soon as I can.

Without further ado, let’s dive right into things.

–Enjoy

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Pi Craft:

Oh, my goodness gracious. What you see above, is a blessing from the Lord himself: Pickle Pizza. Here are the ingredients: Garlic dill sauce, brick cheese, shredded mozzarella, dill pickles, and Cajun ranch. So simple yet so delicious 😋. I have two more trips to Rochester queued up over the next year, and I’m going to stop here at least four more times.

While there, I couldn’t help but notice the oven they used, it was an ingenious device. The oven looked to be a rotating wood-fired pizza oven. The chef would put their prepped dough on a rotating pizza stone that slowly spun giving the pizza time to cook and rest. The result was a thoroughly baked crust that was crispy crunchy along the edges, and just the right amount of chewy at the center.

If I had the money, I would buy a rotating pizza stone and install it at work, at home, at my parent’s house. And I’d just eat pizza for the rest of my life. My tummy would have a few words to say 😅 but who cares when you have endless pizza!

10/10 Pickles on pizza should be normalized across the globe

DiBella’s Subs:

DiBella’s Subs, it’s a name that I would want engraved ON my sandwich, that’s how good it sounds. I’ve eaten here a total of five times, but I’ve only remembered to take one picture! Every time I eat here, it’s something new, but one thing that stands out to me most is their claim-to-fame Godfather sub.

This sandwich consists of Genoa salami, gabagool (capicola for those not in the know), and spicy ham. From there you add on any fixings that suit your style. My style consists of adding lettuce, banana peppers, jalapenos, pickles, with provolone cheese, and mayo, of course. I would have my sub no other way than an artery clogging, flavorful, sub of spice, but that’s just me.

DiBellas has 20 different subs ranging from roast beef, to tuna, cheese subs, and even some specialty subs. On my third visit, in this Rochester stay alone I might add, I gave their chicken bacon ranch specialty sub a go. For good measure, I put a little hot sauce on and called it delicious. The chicken on that sub was a wonderful experience in and of itself. Every bite was rich with flavor, tender, and just the right amount of juiciness. This, paired with bacon, both crisp and juicy, made for a delectable sandwich I look forward to enjoying again.

8/10 I love salami, but it doesn’t love me back. In essence, it’s not you it’s me ❤

Just Chik’n:

In my most honest of opinions, Just Chik’n is the epitome of staying humble. Just look at their sign and mascot, it’s so stinkin’ adorable I love it!

But their sign isn’t the only thing I love. On the left you’ll see some chicken tendies, a chicken sandwich, and what’s that, some YUKA FRIES. When I say these were the most well-seasoned Yuka fries that I’ve ever had, it’s no joke. They were crispy, savory, but not overly salted. With just the right amount of spice, I couldn’t help but keep coming back for more. Before I knew what happened I was out of fries and onto some delicious tendies.

Just Chik’n did not disappoint in the tender department either. I chose to enjoy my tendies by switching between aji verde sauce and aji Amarillo. Both of which brought their tenders to a new level of fantastic! With my sandwich the only item left, it was essentially tenders on a bun.

I do have to be honest, I’ve been hiding something from you. Just Chik’n isn’t your run-of-the-mill chicken sandwich stop, no. Just Chik’n is a Peruvian Rotisserie. I plan on going back come next January and you can bet your lily white liver I’m diving right on into those Peruvian dishes.

8/10 There’s no such thing as “too much seasoning”

Mesquite Grill:

Now, if I remember correctly, Mesquite Grill was a bit later on in my Rochester stay. In case you didn’t know, I was doing double duty with classes. Needless to say, my days ranged from busy to very busy. At this point in my stay, I was very tired, very hungry, and deprived of sweets for far too long. So, for that night alone, I treated myself to a super sweet, extra crunchy, freshly fried pack of churros.

I don’t know what they’re doing at Mesquite Grill, but apparently, they know something I don’t. My churros to-go were piping hot well after the 15 minute drive home. With the perfect sprinkling of cinnamon sugar, caramel & berry sauces, as well as a cup of vanilla ice cream, the temptation to eat them was real. One might even say the temptation was a little too real, and I got ahead of myself…burning my mouth on that first bite. But it was totally worth it 😝.

A spoonful of ice cream later I was back for more but with a smarter strategy:

Drizzling each churro with caramel and berry sauce, I proceeded with a preemptive ice cream dip followed by a most satisfying *crunch*. This, this was the optimal way to enjoy churros of such high caliber.

8.5/10 Me and these churros were meant to be together, and no one can stop our love!!!

Mulconry’s Irish Pub:

I don’t know what’s going on in the world these days, but I swear it’s gotten harder and harder to find a good burger. Typically, when it comes to beef, either I’m the one cooking it or I’m just not eating it. This is especially true for steak and ribs, but that’s a topic for another day.

By now I’m sure that you’ve noticed that delicious, cheese drizzled, hot mess of a sandwich to the side. This was the special pub burger at Mulconry’s Irish Pub. It sounded so good on paper that six out of the eight of us ordered it. When the server brought our plates out it was one heck of a time hearing “Pub burger?” six times in a row.

This burger was cooked exactly how I like it: with loads of cheese, bacon, onions, and those two delightful dills. And to be honest, it was exactly what I needed at the end of my Rochester stay.

9.999/10 I’m sorry, you’re in my top 5 best burgers, but pizza will always be #1

MochiNut:

With bags packed, papers graded, I had one last stop on this wonderful adventure of mine. That stop was going to be none other than a quaint little place called MochiNut.

MochiNut specializes in a variety of treats I never even knew existed. From rice hot dogs to mini desserts and cupcakes, I was so tempted to buy it all, but I was on a mission. If the name wasn’t obvious enough, they make Mochi Donuts, and Mandy made a special request. Having been away for two whole weeks, I was basically obligated to get something for her.

Now, when she told me the only thing she wanted was mochi donuts, I was honestly a little disappointed. Put bluntly, mochi isn’t high up on the list of foods I love to eat. It just has a texture that doesn’t sit well with the buds in my mouth. Regardless, I ordered a six pack and quickly, but safely, made my way home (Rochester is approximately five hours from home).

When I finally made it back, Mandy gave me a big hug, then immediately grabbed her donuts. I raised a brow, “She seemed a little too eager for these things, they couldn’t be that good, could they?” Is what I thought. She gave me that grin I know all too well. It’s a grin that says:

“I know you’ll like this, you’re just too stubborn to try something new.”

-Mandy 2023

Rochester Wins Again

So, I waited patiently. Within minutes, a plate of mochi balls found their way to my side of the table. I picked one up, the raspberry cheesecake, gave it a little squeeze, then tossed it back. It was chewy, but not in the way I expected it to be. The donut was sweet, but not as overbearing as, say, a plain glazed donut. Hints of raspberry danced around the tastebuds in my mouth. It wasn’t long before I fell in love with this miraculous discovery.

Before we knew it, bite after delicious bite, we started to run low on our mochinut supply.

I scrambled for my phone in hopes that a store would be close to us, but alas, the closest MochiNut is about two hours away. A sad but nonetheless, delicious ending to our tale indeed.

8/10 I should have gotten a Taki Hot Dog 😂 It’s my only regret!

Final Thoughts (for now…):

This trip to Rochester brought light to some places I may very well have never tried were I not stuck in a hotel for two weeks. A new favorite pizza spot, subs galore, chicken I will be back for later, some kick *** churros, a burger to die for, and donuts made of mochi. I enjoyed every single one of these places and plan on trying them out when I return for Rochester 3: Return of the Garbage Plate!!!

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