Three times and your out! I decided to give Rocco one more chance, what a mistake! Our server was down right rude! I was hardly seated and she wanted my food order, never offering the opportunity to order a refreshment/cocktail. When I asked if I could order a drink she responded by saying she would prefer to take my food order......"just a second" I thought I was the customer. The poor service continued with the atmosphere of we were being rushed. The food was decent, but I lost my desire to eat because of the rude waitress; the portion were on the small side. Very expensive for the portion size, my glass of wine was so small I ask about it being so small for $12. O'well there are many good restaurants in the greater Rochester area and to bad Rocco is not among them. Mike of Naples read more

My Wife and I were looking for a restaurant that served octopus and this one came up. The website menu, however, was incorrect and there was a seasonal menu instead. I ordered a lamb ribeye dish with a potato and eggplant lasagne and she ordered a pasta dish with chicken. My lamb dish ($34.00) came with a small amount of lamb which was over cooked and the lasagne was bland and mushy so I barely touched it. Her dish contained a sort of shredded chicken in a watery, bland chopped tomato sauce (I only call it sauce for lack of another term but it was more like just watery tomatoes). The one star is given for the cocktails which were very good and the waiter with an amazing voice who sang Italian opera songs beautifully. The food was an expensive and epic failure. read more

I have never said this about a restaurant, but if I could give this place 0 stars, I would. I am EXTREMELY disappointed. I had heard good things about the place. I have NEVER been so disappointed in a locally owned restaurant. When we walked in, the hostess was not very welcoming and told us if we didn't have a reservation we would have to wait 2 hours for the next seating. Come to find out after asking what our other options were, a table is suddenly available outside. I don't get it. Why now and not a minute before when we asked? 2 out of the 3 dishes were good (the appetizer and my meal). My friend asked the waitress how the dish she was going to order was and she said it's very good, NOTHING ELSE. My friend's Linguini, zucchini, garlic and clams dish was extremely salty. This is off of their "Garlic Fest Menu", a special menu they are running for a week or so. Not wanting to make waves, she tried her best to eat it. After about 4 bites, she just couldn't stomach it anymore. I tried it and it was sooo salty! My friend let the waitress know. Her response? Not what you would expect. She said, "It's seafood, seafood is salty and we don't put any extra salt in the dish. That's just the way it is. (I was a server for a long time. When we asked how it was her response should have been that it's pretty salty, just to let you know. No server should want an unhappy customer) Would you like something else? If you do order something else, you will have to be charged for both of your meals. We cannot take your pasta off of the check." That is dead wrong and I will never go there again! My friend left the restaurant hungry and paid for an awful meal that she barely touched. Unbelievable! I will make sure to let any of my friends know of this awful experience. read more

Even better than the last time.. Seriously, I dare you to find better Italian in Rochester. The menu is always interesting and the specials are usually so good. The only knock was not having enough grilled bread for the ricotta. I wish more people knew about this place. So here I am yelping it 2x. 5 stars for what I consider the best Italian in Rochester, and I will be back every time I come back to town. read more

