The Distillery

I’d been wanting to try this place. I always see a lot of cars in the lot so we thought we’d try it. It was a very busy Friday night and the place was packed. The service is friendly and considering the crowd I though the waiting time for food was acceptable. We started off with the calamari which was pretty good. Not the best I’ve had but certainly not the worst. I had the ribs and wing combo. The ribs were a half rack of baby backs. They were finished on the grill but not smoked. They did have a smoky flavor from the grill. The sauce was good and not oversauced like so many places. I would order them again. I really liked the wings. They have about 10 different kinds and I got the Spicy Garlic. I thought they were really good. The garlic flavor tasted fresh and they had a nice spice to them. I would definitely order these again. The fries are hand cut and quite good. My girlfriend had the Guiness Bacon Swiss Burger which has applewood smoked bacon and a house «G sauce on a brioche bun. She really enjoyed it. Overall, I would say this is a great place to come for drinks, appetizers or dinner. They have a huge appetizer selection and many craft brews. There are TV’s all over the place so it would be a good place to watch a game.

Stopped on for a quick dinner. Burger was very good. Service was excellent. No complaints, nothing special but just what we needed.

My husband comes here for beer and food whenever I’m out with my girlfriends and really likes it, so we decided to come here together this past Sunday for lunch and to watch some football instead of going to our usual place. Sadly, this was a big mistake.
We sat at the bar so we could watch football easily and immediately ordered the chips and dip trio appetizer. It took forever to come out, and given what came out it really should have taken not even five minutes. Aside from the very long wait, the appetizer itself was subpar. The portion sizes for the salsa, queso, and guacamole were sooo tiny, especially for the price. All three seemed like they came from jars/​were prepackaged, and the guacamole was probably the worst guacamole I’ve had at a restaurant ever.
We also ordered the hangover burger to split (burger with cheddar, bacon, a fried egg, and some sort of mayo based spread), and this also took forever to come out. We ordered it medium rare, and it came out well done. It was like a hockey puck. So we sent it back and not two minutes later a new burger came out. (The timing seemed very suspicious.) The new burger was cooked somewhat better, but the patty was definitely a pre-​made, frozen patty. Not fresh at all. The bun was also over toasted and not very good. We didn’t/couldn’t eat it because it was so unappetizing. Our bartender graciously took care of our check and was extremely apologetic about everything throughout our time here. She made the whole experience at least bearable. (In a previous case like this I got so frustrated and just walked out and let my husband deal with it — I have a good man!)
All in all, I really wanted to like it here and was super bummed about the whole experience. We ended up leaving very hungry and going elsewhere to get some food, after being here for over an hour. It was relatively busy, but given it is a sports bar they should be prepared for moderate crowds during sports games. The kitchen staff just seemed completely incompetent.
I do like the vibe of the place as well as the placements of all the TVs, our drinks (bloody mary and long island) were made well, and our bartender was really great about everything. This is why it is two stars instead of just one and is also why I will give it another try (though maybe during a less busy time).

Hit this new spot (old Outback on Erie) on a Tuesday. Special is wings and ribs $ 10.99, which I highly recommend! Buffalo garlic Parmesan wings are scrumptious and ribs smokey bbq fall apart render. Adam is an excellent waiter!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the food here however… every time I go there it takes almost 10 minutes to get greeted at the table just to get a drink order and to acknowledge the customer. Also the management of the place is done poorly. I couldn’t tell you how many times a manager had walked by my girlfriend and I and just kept walking by after seeing that we haven’t been talked to yet or even have a glass of water in front of us. Restaurant managers are supposed to stop in at tables to see how everything is going and from all the times I’ve been there it has never happened. I am a server at a restaurant in destiny USA (carousel mall) and we have a strict 1 minute greet time and a 2 minute drink time. Those times are perfectly capable on a decent day, although I have to admit when it’s busy it could be a 2 – 3 minute greet time. But nonetheless management NEEDS TO STEP UP. I live no more then 3 miles away and I’d hate to stop coming here because the Service is so horrible so please fix the issue.

