I did not know about this seafood place until my student booked this to celebrate his thesis defense. The place is so hidden that you may walk by without noticing it. The food is certainly noteworthy. We had seafood salad (ceviche style), little neck clams, seafood chowder, mussels, duck foia gras, all perfect to share. The best part: you watch the food made right in front of you, and by two unique steam pots with stream pipes. There is absolutely no smoke.
I’ve been expecting this restaurant high but didn’t think it’s as delicious as other reviewers wrote.The freshness taste and seasoning of the food still have a large space to be improved. I think the seafood was fresh but their cooking method didn’t stimulate its freshness taste. I could tasted all the components they used in food.Dishes were salty for me but not unbearable. The price was decent and the service was awesome.Come on Rochester! Let’s get some good restaurants with delicate seasoning and creativities!
We had a really good time at Rella! You CAN make a reservation, although I think most people in the community don't realize this! We made a reservation which was very helpful since they have very little seating (just at the bar where you can see in to the kitchen). The menu is very small and I think, changes frequently. The food was really really good. Sort of like upscale bar food. Our favorites were the oysters (and oysters with tuna), the shrimp louie salad, and the egg salad sandwiches with smoked salmon. I know it doesn't sound special, but it is very elevated. My one complaint is that I don't feel like that they are great with allergies. The waiter didn't seem to know 100% or feel like he needed to ask the chefs, which would have been helpful. I will say though everything we got was really good and the experience was really unique!
Visited this restaurant yesterday for date night -- we were impressed across the board. Calling the food outstanding feels like it falls short of just how good it actually was -- we were just blown away. We ended up sharing all the food which was 2 small appetizers, 3 meals, and 2 desserts. We had a couple glasses of wine throughout the entire meal as well.When we got there we told the waiter we were going to share each meal and he took it upon himself to just bring one thing out at a time. When we were finished with each dish he took it away and then a short time later our next one arrived. We thought that was awesome that he read the situation and adjusted. Everything is made to order, and we found the price very reasonable.We found the atmosphere very laid back. The restaurant only seats around 16 people, so the amount of staff required is small. There was zero hustle-and-bustle going on, and the waiter was able to be very attentive to all of the patrons, and even had time to engage in short conversations as time allowed. Also there was awesome music playing in the background -- Bob Dylan and the like.Couple suggestions if you're thinking about visiting -- first thing is stop thinking about visiting and do it, and then take the time to call and make a reservation because of their low capacity. We don't think you'll regret it.
I would have given this unique gem 5 stars hands-down if it weren't for the haughty waiter. I felt almost shamed for asking a question about the wine list and he appeared to be offended when we asked him to recommend something from the menu. Otherwise, the service was good, delicious food and wonderful ambiance.
*Disclaimer: Though there is no indication of this on Google and no website stating it, you DO need a reservation. I saw a couple turned away at the door because they couldn't fit them on a Saturday night.*Walking in I thought this place was cute, the limited seating at the bar only was interesting. I thought that this would be a fresh dining experience. I was very wrong. There were almost no options for people that are allergic or not into shellfish and at a seafood restaurant I would expect more than that, at least one fresh cooked fish option. We got the only non shellfish options of the night, the duck over salad greens and the smoked salmon sandwiches.The duck was very clearly microwaved as it was quite dry and still cold in the middle. The salad had good dressing. The smoked salmon sandwiches were kind of a joke. I could look into the kitchen and see that the rolls were being stored on top of a toaster oven out in the open a few feet away from where clients were sitting (as it's a very small space). This was just a sandwich with a toasted roll and melted Gouda cheese, they opened up a package of smoked salmon, slapped it on the roll with some pickled veggies and called it a dish. It was served on top of some canned french's potato sticks. Nothing was fresh.You can look into the kitchen and see everything that was happening and it's noteworthy how little space there is set aside to do the cooking, I didn't even see a stove, and there's none of the usual activity you would see happening in a busy kitchen. It appears to me that the reason for this is this restaurant doesn't cook fresh food. They serve cold shellfish and have a couple afterthought options outside of that which you can expect to be microwaved. If you're looking for cold shellfish maybe this place is great. But I was looking for a nice freshly cooked fish dinner so this place was a miss for me.Also if you are worried about Covid, skip it, it's very close seating and no one in the kitchen wears masks or hairnets. Also the bathroom was out of toilet paper but I wouldn't have used it anyways because it was not very clean or even labeled as a bathroom.
Excellent service and minimal pretense until the Executive Chef chastised his Sous (who was doing an exceptional job on our meal) in front of us! Still, a smart and quickly executed menu including Tuna Crostini, skillfully prepared Oysters and King Crab salad! I will definitely go back.
Some places are so good you almost don’t want to leave a review so the secret doesn’t get out. This is easily the most uniquely interesting restaurant in Rochester. I ordered a Shrimp BBQ salad and literally each of the first 15 bites was distinctly different and erupting with daring expressions of ingredients that I scrambled to identify as my senses overloaded with satisfaction. Very generous portions, great staff, very limited seating but worth waiting if you have to. Great chef and he’s accessible to chat while he’s bustling around. Top 3 in Rochester, if not #1.
The food is very good, you MUST try the shrimp roll. You will never find one better! And the salads are incredible. It's a unique place, everyone dines at a boomerang shaped counter facing the kitchen.. No reservations taken and first come, first serve. The chef is right there talking with everyone while he works, very sociable, very energized. You can see (and taste) that he loves his work. We've been there about 4 times? And he greets us warmly when we come in. We will often head over there and if the wait is longer than we have time....we will check in at Rocco's (around the corner!) or Owl House (across the street) which are also good restaurants.
Absolutely incredible. We got nearly everything on the menu (sharing with the table) and every dish was better than the last. Seriously fabulous and ? worth the wait! We almost never leave reviews. It's that good.