The Owl House — Restaurant in City of Rochester

We had been here before 3 years ago and remembered it being fantastic for vegan food and ambience.It’s a quirky little place in an old house—funky but in a good way. Last time we ate upstairs and it was the winter—cozy, good lighting(as I remember). This time we were here in late July—it was very hot and humid outside but we decided to eat outside to enjoy the outdoor vibe. The vibe was good but there were a lot of bugs. We are visiting from Alaska and so welcomed the fact that none of the bugs were the biting/stinging variety, just persistent annoyances.

From our first step through the front door we were warmly greeted and felt very welcome. We did have a reservation which I made 45 min prior. The hostess was outgoing and genuine. Sitting outside in the enclosed patio, I immediately ordered a Mocktail that had a peach syrup base. It was the best thing—so refreshing—not too sweet. All of the cocktails being served to the patrons appeared to bring smiles and laughter.

For the meal, I ordered the salad special which had cherries and peaches and a wonderful basil vinaigrette with uniquely and tastily seasoned toasted almond clusters. It was a good salad but it was difficult to tell if the peaches were canned. They had a canned kind of taste but maybe it was how they had been marinated—wasn’t sure. I was expecting fresh peaches. The cherries—also might have been from a jar but, I’m not sure. They were good but not wowza good.

I also ordered the eggplant falafel. The presentation was excellent. They were fried to perfection with a thick, crispy, crunchy shell. The inside was more of an uncooked purée. Definitely gets an A for creative effort. But just a B- for flavor. It just didn’t have much umami and was not a great pairing with the salad—was going for added protein but not sure how many chickpeas were a part of the recipe.

My son ordered a classic burger with a chickpea patty. He said it was dry and very underwhelming. He eats a lot of vegan ‘burgers’ and said that he would not order that again.

The server was a nice, young man with a very positive disposition. He was delightful.

I might come back again one day but it would likely be in the winter. I think the soup special sounded amazing but it was just too hot out to try. For vegan fare, it’s worth a try but be thoughful about...

Pleasantly surprised by The Owl House. First things first, it was quiet inside (which we love). No background music, the acoustics meant that other conversations weren’t loud, and we could hear our own table well!!!! So on top of that we had excellent service both from our main waitress Kate (Kait?) as well as others. We were frequently checked on but it was never overbearing. The food itself was pretty good, but not quite great. But that’s okay. The buffalo cauliflower was really delicious but be warned that it’s a little spicy. The lamb stew special was a tad sweet but full of flavor and cooked just right. The caramelized onion brown butter pasta special was a bit more divisive at the table. I liked it a fair amount, as did my wife, but my daughter thought the spice level was distracting and found it too smokey and missing the rich caramelization of the description. I would agree that spice and smoke dominated the caramelized onion but I still liked it for what it was. The salmon was delicately cooked (not overcooked like other places) and flavored well even if not unique. The broccolini had some welcomed crunch. The pickled fennel was a nice touch. The risotto was just okay. Combined it was a balanced plate. The cocktails were decent but the desert was mixed. The chocolate mousse was so light and flavorful. I didn’t love the cashews on top but others did and they were well roasted. I felt like if the nuts had salt on them it would have been better (or even just big salt flakes on the mousse and skip the nuts). But either way the mousse itself was reorder worthy. However the gluten free vegan pineapple coconut cake was also met with mixed reception. Two members of our party really didn’t like it but one did. For a gluten free cake it would probably be about as good as you could do. On its own it had a slightly sandy and dry quality (which isn’t uncommon for gluten free baked goods) but the flavor was okay. Despite some mixed takes on the food we all appreciated that they were trying different flavors than other places in Rochester who all seem to have the same menu. It was nice to at least eat something different. We’ll definitely go back for the quiet atmosphere and some creative attempts on food that mostly worked even if they weren’t...

The Owl House, for starters, is in an adorable little house with two floors and a patio. I got to eat on the second floor, right next to a window overlooking the patio, which I'm sure is lovely come summer! The ambience is lovely, and I enjoyed looking at all the art they had hanging for sale at. But onto the food... which was DELICIOUS.

I have a food allergy, so eating out can be a risky (and at the very least, annoying) thing, but our waitress was very cheerful and accommodating, and she knew right off what food I could eat. Because they have so many vegan options, it wasn't hard for me to find something delicious and safe for me. And what I did it was WONDERFUL!

I very much recommend their rosemary french fries (which were perfectly crispy and served with homemade ketchup), as well as the tempura broccoli sandwich I ordered. The tempura batter was light and perfectly crunchy, getting into every bite of the broccoli, without making things greasy. Their fennel slaw was a cool, delicious touch and paired wonderfully with the rest of the sandwich. And the garden salad I ordered as a side was also lovely - the greens were so fresh, despite the earliness of spring, and the salad dressing was equally refreshing.

For dessert, I got their (vegan!) chocolate chip cookie sandwich, dipped in chocolate with sprinkles and... well, let's say that even though I ordered it to go, it didn't make it home. It was scrumptious.

Absolutely recommend you stop here. Their menu is fresh and inventive, and their service is fantastic. Everyone I interacted with was polite, and all of the customers seemed as relaxed and happy to be there as I was! A...