Papaya – Rochester

I like this place. The Asian cuisine is really good. Fried rice, general Tao chicken, steak and sushi is pretty awesome. No complaints on the food. It is a little pricy, but that’s because I’m use to paying 8 bucks for a huge amount of food from my local Chinese spot. Now one thing I did not like was the water I started off with. The server did not mention is was infused with cucumber and some other fruit or veggie. So when I drank it, I almost gagged. It honestly tasted like seaweed to me. I’m not sure. They should start off with regular drinking water then ask if you would like the infused water. Now half price sushi night makes everything worth it. Servers are nice and attentive. And atmosphere is cool especially during the warm months.

Pretty good restaurant in an unlikely location. The feel of the restaurant is very modern and up to date, the food and drinks were all good. I have preference towards sushi, all of the rolls were delicious, even better that on Wednesday they have half off! Not sure how long that will go for, but I love that deal. They also have good happy hour specials and delicious cocktails. I would return to try other things on the menu, however, the prices are a little bit high for some of the items I’ve seen on the menu.

The service is great .The food is Awesome wide range of Asian dishes… the drinks are very good and prices are reasonable. this more like a 6 star rating… will be back

Cool Asian-​themed food at a restaurant in the mall which is not a big chain. Try it.
I saw this restaurant in the mall for a while but resisted going since I assumed it was a mall chain restaurant, which generally means frozen processed food and poor value. However I need to tell you that I was wrong: it’s not a big chain, the food is good, and the restaurant is upscale casual and a nice experience. The custom dining room is smartly decorated. This is a sister to an original restaurant in Buffalo.
This would be a good choice anytime, especially on weekends when other Henrietta restaurants are on a long wait time. If this restaurant was in Eastview mall, there would be huge wait times on weekends.
Give it a try and see if you can find a dish that works for you.

We got a good deal on a Groupon for this place and decided to give this place a chance. We arrived just before 5 PM and there was only one other couple. With a 20 month old, this is perfect as she can’t sit still for too long. She able to run around the restaurant and do a meet and greet with the entire staff.
We started off with their Tom Kar Gai soup and let me tell you, this was the MOST AMAZING SOUP we’ve had in Rochester. Only Jasmine Thai Restaurant in Buffalo, NY compares. The soup alone was well worth the visit.
We noticed they had Shrimp Tempura on the menu as well. We asked if they could make a Mixed Vegetable Tempura, and the chef was polite enough to make Broccoli Tempura which turned out to be excellent. The dipping sauce complemented the broccoli very well. The owner should look into adding a Mixed Vegetable (Peppers, Carrots, Broccoli, and mushrooms) Tempura on the menu. I think many other people would be interested in getting.
We ordered Chicken Pad Thai and Sesame Chicken for our main entrees. The sesame chicken was superb. One of the few places in Rochester where you can all WHITE meat and have the chicken be crispy. From perusing pictures on here prior, we knew the portion size is not as adequate compared to other asian restaurants, but the quality was top notch.
The Pad Thai was standard which by all means is fine with us. A good sized portion and the lime definitely helps to offset the sweetness of this dish.
We loved the ambiance and the service. The pacing of the food was spot on. The tempura came, and then a couple minutes later, the soups came. A few minutes after our soup was finished, our entrees came. This was spot on regards to spacing out the different courses! The cucumber infused water was also a great touch. We were extremely pleased with the overall experience. We’ll definitely be back as we are very curious to see how their Panang and Asian Chicken Wings are.
Best of luck Papaya!

I only review when experiences sway me. Generally this is a good thing. Ive never written a bad review but this was a terrible experience. Table was not even set, Wait time was exorbitant, Waiter was rude and obnoxious, Food was so-​so. Should have followed my instinct and not sat down.

Starting with fresh cucumber flavored water, and great atmosphere which adds up to a great time with Friends or that special someone.
Wednesday’s are half price Sushi and Martines; worth a visit on hump day.
Don’t forget to tip the regular price when you get your check.
Groupon has deals for this place which I would recommend buying, worth it.
Hen, the chef makes the best hot sauce you could find in Rochester (top 10 chefs in the city)
I come here once or twice a week because this place is that good.
Coming here on Friday afternoon for Lunch is a great idea. Music is playing in the back ground and not crowded.

