If you saw "The Garbage Plate" on a menu would you try it? The Garbage Plate is a very popular food item on many local restaurants menus in upstate NY, more specifically Rochester, NY.
What is a Garbage Plate?
The traditional Garbage Plate consists of a plate filled with lots and lots of ...carbs. The original Garbage Plate is assembled in three to four layers. First layer, the very bottom of the the plate, are your two to three choice of "sides" or the base of the dish. The original Garbage Plate consists of macaroni salad, home fries,and beans. The next layers are your two choices of meats. The most common meats on a Garbage Plate are hamburgers, cheeseburgers, red hots, or white hots. The very top layer is a traditional meat hot sauce. However, when you think that you are done there, you can still add more toppings to it. The most popular toppings are mustard and onions but it is not uncommon to see people add ketchup, pickles, and even mayo.
How many calories are in one Garbage Plate?
On average, a Garbage can range anywhere from 1500 2,320 calries.
Who invented The Garbage Plate?
If you talk to a resident in Rochester, NY, they will tell you that the original Garbage Plate came from a local restaurant names Nick Tahou Hots. In fact, Nick Tahou Hots trademarked "The Garbage Plate" so other restaurants had to get creative to come up with their own name for this popular dish. Nick Tahou Hots began operating in Rochester, NY in 1918, making it an old and very well known local restaurant.
Why is this The Garbage Pate so Popular?
Could it be because it is the ultimate comfort food? Really, you have everyone's favorite crabs (potatoes, macaroni, and beans) toped with processed meats and a meat sauce that is like the cherry on top. Some would say its the meat sauce that makes this dish so special. Others say its the combination of all the ingredients that makes it so tasty. Regardless of what makes this plate so loved, it would be difficult to find a person from Rochester, NY that has not tried it. Most of these plates are sold on weekends after one may have had a drink or two....or ten. Could it be that this is a delicious and filling meal after a long night out
Variations of The Garbage Plate:
Nick Tahou's famous Garbage Plate became so incredibly popular in Rochester, NY that even though trademarked, other local restaurants began serving their variation of The Garbage Plate and came up with their own creative names. Some other names for The Garbage Plate are: Trash Plate, Great Plate, Junker Plate, and Hot Plate.
Many restaurants not only have the traditional version of the plate, but some have become creative and serve unique plates that are topped with sandwiches, chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, chicken wings, and so on. One of few reasons why sometimes people choose not to order the plate is because it is a lot of food for one person. Because of that a lot of local Rochester restaurants offer half plates where you can get a smaller variation of the popular dish. Not only that but one restaurant even has an even smaller option than the "half plate" and calls it a "Princess Plate." Either way, if you go to Rochester and get a "Garbage Plate," everyone will know exactly what you mean.
If you're from Rochester, what is the best Garbage plate you've ever had from?