I rarely give out five stars. Between the abysmal customer service that seems rampant these days…read moreand fast, slapped together food, this is a Hidden Gem (promise not to tell anyone, o.k ?)
I was done with work, tooling around Henrietta, and thanks to my errant GPS, took a wrong turn down Clay Road. That's how I found this place. Since I came in on the Clay Road entrance, I had no idea it was actually in the Holiday Inn and Suites, on the corner of Jefferson and Clay Roads. Of course, this means that it has a huge private parking lot.
I used the Clay Road entrance, leading directly into the restaurant. It's actually bigger than you would think. It's very sleek, modern and cosmopolitan. To the left as you enter, is a gleaming, polished, black marble bar and barstools, with large, flat- screen TVs flanking the bar. I seated myself at one of the tables between the bar and the long, rectangular high top that separates the dining room. On the other side of the rectangngular table, is a spacious, living-room area, with comfy chairs and sofas, and another large flat-screen. It's a great place to gather and have drinks, or just relax and scroll through your email. There were over a dozen people enjoying their drinks and laughing and a couple of teenagers chilling on the sofas, intent on their cells.
An impeccably groomed server, Preston, immediately came over and greeted me and gave me a menu. He served me both times that I was there for dinner. He asked about my mother, which was kind. I was impressed that he even remembered, considering the amount of people he serves. He even remembered what I had to drink (Prosecco) the first time.
I usually avoid eating in hotels, even while on a trip in bad weather. Between his excellent service, and the delicous food here, I was warming to eating in a hotel, even if I live in Rochester.
The first time, I asked him what he suggested; he said their burgers were excellent. I ordered a build-your-own Burger, with cheddar cheese, tomato, lettuce, and onion. The burgers all come with a side of fries or Pub Chips. Preston said that the Pub Chips are made in-house daily. I went with those.
I changed my mind and canceled the lettuce, fearing iceberg. Being rather soft-spoken, he probably didn't hear that, and my burger arrived with lettuce. Fortunately, it was not the iceberg that I loathe; it was a nice wonderfully green and crisp leaf lettuce. I took one look at the Burger and thought "Oh Mama, there's no way I'm going to finish this sucker," as it was huge...like the Grand Canyon of burgers. I'm not a picky eater, just not a big eater. But I had a very light, early lunch, and was pretty sure I could eat most of it. I ate it all.
I'm not generally a fan of fried foods, but the pub chips were beyond delicious. It was all I could do to restrain myself from eating them all; I saved some for my mom and it was quite a sacrifice. She devoured them.
Last week I bounced in and decided to try their chicken wings. Man, they really give Richmond's a run for their money: large, meaty drums perfectly slathered in delicious buffalo sauce. They were served with a handful of carrot and celery sticks and the de rigueur blue cheese. Nice presentation, too.
I highly recommend trying this Hidden Gem. This place not only knocked my socks off, it made them roll up and down.