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One Taste of Fall entree offered at The Side Dish includes slowly braised pork ragu and spaghetti squash.
Photo provided by the Rochester Downtown Development Authority
ROCHESTER — Patrons of downtown Rochester can enjoy the fall flavors of Michigan with a number of limited-edition menu offerings at local restaurants.
Over 20 downtown restaurants, bakeries and bars have created fall-inspired items offered through Oct. 17 for downtown Rochester’s Taste of Fall event.
“Some businesses are promoting special desserts that they have, entrees, appetizers or beverages for the fall season,” said Jenna O’Dell, the events coordinator for the Rochester Downtown Development Authority.
There are many fall-inspired menu items to choose from, including an apple pie doughnut from Bakehouse 46, a pecan crusted chicken cutlet from The Meeting House, a “Southern Gothic” tea from Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters, a tiramisu milkshake from Red Knapp’s Rochester, and butternut squash ravioli at the Rochester Corner Bar, to name a few.
“You can bring your friends to town and have a nice meal or even try to get to all the Taste of Fall restaurants and try at least one thing that they are offering. I think that would be a nice accomplishment this fall season. There’s a lot of good comfort foods on the menu. ... Everything looks delicious,” O’Dell said.
Deb Silver, of The Side Dish, which is part of The Silver Shamrocks craft cuisine and catering, said she is happy to participate in the promotion because it’s her favorite time of year.
“We started serving food probably about three months ago, so we’re pretty much brand-new to all the downtown fun and we are so excited to be jumping in and joining all the fun stuff that the DDA has planned, including Taste of Fall,” said Silver.
The Side Dish, 118 E. Fourth St. in downtown Rochester, is offering two specialty entrees for Taste of Fall.
The first is a fall harvest salad — including arugula and caramelized butternut squash, candied pecans, pomegranate and a creamy maple vinaigrette.
“It’s a really nice fall salad. It was actually our bestseller last year around Thanksgiving time at my other location, so we thought we would bring it downtown and see what people thought,” said Silver.
The Silver Dish is also offering slowly braised pork ragu and spaghetti squash — pork shoulder braised in red wine, with crispy sage, served over a bed of Romano and herb flavored spaghetti squash.
“I love cooking with squash and I think it’s such an underrated vegetable, especially because so much of it is grown in Michigan. I think people are intimidated by it sometimes, so I decided to make squash the focal point of this menu item,” Silver said.
Those ready for a fall-inspired cocktail can head to Rochester Brunch House for an apple cider mimosa, The Hemmingway Room for a “Midnight Empress,” Bologna Via Cucina for a spiced apple sangria, or Kruse’s Paint Creek Tavern for a “Traverse Cherry Lime Mule” or “Michigan Cherry Cooler” cocktail, to name a few.
A complete list of participating businesses and fall menu offerings can be found in the Taste of Fall brochure available at the Downtown Collaboration Studio, 431 S. Main St., or online at downtownrochestermi.com.
