This is one of our go to places whenever I visit my daughter in Syracuse... never disappoints!…read moreThe menu has unique plays on some standards... always delicious and the cocktails are inspired & interesting... you'll probably need a rezzy ENJOY!

I stopped by with a group of 6 on a Friday afternoon. When me and my friend stopped by there was no…read moreone at front so we stood around awkwardly for a bit before someone came over to bring us to our table. Walking through the restaurant was nice as the space was very large and the decor indoor was cozy and whimsical. Our server was nice throughout the meal. However, I did get a water glass that had marks on it that looked like someone just drank out of it and a crumb on the rim. I asked them if they could get me a clean cup and they ended up bringing the same one as the same mark and crumb were still there. For food, our table ordered a few items to share. We got: -CAULIFLOWER WINGS: The chutney/salsa on top of the fried cauliflower was nice and gave the item a little sour kick. However, the cauliflower itself was not cooked fully so not as soft as I wanted it to be. -SYRACUSE POUTINE: The appearance of the poutine was not the best. However, the gravy it came with was very flavorful and tasty. The potatoes themselves were not fried and were in wedge form but went well with the gravy. The small globs of melted cheese on top were a nice complement. -CAJUN SLIDERS: The slider compliments/sauce went well together but the sliders themselves had grill marks on it which gave a bitter bite to those parts of the slider. Additionally, the fried shrimp inside of the slider still had the tail on and so it was a bit of a surprise to bite into a full tail while eating a slider. All in all, a cute spot to see people but food had some hit or miss components.

I love the place, but we had a very poor experience with one of the female staff. We arrived 20 or…read moreso minutes before closing and another staff member told us that we could stay for a little bit while they cleaned up (I believe he was the owner). After we got our food, I went over to get some sauces and the female staff became very rude and aggressive. She raised her voice and said, "you guys need to leave". I work in the service industry as well, and I understand it was right at closing time, but there is no reason to speak to paying customers with such a harsh tone. It was borderline threatening, and it made us not want to return, even though we enjoyed going there in the past.

Another Take Out Thursday…read more If you asked me if I'd ever thought id have a chicken parm waffle id have been pretty sure id say no but I've never had funk n waffle so I figured if im gonna do this might as well go weird with it. The waffle is literally made of spaghetti like the pressed a pile of spaghetti into the waffle iron. The sauce is sweet with chunks of tomato which I like. The chicken parm piece was good but a little small. 2 entrees for $30 so reasonably priced. The people are very nice and thr various options mean of course we have to go back.

Great vegan food! Excellent coffee. Clean, bright restaurant. Lots of charging…read more Please rename the sweet and sassy molassy ( sandwich) vs the sweet and sassy (burger). Too confusing and order got mixed up.

Vegetarian or not, strong hearts is worth a stop in. Such incredible takes on "meat dishes" that…read moreare delicious in their own right, let alone as a recreation of a meat item. Flavor is on point, creativity in how they make their dishes, and bright, smiling, helpful service make it such a joy to eat here. Bright and fun with plenty of space to eat and enjoy their amazing menu.

Gay bar. I'm not…read moregay. This might have been the best food I had while in the Syracuse area for 4 days. Bacon grilled cheese sandwich. Friend ordered the burger he said the same thing. Grey food and service. Decor is extra gay. But it's a gay bar ..... so have fun and enjoy!

The amount of time, effort, and care that go into each menu item is impressive. For brunch, the…read morevariety is astounding for the size and the appearance of the place from the outside. At first the location seems less than promising, but inside the little touches of decor make for a charming, if not polished experience. It is still largely a bar that serves food, but the food is impressive in both quality and low price. The little details like in-house made desserts, house ranch dressing, and hand cut fries are a pleasant surprise. The organization behind staggered brunch seating lends itself well to good availability of items, freshness, and service. The menu includes frequently updated seasonal choices. This is also a LGBTQ+ bar. Brunch menus are regularly posted on Facebook, and the process for text message based reservations is convenient. Possibly one of the most surprisingly good restaurants in the greater Syracuse area.

