Rochester is OK!

The Tap and Mallet rolled out their spring menu this past week. A lot of old favorites return, but there’s plenty of new to sample.  For an appetizer, I had the Crab, Corn, and Red Pepper dip, which is a thick flavorful dip with pita bread. It was fantastic. I almost filled up on, but left enough room to try out their new Reuben sandwich, which is served open face. I’m a big fan of Reubens and I try to eat them wherever they’re served, and the Tap and Mallet’s is excellent.

I’ll probably be back in the next week or so to keep trying new stuff.

Also note that they will be closed this Saturday for a wedding (congratulations to Jeana and John).

You can check out their new menu on the web, or if you have an Android phone or an iPhone, you can get the menu app for either, which will allow you to keep tabs of their ever revolving beer taps from anywhere.

I love barbecue. I love pulled pork. I love brisket. I love ribs. Lucky for us, we have some good local options when it comes to barbecue.

The Beale Street Cafe has two locations, one in Webster, and one at 689 South Ave. in the city of Rochester. I’ve personally never been to the Webster location, but I dine at the South Ave. quite often. My standard restaurant routine for places I go to often is to try something I’ve never had before on the menu each time. Unless a place has a rotating menu, after awhile you’ve eventually had everything on there. I can almost safely say that I’ve had just about everything on the Beale Street menu at least once. On my most recent trip, which would be this past Thursday, I had the Piedmont Pork dinner, which was their pulled pork marinated in vinegar and topped with coleslaw, with sides of cajun fries (go cajun or go home!) and their macaroni salad. The dinner special is larger than the sandwich meal, almost to the tune of twice the amount of pork you’d get from a sandwich. It is a lot of food, and I ate every bit of it. The vinegar gives the pork a bit of a tangy kick, but it doesn’t over power the flavor of the pork. For some reason coleslaw goes really well with pulled pork, as evidence by one of their other sandwiches called The Pittsburgh, which is pulled pork, topped with coleslaw and french fries on French Bread. The Pittsburgh is my staple meal. If I’m not feeling adventurous or in the mood to experiment, this is what I order, and it is awesome. I’d also recommend making sure the fries are cajun, as it gives the sandwich an extra spicy kick.

I’m a big fan of Brisket and I love trying Brisket where ever I go, because it’s always different, but it’s not always good. Honestly, Beale Street has some of the best brisket I’ve ever had. I recommend the dinner of the sandwich, because the bigger the pile of brisket, the happier you’ll be. It’s sweet, moist, and smoked to perfection.

And of course it wouldn’t be a barbecue place without ribs, and their ribs are definitely notable. Their barbecue sauces are what really makes all their food stand out from other places, especially their ribs. Like any good rib should be, they’re sweet and moist and are easily pulled off the bone.

Beale Street also has a full bar, if you’re just in the mood for having a cocktail. Heidi makes a killer Mojito. They have live music Tuesday, and Thursday through Saturday.

The Beale Street cafe is located at 689 South Ave. on the corner of Gregory and South. Parking is on the street, but it’s usually not too hard to find a spot on a Friday night. Menu and directions are available on their website at http://www.bealestreetcafe.com.

I wish I had a better picture, but sometimes I don’t feel it’s appropriate to whip out a camera with a flash in a public place. It’s distracting to the other folks around me, so my trusty iPhone’s camera gets the job done. What you see on the left is a glass of Magner’s Irish Cider at the Tap and Mallet, located at 381 Gregory Street, between South Ave and South Clinton. I apologize to the Tap and Mallet now, as my iPhone’s camera isn’t doing it the justice it deserves. I met up with a few friends last night, and decided it was time to profile another one of my favorite spots.

The Tap and Mallet, in my opinion, serves two important markets. The first is in regard to their beer selection, which is the finest in the city. If you want it, they probably have it. On tap. If not on tap, they have it in a bottle. Not into beer? They have a decent selection of ciders and fancy soda’s. Their beer selection is constantly revolving, evolving, changing. Taps and casks are changed almost weekly, and their menu is constantly being updated. If you really want to stay on top of it, their website is always up to date. If you’re really hardcore, they even have an iPhone app, which encompasses their website in an easy to read format. If you want to delve more into the beer aspects, my friends over at Beercraft are far more qualified than I am. My favorite aspect of going there is that I’m able to try something new each time. Their bar staff is very knowledgeable of the products they peddle, and can make a great recommendation depending on your mood. Crisp lager? Fruity ale? Chocolatey stout? Let them know what you’re feeling, and they’ll pour you a glass of happiness.

Their second market is definitely for the foodie. Their menu is fantastic. This isn’t simple bar food by any means. although they do supply the staples (wings and chicken fingers), and they are awesome. Most of my eating there has been exploring the revolving sandwich menu. I’m not 100% sure of how often things are rotated on and off, but there’s always something new to try, or something I may not have noticed the last time I was there. I believe the last several times I went for the Steak Chimichurri and the Tuna Wasabi, both of which were absolutely to die for.

Typically, I walk there, but if you’re not from the neighborhood, there’s parking in the back, and plenty of street parking in the surrounding neighborhoods. They have streetside tables in the summer, and a deck in the back for outdoor dining and beer enjoyment.

If you’ve never been and love beer, check it out. If you’ve never been and love good food, check it out. If you love both as much as I do, it will definitely be one of your top places to visit.

Tap and Mallet

381 Gregory Street
Rochester, NY 14620
(585) 473-0503

http://www.tapandmallet.com/