Initially, we were highly excited to try this restaurant. It received good reviews on yelp. We were, however, ultimately disappointed with our takeout experience at Osteria Rocco. First, we ordered the salad with roasted beets, gorgonzola, olives, and greens. It was OK. Not good, not bad, but OK. Who can mess up salad though especially when the greens are store-bought and from a bag? Additionally, the beets were not roasted but from a can. There were also only two or three olives in the entire salad. Second, we got the clams, pancette and parsley pizza. To their credit, it was excellent. They use fresh cheese and the clams add an appreciated contrast to it. The pizza, however, was small. Also, we were told that our order was 20 minutes late because they had to "fire up" the pizza oven. This pizza was not made in a pizza oven though, but clearly made in an ordinary convention oven. The type of dough is one which is easy and quick to make. The dough is thin; thus, a pizza oven would have burned it to a crisp. The thin dough has the advantage of being made without a traditional pizza oven. I still recommend it though if you want to purchase an overpriced pizza. Quality is highly important to me, so I was fine with it. At the same time, if you are looking for a deal, do not order the pizza. Lastly, we ordered the Angus rib steak. Stay away from this item! It was frozen for too long. A steak should not have the texture of rubber especially for $29. It was also a fatty cut of meat. Moreover, it was only cooked with a dry rub, which is fine, except as previously mentioned, the steak was frozen for too long and, therefore, bland in the middle. The meat, however, was medium rare as ordered. Some restaurants do not get that right, but some restaurants also do not charge $29 for a steak. The portabella mushrooms that came with the meal were not fresh. Clearly, they had been soaking in a sauce made with balsamic vinegar all day (and probably even longer). With the steak we also got half a potato cut into two wedges. The potatoes were delicious. They were cooked on a grill, so the potatoes inherited a distinct flavor. At least a whole potato should have been included with the meal though. When we ordered, we were told that it would take half an hour. I showed up thirty minutes after the order. Thus, I naturally assumed the food would be ready. As previously mentioned it was 20 minutes late. To their credit the bartender, Chris, did offer a glass of house wine, but who wants to drink cheap wine? Because the order was late, I asked for a dessert instead. The waitress was curiously offended by this comment. She curtly asked, "What did you just say?" I responded, "The order was late. Can I get a dessert for the wait?" She then loudly said, "Chris, handle this." She acted as though I made a personal insult like calling her nose too big. I did not understand the ill response. Chris ended up giving me 5 cookies. They were stale. I thought that they would be able to make up for the wait with an awesome dessert. Thus, we will NOT be going back here. Try the steak at the Strathallan grill instead or the pizza at Cam's. read more

Homemade Italian food! Pizza is excellent. They provide you with scissors to cut your own slice. Thin crust. I had the clam pizza which was excellent. I was a little disappointed with the butterscotch budino--too many almonds & I think it would have been better if they were sliced rather than whole. The atmosphere is nice, but the lighting was very dim which made reading the menu a little tricky. I would go back, especially to try the homemade ricotta. read more

Comment on my review from owner Mark C. "If where you sit and the temperature of the room is that important, join a country club. " Really?? Well this speaks volumes about how much the customer is valued at this establishment. I rest my case. read more

If you have not tried Rocco's house made ricotta with charred bread you haven't fully lived. I could eat it with a spoon, but it is great with the charred bread. Their pizzas are fantastic and they give you kitchen shears to cut it with. For whatever reason cutting the pizza with scissors makes me feel like a doctor and I love it. The gnocci is different than any I've ever had, in a good way. The last trip we took to Rocco we got a side of their roasted potatoes and I swear I could have that as my entree! Rocco is a great place to order a few things to share, but make sure you make a reservation, they fill up quickly, even on a Tuesday night. Don't skimp out on dessert, the Butterscotch Budino is out of this world. I wish everything tasted as good as it does at Rocco! read more

Regarding the ceiling fan: This is a small restaurant. Everyone is under the fan. It did not bother us, and we dined in the dead of winter. My reason for feeling mistreated by this establishment regards the cardinal sin of dining: charging a customer for an item they sent back to the kitchen. I ordered the white clam linguine. This is one of my go-to dishes at any restaurant, and at home, so I've enjoyed this dish at a wide variety of restaurants. Rocco's clams linguine tasted exactly like instant pasta-roni. I've only had pasta-roni about twice, and this tasted *exactly* like it. It was terrible. I tried several bites (maybe 4?) and had a nervous chat with my table-mates before timidly sending it back. I did not ask for a replacement, because we had appetizers, and my friends were already eating. I didn't need a full belly, per se. The chef did not ask why I sent it back. The server was generally dismissive, but I chalked that up to her personality. She was decently available throughout the service and didn't leave us stranded or anything, so while she was not friendly by any means, she wasn't rude or ineffective. The stab in the stomach came with the bill: we were charged the entire cost of the returned entree (which was returned with a full plate - I have worked in the food service industry, and I know how people like to play the eat-it-and-return-it game, which I find to be class-less). If I had been the one paying the bill, I would have objected loudly. Alas, my friends encouraged me not to worry about it and not let it ruin our evening. But I was furious. And I was the recipient of some interesting looks of distaste by the chef as I walked out. I just find this situation to be unforgivable. This is a Rochester restaurant, which means that it is most likely very over-praised, as is the trend in this area. As such, the chef is most likely very proud. The pasta-roni flavored, inedible dish I was served AND charged for, however, is nothing to be proud of. Addition: I'm still thinking about how terrible & without class this place was. When someone returns your dish for tasting exactly like a low-class grocery store salty side, if you have ANY integrity as a cook, you should address the customer instead of giving her dirty looks for returning your garbage food. Rochester 'chefs' may need to consider removing their heads from their asses. read more

