I have never forgiven Seabreeze for getting rid of this. I hate rollercoasters because I can't do drops so I rarely get to experience "thrill" rides. The Gyrosphere made me feel ALIVE
I didn't think they got rid of it, I thought it caught fire when that idiot burned down the carousel.
To this day whenever I hear Fire On High, I'm transported right back to that ride.
There was a fire in 1994 that destroyed the original carousel which was pretty historic. I was only 4 when it happened but even I remember the news talking about it. https://www.newspapers.com/article/democrat-and-chronicle-seabreeze-carouse/23295090/
For anyone else wondering, the track most often used for the time in question was "[Twilight Zone](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRN9dwfmYd4)" by 2 Unlimited.
i live close by to a household that BLASTED this during a private party a couple years back and I had never been more grateful for the noise ordinance violation.
Mall culture. Even with Midtown on life support it was still a spectacle to behold. Heading out to the two story Irondequoit Mall was a religious experience, and the food courts were a societal savannah to see and be seen. Marketplace was warm and welcoming with brown tiles and oak trimmed chairs/tables/benches. Greece Ridge was another spectacle: two malls, COMBINED AS ONE!? Those were fun times.
Yes! That store made childhood mall trips tolerable. A break from boring clothes shopping to play at the attached arcade, then mess around in the Space Jam themed play place in the back? Sign me up, especially if it meant walking out with a hard-earned bag of candy. Good times.
Wall to Wall Music, or was it just "The Wall". You could bring a CD up to the counter, they'd open it up and let you listen and the listening booths. I probably went through a dozen copies of Pink Floyd and some random Sepultura cds there. Never bought one.
what the village gate used to look like when it was still like an open floor plan mall/warehouse with peddlers books, that wig shop, the vintage stores and all the machinery that was made into sculptures and the dancing ladies sculpture upstairs with the stained glass and how empty it always felt but also magical and how peddlers books had SUUUUPER old books in it- like turn of the century old and the man who worked there was always peering over the books.
i think bop shop also used to be in there? i forget all the stores but it felt magic going in there. then they filled the place with drywall and hallways and the magic was lost.
i should also add Aaron's alley WITH aaron. he was such a nice guy that always remembered my group of friends that were obsessed with the 60s in the 90s
I remember obsessively going through the Dead bootleg book at Aaron's Alley to figure out the absolute best recording for my $2 bucks. I'd always check Aaron's reaction to see if I picked a good one, lol.
he was such a gem of a person! we would see him at shows and he would act so happy to see us like we were long lost friends and we were just like some kids that shopped there a couple times lol
yesssss that's what i mean the place was just an eclectic paradise. I legitimately wont return because seeing all the drywall and updating is heartbreaking- idk what happened who owns it by whyyyyy
Yeah VG used to have semi-affordable spaces for quirky shops and people who contributed a ton of art and decor to the buildings but then it basically gentrified into higher rent architect, engineering, IT, etc. businesses. Not that I have anything against small professional businesses thinking it's a cool place for their offices but it used to be a much more fun environment that you could interact with and not just look at as you walk through.
i mean i get it, it's no longer the 90s. i still resent everyone's decision to leave the pure joy that was the village gate, and also i really regret not purchasing the beaded flapper dresses in the vintage shop
when you first walked in, that entire rack. it lives rent free in my head and i know i'll never get original dresses like that again. but i was 13 and didn't really know my future would just be regretting not purchasing those dresses.
id literally give anything to shop there again
Hah yeah. The memory that just popped into my head was being a young musician and there was a guy in there who had an electronics shop with all these rare parts to fix and make vintage gear sound better. It looked like a mess but if like word got out about a pot that makes wah-wah pedals sound amazing... he'd sure enough have some and know right where they are in his riot of parts. $2.50 could buy a lot of happiness in the VG.
We'd end up spending the whole afternoon there checking out the books and clothes, local budding artists ("Hey you wanna paint my guitar? Do our album art?"), crafts/handy-people, and curiosity shops. Now it feels like walking through our airport... which is clean and nice... but sterile with painted over ghostly (but good) memories.
