King David’s Restaurant, RIT Park Point, Rochester, NY

King David's Restaurant, RIT Park Point, Rochester

Vegetarian Restaurant Review by Jennifer Kumar.
Photos: copyright Krishna Kumar, used with permission

Meet and Greet
We entered just a few minutes after opening and were greeted by the hostess/waitress. We were told that wait staff sit and serve guests only after 4pm, before 4pm, guests can sit themselves after ordering at the counter. After ordering at the counter, the waitress will bring your dishes to you.

Mise en Scène
The interior is wide open, with tall ceilings. Guests can choose from tables in the center of the seating area or wide, comfy booths along the perimeter. Because this restaurant has a corner location, there are plenty of windows where light can enter. This is good as the lighting inside seems to be dimmed during the day. Lighting fixtures and other ambient décor is tasteful and ethnic looking. When it is quiet inside, one can listen to the beautiful Middle Eastern music ambient music.

I did use the restroom, which was spacious, squeaky clean, well stocked and nicely decorated.

Choosing a Veggie Treat

There was no problem in choosing a veggie dish as there were a plethora of choices:

* 9 varieties of Greek Pitzas (Greek Cheese, Pesto, Roasted Red Pepper, Sun Dried Tomato, Artichoke, Vegetarian, Mushroom, Eggplant, Spinach)
* Appetizers (Falafel, Babaganouge, Feta Cheese & Olives, Grape Leaves, Dolmodaes, Tabbouleh Spanakopita, Asparagus Fries, Eggplant Fries, Sweet Potato Fries, Tzatziki, Rice)
* Salads (House, Greek, Tabbouleh, Fetouche)
* A La Carte (Homous, Babaganouge, Grape Leaves, Spanakopita, Vegetarian Plate, Vegetarian Dinner for 2)
* Pocket Sandwiches (Falafel, Eggplant Pita)
* Pitas (Veggie Pita Wrap)
* Kids (Many of the above items are available in the Kid’s menu, all Middle Eastern, no American foods on Kid’s Menu, minus chicken tenders)

You could say King David’s is a vegetarian’s paradise! The only concern I had coming here on a dreary day was would I be interested in eating most of these items today being cold/chilled items. I had hoped to get something hot to warm up.

We decided on the vegetarian dinner for two (Spanakopita, four falafel patties, plate of homous, plate of babaganouge, plate of tabboulah, dolmades, pita and two baklava for dessert at $18.95) and the eggplant fries. This was a massive amount of food as you can see in the photos. I would suggest this could be a lunch/dinner for three or four depending on your appetites. As this restaurant is loosely connected to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) campus, students could buy this for one or two and take a ‘doggie bag’ home and eat throughout the day and possibly even through two days!

Comments on the food. Eggplant fries were very tasty. Krishna, who tries to avoid eggplant, even in saying the word “eggplant,” ate these willingly and enjoyed them by dipping them in the homous. Our waitress did provide ketchup, but it tasted better dipping it this way. All other items were very tasty, and actually though I was worried I’d feel cold after eating all these cold dishes, that did not happen. I think that happened partially because of the shot of Turkish coffee I bought and downed in one big gulp. I had expected this coffee to be quite strong (in taste and caffeine content) and bitter compared to the Turkish coffee I have had in the past, but it was not so. Not even sure it was that full of caffeine, as I felt tired after the meal! The only part of the meal that could have been improved was the spanakopita as the phylo dough seemed chewy to both of us, and not crispy and light as we have tasted in other places.

Checking In
Initially, this was not an issue as we were the only ones in the establishment. However, by about 11:45 when more patrons swarmed in, our waitress, who doubled as the host/cashier was inundated, which affected the attention she could give to those of us sitting in the dining area. Unfortunately, beside her it appeared no one else working there was in the role of waitressing/checking on guests. This could be improved for the future. It could be possible the management continues to monitor the help required as they recently opened in August.

See you later
Since we paid at the counter before getting the food, waiting for the bill was no problem. However, I had not understood at time of payment our waitress would be serving us. I thought we would have to come back to the counter to collect food, so initially I left too small a tip. After sitting down and then being served our meal, I realized the set up and left a few extra dollars on the table upon heading out.
Pay Scale
$11-15 per person
Tips
10% was sufficient
Star System 4/5

To find/Contact
King David's Restaurant
www.kingdavids.com
200 Park Point Drive
Rochester, NY 14623
(585) 424-7482
Get directions

Hours of operation
Open Mon-Thu 11am-9pm; Fri-Sat 11am-10pm; Sun 12pm-7pm

Review based on November 2008 visit.

This review has been posted on King David's website, here and outside.in.

Have you eaten at King David’s Restaurant, RIT Park Point, Rochester, NY? If so, please share your thoughts below.

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Tags: “middle eastern rochester” “king david rochester” “middle eastern” “turkish coffee” baklavah, henrietta-ny, mediterranean, restaurant on college campus, restaurant review, RIT