809 Bar and Restaurant

809 Bar and Restaurant is a Dominican and Latin-inspired eatery located at 288 Exchange Blvd in Rochester, NY, inside the Corn Hill Landing complex along the Genesee River. Owned by Nidia and Felipe Melo, the business traces its roots to a food truck the couple launched in 2010 to bring Dominican flavors to the Rochester area. After years of growing demand, they expanded into brick-and-mortar locations — the Corn Hill Landing spot, which occupies the former Tony D's space, is the third 809 location in the Rochester area, joining earlier sites on Lyell Avenue and West Ridge Road.

809 operates as both a sit-down restaurant and a sports bar, open Tuesday through Thursday from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 3 p.m. to 2 a.m., and Sunday from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. (closed Monday). The menu spans a wide range, blending Dominican staples with Italian-American dishes and bar fare:

• Dominican specialties — stuffed mofongo with skirt steak or lobster and shrimp, fried pork chunks, slow-roast pork belly, mangú, and sides like fried sweet plantains and yuca fong
• Seafood — crispy fried red snapper, seafood paella with lobster and clams, grilled octopus, shrimp scampi with mofongo, and king crab legs
• Tacos — birria, carne asada, shrimp, and chicken, each served with sides
• Pasta and pizza — options like penne alla vodka, seafood pasta, homemade lasagna, and NYC-style pepperoni pizza
• Steaks — rib eye, T-bone, skirt steak, and tomahawk pork chops

The restaurant also provides on-site catering and event hosting for weddings and private gatherings.

809 takes its name from the area code of the Dominican Republic, reflecting the Melo family's heritage and the cuisine at the heart of the menu. The restaurant is known for its mofongo preparations — fried mashed green plantains with garlic and pork skin, stuffed with proteins ranging from fried pork to lobster — and for a menu that bridges Dominican home cooking with broader Latin and Italian-American comfort food. The food-truck-to-restaurant trajectory over more than a decade has made 809 a familiar name in Rochester's Latin dining scene.

The Corn Hill Landing location sits at 288 Exchange Blvd in the Corn Hill neighborhood of Rochester, NY 14608, directly along the Genesee Riverfront. Corn Hill Landing is a mixed-use complex with residential units and storefronts, positioned just south of downtown Rochester near the Fredrick Douglass–Susan B. Anthony Memorial Bridge. Street parking and a shared lot serve the complex. The neighborhood hosts the annual Corn Hill Arts Festival each July and offers a walkable stretch of river trail, making the restaurant accessible to both local residents and visitors exploring the area.