The Finger Lakes Restaurants
We’ve compiled the best of the best in The Finger Lakes - browse our top choices for Restaurants during your stay.
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26 Recommendations
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1. Balloons
$ | |Since 1934, Balloons has been a local favorite for its prompt service, uncomplicated menu, and warm welcome. The concrete wall of the Auburn Correctional Facility is right across the street, but Balloons, with its original art-deco decor, is a transporting experience. Sizzling steaks are the specialty, but you can also go for heaping platters of spaghetti and meatballs, surf and turf, or rattlesnake pasta (chicken and pasta with a spicy chipotle sauce), all accompanied by an iceberg salad topped with the original secret-recipe house dressing.
67 Washington St., Auburn, New York, 13021, USA315-252--9761Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.--Mon., Credit cards accepted -
2. Bully Hill Restaurant
$ | |A spectacular view of Keuka Lake awaits you at this breezy patio café, part of the Bully Hill Vineyards. The food is eclectic: Maryland crab cakes, buffalo burgers, or sage-and-prosciutto-stuffed chicken breast with three-cheese fettuccine. Lunch includes sandwiches and salads. Bully Hill wines are available, of course.
8843 Greyton H. Taylor Mem. Dr., Hammondsport, New York, 14840, USA607-868--3610Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner, Credit cards accepted -
3. Castel Grisch
$ | |Strudel, Swiss fondue, sauerbraten, and schnitzels highlight the largely German and Hungarian menu at this restaurant, part of Castel Grisch winery. In warm weather you can sit on a veranda taking in the vineyards, hills, and the lake in the distance. Steak and duck preparations, as well as American fare (burgers and such), also are available.
3380 County Rd.28, Watkins Glen, New York, 14891, USA607-535--9614Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted -
4. Clam Bar
$ | |More clams are sold here than anywhere else in the region, according to the Clam Bar, which also serves lobster, haddock, steaks, and chicken, plus daily specials. Clams come raw, steamed, in marinara sauce, and with garlic, butter, and wine. A full bar rounds out this comfortable, family-owned North Syracuse spot, which opened in 1959 in an old farmhouse.
3914 Brewerton Rd., North Syracuse, New York, 13212, USA315-458--1662Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted -
5. Coleman's
$ | |Crawl through the little front door built for the "wee people" and you'll understand why this restaurant is the center of Tipperary Hill, Syracuse's Irish neighborhood. (Don't worry: there's also a regular-size entrance.) Green beer flows freely every March 17, and corned beef and cabbage and open-faced Reubens lead the menu year-round. Also available: shepherd's pie, seafood, and burgers. The cozy wood-paneled, two-story pub has several fireplaces. There's a full bar and Irish bands play Thursday through Sunday. Patio dining is a summer option.
100 South Lowell Ave., Syracuse, New York, 13204, USA315-476--1933Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted -
Recommended Fodor’s Video
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6. Connie's Diner
$ | |The chrome-trimmed diner, run by the Caratozzolo family, serves nothing except tasty comfort food. Eggplant Parmesan, linguine with clam sauce, and liver and onions are popular dishes. The lasagna is made from an old family recipe. The homemade pies—especially the coconut cream and raspberry—are glorious. Connie's is 3 mile west of Seneca Falls.
205 E. Main St., Waterloo, New York, 13165, USA315-539--9556Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon., No credit cards, Reservations not accepted -
7. Dinosaur Bar-B-Que
$ | |What started as a darling of the biker crowd has evolved into a regional hot spot for pork sandwiches, barbecued ribs, and, on most nights, live blues. Chicken, beef, and pork are prepared barbecue, Cajun, and even Cuban style. Try a side of salt potatoes for some local flavor. On Friday and Saturday, waits can run as long as 90 minutes; the full-service bar, with 17 beers on tap, helps pass the time. In July and August, you can eat at one of the sidewalk picnic tables.