Wow! What a breath of fresh air. This place is a great spot to eat, drink and play. The sliders…read morewere excellent & the Fries with the dipping sauces was a great experience. The games just added to the fun of the night brining us back to our younger days. Best of all was the wait staff and the Host were phenomenal, We can't wait to stop by again.

Tasty eats, creative drinks, and a creative ambiance. Enjoyed our snacks and drinks. Service was…read moregreat!

Restaurant in the lobby of the collegian hotel made it convenient to get dinner after a long day…read more There is also a bar. The bartender/waitress was a rockstar. She was the only one serving and bartending to a very full restaurant on a Saturday night. When we walked in, we sat at a table making it four tables in total, with two of the tables having big parties and the bar almost completely full. The food was very good as well. We had the bolognese and cheeseburger.

This restaurant is in the Collegiate Hotel. They have inside dining and outside dining. The inside…read morehas a bar. Prices are reasonable. The outside is nice but o do feel some areas need an upgrade like some cushions on the couches in some areas. I had the avocado toast it was healthy and the fruit was very good. I paid about $15 for the meal including tea.

Be ready to take food home with you and get at least 2 more meals out of it!!! Beautiful…read morepresentation (mine was served in a tin can and flipped over onto my plate. I had the pierogis/ eggs/bacon special served in a tin can) It was enough for 2 and was delicious! I also had the French toast latte served with a FT stick right on top. Decadent ! Service was speedy, efficient and friendly. If you go plan on going early or putting yourself on the wait list much before you head out the door! It's def worth the wait!!

Our visit to Rise & Shine Diner was, unfortunately, one of the worst dining experiences we've had…read morein a long time. Even though the restaurant only had two large parties and wasn't particularly busy, we still waited 35 minutes to be seated. That alone didn't make sense, but things only went downhill from there. It was my daughter's birthday, and we were hoping for a fun brunch. Our server started off friendly, but that changed quickly. We ordered our drinks and food at the same time--a chai tea for me, a specialty alcoholic milkshake for my daughter, and no drink for her boyfriend, plus three entrées and a poutine. The drinks took 50 minutes to arrive. The food took over an hour and a half. During all this, the server seemed to avoid our table entirely. When my daughter's boyfriend finally managed to get her attention--very politely, even mentioning that he himself is a server--he simply asked if she had an estimate on our food. She stood there with her hand on her hip and told us the kitchen was backed up, with "three orders ahead of yours," as if that explained everything. We then asked if the poutine, our appetizer, was at least ready. She said they had to make fresh potatoes for it but that she would "rush it." Eventually, she came back with the poutine, plopped it down on the table, and walked away without a single word. No "here you go," no "do you need anything," and--most importantly--no plates. I ended up getting up and asking the hostess for plates so we could actually eat the appetizer. For a place that markets itself as a "fancy diner" with "Instagram-worthy" dishes, the service and execution were nowhere near acceptable. If you're going to lean into trendy presentation and premium pricing, you need the staff to support it. Hire more people. Train them. Do something--because this was unacceptable from start to finish. We won't be returning, and I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone looking for a smooth, enjoyable dining experience. **EDIT** I would like to include the fact of the over priced, over salted, food items don't seem to cover the cost to upgrade your cracked booths so that people's bums are hurt from sitting on them. Needs to be updated and correct staffing issues so that food will be "adequate" for the price. Go anywhere on Westcott than here.

Who knew French fries go with everything ? French fries with cheese, pickles and chicken... so…read moreamazing! Burger was perfect, and poutine desserts? Oh my! Funnel cake fingers topped with maple syrup and ice cream, so delicious! I was a bit disappointed at first since every time that door opened I was hit in the head with -5 degree wind but the staff noticed and moved us immediately. Another great spot that will be added to the Syracuse rotation.

