Best Pizza Slice
Pontillo's PizzeriasMany area locations; pontillospizza.com
Best Specialty Pizza
Napa Wood Fired Pizzeria573 S. Clinton Ave. 232-8558 | 687 Moseley Road, Fairport. 223-5250 | napawoodfired.com
Best Gourmet Burger
The Gate House 274 N. Goodman St. (in Village Gate). 473-2090. thegatehousecafe.com.
Best Ribs
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que99 Court St. 325-7090. dinosaurbarbque.com.
Best Hots
Dogtown 691 Monroe Ave. 271-6620. dogtownhots.com.
Best Bar Food
The Distillery Many area locations; thedistillery.com.
Best Sandwich
DiBella's Old-Fashioned Submarines Many area locations; dibellas.com.
Best Breakfast Sandwich
South Wedge Diner 880 S. Clinton Ave. 271-3190. Southwedgediner.com.
Best Place for Brunch
Jines Restaurant658 Park Ave. 461-1280. Jinesrestaurant.com.
Best Place for Take-Out
Wegmans Many area locations; wegmans.com.
Best Seafood
Palmer's Meat and Seafood Market 900 Jefferson Road. 424-3210. palmerfoods.com.
Best Egg Roll
Chen Garden1750 Monroe Ave. 241-3070. chengarden.com.
Best Noodles
Aja Noodle Co. 42 Perinton Hills, Fairport. 477-7000 | 2602 Elmwood Ave. 244-1052 | ajanoodle.com.
Best Sushi
California Rollin' Sushi Bar 274 N. Goodman St. (in Village Gate). 271-8990 | Port of Rochester, 1000 N. River St. 271-8920 | californiarollin.com.
Best Buffet
Mario's 2740 Monroe Ave. 271-1111. mariosit.com.
Best Pasta
Pasta Villa1313 E. Ridge Road. 266-2676. thepastavilla.com.
Best Nachos
Salena's Mexican Restaurant 302 N. Goodman St. (in Village Gate). 256-5980. salenas.com.
Best Taco
John's Tex-Mex Eatery 489 South Ave. 232-5830.
Best Vegetarian Options
Aladdin's Natural Eatery 646 Monroe Ave. 442-5000 | 280 Exchange Blvd. 319-3217 | 8 Schoen Place. 264-9000 | aladdinsonline.com.
Best Soup
Nathan's Soup and Salad 691 Park Ave. 461-3016 | 900 Jefferson Road, Building 3. 424-4551 | 8 Lomb Memorial Drive, RIT | nathanssoupandsalad.com.
Best Coffee Shop
Java's Café16 Gibbs St. 232-4820 | Wallace Memorial Library, RIT. 475-4770 | Brick Lounge, Monroe Community College. 292-8312 | javascafe.com.
Best Cupcakes
Sugar Mountain Bake Shoppe 258 Alexander St. 319-5001 | 1697 Monroe Ave. 270-4832 |sugarmountainbakeshoppe.com.
Best Cheap Eats
Aladdin's Natural Eatery 646 Monroe Ave. 442-5000 | 280 Exchange Blvd. 319-3217 | 8 Schoen Place. 264-9000 | aladdinsonline.com.
Best Fancy Restaurant
Restaurant 2 Vine24 Winthrop St. 454-6020. 2vine.com.
Best New Restaurant
The Crab Shack749 E. Henrietta Road. 427-7420. crabshackrochester.com.
Best Jewelry Store
Mann's Jewelers 2945 Monroe Ave. 271-4000. mannsjewelers.com.
Best Gift Shop
Parkleigh215 Park Ave. 800-333-0627. parkleigh.com.
Best Used Car Dealership
Dorschel Automotive GroupMany area locations; dorschel.com.
Best Auto Repair Shop
East Ave Auto1656 East Ave. 271-7610. eastaveauto.com.
Best Store for Sports/Rec Equipment
Fleet Feet 2210 Monroe Ave. 697-3338. fleetfeetrochester.com.