246 W. Willow St., Syracuse, New York, 13202, USA315-476--4937Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted, Reservations not accepted -
8. Fargo Bar & Grill
$ | |A brick building across the street from the Aurora Inn houses this tavern, a once-crusty bar now outfitted with dark-wood paneling, rough-hewn beams, and crackling fireplaces. The food is pub fare with a bit of flair. The most popular item is the burger, topped with raw or caramelized onions and a choice of cheese, served with hand-cut fries. Also on the menu are pulled-pork sandwiches, spicy black bean burgers, and barbecue chicken sandwiches with apple-smoked bacon. A TV resides over the bar and there's a pool table in back.
384 Main St., Aurora, New York, 13026, USA315-364--8006Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted -
9. Hazelnut Kitchen
$ | |A cozy spot with checkered-tile flooring, mismatched silverware, and an open kitchen, this restaurant serves up rustic-elegant meals without pretension. The chefs, Philly transplants, use local locally grown produce, grass-fed beef, and cheeses from local dairies. The menu changes monthly, but past diners have tucked into cheddar-and–Ithaca Nut Brown Ale soup, pâté made in-house on baguette toasts with Dijon mustard, jam, and cornichons and grilled hanger steak with hand-cut fries and malt-vinegar aioli.
53 E Main St., Trumansburg, New York, 14886, USA607-387--4433Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Tues.--Wed., Credit cards accepted -
10. Hill Top Inn
$ | |A giant wreath with a shamrock beckons from a hill, making this family-owned restaurant, in operation since 1933, hard to miss. The menu has mostly seafood, steak, and chops: filet mignon, scallops in cheese-and-cream sauce, and Irish surf and turf (with lamb chop and langostinos). Open-air dining is an option on the deck and terrace.
171 Jerusalem Hill Rd., Elmira, New York, 14901, USA607-732--6728Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun., Credit cards accepted -
11. Just a Taste
$ | |On the Commons, this tapas place is a bistro-style storefront that manages to be romantic despite the fact that you're sitting elbow to elbow with other diners. Menus of small plates might include rare grilled flank steak with homemade kimchi, marinated scallops with walnut-garlic aioli, or spinach salad with pears, goat cheese, and bacon. Small portions mean room for dessert; don't overlook the cornmeal shortbread with a wine-soaked dried-fruit compote and whipped cream. This tiny place gets packed, even on weeknights.
116 N. Aurora St., Ithaca, New York, 14850, USA607-277--9463Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun., Credit cards accepted, Reservations essential -
12. Knapp Winery Restaurant
$ | |Part of a winery 11 mi south of Seneca Falls, this eatery uses fresh produce grown in its own gardens. The food is contemporary, and the menu changes every two months. Try crab cakes with chipotle aioli or salmon over white-truffle risotto, or choose from burgers, wraps, and salads. The covered patio overlooking the flower garden and vineyard is nice in warm weather. The restaurant is open daily till 5 pm.
2770 County Rd. 128, Romulus, New York, 14541, USA607-930--3495Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon.--Thurs. Nov., Credit cards accepted -
13. Lakeside Restaurant
$ | |This casual spot—one of the best choices in the area for lake views—occupies an 1880s cottage on the west side of Keuka Lake. The food is American: prime rib, fried shrimp, bacon-wrapped beef tenderloin, barbecue chicken, a variety of steaks and chops, and a Friday fish fry. Outside, a fire pit and 150 seats overlook the bluff of Keuka Lake.
13780A W. Lake Rd., Hammondsport, New York, 14840, USA607-868--3636Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon.--Tues., Credit cards accepted -
14. Moosewood
$ | |Since its founding in 1973, this downtown restaurant has been at the forefront in the field of creative vegetarian cooking, and its cookbooks are known worldwide. The menu changes daily, and everything is prepared from fresh ingredients. Past menus have included spinach-and-cheese ravioli in a red-pepper-basil sauce and haddock with lemon, thyme, tomatoes, and topped with dill pesto. A vegan option is always available. The setting is casual: chunky blond-wood tables and booths and lively conversation fill the space. You may also dine outside on a patio.