This downtown restaurant has some really good things, as well as some pretty strong drawbacks, so…read moreI'm not saying it's 3 stars because it's mediocre, I'm saying it's 3 stars because it's a mixed bag. Quality of the food depends. The $18 salad was a plate of iceberg lettuce with a few scraps of cheese thrown on. The salad was the biggest disappointment. On the other hand, the classic poutine was bang on. Great ratio of gravy to fries, everything was nice, all the flavors were right. But the rest of the poutines have too much quality variation, which is unforgivable for a place advertising their 12 different kinds of poutine. None of the other flavors were nearly as good as the classic, with combos that didn't work. The burger was tasty. However, it was supposed to be medium and it was very rare. The beer cheese pretzel was also disappointing. The cheese had been cooked too long, or maybe microwaved, because it had seized and was very coarse and mealy. The amount of cheese was also not enough for the pretzel. Service was great. No complaints about any of the waitresses or hostesses. Overall, a fine place near downtown to get a classic poutine and an artisanal beer. Stay away from everything else.

First, I have to say that the renovation/ redecorating that has been done (to the old Empire…read moreBrewing), is really first class. They have kept the beautiful details of a historic building while making it warm, classy and comfortable. Service was very good. Our server was also the bartender and he was friendly and helpful....it was our first time visiting. The menu is very eclectic but highlights their house brined, battered and fried chicken. We looked over the menu before going and were excited about the Chicken and Biscuits. It wasn't on the menu, but our server was positive it was available. Three of us ordered the Chicken and Biscuits and one ordered the Hot Mess Chicken sandwich, which she declared delicious. The chicken and biscuits was excellent with a nice amount of chicken and vegetables, creamy and flavorful and homemade biscuits served on the side. I actually prefer the biscuits on the side because I seldom finish my meal so when I take it home, the biscuits are Not soggy. My only disappointment was that while the dish came over looking like a hearty portion, the chicken and biscuits was served over mashed potatoes. The mashed potatoes tasted homemade, creamy and seasoned nicely seasoned.....but the actual amount of chicken and biscuits was pretty small. (We didn't know it came with potatoes because we it wasn't on the menu so we didn't get a description) I am looking forward to many more visits and trying some of their signature house brined chicken. We also had a very nice discussion with the bartender about their extensive selection of liquor.

Honey and I are on vacay and were missing home a smidge. We found this place and were blown away…read more It was in the middle of the street where there is street parking so be advised. Moving on, the entrance gives off a speakeasy vibe.. as we had to go downstairs to the entrance! We love a great speak easy! We went to the bar as we prefer to eat and chat up the bartenders anyway. The menus are leather bound and we loved it! We are Old Fashioned snobs and wanted to check out the selection. Not only are there 3 pages of different whiskeys you can choose from, there are flights available too if you can't decide. Honey ordered the "Cluck Norris", and I had chicken and biscuits! Oh My Southern Loving Heart... Syracuse... wooooo bay baaayyyy! The chicken and biscuits was my dream of a chicken of a chicken pot pie without the crust, on top of mashed potato's, and rimmed with biscuits! Honey said.. "Damn that was good. It was better than the chicken in Nola!" The flavor and temp were unmatched!! When you come, ask for Ryan the bartender! (Picture included!!) 5 stars all day...

Absolutely recommended -- this restaurant is one of my best memories in Syracuse. During my seven…read moreyears here, I've been there countless times, and their French onion soup is truly the best. Whenever I felt exhausted or too drained by the cold weather to do anything, I would think of that soup. They change their menu often, and some of my favorites were last summer's salmon with zucchini and a white-wine risotto from a few years ago (I've forgotten what the main dish was, but I still remember the flavor). All the people were always nice and friendly. If I ever get the chance, I'll definitely come back.

Excellent restaurant with character in downtown Syracuse. Very nice ambiance. I just ordered a…read moresimple chicken sandwich, but had this pesto mayonnaise that made it amazing. My wife had a stuffed acorn squash that combined a variety of amazing flavors. Service was excellent. For dessert, we had a creme brulee and cheesecake, a great nightcap to a great meal. I highly recommend this place.