Went here with some of my friends a few weeks ago and I loved it! All of us got different entrees and each one tasted delicious! I got the mango glazed Salmon and it was great, I can’t wait to go again!

I always come here for the Tom Kar Gai, which is always delicious. I wanted to try the salt and pepper calamari, and I did. Not impressed. The toppings were good but the fried calamari Itself was so bland. Needed some salt and pepper on the actual calamari. 2 stars for the salt and pepper calamari.

My wife took me out to the Papaya Asian Restaurant for my birthday. This is a nicely decorated place with a modern look that appealed to me. If I thought the décor appealed, then the menu blew me away. There were several items on the menu that caught my eye. I finally settled on Sesame Chicken, a favorite «go-​to» dish for me. There are more that I’ll have to try on a future visit. One nice touch is the cucumber/​lemon flavored water that is served. It’s very refreshing. We decided to forgo a regular appetizer, and ordered Crispy Tuna Roll sushi instead. I loved this, and in addition to the regular wasabi that usually accompanies sushi, I was offered a couple of different hot sauces that really suited my taste. After our sushi, our main courses came along. My Sesame Chicken was very tender, prepared to my taste. The broccoli was garden crisp, cooked perfectly. The rice was nice and fluffy, as it should be. When I first looked at the portion, I thought it was a bit sparse, but I was completely mistaken, the portion size was perfect, allowing for room for dessert. My wife ordered the Crème Brulee while I ventured to try the Chocolate Lava Cake. Outstanding on both counts.
We left the Papaya Restaurant feeling well-​satisfied, but not overly full. The staff was very attentive and always available to meet our needs. The décor is pleasing, the food is tasty, and the prices reasonable. There are Groupon deals available, which might make for more incentive to try this place.

For a restaurant at Marketplace Mall, it is not bad. The coconut rice and blackened fish are tasty! Unfortunately, I have to give them only two stars because they did not honor a Groupon voucher. I had made a reservation for Valentines Day and made it clear on the phone that I would be using the Groupon. The reservation was made no problem.
Unfortunately, when we showed up, we were greeted with a sign on the door stating they would not be honoring Groupon vouchers because it was Valentines Day. When I approached the hostess and explained that I had made it clear that I would be using the voucher when making the reservation, she just said she was sorry and that they wouldn’t honor it. I didn’t want to argue about it, so we left and had a good meal at The King and I.
I am currently attempting to get a refund from Groupon because Valentines Day is not excluded on the voucher AND the reservation was made with the understanding that it would be accepted.

Great bloody Mary and half priced sushi on Wednesday nights — what more could you ask for? Nick has frequently been our waiter and always has new suggestions for us. The dessert spring rolls are fantastic!

I’ve been meaning to grab a bite here for some time now. From what I’ve heard and read, I expected a bit more.
The good: large portions, flavors were spot on, staff was very friendly, reasonably priced, drinks are delicious. Definitely try the chocolate martini.
The bad (imo): personally was not a fan of the cucumber infused water, my pad se ew was on the oily side, and THEY DID NOT HAVE VEGETARIAN SUSHI! that was the biggest disappointment.

I’m so happy to have tried this place out. The attention to detail at this place is phenomenal. We were seated promptly and given delicious cucumber water while we looked over the menu. They had tons of vegetarian options, unfortunately no vegetarian appetizers. I’d like to see a vegetarian spring roll or something on the menu.
I had the rainbow vegetable dish, fresh and crispy stir fry vegetables with a side of rice. It was supposed to had a scallion sauce of some sort on it but it didn’t have an overwhelming flavor. Another complaint though: I wish you were able to substitute coconut rice instead of white/​brown rice for an additional cost.
Chef Hen is the most incredible chef on the planet! He’s so passionate about his work and definitely goes to extra mile just to be the best.