The Distillery is a state chain restaurant that offers a distinct selection of domestic and craft beers, including unique bottle beer offerings, seasonal rotating taps, a diverse menu of American fare, and High Definition Televisions showcasing the day’s news and non-​stop sports viewing. On December 11^th, 1980 the original Distillery Restaurant opened on Mt Hope Avenue in Rochester, New York. This is their newest location, on Erie Blvd.
Each Distillery Restaurant features a center island bar which is the focal point of the operation. It is outfitted with an assortment of tap handles ranging from classic lagers to more distinct ales and pilsners.
Came here with a group of friends before a movie after passing by a ton of times. Typical sports bar décor inside. For the most part, typical sports bar type menu as well. Everyone tried something different, from burgers to salads to vegetarian dishes.
I had a burger that was topped with chili that doesn’t seem to be on the menu anymore. It wasn’t great. Small, clearly not fresh made patty, dried out after cooking. The chili was dry and looked old. Just not a very good burger.
Everyone else’s opinions ranged from bad to passable. Nobody felt anything was really tasty or impressive. Service wasn’t great either. It wasn’t busy when we got there but it took forever to get a server over to introduce themselves, very long breaks in between, and didn’t seem very knowledgeable about the menu. Wasn’t rude or anything, just not great restaurant service.
Disappointing, more than likely will not give them another try.

We went tonight with a group of 5 people. The good: The service was amazing and our margaritas were very delicious. The atmosphere was nice, a little loud but not too bad. The appetizers were delicious we had the spinach and artichoke dip and the loaded fries. The bad: my burger that was ordered medium well came very rare. My husbands steak dip was very small for the price. Our beers all had to be returned because the glasses tasted like soap. All in all we may try them but order my burger a little more done.

Excellent service and very friendly staff. I will definitely going back for the wings.

Went here to eat tonight for my husbands birthday. Pretty empty and the hostess sat us right next to a large group of 10 – 12 women’s who were obnoxiously loud and standing right in front of our table. Which there were numerous unoccupied tables away from these women. The waitress took almost 10 minutes to come over and greet us and get our drink order. Another 5 minutes passed and still no drinks. When she arrived with our drinks they started trivia and it was so loud I could not hold a conversation with my husband. We both were very disappointed and decided that with the lack of service, our food wasn’t going to blow us away. So we got our check for our drinks and went to another restaurant. Which at the other restaurant we were promptly waited on, greeted and had a nice evening. I will never return back to this restaurant again terrible terrible service.

Ive been before, but just rating this visit.
Came for lunch and sat at bar. Bartender was friendly and prompt. Good beer selection, but a waste of tap space with too many national macro brews.
Ordered the siracha deviled eggs (like I always do) and they were very good. Definitely worth ordering again, but why put them on a bed of shredded lettuce??? Weird.
Also ordered the turkey avocado bacon melt with broccoli instead of chips. The components of the sandwich were all good– turkey, bacon, avocado, but the bread, although grilled was incredibly soggy by the time it made it out to me. Taking a few more seconds to get the bread crispy on the grill would have gone a long ways.
Historically I have been disappointed with the food, but they did well today.

This was my second time eating here (had to give the place the benefit of the doubt) and I was no where near impressed either time. Both times I went during lunch, right around noon, the place was empty. Despite the fact of an empty restaurant the service was still slow. The waiter and waitresses were pokey– took 2 visits to get our drink order, wasn’t checked in on, the food took 30 minutes to come out even though we ordered from their lunch express menu.
When we got the food it was tasteless, missing ingredients and just not fresh. I ordered a half salad, instead the waitress brought me a full and at this point informed me that my salad wasn’t offered as a half, but should would give it to me for the half price, which was nice– but they only took $ 2 off a $ 13 dollar salad– clearly not half. The salad was bland, missing ingredients and not fresh– I ate maybe a quarter and just picked at it. The chicken kabobs were bland with over cooked chicken. Their house chips were also bland. The chicken buffalo wrap was okay– the sauce could be a little more prominent so it was more flavorful, and it was also missing ingredients.
Overall not worth your time or money– you’ll wait forever and have a lack luster experience that is overpriced.

Excellent free Wi-​fi tested at 30 Mb/​sec. Most free wi-​fi is unusable at 1 Mb/​sec or less!

Sat at the bar. Service was great super friendly. Beer selection is ok but needs greater depth. Food is typical pub fair with some diversity but nothing veggie or gluten free. Name of business is misleading they’re not a distillery.