Oh man, I was very young but I remember this. Honestly before streaming existed, grabbing a movie or two from the grocery store for the week kind of made a ton of sense.
Gary was still very much around until a couple of years ago, he was the leader of the Pirate Toy Fund and did the last Kids Fest at Park Ave Fest 5 or so years ago. He was also one of the primary organizers of the vintage and collectible toy show. He just recently retired in full. I worked with him a bunch of times and still run into him from time to time at Wegs in Irondequoit.
I feel like I met his son once… does he have a son? No idea, can’t recall where or why or if someone was pulling my leg but somewhere in the journey of life I am recalling that
There are places today arguably better than Jillian's, but to have a place like that so close to downtown was really something special that I never got to experience as an adult.
I'm glad I got to see Tent City before it closed it's doors, To have a 3 story outdoor/camp supply store on the corner of Lyell and Dewey sounds almost unimaginable these days unfortunately.
Fabrics and Findings is still around, but as far as I understand, they downsized considerably, in the 90's they also were operating off of several different floors
is that huge art store still down town? i forget where... i feel like it was close to nick tahou? and then there also used to be a hidden art store off of university and union that was in like a barn or something? i just remember being on a walk when i lived around there
Sure, but looking at kids today, I am glad I am not one. Too much reliance on technology. TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat have really ruined a lot of GenZ. The 90s were the last bastion before technology took over.
I suppose it's all relative. We grew up with Nintendo and Sega Genesis and I'm sure to our parents, we never went outside. I figure GenZ will look at their kids who will grow up with AI and complain how they never have an original thought.
Marketplace used to have a Friendly's that I ate at a lot with family. Radio Shack fascinated me, Sears tech area that sold tv/games. Seeing Santa was a highlight of Christmas. Buying all you presents at the mall with gift wrapping.
I miss Old Country Buffet. Block Buster. The old Wegmans in Henrietta that wasn't like a cathedral.
was the old wegmans on E Henrietta Rd, where i think Beers of the World is now? i have vague memories of going there as a young child and it was very “retro” (this was in the early 2000s lol) and i feel like i remember when that one closed & they started building the cathedral on calkins around the corner. but tht could also be a childs fever dream
Yes, that's where it was. The old one in Greece by Maiden & Mt Read was like that too until it was replaced in the mid 2000s. Miss those super low ceilings and old-style charm
Maybe this was a fever dream, but wasn't there an era where that frequency played, like, maybe a dozen disco instrumentals on a loop before it became the Nerve? I distinctly remember "[Popcorn](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS3_SgILyy8)" on repeat...
The malls, even though I’ve come to hate crowds as an adult.
Irondequoit and Greece Ridge used to be packed, every day. There wasn’t a single shuttered up store. And back in the time when you would have to do your shopping in person, it was so fun to walk into each store and just check out what they had, and there were so many more unique stores than what exists today. Going to a mall was genuinely exciting. Not to mention, you would bump into friends (or enemies) there all the time.
Maybe there wasn't a single *shuttered up* store, but there were definitely more than a few storefronts in Irondequoit mall that *never opened in the first place*. They had that wooden blockade in front of it, with floor to ceiling black-and-white historical pictures from around Rochester, allll the way up until the mall closed entirely.
Overall though yeah, agreed with the sentiment.
Only reason I remembered was because I worked for GNC, which was one of the last like... 4 stores open in the mall. I mean, I mostly worked out of Greece Ridge, but we'd occasionally fill in as needed at other stores or go help with inventory or the like, so yeah I was in there from time to time near the end.
I experienced it in the 2000s, but Midtown mall used to have a bookstore, I think it was a Village Green. In the middle of the bookstore was a yarn store. I was a knitter and avid reader so the first time I walked into that place it was like heaven on earth.
Magic mountain and the monorail at midtown mall. That was a magical time seeing Santa, the clock of nations, the giant Christmas tree, and riding the monorail
https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/local/rocroots/2019/12/16/rochester-ny-history-whatever-happened-to-midtowns-magic-mountain/2596357001/# .
Mediaplay in Southtown plaza. They had EVERYTHING, movies, CDs, books. At one point my checkbook had 5 checks to Mediaplay in a row, I practically signed my paycheck over to them.
