Tavern 58 at Gibbs

Former Location

58 University Avenue, Rochester NY, 14605

Status (as of May 2017)

Closed

Tavern 58 at Gibbs was a restaurant located in the Grove Place neighborhood, across from the former Abyssinia location, on University Avenue. Deputy Mayor Patricia Malgieri presided over the official grand opening on 9/30/2008. According to the press release the owners invested over $100,000 in the building.

Their menu specialized in traditional, northeastern American cuisine. The menu includes steaks, chops, fowl, seafood, and pasta with a rotating selection of "Tavern Plates" (three-meat loaf and chicken pot pies). Signature dishes include classic Shrimp Bisque, Beer Basted Hanger Steak, Sesame Seared Ahi Tuna, and Tavern Stew.

On June 15, 2017 it was announced the building was sold to the owner of Havana Cabana who plans on opening Seven Seas Tavern in 2017.

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2008-10-16 11:19:39   My wife and I have been here twice and have not been disappointed. The decor is very nice inside. The service is excellent. We were very impressed with how professional and well prepared the staff is. The food is excellent also. Great addition to the neighborhood! —ChampsElysses

2008-11-16 11:46:12   When we dined at the tavern this past Friday evening we were welcomed warmly by the staff and seated promptly. The decor is quite pleasant, and more classy than one might expect for a "tavern". They offer a reasonable wine list with moderate prices. The shrimp bisque was thick, rich, and delightful, with several tender whole shrimp just warmed through on top. My petite sirloin steak was perfectly cooked and flavorful. The side dishes were thoughtful and good, and the whole plate was topped with a shredded onion ring "hash". This gave a more tavern-like appearance to the plate than fine dining, but it worked well with this dish. My partner had the hanger steak, which was also tasty, but the cheesy polenta fries underneath were the big hit. Service was prompt, attentive, and especially knowledgable about the wine choices. The bread pudding for dessert finished the meal off just right with a sweet and chocolate note. Overall a success, and we will be back soon to try more. —JGerek

2008-12-13 21:02:19   We had dinner here last week. Started with the napolean salad (fried wonton wrappers, roasted red peppers, goat cheese) and two entrees along with cocktails. It was a very nice meal, and the service was excellent as well. Not the cheapest place in town but we felt the bill was appropriate for the level of service and quality of the food. Definitely on our list to go back. —DottieHoffmann

2009-01-03 23:01:08   Four of us went for dinner tonight and were very impressed! We started with cocktails (wine and beer lists are both good). I had an Absynthe mojito and it was unique and tasty. We shared the crab fondue appetizer- wonderful. Two of us had the sirloin and the steaks were perfectly cooked and seasoned. Other dishes tried were the hanger steak and the special of the day, which was shrimp stuffed with crab. Everything was great, including the service. The only thing that wasn't a huge hit was the creme brulee- the consistency was off. One of my dining companions also ordered tea at the end of the meal that was never delivered. Overall a very good meal and we will surely be back. —ShawnaLusk

2009-01-04 20:46:03   I tried the tavern recently. Our food wasnt bad, but not remarkable. My hangar steak was great, the polenta fries, not so much. The polenta fries at Virtu are much better, I recommend those if your in the mood. I also had the soup du jour, that was EXCELLENT. The interior is casual, not bad, but we sat in the oldest chairs ever, and they were VERY uncomfortable. Were people in the 60's and 70's not interested in comfort? I recommend the owner recycle the old chairs as well as the tiny gold water glasses from the days of yore. Our server (a young guy) must have been new because he was so nervous, it made us uncomfortable. We had to remind him to do certain things a couple of times. Altogether a decent experience. Id go back, but Ill give the place a little more time to learn their rhythm. —MrRochester

2009-02-21 21:25:07   We went to the Tavern 58 and totally enjoyed it. Our server, Mike was terrific, very attentive, very professional! The food was terrific. I had the filet of sirloin and the flavor was delicious! My son had the scallops which were great except there were only four and he could have done without the fried curried vegetables. Try to substitute them for something else. The asparagus was very good! Overall we were very pleased and would definitely come back again! —Sam4327

2009-05-25 13:55:59   Went to Tavern 58 on Saturday for dinner for the first time. We were seated right away (although it was about 10pm) and our server promptly came by. He was very nice and had some suggestions appetizers/dinner. We got the appetizer sampler plate which had wings, veggie spring rolls, clams casino and chicken & goat cheese turnovers. The wings were our hands down favorite. They had a really nice, smoky flavor to them and we will definitely be returning for these (our waiter later told us that the wings are only $5 on Wednesdays). My friend said the clams were very good (I can't comment, I don't eat them), the spring rolls were bland, and the turnovers were good but the chicken really masked the goat cheese flavor. I got the mac and cheese for dinner which was REALLY good and a huge portion. My friend got the flat iron steak which was undercooked but he still said it had a good flavor to it. Overall, it was a good experience. Positives: they feature 30 bottles of wine for under $30, the menu has a great variety and has budget and expensive options, the service was friendly and attentive, and good food with good prices. We ordered 2 entrees, the appetizer plate and a bottle of wine and our bill was $73. The only negative: the dining room looked a little dated and could use some new decor. Of note: the menu that is listed on their website was a little different from what is actually in the restaurant. —dmarie