Been seeing some mixed reviews about this place lately, but it was a convenient halfway place for a friend and I to meet. We were seated by the hostess in the bar area per our request at 8:30pm. 9 minutes went by when we both thought it was weird that no one greeted us and we decided to start the timer on my phone. In the mean time we noticed another 2-​top table being seated in the bar area as well as a large table of 11. Everyone at those tables received glasses of water and their drink and app orders were taken. When the timer hit 10 minutes, we flagged down the hotness who didn’t seem too shocked by our «20 minute wait». Within a minute our server appeared with 2 glasses of water and she was immediately apologetic and quickly said, «dessert is on us!» We ordered our drinks and our apps and she left. We took a few sips of water and discussed the flavors we were tasting. We notice the cucumber and some citrus. When our server returned we had asked what the water was infused with. She said, «cucumber, lemon, and orange». My friend just so happens to be allergic to oranges so, she immediately had to take an allergy pill if she wanted to continue on with our evening. Our served «apologized» and brought out un-​infused water.
Food was good, but nothing amazing. The apps were kind of small in size (not quantity, but size). After we finished eating we slowly finished our drinks and continued to catch up. The hours on Unilocal said that this establishment was open to 12am, but on the door it said that they were open until 2am. At 10:58 the staff abruptly turned off the music in the restaurant. We were the only table in there at this time. If was awfully uncomfortable and a clear sign to get out.
Not a great experience. The staff seemed unfazed by any of our concerns. Also a point worth noting, at no time did a manager come to the table to apologize for any of our inconveniences. I find this unprofessional to say the least.

A very nice restaurant hidden away in Marketplace Mall (often the lights are dimmed or shut off and looks closed half the time in the evening)
The atmosphere. Fabulous. The lighting is gorgeous. Music. Just the perfect. Service. Awesome.
The food is amazing. I’ve dined at this place more than twice. Often the same order. (for a party of around 4)
Chicken dumplings. Crab cakes. Papaya’s Wings. Pot Stickers (the best!) For appetizers.
Thai Fried Rice/​Pineapple Fried Rice w Chicken /​Pad Thai /​Duck Special Dish — amazing.
I always go for the Mango Martini or the Chocolate Martini — its good and quite addictive.
Enjoy this place.
Its hidden, a bit hard to find with their lights turned out (I don’t know why they do that) — but its worth all the dishes!
A few more times, and 5 stars it is.

I think the location is unfortunate because the foot traffic is so low in this area of town. This restaurant has a lot of potential because the food is fantastic and the décor is also great. It’s great Asian fusion food with an indoor-​outdoor ambience.
1. Pad Thai: Generous portions, well-​cooked, with the right amount of sweet and savory. I found this to be very satisfying. Squeeze that lemon they give you over the noodles for that extra zest.
2. Pork belly buns: You only get 2 unfortunately, but the pork belly is really well-​done. Having grown up eating pork with lard, this was well-​done because it had a nice crunchy texture.
3. Singapore noodles: Spicy! They weren’t kidding around. The curry is strong and aromatic. If you don’t mind spicy, this dish is on key!
If you live in Henrietta (or even if you don’t), stop by and support this place. There aren’t too many restaurants this good at this price point here.

Decided to celebrate my sister’s birthday here. It was pretty empty for a Friday night which surprised me. The inside is really neat looking. My only complain on the inside was it was too dark! I could barely read the menu and I have great vision, my poor dad took out his phone to use the flashlight — it was really that dim in there. The waiter was great and helpful in recommendations. I had the general tso chicken and it was good although it could have used an extra bit of spice. And it didn’t come with any rice just vegetables so I ordered a side of rice to go with it and that portion was huge! I would come back here again.

This is a gem to find in the edge of Marketplace Mall. Nothing chain about the place. I’ve been here a few times and trying a new dish has always been a wonderful surprise. Fish tacos. Sushi. Pad Thai. Hubs loved the Butterfish. And such neat ambiance in the bar!
½ price sushi and cocktails on Wednesdays never hurts — I’m sure there are specials other nights as well. Certainly worth trying!

My group of 4 friends was passing through Rochester with a tour group, and we were dropped off at the mall to find a spot to eat. We didn’t like any of the choices in the mall, so we stopped here and were very happy we did.
1. We got to eat outside on this beautiful evening.
2. Our waiter Tyler M did a great job, was friendly & funny, and patiently answered all of our questions.
3. The food choices were fresh and mostly healthy looking
4. We all enjoyed our food
5. The chocolate martini’s were good
The only problems we had were that 2 of us ordered entrees that included nuts, one cashews and one peanuts. When we got our food neither dish had any nuts in or on it! Our nice waiter promptly brought us some when we asked — he said the kitchen was busy and forgot them.
When it was time to leave it took awhile to get our checks, again they were busy.
We would return if we ever are in the area again.