Best Fitness Class
Rochester Athletic ClubMany area locations; rochesterathletic.com.
Best Yoga Instructor
Carly Weis, Breathe Yoga
Best Salon
Scott Miller3340 Monroe Ave. 264-9940. scottmillerstyle.com.
Best Barbershop
South Wedge Barber Shop720 South Ave. 473-5570.
Best Florist
Arena's Florist260 East Ave. 454-3720. arenasflorist.com.
Best Clothing Store
Thread 654 South Ave. 232-7110.
Best Tailor
Aldo's Ladies' and Men's Tailoring 1833 Monroe Ave. 442-6870.
Best Thrift/Secondhand Store
Goodwill of the Finger LakesMany area locations; goodwillfingerlakes.com.
Best Place to Buy Local Art
Artisan Works565 Blossom Road Suite L. 288-7170. artisanworks.net.
Best Tattoo Parlor
Love Hate Tattoo217 1/2 Alexander St. 262-6440. lovehatetattoo.com.
Best Piercing Parlor
Physical Graffiti Tattoo Studio374 1/2 W. Ridge Road. 262-4444. physicalgraffiti.com.
Best Liquor Store
Marketview Liquor 1100 Jefferson Road. 888-427-2480, marketviewliquor.com.
Best Regional Wine
Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Wine Cellars 9749 Middle Road, Hammondsport. 800-320-0735. drfrankwines.com.
Best Local Beer
Rohrbach Brewing Company Brew Pub 3859 Buffalo Road. 594-9800 | Brewery: 97 Railroad St. | rohrbachs.com.
Best Bakery
Savoia Pastry Shoppe2267 Clifford Ave. 482-1130. savoiapastry.com.
Best Farmers Market
Rochester Public Market280 N. Union St. 428-6907. cityofrochester.gov/publicmarket.
Best Geek-Friendly Business
Park Avenue Comics & Games 713 Park Ave. 271-4549. parkavenuecomics.com.
Best Local Bank/Credit Union
ESL Federal Credit UnionMany area locations; esl.org.
Best Local Radio Personality
Brother Wease, WFXF-FM 95.1
Best Local Radio Show
"Spezzano & Sandy" WPXY-FM 97.9
Best Radio Station
WBER-FM90.5
Best Local TV News Station
WHAM Channel 13
Best Local TV News Reporter
Don Alhart, WHAM Channel 13
Best Local TV Weatherperson
Scott Hetsko, WROC Channel 8
Best Local News Story of 2011
Abby Wambach
Best Local News Story Ignored in 2011
Hydrofracking
Best Local Blog
The Rochester NY Pizza Blog(rochesternypizza.blogspot.com)
Best Local Facebook Account
Sugar Mountain Bake Shoppe
Best Local Commercial Jingle
Lori's Natural Foods 900 Jefferson Road. 424-2323. lorisnatural.com.
Best Local Politician
Robert Duffy
Best Local Visionary
Tom Golisano
Best Local Activist Group
Planned Parenthood - Rochester/Syracuse Region
Best Local Nonprofit Organization
Lollypop Farm
Best Local Sports Team
Rochester Red Wings
Best Local Mascot
Spike and Mittsy, Rochester Red Wings
Best Local Landmark
George Eastman House
Best Outdoor Art
M&T Bank Clothesline Art Festival, Memorial Art Gallery
Best Place to Take an Out-of-Towner
Wegmans
Best Place to Spot a Local Celebrity
Wegmans
Best Original Band
Lobster Quadrille
Best Cover Band
Uncle Plum
Best New Band
Thunder Body
Best Solo Musician
Dave McGrath
Best Live Music Venue
Water Street Music Hall
Best Club DJ
DJ Jon Herbert
Best Karaoke
Jeremiah's Tavern (Tuesdays & Fridays 9 p.m.)