The food may be good, but the owner does not care about the customer. Made a reservation for my 40th birthday dinner. Waited a long time as the owner did not plan properly for my reservation. When we were eventually seated we were put at a table under a high powered ceiling fan (in December!) right at the kitchen doorway. There was another open table available and we asked to be moved. The owner refused and decided to give it to a walk-in (we only know this because we heard him tell them!) and sadly we had no choice but to leave and celebrate at another restaurant. Very unprofessional establishment - do not recommend read more

No parking, extremely loud,unable to hear my wife's conversation, soggy octopus, overcooked pasta, no bread,just packaged bread sticks Poor wine list. Quite disappointing. read more

I had high expectations for this quaint restaurant based on other reviews! Alas it gets three stars, and here is why: Service: There is no obvious place to "present" yourself upon arrival. With the servers not in standard restaurant black, you fear the mistake of telling a fellow patron you have arrived for your reservation...I'm sure they care. Though this aspect is forgiveable, given the restaurant size. After being seated, we sat. For 10 minutes. Once our server finally greeted us, she was very "lukewarm". I watched as she was very attentive to all tables around us...frustrating. At the end of the meal she dropped the check off in passing and said "thank you" while walking away... Flawed service is a big issue for me - especially in a place that advertises as fine dining, thus one star goes. Wine List: I love red wine. I don't, however, drink a significant amount of italian reds, thus a better (or any) description of noses would have been wonderful. The Italian region map was cool; however, I don't know anything about the soil, grapes, etc. in any of those regions so it wasn't helpful to me... Appetizer/Entree: Appetizer was okay. The charred bread really means "break your teeth burnt," so just be sure you're into that before ordering. For our meal, my man had lasagna and very much enjoyed it and the sauce. It was a veggie option, so they kindly offered meatballs to those who prefer a little protein - this was a satisfying touch for him. I had the liguine and clams. At first bite it was good - nice spice to it, but the fennel was a bit overpowering. I also found the broth to be no more than butter and olive oil...a bit too greasy for my taste, but I can see how others might like it. I also felt the entrees were a bit overpriced for what they were. There wasn't a lot of "complexity" to the food...I will say the portions are hearty, so both of us took half home. I probably won't go back, but it was fun to try! read more

Osteria Rocco : Regarding the lady's unhappiness with Rocco's seating policy... Having read her "review", I suspect her frustration involved being seated in the middle of the room by the kitchen door. If the dining room at the time was almost empty , why not meet her request ? Some one from the establishment wrote regarding "seating arrangements" and "what one wants another does not " , but this reads more like a contest of wills instead of a restaurant trying to satisfy its customers. I'm not about to take sides but what restaurant does not try to keep their customers happy if their request is reasonable and it appears hers was reasonable. Reading the filtered reviews, it appears this table has come into contention before... "Filtered" review below from Melissa K.) Melissa K. 12/3/2011 The food may be good, but the owner does not care about the customer. Made a reservation for my 40th birthday dinner. Waited a long time as the owner did not plan properly for my reservation. When we were eventually seated we were put at a table under a high powered ceiling fan (in December!) right at the kitchen doorway. There was another open table available and we asked to be moved. The owner refused and decided to give it to a walk-in (we only know this because we heard him tell them!) and sadly we had no choice but to leave and celebrate at another restaurant. Very unprofessional establishment - do not recommend read more