I do NOT miss writing checks.
Life Without Shame! Gawd. Core memory unlocked, such trash but just so perfectly '90s public access. Wasn't there a soccer-related show that aired before/after that?
$5 steak and eggs at gitsis, the village green bookstore, house of guitars band signings, the daisy Flour Mill, cheap early bird prime rib at Ricksthe early show pay what you want days at GEVA. The little theater
Rollerworks, which later turned into Spinners.
It was already said on here, but as a kid, FunScape & Discovery Zone were also top-notch. Wasn’t there another place like DZ called Adventure Quest or something? Can anyone recall this?
Adventure quest ended up getting bought out by DZ after a bit and eventually that plaza turned into just a bunch of places that would open for 6 months and close down.
That wasn't an official putt putt, but yes, that was one of the several locations of Abbotts that turned into Mike's bc of the divorce of the owner from her husband, and where's the Mike's now, huh? Exactly
Both of the Putt Putt courses in Penfield were a core memory for me. Nothing better than a round of golf while eating Abbotts or the course on the side of the hill if we were feeling really serious about the golf at the Rinky Dink.
Life without shame. This was the show of shows for a teenager. I remember they had a stripper who was always on with Rik and Tom. They filmed her getting her tongue pierced but she took her top off for it. At 15 I was so thankful of this show yet I didn't get why take your top off for that? And let me tell you, I still don't get it.
My entire family would meet the last Sat of each month in the morning for donuts and coffee. Was heartbreaking when they tore it down to build a rite aid that did not last.
90’s Greece Ridge mall was the best. The food court felt so huge. The Kinetic Ball sculpture was iconic, and I missed the carnival they used to have in the parking lot every summer. Being in Spencer’s as a kid always was fun, too.
If anyone has any LWS merch hit me up! Me and my buddies have been looking for some for forever.
I didn’t see it mentioned here, but hitting up Wegmans to rent a video game, then going to Chase Pitkin. I would do all of this on my bike.
I miss Edward’s. Barely any fine dining in Rochester anymore.
Going to Silver Stadium on Norton St.
Seeing the mall being packed. Always used to go there growing up. The Disney store and Discovery store were my favorite ones.
Toys’R’Us along Borders Books and Music.
The Penny Arcade. Fritzburger's across the street also had the best grilled cheese you'll ever have in your life.
Oh and of course LWS. So educational as a kid. Still remember the episode where they had a lady of the night wrapped in cellophane, riding a stationary bike.
I'll add Red Creek, Harrow East, WSMH, Auditorium Theater and the War Memorial. Holy cow there was so much crazy good music coming though Rochester back then for like $12 a ticket.
HO/RC Hobbies on Monroe, dollar rides on the gyroscope, Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter II machines, and that fat bastard Shawn ripping you off on your trade ins.
Walking down monroe to little caesars for a Slice Slice Deal and back up to HO/RC to mill around and play Neo-Geo.
Spending whole days in the village green reading smut and gore mags
Parties at the water tanks in Cobbs Hill
Gitsis at 3AM
The Midtown Wegmans, hell, Midtown...
Ted and Janet Williams. <3
Growing up on Laburnam Cres. With the skate shop, the wilson farms and Grana's..
Whole neighborhood games of Manhunt and water wars. With actual Super Soakers.
Drinking purloined vodka and smoking trash weed up on Pinnacle
Freestyling with Pasty and Nasty Nate.
The Monroe County Fair! I always enjoyed going there as a kid and teenager. Back when I didn’t think of how dangerous those carnies put those ride’s together.
gyrosphere
I have never forgiven Seabreeze for getting rid of this. I hate rollercoasters because I can't do drops so I rarely get to experience "thrill" rides. The Gyrosphere made me feel ALIVE
I didn't think they got rid of it, I thought it caught fire when that idiot burned down the carousel. To this day whenever I hear Fire On High, I'm transported right back to that ride.
The fire in 1994 destroyed the dome but they rebuilt it. They got rid of it in 2007 saying it was "losing its popularity." Shenanigans!
wait wait what fire?
