Donovan Real Estate Services

Seeing as it’s both Taco Tuesday and Cinco de Mayo, I’m excited to recommend Bitter Honey today. Opened in 2017, Bitter Honey is another incredible creation by Josh Miles. Located on Railroad Street by the Rochester Public Market, Bitter Honey has a unique offering for customers. Bartender Zach Mikida has traveled to Mexico over a dozen times and knows more about tequila and mezcal than anyone in town, and the corn tortillas are hand-made through a process call nixtamalization. The results are the freshest possible tortillas you can get in Western New York.

This sets up the taco-focused menu very nicely. Bitter Honey is offering taco kits that will feed 4-6 people (meaning leftovers for smaller households) to help with efficient ordering. I always go for Barbacoa as my filling, and Al Pastor as a second option. If you’re feeling a little intimated by the size of a taco kit, you can order two tacos of your choice. That probably won’t be enough, so you should get a chip kit with three dips, or chips and your dip of choice. Mine will be guacamole.

No celebration of another country’s national holiday is complete without something to drink, and Bitter Honey has you covered with pre-made 1L and 375ml bottles of margaritas or frozen margaritas, and 16oz frozen margaritas. If you’d like to see what Zach has to offer, there are shot of tequila available as well. For those of you concerned that you’d like the margaritas a little too much, four-packs of beer available as well.

Today’s restaurant suggestion is for Char Steak & Lounge, the restaurant at the Strathallan. They’re doing a limited takeout menu starting tomorrow. First opened in 2012, Char is a high-level restaurant focused on a great dining experience. They have a coal and wood-fired grill that gets up to 900 degrees allowing for perfect searing on their meats, and a Wolfgang Puck-inspired oven.

As they say in their name, Char has a bevy of steaks if you’ve been struggling to get that perfect temperature on your home grill. However, my favorite menu item they’re offering is the Burger, or as they call it, 12 oz. of Ground Brisket. Dressed with an applewood-smoked bacon-onion jam, and a nice, sharp cheddar, this masterpiece is then placed in a rich brioche bun. After doing an 8-stop burger crawl the other year, I crowned this burger The Best in Rochester and I still stand by that today.

I’d also do the ½ Organic free-range chicken. There’s some strong Mediterranean flair with the harissa crust and preserved lemon-yogurt sauce. Harissa is a spicy, garlicky seasoning that goes great with chicken all on its own and is contrasted by the cooling lemon-yogurt sauce.

If the sound of spices makes your eyes water, go for the House made ricotta gnocchi with a Bolognese sauce and parmesan. Ricotta gnocchi is different from traditional potato gnocchi, but still gives you the light, pillow-ly gnocchi you’d expect while tasting a little bit better.

For sides, I’d do the Glazed asparagus or the Wild mushroom risotto. The truffle butter adds earthy richness and mascarpone brings in creamy textures. The Char Bar To Car is a great way to stock up on wines as well, with bottles being offered at an incredible discount. The prices are almost unbelievable.