Small and intimate. The highlight here is small plates at the bar. The house made ricotta is "da morire". Skip the restaurant where the main plates are mediocre and the service is rude. read more

Amazing experience. Best Italian restaurant in Rochester. The waitress was excellent as was the food and atmosphere. I went with my girlfriend and we got lucky to hear on of the waiters sing and Italian opera song for the entire restaurant. He had an incredible night and it was a rare addition to a night out for us. The bottle of wine was excellent as was our meals. I got the basic pasta and meatballs. The sauce was great and the meatballs were tender and delicious. My girlfriend ordered the lamb and sausage dish. The lamb was perfect and she enjoyed the sausage. We also got the ricotta appetizer and we both enjoyed it very much. Excellent experience. Can't wait to go back. read more

Home again in Texas, I will sometimes say to my husband- "wish we could eat at Rocco's in Rochester tonight." This place is really, really good. Highest marks for atmosphere, service AND food. The small dining room comes across as cozy and feels very romantic and intimate. Most importantly, the food. We shared their insalata italiano "rocco" with lettuces/roast peppers/salumi/olives & provolone. A simple salad, but hearty and more than enough to share. For my entree, I had their lasagne alla pizzaiola (pizza-maker's-style) which was, I'm pretty sure, the best I've ever had. Looking around at the other tables, I can tell you, everything looked delicious! Definitely the real deal in Rochester. Every town needs an Italian restaurant this tasty! read more

Service is impeccable and the food is divine. What's not to love? Rocco's is one of the very few places I can speak highly of.

I'm so happy we visited this restaurant, it is cozy, as soon as you walk in you feel an incredibly nice, adult, relaxing and at the same time fun and vibrant energy, I simply fell in love with place. It was packed, and it is a small place but it gives the chance to people to connect with every one around you. Staff was cool at the front/bar area, I was just amazed on looking at everyone enjoying themselves. Our table is available time to see and experience what all the buzz was about.it was a perfect table for our party of 5, our server was great, some of my friends though she was a little rough but the rest of us thought she was fine, just a true New Yorker I guess, nothing wrong with that.... Food was amazing, we all had the octopus for appetizer and it was great both presentation and taste. Now is time for dinner and we were not ready for the amazing experience we had; three of my friends ordered a steak dish with fried cauliflower and it was delicious. The other on order a vegetarian dish and we all tried it and loved it, it was amazing, now let me tell you about my dish... I ordered the clam pasta and it was one of the most delicious dishes I've had. It is a big portion (at least for me) but I couldn't stop eating, it was super amazing, delicious, and I was surprised with the amount of clams it had, I ate the entire dish, that's how great it was, oh my, just typing this and remembering the flavored my mouth is watering!!! With a meal like that, of course we had to try the dessert, we chose I'm not sure of the name I think it was butter squash with almonds, the way they prepare this, I wish I could have a recipe. Absolutely great dessert!!! Highly recommended friends, oh and please make reservations, they are highly recommended, enjoy!!!! read more

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We stopped in tonight diring a heavy snow and were delighted with the entire dining experience. Our waitress, Chris, was friendly and helpful with recommendations for beverages and food. The food was crazy delish! Top notch. Looking forward to our next visit. read more

