History & Culture · Finger Lakes
The Garbage Plate and George Eastman: two Rochester icons
Rochester gave the world the Garbage Plate, a beloved late-night pile of comfort food, and George Eastman, whose Kodak made photography something anyone could do.
Published June 21, 2026 · Last verified June 21, 2026
Rochester can explain itself through a paper camera and a very full plate. The hometown food handle is the Garbage Plate: home fries or macaroni salad piled with a choice of meat, then topped with mustard, onions, and a meaty hot sauce. The name comes from college students who would come in late and ask for “a plate with all that garbage on it.” Nick Tahou Hots holds the trademark on the name, and the dish traces back to a restaurant a Greek immigrant family started here back in 1918.
Rochester’s other icon is George Eastman, who built the Eastman Kodak Company here and made photography simple enough for everyday families. His roll film and easy-to-use cameras helped turn picture-taking from a specialist’s craft into something people could do at the kitchen table.
You can still walk through Eastman’s world. His 1905 mansion on East Avenue is now the George Eastman Museum, founded in 1947 and opened to the public in 1949. It is a major museum dedicated to photography and film, with hundreds of thousands of photographs plus thousands of films.
Two very different legacies sit close together in Rochester: one you might eat standing up at midnight, and one you tour on a quiet afternoon.
Where to see it
The George Eastman Museum is at 900 East Avenue, Rochester. For the Garbage Plate, the original is Nick Tahou Hots; check the museum's site for current hours and admission before you go: https://www.eastman.org/