LOCATION: 302 N GOODMAN STREET, ROCHESTER, NY 14607
My friend Victoria just turned 22 and for her birthday she invited a handful of us still in town to get drinks last night at a bar called Nox. Already this should be a tip off that this a pretty interesting bar because it's referencing Harry Potter. The nerd in me is geeking out.
Victoria told me about this bar when I went to see her over spring break and it was a pretty awesome concept. This bar just references tons of book/movie series with geeky fan followings. The bar is made up of a wall that resembles a giant wooden bookshelf - including sliding ladder. There a photographs and images on the wall that reference doctor who and the front vestibule area has a victorian wall that is set up in the style of BBC's Sherlock. The whole menu is like this too, with drinks and snacks titled after famous quotes and geeky references to so many things.
Honestly most of the references went over my head, showing that I'm really not that huge of a geek, but that's okay. There's a little something for everyone. I ended up ordering a drink called the Hufflepuff. It had a winter wheat vodka, peach liqueur, gentiane aperitif, ginger liqueur, fresh lemon, and fresh muddles blueberries. It was kinda tangy and sharp but overall a pretty good drink. Looking at this menu took a lot of brainpower for me. Every drink is hand crafted and super complex. Then throw a reference on top of it and honestly I probably could've had a night long conversation with everyone just about the cocktails menu alone.
One of the guys there last night also ordered some poutine that he very kindly shared. Of course it was called 'It's a Trap' which I just enjoyed on it's own. The fact that it was poutine just made it perfect and I'm glad he ordered it. It was an order of amazing hand cut fries that were the perfect texture and had an incredible seasoning to it, a smoked gouda cream sauce, and of course bacon on top. Good food.
Honestly, I liked the feel of this place and with good company it's always a win. The menu is just a little bit too complicated for me and kind of a level of hipster/underground/geeky that I cannot keep up with. The drinks are very much like that and while they are really cool and specially made, I think I'm happy drinking a little more simply. Great bar and awesome concept though. I'm glad I got to try it out.