I was sadly disappointed with my recent trip to Rocco. I had never been before and had heard such great things about the restaurant that my expectations were probably a little too high. Add to that the disappointment that their regular menu wasn't available (we went during their August garlic week special) and I was set up for failure. There were some really amazing parts of our meal, but I think there were enough mediocre aspects that it all just turned into an average experience. Service seemed rushed from the moment we walked in and our nice date night out was somehow shortened to around an hour, despite having drinks, appetizers, a main course, and dessert. We started with the whole garlic with homemade ricotta and crustinos as well as a bowl of the corn soup. The garlic was good and the ricotta was very well made, flavorful and salty. The corn soup was one of the highlights of the meal and if it's available on their menu, I WOULD NOT MISS IT. The mixture in texture and the great flavor made it some of the best soup I have ever had. Main courses were only ok with my pork well-grilled, but otherwise without any excitement and a throwaway of undressed lettuce underneath the pork on the plate; the polenta was fine, but not great. My wife had lamb meatballs with pasta. Dish was ok, but I'm pretty sure the pasta on the plate (rotini) was from a box, not a great look for an upscale Italian restaurant. We had the butterscotch budino for dessert and as EVERYONE else has indicated, this was incredible. GET THIS OR REGRET ALL LIFE DECISIONS YOU HAVE EVER MADE. I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt on this visit because there were some things that were so good. Hopefully on my next visit, I can try their regular menu and I hope that everything is as good as the corn soup and the budino. We'll see. read more

Yes! The food is amazing! I love to order the olives, pizza and a salad and sit the bar. The bar is a little small but it's such a special little place. Reservations are recommended and we usually prefer a few things to share. Oh and the ricotta cheese is amazing! Do your yourself a a favor and order it! read more

8pm reservation Saturday night. Hostess said table wasn't ready and seemed generally over it. We waited 30-40 minutes at bar where bartender largely ignored us (a feat in such a small space). When finally seated, service was poor. Waiter stopped mid-sentence in describing specials ("I'll be right back guys") to clear another table. He was not right back. Ordered a dish of olives to eat while we waited for entrees. Took 20 minutes to bring to table. Pizza was tasty but crust was fall-apart-soggy under ricotta topping. Grilled lamb chops were tasty but hard to cut around bone in such a dark dining room. Skipped dessert because we were sick of being there. We won't rush to come back. It's hard to love a place that doesn't seem to love its customers. We got the impression that we were somehow a burden to them. Maybe it was just an off night. read more

The food at best was average but the staff was quite rude it toke them ten minutes to even speak to us when we enter their establishment an then they made us feel like we your a inconvenience to them would not return to the establishment read more

A good night out, but simply put, there are better options in the Rochester area. Walking in, it's simply clear that they are trying cram too many things into a tiny storefront. The coat closet is easy to walk by as you walk in, and there simply isn't enough room for two people to take off a coat in there at a time. The bar/waiting room area is cramped, you can hardly fit through. It's also somewhat awkward as you walk in and have to navigate through the bar to get to the maitre d while the bartender stares at you awkwardly as if you don't belong there. The seating area itself is very small, but cute and fairly well laid out, if not very very dark. If you have difficulty seeing in dimly light places, I would certainly make sure you have your iPhone so you can turn on the flashlight and read the menu. The service itself left a lot to be desired. Our waitress was very nice, but somewhat awkward, she really just lacked the grace I would expect out of a waitress at an upscale place. Also, as mentioned in many other reviews, the timing of the kitchen is just poor. Our two appetizers came out with about a 5 minute delay and likewise for our entrees. I understand the kitchen is small, but that's just not excusable. Especially to bring an appetizer out without a little plate or something so that we can share if the other one isn't going to come out for another 5 minutes. But given that this seems to be a chronic problem, they don't really seem to care too much. The food itself was very good, not excellent, but very good. The lack of real bread is somewhat annoying, but the breadsticks at the table are nice enough as a palate cleanser. For starters we got the meatballs and the arancini, both of which were decadent without being over the top. The red sauce with them has a solid flavor without being overly spicy. One thing to point out, for a restaurant that seems to pride itself on northern Italy, and takes itself very seriously on that point (to the point they only serve wines from that region), the fact that they serve a ton of southern Italian food (like both appetizers we got) is just a strange choice. The first entree was the gnocchi, which were perfectly textured, but somewhat one dimensional and lacked sufficient saucing. We also got the pork with the fried mozzarella on top, which I thought was interesting, but the pork chop was way too thick and mildly overcooked to the point where the meat was losing some of its moisture. The fried mozzarella also seemed like a total afterthought and had no integration into the dish. Thankfully the sauce was absolutely stunning and truly held the dish together. The meal itself was quite expensive for the Rochester area (almost $90 before tip for a glass of wine, an appetizer, and an entree for each of us), and I can't say that it was wholly worth it. You won't go wrong by coming here, but I think there are better options nearby. read more