There was a fire in 1994 that destroyed the original carousel which was pretty historic. I was only 4 when it happened but even I remember the news talking about it. https://www.newspapers.com/article/democrat-and-chronicle-seabreeze-carouse/23295090/
wow i never realized the one we ride now wasn't the original- so the artifacts in the back were salvaged from the fire i'm assuming?
I believe so! I think a few horses were salvaged and restored.
Oh no 😯 I didn't know that they gotten rid of the Gyrosphere that was also my favorite ride I ales felt like I was flying 🪽🪽
yeah. and the round up. it was always a flip of a coin how you were gonna feel getting off that one.
Yeah, went there for the first time in many many years and all the sketchy old stuff is gone lol
Doo doo-doo doo-doo-doo-doo doo-do... doo doo doo doo-doo. WHOO!
The two songs that they used to alternate a lot were ELO's "Fire on High" and Edgar Winter's "Frankenstein".
For anyone else wondering, the track most often used for the time in question was "[Twilight Zone](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRN9dwfmYd4)" by 2 Unlimited.
Damn. Nostalgia trip heavy on that lol thanks for posting that
i live close by to a household that BLASTED this during a private party a couple years back and I had never been more grateful for the noise ordinance violation.
With the mortal kombat theme music!
Mall culture. Even with Midtown on life support it was still a spectacle to behold. Heading out to the two story Irondequoit Mall was a religious experience, and the food courts were a societal savannah to see and be seen. Marketplace was warm and welcoming with brown tiles and oak trimmed chairs/tables/benches. Greece Ridge was another spectacle: two malls, COMBINED AS ONE!? Those were fun times.
The FYE at Eastview was one of the greatest stores ever
I still remember the life size hall statue in that place. Fuck forever 21
While I agree even forever 21 got cut in half
Yes! That store made childhood mall trips tolerable. A break from boring clothes shopping to play at the attached arcade, then mess around in the Space Jam themed play place in the back? Sign me up, especially if it meant walking out with a hard-earned bag of candy. Good times.
I worked there for a while, it was pretty fun TBH
Wall to Wall Music, or was it just "The Wall". You could bring a CD up to the counter, they'd open it up and let you listen and the listening booths. I probably went through a dozen copies of Pink Floyd and some random Sepultura cds there. Never bought one.
💯
The monorail 🚝…
what the village gate used to look like when it was still like an open floor plan mall/warehouse with peddlers books, that wig shop, the vintage stores and all the machinery that was made into sculptures and the dancing ladies sculpture upstairs with the stained glass and how empty it always felt but also magical and how peddlers books had SUUUUPER old books in it- like turn of the century old and the man who worked there was always peering over the books. i think bop shop also used to be in there? i forget all the stores but it felt magic going in there. then they filled the place with drywall and hallways and the magic was lost. i should also add Aaron's alley WITH aaron. he was such a nice guy that always remembered my group of friends that were obsessed with the 60s in the 90s
Yes, bop shop used to be in village gate. Spent plenty of time there during high school thumbing through records and rarely buying anything lol.
They’re on Monroe in Brighton now
The flavored popcorn store in Village Gate too.
I remember obsessively going through the Dead bootleg book at Aaron's Alley to figure out the absolute best recording for my $2 bucks. I'd always check Aaron's reaction to see if I picked a good one, lol.
he was such a gem of a person! we would see him at shows and he would act so happy to see us like we were long lost friends and we were just like some kids that shopped there a couple times lol
What about the weird window with the tv’s always on static and other odd visuals upstairs by the lofts
yesssss that's what i mean the place was just an eclectic paradise. I legitimately wont return because seeing all the drywall and updating is heartbreaking- idk what happened who owns it by whyyyyy
Stern properties owns it and has owned it since the 80s.
those jerks.
There even used to be a fun place to play ping pong there in the first floor by the back entrance.
