As it turns out, we were here for the very last time since during our meal our server announced that the restaurant would be closing permanently the next day ... and it did! It's really a shame, such a wonderful Rochester tradition closing after all these years!
Amy Cheng
I’m only writing a review because I think all these 5 star reviews must be fake.We had the New York strip… zero seasoning. Tasted just like meat. Not even a little salt. Had a little brown sauce under it on the plate.Prime rib was huge. But almost completely raw. We ordered medium.Mashed potatoes… again no seasoning. Texture was good. But no flavor.Asparagus had no seasoning, just steam.Then we had the “special” turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and a tablespoon of cranberry sauce. This was good. But the presentation was odd. Was all in a pile, layered I suppose.The place smelled like sewage or a dry drain when arrived. But it had just opened so I figured maybe they had a dry drain. And based on the reviews we were excited to try it. Unfortunately we won’t go back.I think it’s great so many people enjoy it. But this was just awful. And we had a guest from out of town with us.
franksatt
Great rating but atmosphere and food didn't live up to the rating....staff was friendly and efficient.... facility is very dark and not inviting.
Brandon Moreno
I took my client here while I was in town. I have to say that this was some of the best service but I've had in a very long time. Everybody was amazingly courteous and right there for everything we needed without us even having to ask. If you like scallops, these were some of the most lottery delicious scallops I've ever had my life. Do yourself a favor and give these folks a visit.
Renee J
Food was excellent. Service was great from beginning to end. Will definitely go again!
Katie Magliocco
Food was fantastic and service was above and beyond. We went in tonight for prime rib. I ended up having the fish fry but my husband ordered the prime rib. He shared it with my daughter. It was fantastic and so was the fish. Also had the stuffed mushrooms as an appetizer, everything was phenomenal. Our servers were absolutely wonderful.
Paul Arnold
My wife and myself visited on a Saturday evening. Our first impression was that this place is LOUD. It was hard to have a conversation with the person sitting across from you, and difficult to hear what the server was saying. Our server, Nicky, was attentive and efficient.We started off with the artichoke French which was excellent. The garden salad was also very good, with the dressings and extra garnishes served on the side being a nice touch.I ordered the Filet Mignon medium rare. Perhaps it was a little more done than that, but still quite tender and juicy. It was good.Now for the bad news. My wife ordered the small prime rib cooked medium. It came out quite rare. But that wasn't the worst of it. This was the toughest prime rib either of us had ever encountered, My wife actually passed her plate over to me a couple times for help trying to cut it. You ended up tearing it apart. We should have sent it back, but then you end up eating your meals at 2 different times. It's damned if you do, and damned if you don't. We mentioned it to our server, but struggled through to the end.Altogether, with 3 drinks the dinner for 2 ended up costing $130. Given our experience, I don't think we will be returning.
paulaY7701DF
My wife and myself visited on a Saturday evening. Our first impression was that this place is LOUD. It was hard to have a conversation with the person sitting across from you, and difficult to hear what the server was saying. Our server, Nicky, was attentive and efficient. We started off with the artichoke French which was excellent. The garden salad was also very good, with the dressings and extra garnishes served on the side being a nice touch. I ordered the Filet Mignon medium rare. Perhaps it was a little more done than that, but still quite tender and juicy. It was good. Now for the bad news. My wife ordered the small prime rib cooked medium. It came out quite rare. But that wasn't the worst of it. This was the toughest prime rib either of us had ever encountered, My wife actually passed her plate over to me a couple times for help trying to cut it. You ended up tearing it apart. We should have sent it back, but then you end up eating your meals at 2 different times. It's damned if you do, and damned if you don't. We mentioned it to our server, but struggled through to the end. Altogether, with 3 drinks the dinner for 2 ended up costing $130 + tip. Given our experience, I don't think we will be returning.
Michele Cunningham
The food is so delicious here! Myself and my partner love this place. Great service.And extra- I thought my purse was stolen, and after 2 days, I went on to see if maybe they did have it after all, they DID! Everything in it was untouched; my cash, hundred$ credit cards, etcSo refreshing, the honestly and care they took. So we decided to thank them last night by spending that $100 gc there and then some.PS. The prime rib is the BEST! the chicken French, so perfect! The scallops mmmm delicious.