For my wife and I, Rocco is simply the best restaurant in Rochester. We've been fans of the chef, Mark Cupolo, for a long time. Everything he touches is delicious. The food at Rocco is wonderful and a great combination of classics and specials reflecting what's fresh and seasonal. While I put this in the category of "fine dining" his pizza's are the best in town. The service is personal without being intrusive. The bar is inviting and skillfully done - the bar tenders actually know what they're doing. The blood orange martini is indescribably delicious. read more

Just walked out of Rocco. Great food; my wife had the unique Gnocchi and I had the mixed grill special. The service was horrible, our male server, who didn't introduce himself was awful. He spoke with guests at length at other tables but he couldn't be bothered to talk with us. His service was so bad that the host took our card and processed our bill. We waited 30 minutes after sitting for the server to take our order. I can't recommend this restaurant because of the bad service. The food is good but the experience is bad. Good thing we had a gift card! read more

Great food, service and atmosphere. My wife and I started off with the ricotta fatta in casa, which was delightful. Full flavor ricotta and the charred bread was a perfect match. We also got a nice bottle of red wine. Since we are not that familiar with Italian wines, we asked a suggestion from our waiter, and he didn't disappoint. My wife had a seafood pasta special and I had the lasagna. We had an amazing time and will definitely be back. My only negative was that we felt a little rushed. Our reservation was at 5:30pm on Friday night and we understand it's a small place and they need to have limits to endure turnover; however, we just felt a little rushed from the moment we sat down till the moment we left. Otherwise, amazing experience! read more

The Butterscotch Budino alone deserves five stars, best dessert I've ever had!! The rest of the food was delicious too, especially the ricotta appetizer, and the atmosphere was very nice. read more

Terrific neighborhood restaurant! Must try the Butterscotch Budino and Homemade Ricotta. Small and charming place to dine!

Best food I've had in Rochester. Twice. First off- get the housemade Ricotta. Just do it. Please do it now. Wait outside until they open, if you have to. The specials are usually effing incredible. The pork chop is juicy to the maximum. The slow cooked pork rocks my life. The salmon with beets and greens is a candidate for my last meal. The arancini (fried risotto balls) are crispy and delicious. Loved the red sauce they came with. I'd avoid the pizza. It's not BAD per se, but there are such BETTER things on the menu. The gnocchi are good but very rich (and I can't handle that texture for a whole meal). Service is excellent. I've had the same waitress both time and she knows her sh*t. I love service like that because I've been told I need a lot of guidance when I dine out (it's true). Anyway, cocktails are fun and inventive (mmm blood orange martini and bellini of the day!). They also have a nice wine list and Italian beers. The chocolate mousse with raspberries and pistachios was creamy and rich. Meals go from $13-32. Treat Yo' Self. read more

Hm. Probably wouldn't come here again. Wasn't impressed by much. We tried to park behind the restaurant but had to back out and try for street parking. Then, there's a big lit up sign that leads you up a flight of stairs from the parking lot to the restaurant. However, that entrance was locked so we had to walk back down and around the building. When we were finally inside and seated, we found that it was so incredibly loud in the small dining room that having a conversation was actually impossible. The menu is small and honestly there wasn't much on there that I found appealing and I am NOT a picky eater. There was chicken parm on their specials list, but once we ordered we found out they ran out. So my boyfriend made a quick decision to order their version of the gnocchi instead. It was really awful honestly. So dry and flavorless and tiny portion size. Won't be returning unfortunately. read more