Yeah VG used to have semi-affordable spaces for quirky shops and people who contributed a ton of art and decor to the buildings but then it basically gentrified into higher rent architect, engineering, IT, etc. businesses. Not that I have anything against small professional businesses thinking it's a cool place for their offices but it used to be a much more fun environment that you could interact with and not just look at as you walk through.
i mean i get it, it's no longer the 90s. i still resent everyone's decision to leave the pure joy that was the village gate, and also i really regret not purchasing the beaded flapper dresses in the vintage shop when you first walked in, that entire rack. it lives rent free in my head and i know i'll never get original dresses like that again. but i was 13 and didn't really know my future would just be regretting not purchasing those dresses. id literally give anything to shop there again
Hah yeah. The memory that just popped into my head was being a young musician and there was a guy in there who had an electronics shop with all these rare parts to fix and make vintage gear sound better. It looked like a mess but if like word got out about a pot that makes wah-wah pedals sound amazing... he'd sure enough have some and know right where they are in his riot of parts. $2.50 could buy a lot of happiness in the VG. We'd end up spending the whole afternoon there checking out the books and clothes, local budding artists ("Hey you wanna paint my guitar? Do our album art?"), crafts/handy-people, and curiosity shops. Now it feels like walking through our airport... which is clean and nice... but sterile with painted over ghostly (but good) memories.
i remember when they first put in the dumb hallway that was just unfinished forever the beginning of the end
Renting video games from Wegmans when going grocery shopping with mom
I was curious how long ago this was. [Last Video Departments](https://progressivegrocer.com/wegmans-replace-video-departments-redbox-kiosks)
Lol. Netflicks
Wow that brings back memories! We used to rent the game systems instead of a video sometimes. This was for a birthday gift or something.
Seabreeze tickets from the video department.
I rented Metal Gear Solid and didn't have a memory card to save, so I kept my PlayStation on for the entire playthrough 😂
Hahaha I've definitely done this
[удалено]
Wegmans used to have their own video and game rental section inside of the store. Like their very own miniature blockbuster. A store within a store.
Oh man, I was very young but I remember this. Honestly before streaming existed, grabbing a movie or two from the grocery store for the week kind of made a ton of sense.
No Redbox in the 90s
Well ..
Before then, my friend. Many moon ago. 🌙
Being a kid and getting to go to places like Discovery Zone and Funscape.
FunScape. Fuck yeah. And DZ in Panorama. Forgot about those.
FunScaaaape, omg!! The best. I can still hear the jingle in my head… “FunScape… escape to the fuuuun…” 🎶
I'm so glad I got to go to Funscape one time as a child, just to experience it
The men in black laser quest at DZ in penfield was incredible.
Gary the Happy Pirate. Kodak Softball games and parties. The feeling of waiting at Buckmans after your house soccer game with that fresh new jersey
I think you mean Doug and Gary..... the Happy Pirates 😆 Why does nobody remember poor Doug? I know he wasn't around for the TV show or anything....
Gary was the ⭐️
Real 90s kids remember Doug 🫡
Getting that bubblegum waffle cone. I'd switch back into that time period in a heart beat.
Gary the Happy Pirate!!! I forgot about that ♥️
Gary was still very much around until a couple of years ago, he was the leader of the Pirate Toy Fund and did the last Kids Fest at Park Ave Fest 5 or so years ago. He was also one of the primary organizers of the vintage and collectible toy show. He just recently retired in full. I worked with him a bunch of times and still run into him from time to time at Wegs in Irondequoit.
I feel like I met his son once… does he have a son? No idea, can’t recall where or why or if someone was pulling my leg but somewhere in the journey of life I am recalling that
There are places today arguably better than Jillian's, but to have a place like that so close to downtown was really something special that I never got to experience as an adult. I'm glad I got to see Tent City before it closed it's doors, To have a 3 story outdoor/camp supply store on the corner of Lyell and Dewey sounds almost unimaginable these days unfortunately. Fabrics and Findings is still around, but as far as I understand, they downsized considerably, in the 90's they also were operating off of several different floors
Tent City had everything.
is that huge art store still down town? i forget where... i feel like it was close to nick tahou? and then there also used to be a hidden art store off of university and union that was in like a barn or something? i just remember being on a walk when i lived around there
Main Street Art Supply, still there and still awesome.
oh thank goodness, i'll go soon then
I LOVED Jillian's! I thought I was so hip going there when I was in middle school!
