If you have ever spent a drunken night in Rochester, New York, you have probably experienced one of the city's essential culinary traditions, the humbly-named Garbage Plate (or one of its knock-offs around town with names like "Trash Plate" or even the ultra-fancy "Plat de Refuse"). While plenty of variations exist, the basic construction of a Garbage Plate, born at the legendary Nick Tahou's, goes like this:

a base of homefries and mac salad (some places will let you swap in a few other base options, like fries or beans)

two meats, such as two hamburger patties, two hot dogs (either "red hots" or "white hots" ), or one of each

condiments — generally mustard, and chopped onions

"hot sauce," which actually refers to a thick, spicy meat sauce

a piece of white bread, served on the side, to sop up all that remains on your plate

While Rochester expats have been known to pop up in other cities and offer variations on the Garbage Plate, it's pretty impossible to find in Boston. (Rumor has it that Bleacher Bar has served it during some Bills football games, but it's not on the regular menu.)



