Alicia L.
Yelp
I hate to say it, but I was a little more excited about The Gatehouse than what I ultimately experienced.. and to be clear, I'm mostly talking about the food, not the overall vibe or the staff. The service was great, and our food came out quickly, especially considering we were a large party. Overall, the experience was smooth, but my meal just didn't quite hit the mark for me.
I ordered the vegan plate and was genuinely happy to see a few vegan options on the menu(always a win in Rochester), but the execution felt a bit off. I loved the rosemary fries and the vegan burger patty itself; both were flavorful. The vegan mac salad was.. well.. warm (which I wasn't expecting or prefer), but still tasted good. Where things got weird was the vegan meat hot ..it had a strong taco/cumin seasoning that really clashed with the rest of the plate. It just didn't feel cohesive. And while I'm always here for avocado, in this case it felt unnecessary and added to the overall confusion of the dish. Was it supposed to be Mexican-American-inspired ? Would've rather just seen it as classic Rochester garbage plate to be honest..
Because the meal didn't wow me, I ended up skipping the $10 vegan dessert, even though I was initially excited to try it. That said, I'll probably give The Gatehouse another shot down the line. I'm still curious, and I appreciate that they even have vegan options, but next time I'm hoping for a more thoughtful, balanced plate... but even the burger combinations sounded outrageous...
Bonus - How I would adjust the veg plate as a long time vegan:
First off... let it be known, this is what Rochester is all about ! That said, I'd make a few tweaks. Serve the mac salad cold (as it should be!). For the meat sauce, I'd tone down the Mexican flavors... MUCH LESS cumin and cinnamon, more garlic and smoked paprika. Maybe even a splash of soy sauce or a good vegan beef broth would deepen the umami too. I'd also skip the avocado on top and swap in some classic diced onions instead. Side ketchup and mustard. :)