2009-08-24 17:14:35   Our latest trip to the Tavern resulted in another enjoyable experience. We had Zach as our waiter for the 3rd time and once again the service was excellent. My wife's Schnitzel was very good, loaded with flavor and large enough that she had to take 1/2 the order home. I opted for the Tenderloin served over Fingerling potato salad and was happy to actually get a steak medium rare as I ordered. Prices are reasonable and the wine list blends with the food very well. This is fast becoming the top restaurant on my list. —almorinelli

2009-09-27 08:39:24   We had a very nice dinner here last night with a group of 8 people, everyone was pleased with their meals, the service was great too. Not too loud to hold conversations at the table. Nice selection of dishes and some great specials. The wings are yummy. —DottieHoffmann

2010-01-03 20:30:40   Went this past Saturday with a group of four. We did find the restaurant noisy but we were surrounded by two large tables of 8 or more. Once they finished and left it was better. We started with the calamari (panko encrusted and served with red and green peppers), delicious. I had the sea bass which was great. My wife had panko encrusted chicken, tasty but dry. Our friends had different steaks which they liked. When one steak was a little more rare than preferred, the staff took it back without hesitation and had it cooked more to our friends liking. Her husband is a scotch drinker and was impressed with their selection. The staff was very professional and knew their menu. Overall, I would say it was a good experience and we will be back. —ScottHendler

2010-01-16 12:19:08   Went here with another couple on a Friday night. We absolutely loved this place. The service was excellent, the waiter knew the menu and wine list like the back of his hand and made great recommendations. Our appetizers were excellent and our entrees were even better. The specials sounded great too. The wine list with 30 wines under $30 is very thorough and well thought out. This is the best value I've seen in the Rochester area. We will be back. —MarkRizz

2010-01-16 19:58:11   Great addition to downtown rochester! The food is fantastic and it has an upscale lodge feel. They cooked both of our steaks perfectly. They almost did not require a steak knife. Will definitely return. —Chef

2010-02-13 19:52:51   A wonderful restaurant — one of the best in the area. Five of us recently went for a weekday dinner and were extremely impressed. Other than the initial bread, which was average at best, the appetizers and entrees were all top-rate. Their dishes have a subtlety and uniqueness we haven't found in other restaurants in their price range. For instance, their chicken and goat cheese turnovers are sublime, their Tavern Wings are a world apart from standard chicken wings, and their smoked shrimp roll made even my husband, no lover of shrimp, a convert. The wait staff was both pleasant and professional, a unfortunately rare combination. I would recommend Tavern 58 without reservation. —LePetitChien

2010-03-19 00:26:38   gross. the pre-meal salad was amazing...so delicious with lots of different fruits and nuts...but dinner...blah. bland. ugh. ugh. UGHHHH. if i were a complainer, i'd complain. not warm. bland. gross. should have just ingested wine and salad. no utensils...everything covered in your grammammamma's deep fried onions. not exciting for the price. very bland and tasteless. good wine, okay service, bad food. —pbjilly

2010-05-22 22:21:47   The service is very good, food in excellent! Very creative and interesting dishes. I highly recommend the Tavern chips. I would definitely recommend this place. I will be going back! —Mariah

2011-06-10 15:24:19   Starting off I had heard good things about Tavern58 from a few people which is what brought me here. Unfortunately it did not live up to the standards of excellent dinning. We arrived to a mostly empty restaurant and were seated in the corner jammed against the wall next to a party of 8(when the woman on the bench next to us got up, each time I had to move my drink so she didnt knock it over). Our bread plates that were on the table were both dirty as if used for bread and butter by previous guests. The blueberry cosmo which came with three blueberries skewered and one was brown mushy aka rotten, at this point I was ready to walk out. Dinner came out with out much a wait and the food was very good, too bad the start to dinner was so rough. —noc131

2011-08-05 13:22:18   Food and service were great last night. I had the 12oz filet mignon over cheddar chipolte mashed potatoes and both were great. Steak cooked to perfection and the potatoes were excellent. My wife had open faced raviolis with goat cheese and mushrooms and she really liked them. We shared a side of the blue cheese au gratin potatoes and I highl recommened those as they were amazing! We will be going back here soon! —CJM8232

2012-04-05 21:06:36   Pretty good but not the best restaurant around for the money. Decent decorating, not that nice. Awesome beer menu. —catwhisperer

2012-06-30 12:25:58   I've been a proponent of this restaurant from its early days, have eaten there many times, have introduced friends to it, and previously written positive reviews. Unfortunately our latest visit this past Thursday was not such a positive experience, primarily because of service issues. It started with minor issues such as a 15-minute wait to get a draft beer, and the server neglecting to bring the requested lemon for my partner's water. More serious faults were not bringing our ordered salad by the time our entrees arrived ("Oh, gee whiz, I guess we can get you the salad and take your entrees back to the kitchen for a while") and bringing us the wrong check ("Oh, yours was apparently cashed out already so you can just pay this one instead"). The food was hit or miss. My partner's chicken scallopini was as delicious as ever. But my seared pork belly desperately needed a glaze or sauce, or anything to give it some flavor. The sweet potato cake on the side was tasty and delicious, though tiny in relation to the generous portion size of the protein. I wanted to comment upon leaving, but the front-end manager was not evident and the young staff was too busy chatting to notice us exiting. Although we were disappointed on our experience this time, we hope that staff training will improve for the future. —jgerek

2012-07-09 14:13:20   The "Tavern Wings" appetizer is amazing. They toss in a unique sauce, having something to do with a balsamic reduction, and drizzle srirachi on top. Fantastic, and we can't wait to have this treat again. —mercdotes