RobasaurusRex
I wanted a traditional steak dinner for my birthday. During my first visit here, on New Year's eve with friends, we'd had an excellent meal. So I picked Grinnell's instead of Delmonico's, which I think is one of most reliable places to get a very good meal with a flavorful and well-prepared steak. We somehow got charged $23 for two $7 garden salads with hot bacon dressing that cost an extra $2. Both salads came with a truly minuscule amount of dressing. One of my companion's soup was served cold and he got up to find someone to complain to when our waiter didn't come back in a reasonable time. My Delmonico steak was not bad, but it was "medium rare" and not the "medium" I'd asked for. It was also considerably smaller, more expensive and less flavorful than what I would have gotten at Delmonico's. Our waiter could have been more attentive and I was very annoyed that he didn't box up my baked potato with my leftover steak. I'd obviously only eaten one-half of it and had wanted to bring it home. They'd boxed up my leftover potato on my previous visit. Our waiter also never bothered to see if I wanted a second soda, which I did because three-quarters of my glass was filled with ice. I had to use valet parking on both visits, which I don't like. Otherwise our meals were generally good and we all really liked the garlic bread, which they were very generous with. This was my second and final visit to Grinnell's because I expect better service and attention to detail when I go to an expensive restaurant.
Shrimp Scampi was delicious, service was great. It was a wonderful New Years Eve dinner!
David Ferris
In all my very many years of living in Rochester, and it’s over 60. I have never been to this fine establishment once. Tonight on my wife’s and my anniversary she saw a TV add for here. I told her then let’s go. I have found out that for a huge part of my life I have made a huge mistake. The service is impeccable, the food was ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC. Don’t be me and make the mistake, this is Rochester’s gem. If I could give 10 stars I would.
Michele Wemett
Our family was there to celebrate a birthday on 11/15/22. We were treated very respectfully and graciously. Our delicious appetizers were stuffed mushrooms and artichoke French. For entrees, we had the infamous and wonderful liver, the NY Strip (x2) and the lighter fare Chopped sirloin. Thank you for a heavenly meal.
Ben seekins
The food was superb, with excellent service and flawless atmosphere. Highly recommend!!
Anthony McCabe
Outstanding classic Italian food at reasonable prices. Totally underrated - it took me too long to find this place! Too many Italian restaurants try so hard to integrate Americanized nouveau culinary school nonsense into Italian cuisine... This restaurant (like Agatina in Greece) doesn't try and reinvent the Italian wheel and I'm here for it! Just delicious traditional recipes
As it turns out, we were here for the very last time since during our meal our server announced that the restaurant would be closing permanently the next day ... and it did! It's really a shame, such a wonderful Rochester tradition closing after all these years!
I’m only writing a review because I think all these 5 star reviews must be fake.We had the New York strip… zero seasoning. Tasted just like meat. Not even a little salt. Had a little brown sauce under it on the plate.Prime rib was huge. But almost completely raw. We ordered medium.Mashed potatoes… again no seasoning. Texture was good. But no flavor.Asparagus had no seasoning, just steam.Then we had the “special” turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and a tablespoon of cranberry sauce. This was good. But the presentation was odd. Was all in a pile, layered I suppose.The place smelled like sewage or a dry drain when arrived. But it had just opened so I figured maybe they had a dry drain. And based on the reviews we were excited to try it. Unfortunately we won’t go back.I think it’s great so many people enjoy it. But this was just awful. And we had a guest from out of town with us.
Great rating but atmosphere and food didn't live up to the rating....staff was friendly and efficient.... facility is very dark and not inviting.
I took my client here while I was in town. I have to say that this was some of the best service but I've had in a very long time. Everybody was amazingly courteous and right there for everything we needed without us even having to ask. If you like scallops, these were some of the most lottery delicious scallops I've ever had my life. Do yourself a favor and give these folks a visit.
Food was excellent. Service was great from beginning to end. Will definitely go again!
Food was fantastic and service was above and beyond. We went in tonight for prime rib. I ended up having the fish fry but my husband ordered the prime rib. He shared it with my daughter. It was fantastic and so was the fish. Also had the stuffed mushrooms as an appetizer, everything was phenomenal. Our servers were absolutely wonderful.