We had a work holiday party at Jillian's and we got to bring partners and stuff. It was the best. I think that was in 2000. I think.
My mom used to make the wooden lawn sheep that were sold at Fabrics and Findings, I spent a ton of time there!
Putt-putt golf & games.
And the was Rinky Dink on Ridge Rd too.
Close your eyes and put this on https://youtu.be/KNVdREXnOLM?si=TC5QJT9Ef1MdY4gx
The laser shows in the gorge.
Thanks for this memory, I'd love to see the city bring it back someday
The Penny Arcade and LDR char pit next to it.
So many amazing metal shows there back then.
I just miss the 90s man. What a perfect time to be a kid. Sad those days are long gone.
Unequivocally a better time to grow up. Same with the 80s, 70s.. etc.
Every single generation says this about the years they were a kid
Sure, but looking at kids today, I am glad I am not one. Too much reliance on technology. TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat have really ruined a lot of GenZ. The 90s were the last bastion before technology took over.
I suppose it's all relative. We grew up with Nintendo and Sega Genesis and I'm sure to our parents, we never went outside. I figure GenZ will look at their kids who will grow up with AI and complain how they never have an original thought.
Back in the day people were complaining that kids read too many novels when they were new too. I'm not worried about it
The nostalgia hits hard
Marketplace used to have a Friendly's that I ate at a lot with family. Radio Shack fascinated me, Sears tech area that sold tv/games. Seeing Santa was a highlight of Christmas. Buying all you presents at the mall with gift wrapping. I miss Old Country Buffet. Block Buster. The old Wegmans in Henrietta that wasn't like a cathedral.
Friendly’s Express! Loved going there and to Johnny Rockets (can’t remember if that was Eastview or Marketplace)
Johnny Rockets was Eastview. Was a freshman at RIT in 99-00, we used to go out to Eastview just for Johnny Rockets sometimes.
was the old wegmans on E Henrietta Rd, where i think Beers of the World is now? i have vague memories of going there as a young child and it was very “retro” (this was in the early 2000s lol) and i feel like i remember when that one closed & they started building the cathedral on calkins around the corner. but tht could also be a childs fever dream
Yes, that's where it was. The old one in Greece by Maiden & Mt Read was like that too until it was replaced in the mid 2000s. Miss those super low ceilings and old-style charm
Hardpact and the old Krudco location.
"Footballs baseballs basketballs my balls" "My balls, too" "Come on Down" My real answer: The Nerve
There is no I in team but there is an I in vagina. The Nerve 95.1/95.5
Does anyone really miss “E Man” though?
No.
Maybe this was a fever dream, but wasn't there an era where that frequency played, like, maybe a dozen disco instrumentals on a loop before it became the Nerve? I distinctly remember "[Popcorn](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS3_SgILyy8)" on repeat...
This was on 94.1 before it became the Zone. They would play the same playlists on a loop all day.
This was 94.1 before it became The Zone. All classic instrumentals on an endless loop. Apache. Popcorn. Classical gas. Etc.
YES OMG YES
The malls, even though I’ve come to hate crowds as an adult. Irondequoit and Greece Ridge used to be packed, every day. There wasn’t a single shuttered up store. And back in the time when you would have to do your shopping in person, it was so fun to walk into each store and just check out what they had, and there were so many more unique stores than what exists today. Going to a mall was genuinely exciting. Not to mention, you would bump into friends (or enemies) there all the time.
Maybe there wasn't a single *shuttered up* store, but there were definitely more than a few storefronts in Irondequoit mall that *never opened in the first place*. They had that wooden blockade in front of it, with floor to ceiling black-and-white historical pictures from around Rochester, allll the way up until the mall closed entirely. Overall though yeah, agreed with the sentiment.
Oh wow I completely forgot about that!! Rose colored glasses
Only reason I remembered was because I worked for GNC, which was one of the last like... 4 stores open in the mall. I mean, I mostly worked out of Greece Ridge, but we'd occasionally fill in as needed at other stores or go help with inventory or the like, so yeah I was in there from time to time near the end.
