I’m one of those Rochester natives who moved away for college (although I did come back to upstate New York for grad school at SU immediately afterward) and then lived in a big city (the D.C. metro area) for several years before realizing that I wanted to return to my hometown. Back when I was in my early 20s, I never thought that would happen!

This time around, I (and my husband) have lived here since 2007. Not only is Rochester a great place to raise a family, but it also boasts many wonderful arts/cultural offerings, great restaurants, plenty of festivals, excellent museums, eclectic shopping, short commutes, affordable housing, beautiful parks… It’s a big list! I am not a fan of the snow, but … at least it makes us appreciate the nice weather more, right? (Yeah … I’ll just keep telling myself that.) And it can be beautiful. That is, before it turns into slush. But let’s put slush aside for now.

Some of my favorite places in Rochester (including the suburbs in that definition) are:

Restaurants/Food: Wegmans, Thali of India, Tap & Mallet, Edibles, Han Noodle Bar, Chocolate & Vines, Voula’s Greek Sweets, Abbott’s, Bazil, Hogan’s Hideaway, Ken’s Pizza Corner, Bagel Land & Brownstein’s for bagels, Stever’s Candies, JonJohn’s Bakery, Malek’s Brighton Bakery, Cheesy Eddie’s…

Shopping: Parkleigh, Craft Company No. 6, Eleventh Hour, Archimage, One Hip Chic, Dorje Adornments… And also Goodwill, and garage sales, and Craigslist!