Fine Dining at Pescara in Rochester
Do you have a go-to special occasion restaurant? A place you know you can count on for impeccable service, quiet relaxed atmosphere, and over-the-top food? As I’ve written here before, Newt’s North is our Friday night tradition. But when we have something special to celebrate – besides waking up in the morning – we book a table at Pescara.
Located on the first floor of the Double-Tree Hotel at 150 South Broadway in downtown Rochester, Pescara is, in my opinion, Rochester’s preeminent seafood restaurant. And before you click away because you despise all things seafood, understand they also offer steaks, veal, and pasta.
Compared to a chain restaurant Pescara’s dinner menu is limited. You won’t find page after page of salad and appetizer options, or beef selections from every quarter of the cow. Neither will you find a dessert option made with a blonde brownie, chocolate syrup, and whipped cream.
What Pescara’s menu does offer is a selection of carefully selected dishes created from the freshest of ingredients which – in the case of their seafood options and as described on their website – are so fresh they were still swimming the day before.
Starters
If I’m firing up the Big Green Egg at home I’ll grill steaks or smoke ribs, but when I go to Pescara I’m thinking one thing; seafood. And I always start with the Tuna Tartare. I know, I know, “Eat raw tuna?” you exclaim, “have you lost your mind?”
Calm yourself – and don’t think of it as raw fish. Instead, imagine it’s the day after an evening of fine dining, one in which you couldn’t eat your entire beef tenderloin filet and now you’re snacking on the cold leftovers.
The Tuna Tartare appetizer at Pescara is like that cold tenderloin but infinitely better; tidbits of tender tuna hay-stacked together with ripe avocado, capers, and cilantro. Your plate comes with a tiny rolled ball of wasabi, thinly sliced pickled ginger, a bit of soy sauce and some wonderfully salty thin chips. I pair it with a nice glass of Cabernet – because that’s all I drink. Feel free to have whatever you want.
Pescara’s small plate menu includes such delights as Fresh Oysters, Lobster Bisque, Bang-Bang Calamari, Crab and Lobster Rangoon, Mussels and Jumbo Smoked Shrimp.
The Entrees
Salads
If you’re a light eater the menu includes a variety of salads from Caesar to Mixed Greens to Green Apples and Amablu Cheese to their Crab Louie which is topped with hard-cooked eggs, cucumber, Kumato tomato, jumbo lump crab, snow crab claws and Russian dressing.
You can also add grilled chicken, grilled shrimp or grilled salmon to any of the salads.
Beef and Veal
For those of you not overly fond of seafood Pescara offers you a Bone in Veal chop, a Tenderloin Fillet and a New York Strip. Either of the beef selections will be char-grilled to perfection and topped with your choice of seven different sauces like Fond Rouge (a red wine butter sauce), Chimichurri or Truffle Butter.
Seafood
Obviously, this is where Pescara excels and their menu will leave you wishing you were a *ruminant (*having more than one stomach;-)
Their Signature Dishes include such choices as Ginger-Coriander Crusted Ahi Tuna, Insignia Scallops, Grilled Salmon and Cioppino (pronounced Cho-pee-no), which is a combination of jumbo shrimp, scallops, fresh white fish, crabs, and mussels, served with grilled crostini. (Cioppino is Italian for fish stew; which I imagine, is why they call it Cioppino on the menu.)
None of the eight Signature Dishes sound like what you’re craving? You can also order a-la-carte and choose from; Tuna, Bronzini, Arctic Char, Halibut, Snapper, Swordfish, Mahi-Mahi, Salmon, Scallops or Lobster Tail. Then decide to have it char-grilled, sautéed or broiled and then choose from a selection of nine different sauces.
The last time we dined at Pescara I opted for the a-la-carte sautéed Halibut with Chimichurri sauce and a side of Smoked Gouda Hash Browns. And because I’m a glutton, I finished the evening with Rum Pecan Bread Pudding. My wife had to wheel me to the car with a two-wheel hand-truck, but it was worth it.
The Drink
Pescara’s wine list is extensive and the General Manager, Xavi Torres, is a Certified Sommelier. And this for me as much for you, Sommelier is pronounced Som-il-yay. If you’re having trouble choosing a wine it’s always better to ask for the Som-il-yay as opposed to “the wine guy.”
I’ll not even attempt to pretend I know anything about wine, other than I like heavy reds and once shared a bottle of Cake Bread Cabernet. If you’d like to learn and be more adventuresome in your wine selections, you could hardly choose a better place in Rochester for that education.
The bar menu also includes a wonderful selection of single malt scotch and cognac (if you’re a ladies man). You’ll also find some unusual cocktail concoctions like; a Sour Flower made with Absolut Hibiscus, house-made lemonade, and blood orange puree; or a Boulevardier which is a combination of Knob Creek Single Barrel Reserve, Aperol (a milder version of Campari) and sweet vermouth.
That’s a Wrap – Almost
I’ve only touched on Pescara’s wonderful dinner menu, but they’re also open for breakfast, lunch and late night snacking – with an awesome bar menu. Check out their entire menu right here.
If you’re looking for a restaurant to celebrate a special occasion, entertain guests or business associates or just because you like amazing food, artfully prepared and presented by a top-notch wait-staff – you’ll want to check out Pescara.
Your Turn
Tried something at Pescara you think others should know about? By all means, let us know in the comments section below.