My wife and myself visited on a Saturday evening. Our first impression was that this place is LOUD. It was hard to have a conversation with the person sitting across from you, and difficult to hear what the server was saying. Our server, Nicky, was attentive and efficient.We started off with the artichoke French which was excellent. The garden salad was also very good, with the dressings and extra garnishes served on the side being a nice touch.I ordered the Filet Mignon medium rare. Perhaps it was a little more done than that, but still quite tender and juicy. It was good.Now for the bad news. My wife ordered the small prime rib cooked medium. It came out quite rare. But that wasn't the worst of it. This was the toughest prime rib either of us had ever encountered, My wife actually passed her plate over to me a couple times for help trying to cut it. You ended up tearing it apart. We should have sent it back, but then you end up eating your meals at 2 different times. It's damned if you do, and damned if you don't. We mentioned it to our server, but struggled through to the end.Altogether, with 3 drinks the dinner for 2 ended up costing $130. Given our experience, I don't think we will be returning.
My wife and myself visited on a Saturday evening. Our first impression was that this place is LOUD. It was hard to have a conversation with the person sitting across from you, and difficult to hear what the server was saying. Our server, Nicky, was attentive and efficient. We started off with the artichoke French which was excellent. The garden salad was also very good, with the dressings and extra garnishes served on the side being a nice touch. I ordered the Filet Mignon medium rare. Perhaps it was a little more done than that, but still quite tender and juicy. It was good. Now for the bad news. My wife ordered the small prime rib cooked medium. It came out quite rare. But that wasn't the worst of it. This was the toughest prime rib either of us had ever encountered, My wife actually passed her plate over to me a couple times for help trying to cut it. You ended up tearing it apart. We should have sent it back, but then you end up eating your meals at 2 different times. It's damned if you do, and damned if you don't. We mentioned it to our server, but struggled through to the end. Altogether, with 3 drinks the dinner for 2 ended up costing $130 + tip. Given our experience, I don't think we will be returning.
The food is so delicious here! Myself and my partner love this place. Great service.And extra- I thought my purse was stolen, and after 2 days, I went on to see if maybe they did have it after all, they DID! Everything in it was untouched; my cash, hundred$ credit cards, etcSo refreshing, the honestly and care they took. So we decided to thank them last night by spending that $100 gc there and then some.PS. The prime rib is the BEST! the chicken French, so perfect! The scallops mmmm delicious.
I wanted a traditional steak dinner for my birthday. During my first visit here, on New Year's eve with friends, we'd had an excellent meal. So I picked Grinnell's instead of Delmonico's, which I think is one of most reliable places to get a very good meal with a flavorful and well-prepared steak. We somehow got charged $23 for two $7 garden salads with hot bacon dressing that cost an extra $2. Both salads came with a truly minuscule amount of dressing. One of my companion's soup was served cold and he got up to find someone to complain to when our waiter didn't come back in a reasonable time. My Delmonico steak was not bad, but it was "medium rare" and not the "medium" I'd asked for. It was also considerably smaller, more expensive and less flavorful than what I would have gotten at Delmonico's. Our waiter could have been more attentive and I was very annoyed that he didn't box up my baked potato with my leftover steak. I'd obviously only eaten one-half of it and had wanted to bring it home. They'd boxed up my leftover potato on my previous visit. Our waiter also never bothered to see if I wanted a second soda, which I did because three-quarters of my glass was filled with ice. I had to use valet parking on both visits, which I don't like. Otherwise our meals were generally good and we all really liked the garlic bread, which they were very generous with. This was my second and final visit to Grinnell's because I expect better service and attention to detail when I go to an expensive restaurant.
Restaurantji Recommends
Shrimp Scampi was delicious, service was great. It was a wonderful New Years Eve dinner!
In all my very many years of living in Rochester, and it’s over 60. I have never been to this fine establishment once. Tonight on my wife’s and my anniversary she saw a TV add for here. I told her then let’s go. I have found out that for a huge part of my life I have made a huge mistake. The service is impeccable, the food was ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC. Don’t be me and make the mistake, this is Rochester’s gem. If I could give 10 stars I would.
Our family was there to celebrate a birthday on 11/15/22. We were treated very respectfully and graciously. Our delicious appetizers were stuffed mushrooms and artichoke French. For entrees, we had the infamous and wonderful liver, the NY Strip (x2) and the lighter fare Chopped sirloin. Thank you for a heavenly meal.
The food was superb, with excellent service and flawless atmosphere. Highly recommend!!
Outstanding classic Italian food at reasonable prices. Totally underrated - it took me too long to find this place! Too many Italian restaurants try so hard to integrate Americanized nouveau culinary school nonsense into Italian cuisine... This restaurant (like Agatina in Greece) doesn't try and reinvent the Italian wheel and I'm here for it! Just delicious traditional recipes