215 N. Cayuga St., Ithaca, New York, 14850, USA607-273--9610Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted, Reservations not accepted -
15. Mr. Dominic's
$ | |The family-run Italian restaurant, a staple in Charlotte since the mid-1970s, draws a loyal clientele from throughout the city. Homemade pastas—gnocchi, lasagna, veal and lobster ravioli, four-cheese manicotti—are a specialty, but then again so are the steaks, chops, and seafood. It's two blocks from Lake Ontario, which makes it especially busy in summer.
4699 Lake Ave., Rochester, New York, 14612, USA585-730--5444Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch Sat.--Mon., Credit cards accepted -
16. Pastabilities
$ | |A funky, urban feel infuses this downtown Syracuse spot—a former union hall—that attracts a business crowd by day and couples at night. Lunch is cafeteria style, while dinner is full service. There's always fresh pasta with sauces like the ever-popular spicy hot tomato oil. Dinners might include homemade Boursin-cheese ravioli in a tomato-mushroom-cream sauce with pine nuts. The restaurant bakes its own bread daily. In warm weather you can sit outside at a sidewalk table or in the back courtyard.
311 S. Franklin St., Syracuse, New York, 13202, USA315-474--1153Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted -
17. Rosalie's Cucina
$ | |A Tuscan-style eatery, Rosalie's is upscale but relaxed. On a weekend night in the downstairs dining room you can forget meaningful conversation unless you read lips. (The smaller upstairs room is quieter and more romantic.) The buzz is about the food, served in generous portions. The Italian fare includes appetizers such as carpaccio—ultra-thin slices of raw beef served with capers and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese—and main dishes like chicken scaloppine with lemon butter, pancetta, and artichoke hearts. Don't skip dessert—the Banana Budino is unbelievable: layers of creamy banana pudding, real bananas, house-made cinnamon-sugar puff pastry, almond cookies, and caramel sauce.
841 W. Genesee St., Skaneateles, New York, 13152, USA315-685--2200Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon., Credit cards accepted, Reservations not accepted -
18. Schaller's Drive-In
$ | |Opened in 1956, the family-owned and -operated restaurant has retained a Happy Days feel. Place your order and the cashier yells it out amid the din. Burgers topped with Schaller's secret hot sauce are the most popular choice, followed by a Rochester specialty, white hot dogs, also known as "white hots" (sausage-size, natural-casing dogs made with pork, beef, and veal). The restaurant, west of Ontario Beach Park in the town of Greece, is particularly popular with the beach crowd. Take out on a sunny day or eat in the bright dining room.
965 Edgemere Dr., Greece, New York, 14612, USA585-865--3319Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No credit cards, Reservations not accepted -
19. Tanino Ristorante
$ | |Worth the 6-mi drive north of town, family-owned and -operated Tanino's, as it's called, serves more-authentic Italian than is usually found in this area: meals start with bread and olive oil rather than bread and pats of butter, and the wine list is one of the region's lengthiest. Ignore the strip-mall exterior and head into the casual, comfortable dining room with a fireplace. The large menu includes about a dozen choices each of pasta (cheese ravioli, penne alla vodka), seafood, poultry, veal, and beef entrées, plus popular brick-oven pizzas.
1 Old Ithaca Rd., Horseheads, New York, 14845, USA607-739--7013Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch weekends, Credit cards accepted -
20. Tapas 177
$ | |Spanish-style appetizers and entrées draw from Latin and European roots, as does the music and decor, at this below-street-level restaurant. The decor, with candlelight, brick arches, and curtained-off cubbyhole seating is Morocco-meets-Paris, and the menu, which changes weekly, highlights seafood, with options for vegetarians well as carnivores. You might choose from chicken empanadas or Thai-glazed barbecued ribs (on the tapas menu) or wasabi-pea-encrusted tuna or guava-chipotle beef fillet (among the main dishes). A full martini menu includes chocolate, melon, lemon, and orange varieties. The specialty dessert—bananas wrapped in a fried, cinnamon-and-sugar-covered tortilla—is always available.
177 Saint Paul St., Rochester, New York, 14604, USA585-262--2090Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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