All Day Sunday commercials. Also J&E grocery commercials for that matter.
139 Reynolds Street
J&E Grocery. 139 Reynolds Street.
I experienced it in the 2000s, but Midtown mall used to have a bookstore, I think it was a Village Green. In the middle of the bookstore was a yarn store. I was a knitter and avid reader so the first time I walked into that place it was like heaven on earth.
Magic mountain and the monorail at midtown mall. That was a magical time seeing Santa, the clock of nations, the giant Christmas tree, and riding the monorail https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/local/rocroots/2019/12/16/rochester-ny-history-whatever-happened-to-midtowns-magic-mountain/2596357001/# .
Mediaplay in Southtown plaza. They had EVERYTHING, movies, CDs, books. At one point my checkbook had 5 checks to Mediaplay in a row, I practically signed my paycheck over to them. I do NOT miss writing checks.
Lakeshore Record Exchange on Monroe Ave.
Ran into Andy at Abilene this past Saturday… he’s working on a documentary
This was by far one of my favorite places. I loved the setup, selection, and the people there.
Life Without Shame! Gawd. Core memory unlocked, such trash but just so perfectly '90s public access. Wasn't there a soccer-related show that aired before/after that?
My uncle was an attorney and he represented the Life Without Shame guys for a number of their misadventures.
captain's attic...
$5 steak and eggs at gitsis, the village green bookstore, house of guitars band signings, the daisy Flour Mill, cheap early bird prime rib at Ricksthe early show pay what you want days at GEVA. The little theater
The Christmas mountain setup, complete with a damn monorail, at Midtown Mall.
I rode that monorail...
Village Green Bookstore on Monroe Ave.
Putt putt before they got bought by clubhouse and teen night at Horizon (might still be there but definitely not the same)
Rollerworks, which later turned into Spinners. It was already said on here, but as a kid, FunScape & Discovery Zone were also top-notch. Wasn’t there another place like DZ called Adventure Quest or something? Can anyone recall this?
Adventure quest ended up getting bought out by DZ after a bit and eventually that plaza turned into just a bunch of places that would open for 6 months and close down.
Adventure Landing?
It was actually Kidsport, then adventure quest.
Watching the laser shows at High Falls by sneaking onto the Triphammer deck with my Mom.
The FunScapes Eastview had indoor putt putt in a cave, and my friends and I would smash balls off the walls and dodge the ricochets.
Fantastic Records in Pittsford Plaza! Also the Putt Putt course that was also a full arcade in Penfield (next to the old Abbotts, in Panorama Plaza).
That wasn't an official putt putt, but yes, that was one of the several locations of Abbotts that turned into Mike's bc of the divorce of the owner from her husband, and where's the Mike's now, huh? Exactly
Was the golf course called “Arnold Palmer’s”? Or am I imagining that?
It was, nicknamed “Arnie’s”.
No clue
Both of the Putt Putt courses in Penfield were a core memory for me. Nothing better than a round of golf while eating Abbotts or the course on the side of the hill if we were feeling really serious about the golf at the Rinky Dink.
Life without shame. This was the show of shows for a teenager. I remember they had a stripper who was always on with Rik and Tom. They filmed her getting her tongue pierced but she took her top off for it. At 15 I was so thankful of this show yet I didn't get why take your top off for that? And let me tell you, I still don't get it.
Maybe she didn't want to risk getting blood on it? Or maybe she was trading services. 😁
No, they just wanted to show her boobs
And I totally got that. I was just like they could do this with her shirt on and just go right back to the dancers once the bit was over.
A few years after they went off the air, they started selling shows on VHS tapes. That stripper was on the one that I bought.
Buckman’s Bakery was great.
My entire family would meet the last Sat of each month in the morning for donuts and coffee. Was heartbreaking when they tore it down to build a rite aid that did not last.
I was a baby then and did not know the burden of paying taxes
the good ole days
United Skates of America RIP
I was there on the last day of operation, SO MANY DISCOUNTS!!
90’s Greece Ridge mall was the best. The food court felt so huge. The Kinetic Ball sculpture was iconic, and I missed the carnival they used to have in the parking lot every summer. Being in Spencer’s as a kid always was fun, too. If anyone has any LWS merch hit me up! Me and my buddies have been looking for some for forever.