Stopped in yesterday for lunch. It was our first time here. We sat on the outside patio it was lovely. We had the poutine as a starter it was very good. The grilled wings, Greek salad and burger were also very good. The «G» sauce is so so good! It does cost .50 more to put on the wings… not sure why they do this it cant really cost that much more to make. My husband and I want to come back and try some other menu items. Our server was very good she was attentive, honest and fun.

Went to the bar just to get some food, all we ordered was poutine and some waters, the lady bartender took a long time to get us the water. The food was good thought and wasn’t too expensive.

Been back several times since it opened. Wait times for a table have been short on busy Saturday nights, sometimes a wait during the week due to unanticipated business. Probably tough to schedule in inconsistent Syracuse weather.
The wings are still great. The staff is still not perfect. If you have special orders, high expectations, or are in a hurry, you might be better off elsewhere. We come for the food, so these things are factored in.
The management looks to be working hard. From the front door through the restaurant, managers are constantly on the move.
Haven’t seen what some of the other reviewers describe. Biggest problem I have found is getting a parking spot.
For a sports bar, I don’t know if many are here for the sports. Big plays generate scattered cheers. You can see a TV from just about anywhere in the place.

I’ve gone on two separate occasions now… once on a Tuesday night and then again this past Sunday. Both occasions were after 9 pm (Happy Hour specials after 9) and I really just wanted some apps and a couple beers after work. Both times it was snowing and cold (it is the ‘Cuse of course) and on both occasions it appeared they were closing earlier than time posted on the door.
On the Tuesday visit had trouble gaining the attention on the barkeep. She was talking to other customers about «if biz doesn’t pick up I will be applying to Coppertop or somewhere closer to home, need to make more tips, need more customers…» Well I was here, about 6 feet away, and sat waiting at least 5 minutes before she came over… ordered a beer and some potstickers. My beer was nearly empty and app came out. I’m no aficionado, but these potstickers seemed deep fried. Crunchy and fall-​apart like none I’ve ever had. Meh. I needed another beer to wash it down, but the barkeep had gone to the other side to talk to friends and didn’t return for 15 or so minutes. When she returned she asked if I was ready for my check, and at that point, I was.
This Sunday was better, but not much. Asked for menu and was told kitchen was closing at 10; at this point it was 9:50 so I quickly ordered California flatbread and calamari. Service was better, but more of a «this place is closing soon» than «relax and feel welcome» vibe. Food was okay, but I would say the happy hour prices are definitely all I would pay for them. Food quality of apps seemed on par with Applebee’s/TGI Fridays. I do have a gift card and will come back with wife and try a meal, but 3^rd Strike and they are out.

I went to the Distillery last night with 5 friends after attending a wine tasting event at the zoo. We got there around 9:30pm or so and the place was empty. A bored looking hostess came to seat us and a waitress showed up a couple minutes later. She took our drink orders, came back to check with my friend as to what kind of gin he wanted as they did not have Beefeater and brought me my water.
Next thing we know, the manager comes over and tells us that they will not serve any of the 4 women in the party, just the 2 men. Very odd as one of the women had very little to drink earlier in the evening while one of the men had much more. I understand not serving people who have had too much but having a young waitress somehow assess our status and deciding it was the women who could not drink seemed a little odd to me. I would have hoped the manager himself would have at least spoken to us to see what the situation really was. To his credit, he offered to comp us appetizers and as 2 of our party walked out immediately upped it to comping all our food. At that point, staying was the last thing we wanted to do so we all left but I think he did give my one friend his card to get free food later.
I get that they can’t serve people who are drunk but at least check to see who is and who is not before cutting off just the women! Fortunately, the Bull and Bear on Rt 298 was more than happy to serve our entire party and I am sure the food was better than what we would have gotten at the Distillery anyway.

my friend had grilled chicken wings and said they were the best he ever had.
I had a mushroom Swiss Burger, the bun was right out of the refrigerator (very cold) and the meat was warm but not hot
Another friend had a chicken quesadilla and said the chicken wasn’t very good
They don’t take Discover card

Great service, we were seated immediately. The food was good but nothing spectacular. We had the buffalo chicken sandwich and the fish tacos. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t great.
The restaurant was clean, lots of TVs and very open and well lit. That was nice!
We probably won’t go back and would just drive to Copper Top. Their menu is more exciting with better quality food.