My Vegan Guide to Rochester, NY

My trip to Rochester, NY and all of the vegan food I ate, including vegan/vegan-friendly spots, plus recipes cooked up with my amazing vegan host.

At the beginning of March I took a short trip to upstate NY to visit my alma mater. It was five days packed with meetings and sessions, all to do with my doctoral research. But of course, there was loads of good food mixed in as well!

Arriving in Rochester

I flew into Rochester on a Tuesday afternoon and met up with my host, Rachel, for an evening of cooking and eating. Rachel was just about the best host you could possibly imagine – plus she’s vegan! It was so much fun to hang out with her, sharing recipes and hacks, and eating our way through Rochester’s vegan food offerings. She gave me lots of her insider knowledge of the vegan scene in Rochester; most of this post is thanks to her recommendations!

Tuesday: Home Cooked Thai Dinner

For dinner my first night Rachel had planned a three-course affair. We broke into the appetisers soon after walking through her front door: Wegmans’ hummus, carrots, and red peppers. You really can’t go wrong with this classic.

While snacking, we began cooking. The main course was a recipe by Cookie and Kate: Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce over Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Rice. This recipe is definitely a keeper! It’s quite simple, and easily made in larger batches for meal prep – we had leftovers the next day for dinner.

Our three-layer Must-Make Vegan Apple Crumble Tart with Salted Caramel for dessert (recipe from Food Network) was also mouth-wateringly good. We had it for pudding pretty much every single night I was there.

Wednesday Breakfast: Homemade Banana Bread w/Almond Butter

Rachel, the legend she is, had made a batch of homemade vegan banana bread in anticipation of my arrival. Using Oh She Glows’ recipe, it’s a beautiful piece of baking! For breakfast we had a slice each, smothered in Once Again Almond Butter.

Yes, Yes, YES.

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Wednesday Lunch: Natural Oasis Vegan Buffet

The next day, a friend and I went out to lunch at an all-you-can-eat Ethiopian Vegan Buffet. Yes, you read that right. Who knew you could find a vegan buffet of flavourful plant-based foods in downtown Rochester?!

Natural Oasis had a cosy and welcoming feel, and there was plenty of food to dig into ($9 per person, dine-in). We went for quite a late lunch (after 2:30pm) and were actually the only ones there – it was nice to have the place to ourselves! Since we got there towards the end of the buffet, the food was a bit cold. It would’ve tasted even better had it been freshly served, but it did still taste delicious and there was a great variety of options. If you end up going, I’d advise getting there earlier in the day!

Thursday Dinner: Hart’s Local Grocer

For dinner that evening Rachel took me to Hart’s Local Grocer. I’m so sad that Hart’s actually closed down this month. But I am glad that I was able to get in a visit before it did! Rachel had raved about their Vegan Breakfast Wrap ($6.25), filled with tofu, veggies, and an amazing sauce. It was all she had promised it would be! We also shared sweet potato waffle fries, and the meal was filling and really hit the spot on a cold winter’s evening. Good ol’ comfort food.

Friday Breakfast: Misfit Doughnuts

The next morning, Rachel and I treated ourselves to a doughnut for breakfast at Misfit Doughnuts. This spot is a must visit if you ever make it to Rochester, NY! The owner is so sweet and welcoming, and I wish I could’ve eaten my way through their whole list of vegan doughnuts.

I asked what their recommendation would be for my first Misfit doughnut experience, and they said I had to go for the Princess Leia doughnut ($3). So I did. I’m not sure why it’s called ‘Princess Leia,’ aside from the fact that the doughnut is covered in white sprinkles…but with its snickerdoodle flavoured filling, the whole thing was a delectable treat!

Friday Lunch: Sinbad’s Mediterranean

I ended up running into a friend that afternoon and we decided to grab lunch, going to Sinbad’s. Mediterranean food can be quite vegan friendly, and this place was no exception. We got the falafel for an appetiser ($7.75), and because I love falafel so much I also went for the falafel wrap for my main meal ($7.50) with falafel patties, tomatoes, lettuce, and banana peppers. It was easily made vegan by substituting the tahini yogurt dressing with hummus. The falafel patties were crispy on the outside and had great flavour.

Friday Dinner: Stromboli’s

To round out epic day of eating, another friend and I went to Stromboli’s for dinner. If you’ve never heard of a stromboli, it’s a doughy turnover usually filled with cheese and meat.

I couldn’t even fathom a vegan boli. But Stromboli’s actually has a full vegan menu! Rachel had highly recommended their Vegan Buffalo Cauliflower Boli ($10), so I went with it. It really was just a lot of dough packed with cauliflower in a slightly spicy and flavourful buffalo sauce. It’s DELICIOUS.

Saturday Lunch: The Red Fern

I ended my (unofficial) Rochester vegan tour by hitting up The Red Fern with Rachel. After perusing the menu, I decided to get the most Rochester-sounding item on the menu: the ‘Compost Plate’ ($12.50), aka a vegan version of the Rochester Garbage Plate.

The Garbage Plate is a Rochester tradition that combines several comfort food items into one entrée. You can read a more accurate description here, if you’re really curious. I actually never had one during the four years I lived in Rochester. It didn’t sound all that appetising to me.

But this ‘Compost Plate’ absolutely did! Mac salad, sweet potato salad, spicy meat sauce, balsamic field greens, focaccia toast, buffalo tempeh – a plate packed with plant-based goodness. It all tasted incredible. Plus, I just love the cleverness of the name.

Rachel got a plate of mac n’ cheese nachos, which were also delicious. For pudding I agonised over the counter of sweets which all looked insane(ly tasty). We went for the Rosewater Brownie ($4.25), which had a beautiful texture and rich taste.

Final Thoughts

I left Rochester before I started eating a plant-based vegan diet, but I never would have imagined the city to be such a vegan-happening place. If you ever find yourself in upstate NY, I hope you can pop by Rochester and check out some of these spots for yourself!