"rochester" news and stories

A weekly look at the draft selection in beer-friendly bars across the country.

As the mid-Atlantic region gets buried under its second major snowstorm in the past week, people have been tossing around words like "snowmageddon" and "snowpocalypse," but in parts of New York state a foot of snow or more a day is just business as usual. So for this week's What's On Tap, we took the opportunity to explore America's second snowiest city (according to NSIDC.org): Rochester, N.Y.

For the past 20 years, the Old Toad has been a mainstay in the Rochester area and even has a regional claim to fame as the first bar in the eastern U.S. to serve cask ale. "We're a British-inspired pub," says bar manager Kevin Roman, explaining the reason for selling beer the way they do across the pond. "The Rochester community has taken to it. We see a lot of demand for cask."

But what do Rochesterians drink in snowy weather? The rest of the East Coast wants to know!

"During this time of year people are really interested in porters and stouts," Roman explains. "Maltier, heavier beers. Darker stuff." Turns out in cold weather, patrons demand a little more oomph from their brews. Stouts seem to be the logical selection, but IPAs are also popular, with their added hoppy bite.

See what the Old Toad keeps on draft for their snow-fairing drinkers after the jump...

A Rochester staple, the garbage plate is a whopping stack of (get ready): two hamburger patties and two sides (home fries, macaroni salad, or beans), mixed with ketchup and hot sauce, with a roll on the side for good measure. It originated at Nick Tahou Hots' restaurant over 50 years ago - y'know, before we were worried about stuff like obesity and heart attacks. College kids used to come in and ask for a dish with "all the garbage" on it.

But - gasp - a restaurant in Philly has added the Plate to its menu, with a few changes: fries and mustard pan sauce replace the traditional home fries and hot sauce. Could it be as bad - er, good - as the original?