“Rochester has everything (if you know where to look)! From the Public Market to the young, enthusiastic art scene to the amazing selection of food, you can find it here. Yet, despite the quality of the city, it maintains a level of intimacy reminiscent of a much smaller town. I grew up in Elmira Heights, and everywhere you went, you’d bump into someone you knew.

“Same goes for Rochester. I cannot go to the market on a Saturday morning without seeing at least half a dozen familiar faces, sometimes quadruple that many. There have been so many times I’ve stopped in for a slice at Pizza Stop, injera and lentils at Natural Oasis, or a mouthwatering cocktail at Good Luck, the Owl House, or Cheshire and ended up sitting right next to a friend (occasionally when they’re on a really awkward date!).

“Hedonist, VSW, Village Gate, the MAG, Dogtown, Joe Bean, Manhattan Square Park ice skating, MuCCC, Geva, Lento, Just Juice, The Strong Museum of Play, Eastman, food trucks!, The Little, The Dryden, Breathe Yoga, Highland Park, Mt. Hope, disc golf!, Durand Eastman, Charlotte, Frontier Field, High Falls, ARTISANworks, the Cinema Theater, Hot Shots volleyball, RoCo, The Yards, Flour City Bread Co., Flour City Pasta, Java’s, the Canal Trail, the zoo, Seabreeze, Marge’s, Lux, the Bug Jar, Skylark, Roc Brewing, Black Button Distilling (don’t get me going down the alcohol road, for it is long and winding)…

“Tell me, with a friendly face around every corner to top off that list, what are we missing? Why would you want to live anywhere else?”

—Jake Massey, 19th Ward; Rachael Hetzel, Culver-Merchants neighborhood
Pistachio Press