I was inspired to write this from my most recent LUNCH experience at Rocco - very cute patio with a little fountain and vines and feels like you are in a mini garden, not next to a parking lot on Monroe Avenue! Everything was delicious as usual. My romaine salad with shrimp and creamy lemon dressing was perfectly fresh and crisp on a hot summer afternoon! This was not my first rodeo at Rocco though - been her plenty of times.. This is one of my favorite places to eat in Rochester! Here's why: 1. Service is prompt and the staff is knowledgeable on the menu. 2. The bartender is GREAT! I seem to always see the same guy and he is just fantastic. Drinks are perfectly made. 3. The wine list is fun and tangible - you can get a great bottle of wine for $30! 4. The menu is local where possible and oh so fresh! I think I've tasted everything.. The octopus app is perfectly charred and flavorful. The homemade ricotta is creamy and fresh while the bread is fluffy and yet crisp and charred which is different and fun. Sauces and pastas - taste like Italy! Pizzas are flavorful and the meats used are impeccable. Its fun to cut the pizza with scissors! The butterscotch budino - i'm not a dessert person - WOW! Blows me away every time. 5. Great date spot! Make reservations, even during the week. It is TINY. Thank you for being in Rochester :) read more

Rocco is great! Every time I go here I end up leaving happy and wondering why I don't go more often. This last Friday my girlfriend and I were going on a date and chose Rocco. We got lucky and were seated outside immediately with no reservation. This was much to our surprise, so much so the host mistook our bemused looks for dissatisfaction and asked if we were OK with the table. We were, of course. After sitting down our waiter Mark came over to introduce himself. It had been more than a year since I'd been to Rocco but I still remembered Mark. He's an excellent waiter. Very knowledgeable, super friendly, prompt but not overbearing, keeps your water full but doesn't hover. Truly a class of waiter you don't often see in Rochester. We started with mixed drinks and appetizers. The drinks were both plenty good, but nothing remarkable. The appetizers on the other hand were amazing. We had fresh mozzarella and an asparagus salad. I love fresh mozzarella; I might even go so far as to call it my favorite cheese. This was the best fresh mozzarella I've ever had. Next time you go to Rocco, you must order it. Finally, the entrees. Both were wonderful. I had the steak and I would highly recommend it. It came with greens in a white sauce and smashed potatoes. The steak was cooked perfectly. The greens were flavorful and complemented the rest of the dish well. If you haven't gone here you should, except on beautiful summer evenings when I'd like to show up without a reservation and be seated outside immediately. read more

I went to Rocco last night on a whim with my friend Shug. I had passed it numerous times walking and biking by, so glad to see the quaint establishment holding its own, with not much else with a similar vibe anywhere near it. Each time I passed it, there were people sitting happily behind the glass and brick facade, and I couldn't pass it up. After reading about their pizzas, it was a done deal. We shared all of the dishes. We started with the grilled octopus, escarole, and mint. The portion was double what I had expected, and my, my, was it delightful. The mint was a bit spicy, like a garlicy pesto, liberally dressed atop the skewered octopus. The sea creature was meaty, and grilled with just enough char. The escarole was perfect, glazed with olive oil and also perhaps grilled, giving it just enough bite and still much tenderness. The flavors worked together splendidly. Next we had a salad with pear, fennel, some greens, and walnuts, with a cider vinegar dressing. This stood out to my friend, who enjoyed the subtlety more than I did, however, it was excellent, and the fennel was an unexpected and welcomed addition. Next was the pizza margherita. As you've probably read, it came out with scissors, which ended up being the perfect tool. The tomatoes were so sweet! Perfection. The cheese was dolloped on without reservation, and the basil leaves exploded with flavor. We were feeling pleasantly full, but after being offered a slough of desserts, we ended up ordering another pizza! This time, the mushroom, fontina and white truffle oil. It came topped with scallions and it carried such a delightful aroma. We basked in the smells emanating from the pie for a bit before digging in. The truffle oil was distinct, and yummy. Mushrooms and shredded cheeses, oh my. I'm thinking about going back this week for another. We took our sweet time enjoying each dish, and the staff was always smiling and patient with us. Surely the space is small, and tables are limited, so perhaps planning ahead with a reservation is a good idea. I called and was treated respectfully on the phone when asking for a table for two on a Saturday night, and was accommodated warmly. One other excellent addition here was a very small coat room that has a door to keep the wind and street sounds out of the restaurant. The owners have really done a tremendous job creating a unique establishment with a small and tasty menu. I will go back without a doubt, and would recommend this to friends, looking for a romantic and flavorful meal. Thank you so much for doing what you do, Rocco. _S read more