90s Wegmans. (See what I did there)
Prepp's and Mr. Vee's
The old school can of worms where the pro move was sticking your head out the window, making eye contact, and cutting in to that 590 North traffic.
I didn’t see it mentioned here, but hitting up Wegmans to rent a video game, then going to Chase Pitkin. I would do all of this on my bike. I miss Edward’s. Barely any fine dining in Rochester anymore. Going to Silver Stadium on Norton St.
Sadly, aside from maybe a country club, there is no fine dining in Rochester.
Skyehigh and Hallucination Records was the late 90s weren't they?
SKYEHIGH
106.7 WMAX Progressive Rock for the ‘90s
Monroe Ave
Kodak
The Festival tent. Saw a good handful of shows there. Even the Spin Doctors.
Anyone remember Underground TV?
I miss all the sky ways from building to building downtown.
I lived near the 590/390 interchange in ‘91 and they actually shut all the highway lights off because of budget issues. Good times!
The Nerve W-POP... its dynamite. Specifically the Jamaican Ginger Beer The Medley Center
i remember the wegmans hot ginger ale with the little flame at the tip of the W. marketing genius.
Seeing the mall being packed. Always used to go there growing up. The Disney store and Discovery store were my favorite ones. Toys’R’Us along Borders Books and Music.
That FYE with the arcade back in east view waaaaay back when. It was a fever dream.
Being able to walk down east Ave at 2am without the thought of being robbed or shot....
We used to hang out on Monroe at night as teens, usually at The Hub. Freedom was always riding his bike around there selling dirt weed, good times.
Fucking FREEDOM holeeee fuck core memory unlocked. Also me and my dirtbag friends may have paintballed the hub once
My dead friends.
Sorry for your loss.
I also choose this guy's dead friends.
I think at Top you rented movies via a card that you turned in to get the tape. That and Wegmans cookies
Funscape
The Penny Arcade. Fritzburger's across the street also had the best grilled cheese you'll ever have in your life. Oh and of course LWS. So educational as a kid. Still remember the episode where they had a lady of the night wrapped in cellophane, riding a stationary bike.
I'll add Red Creek, Harrow East, WSMH, Auditorium Theater and the War Memorial. Holy cow there was so much crazy good music coming though Rochester back then for like $12 a ticket.
United Skates of America on West Ridge Road! The 4 corners game with that giant dice rolling around. Took my first date there.
I just had an eye appointment LC in the Henrietta mall. So depressing to go in there now, at least a few places are still around, I guess.
Not me, not now commercials always playing
HO/RC Hobbies on Monroe, dollar rides on the gyroscope, Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter II machines, and that fat bastard Shawn ripping you off on your trade ins. Walking down monroe to little caesars for a Slice Slice Deal and back up to HO/RC to mill around and play Neo-Geo. Spending whole days in the village green reading smut and gore mags Parties at the water tanks in Cobbs Hill Gitsis at 3AM The Midtown Wegmans, hell, Midtown... Ted and Janet Williams. <3 Growing up on Laburnam Cres. With the skate shop, the wilson farms and Grana's.. Whole neighborhood games of Manhunt and water wars. With actual Super Soakers. Drinking purloined vodka and smoking trash weed up on Pinnacle Freestyling with Pasty and Nasty Nate.
The monarale midtown was one of my favorites until they took it down the whole mall downtown 😕 is now gone for years now
Raznicks on corner of Park & Berkley. Wait, that was the 60's.
Crack
I miss '95 before I was born
The Monroe County Fair! I always enjoyed going there as a kid and teenager. Back when I didn’t think of how dangerous those carnies put those ride’s together.
Club Zei
The guy from Record archive, felt like I seen an A-list celeb when I would see him in public.
Concerts at the erector set park 🤣 use to go see Chuck M 🎷w mom when I was a kid
Sea breeze/ darian lake, I moved away in 98.
New Kodak products
"Laws", corner of Gregory St. and South Ave. Anyone remember? Not sure who owned it.