Best Music Concert of 2011
Elton John, Blue Cross Arena
Best Local Theater Production of 2011
"The Music Man," Geva Theatre Center
Best Local Theater Company
Geva Theatre Center
Best Local Improv Comedy Troupe
Geva Comedy Improv
Best Art Gallery/Museum
Memorial Art Gallery
Best Art Exhibit of 2011
"Norman Rockwell: Behind the Camera," George Eastman House
Best Local Artist
Albert Paley
Best Local Photographer
Gerry Szymanski
Best Local Filmmaker
Matthew Ehlers
Best Local Film Festival
ImageOut Lesbian & Gay Film & Video Festival
Best Local Festival
Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival
Best Local Parade
Rochester St. Patrick's Parade
Best Local Drag Performer
Pandora Boxx
Best New Bar/Club
Marshall Street Bar & Grill 81 Marshall St. 325-2191. marshallstreetbarandgrill.com.
Best Bar for Beer
Tap & Mallet 381 Gregory St. 473-0503. tapandmallet.com.
Best Bar for Wine
Chocolate & Vines 757 University Ave. 340-6362. chocolateandvines.com.
Best Specialty Drinks
Good Luck 50 Anderson Ave. 340-6161. restaurantgoodluck.com.
Best Bartender
Phil Rawleigh, Lux Lounge
Best Dance Club
Tilt Nightclub and Ultralounge 444 Central Ave. 232-8440. tiltroc.com.
Best Sports Bar
The Distillery Many area locations; thedistillery.com.
Best Neighborhood Bar
Jeremiah's Tavern 1104 Monroe Ave. 461-1313. jeremiahstavern.com.
Best Drink Specials
Lux Lounge 666 South Ave. 232-9030. lux666.com.
Best Place for a Date
The Little Theatre 240 East Ave. 258-0444. thelittle.org.
Best Non-Bar Hangout
Boulder Coffee Co. Many area locations; bouldercoffeeco.com.
Comments for "BEST OF ROCHESTER 2011: Readers' choices" (6)
City Newspaper is not responsible for the content of these comments. City Newspaper reserves the right to remove comments at their discretion.
Kath said on Nov. 02, 2011 at 12:57pm
Boy, does this list make all of us look provincial: Elton John? Norman Rockwell? The Crab Shack? Don Alhart? The Music Man? Where is our collective vision and creativity?
Joe said on Nov. 02, 2011 at 3:23pm
Kath is typical elite style reader. Where is vision and creativity? Just because certain successful types have past the test of time they no longer can be best? Really? Elton John show not best? Everyone who went would beg to differ but you must have been to that gig at a much smaller venue that only held 50 smart folk. Don Alhart not good enough newscaster? Come on and eat the rest of the rabble honey. Its all good
Suze said on Nov. 02, 2011 at 3:25pm
Mediocrity at its best! Most of the best things in Rochester are kept secret.
Tim said on Nov. 03, 2011 at 11:14am
Ever notice how the winners every year are companies that advertise with City Newspaper? I think there is definitely some favoritism going on. It would be nice to see the actual number of votes that each contestant received because it seems like theres either some serious ballot stuffing going on (It's pretty easy to fool Survey Monkey if you want to vote multiple times for a certain candidate) or City Newspaper themselves are just choosing who ever advertises most with them. To make it 100% fair, they should graphs and numbers of how many votes each candidate has, and it should be IP based or do it via a Facebook or Twitter log in, where people can only vote one time and thats it.
Eric said on Nov. 03, 2011 at 11:18am
Tim: There is absolutely no favortism showed to anyone during the Best Of readers' poll. We take this very seriously -- what you see are the results of the readers votes, and we watch for ballot stuffing and discount any suspect ballots. We do not share actual voting numbers because, frankly, we do not think that's fair to the third- and fourth-place finishers. There's no conspiracy here. This is how the people vote, plain and simple.
jjj said on Nov. 08, 2011 at 11:03am
Nothing against Pontillo's, but come on, there are some really decent pizza places but I don't think the average Joe can tell the difference...I guess if everything was compared to frozen Pontillo's would be much better..
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