Schaller's Drive-In

Schaller's Drive-In is a family-owned burger and hot dog restaurant at 965 Edgemere Dr in the Greece neighborhood of Rochester, NY. Brothers Ken and Joe Schaller founded the original location in 1956 after leaving their jobs at Eastman Kodak Co., pooling their savings and mortgaging their homes to open a small stand near the shores of Lake Ontario. What started in a modest garage has grown into a multi-generation Rochester institution, with the Edgemere Drive location still operating under the same family ownership after nearly seven decades.

Schaller's menu centers on classic American drive-in fare:

• Hand-formed burgers and cheeseburgers, prepared the same way since 1956
• Hot dogs — ranked fourth in the country by a 2013 USA Today nationwide poll
• The Rochester-style garbage plate, built with crinkle-cut fries, macaroni salad, and toppings like cheeseburger patties and spicy meat chili
• Soft-serve custard ice cream
• Onion rings and other traditional sides

The restaurant's house-made meat hot sauce is a signature condiment that accompanies many of its core menu items. Hours are generally 10:30 AM to 9 PM daily, though visitors should confirm directly for seasonal changes.

Schaller's has operated continuously on Edgemere Drive since 1956, making it one of Rochester's longest-running family restaurants. The original open-air stand was enclosed in the 1970s and a second dining room added, but the drive-in character of the place has largely been preserved. A second Schaller's location opened on Ridge Road in Irondequoit in 1959, and a third in Brighton in 1996. The Edgemere Drive location won the Rochester ROCS Best Burger award in 2013, the same year its hot dogs earned national recognition from USA Today.

The Edgemere Drive location sits in the Town of Greece, a residential suburb on Rochester's northwest side near the Lake Ontario shoreline. The restaurant is positioned along Edgemere Drive close to where the road approaches the lake, surrounded by a quiet, established neighborhood. Parking is available on-site. Greece is primarily a car-friendly suburb, and Schaller's is roughly a ten-minute drive from downtown Rochester via Lake Avenue or Ridge Road.