Amazing!! Went to dinner for my birthday after reading up about this place on yelp. The service was great, very knowledgable and polite wait staff. Bellini was delicious! We got meatballs and arancini for appetizers. Having been to Italy, the food was amazingly close to authentic! The lasagna was to die for! I never order lasagna and it isn't my favorite food but I will not hesitate to order it here again. Love it!!! read more

(Disclaimer: I rarely give 5 stars) Rocco was superb. They perform their Italian niche restaurant flawlessly. For the quality of the food, the prices are excellent making it a great value. Our server had full comprehension of the menu and the wine list, which made it an experience to order for the common foodie with questions. Lastly, they had many off menu options that all sounded good including mahi mahi and duck. Please experience this restaurant for yourself. read more

Dined with my husband's parents. Had requested a table at the outside edge of the restaurant as both of them have hearing issues. The hostess did everything she could to get a group to leave the table she'd saved for us, but after waiting for almost 60 minutes we gave up and accepted a table in the middle. The food is unique, tasty, and beautifully presented. Since it is a smaller kitchen we enjoyed the slower pace of courses coming out so we had time to visit. read more

Fantastic meal.. Fantastic service ... Cannot wait to go back soon... Our meals were all great. We started with the arincini and squid appetizers, and the Crunchy fish appetizers, then for dinner we had lasagna, which was the BEST ever, the pasta and meatballs was absolutely amazing, and the pizzas were fabulous. Our waiter was so great and fun, he sang Opera for the room to enjoy, he was amazing. Enjoyed our night so much, we will be back soon... read more

I made reservations a week in advance for celebratory reasons. When we arrived, we were warmly welcomed and seating immediately. The atmosphere was quaint and cozy. All was well until it was time to order our meals. My significant other and I both ordered the brasato al valpolicella and an appetizer along with our wine selections. Instead of the potatoes that were served with my meal, I inquired about substituting a small house salad. Our waitress Valerie refused any substitutions on any meal without apology but said that I would be able to omit them completely and pay an additional $6 for a side salad. When I questioned her as to why, she replied that the chef refuses to make any substitutions, ever. After pointing out that this policy was not noted on the menu and kindly asked for an exception, I was still refused and she reiterated the restaurant policy as if I didn't hear her the second time. Clearly unhappy but hungry, I ordered a $14 less expensive pizza instead. After a moment to ponder, this woman was willing to give up $14 on a dinner plate over a small house salad? You're kidding. I'm sorry, but this is Rochester. Not a high end restaurant in Manhattan. I excused myself from the table and asked our hostess if she could send a manager over to our table. I was lost for words when Valerie stood over our table and asked "what the problem was". I tried to state my case from a customer service stand point only to be verbally assaulted with their restaurant policy. She would not listen to my concerns but spoke over me instead. I had to interrupt her and ask her for the check for our beverages and asked her to cancel our dinner order. Valerie continued her rude remarks with a "Fine", dropped off our check and began slamming silverware and cabinets located on the side of our table until we left our table. The word unprofessional does not give justice to the level of service at this establishment. On a lighter note, my boyfriend and I went to Rooney's instead and enjoyed a wonderful meal and exceptional service. read more

Oh my goodness!! Probably one of the BEST Italian places I've ever been to. Everything we ordered was incredible. We went for lunch and I cannot WAIT to go back for a dinner date. We got the charred bread with ricotta (amazing) and a pizza and the special they had. Everything was made perfectly and I couldn't have asked for anything better. Plus the cocktails were awesome read more