No owls here ... just plenty of fresh food choices

Name of business: The Owl House
Address: 75 Marshall St., just off Monroe, not far from the Strong Museum, in Rochester
Phone number: (585) 360-2920
Website: www.owlhouserochester.com
Co-owners’ names: Jeff Ching and Andrea Parros
Chef: Brian Van Etten
Number of employees (so far): 15
When business opened: Aug. 6, 2010
Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday; closed Monday.
Parking: The Owl House rents a lot on Union Street, across Monroe, available after 5 p.m. weekdays and on weekends.
Local connections: Ching grew up in Brighton and is a 1998 graduate of Brighton High School. His first restaurant job was at Don & Bob’s in Brighton. Van Etten grew up in Fairport; his father is a former teacher at Irondequoit High School.

In three sentences, tell us how you ended up in this line of work.

Parros: “We had been working in restaurants in Boston and thought it made sense to try it ourselves.” (She and Ching, who are a couple, met as managers of The Other Side Café in Boston.)

Ching: “We bought this building (last home to the Atomic Eggplant restaurant about four years ago) at the end of last September, moved back from Boston and started remodeling (including excavation of the basement) in January.”

Where does the name come from, and where are the owls?

Ching: “I wish it was an exciting, crazy story, but we just wanted to play off the idea of the old house (in which the restaurant is located), and I was interested in bird animation.”
Parros: “The owls are kind of mysterious ... but we are also fans of the (TV) show ‘Twin Peaks’ (in which owls play a role); you won’t see owls here. We decided to go with rotating artwork by local artists, but I do want to put out a call, at some point, for art about owls.”

How have you grown and gotten word out about the business?

Parros: “We have a Facebook page with more than 400 followers already; we had the page up and posted updates and pictures throughout the renovation. It was a good way to build some involvement. We also have a Twitter account where we post our specials. We like that this has really been a grass-roots thing so far.”

What are two memories from your career that stick with you the most?

Ching: “I’ve known Brian since high school ... we both played in different bands throughout Rochester. Eventually, the three of us were roommates in Boston — and even moved to Hawaii together for a little while.”

What makes your business unusual?

Parros: “I’m vegan and Jeff eats everything. ... We wanted to create a place that no matter what you eat, you have multiple choices. The food is definitely our heart and soul. Nothing is pre-made. We bake our own desserts and gluten-free bread. ... We wanted to put everything we have into the food. It’s important to us to put out perfect food with different levels of taste.”

Ching: “Our of our main goals is to have as much as possible of what we use sourced locally. For instance, we use produce from Aberdeen Hill Farms and Joe Bean coffee.” The restaurant’s eclectic menu has gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan offerings ranging from a lentil burger ($8) to a “Paramount B.L.T.” with applewood smoked or “fakin’” bacon ($7). There are daily dinner and drink specials.

So far, what do you most like and least like about your work?

Ching: “Everything we do has been rewarding, but it has also been hectic; we’ve been working 18 hours a day, seven days a week.”

How many can you accommodate in the restaurant?

Ching: “We have seating for 50 inside, on the main and second floors. When the weather is nice, we also have seating for 35 on our patio (in the back).”

The patio is surrounded by a garden where 15 different herbs used in the kitchen are grown.

Is there anything else that sets The Owl House apart?

Parros: “We have really cool drinks; our mixologist uses a lot of herbs in the drinks, one of which is called Flaming Lips and incorporates jalapeno vodka (from Me Oko in New York state), beer, lime juice and salt.”

Ching: “All of our drinks are hand-crafted as well (as the food), and we carry 30 to 35 craft beers.”

What are your future plans?

Ching: “For right now, we want to make this successful; our goal is to start offering up to four special entrees daily, and to start opening for brunch on the weekends in a month or so.”
What are people saying?

Paula Krawczuk of Irondequoit said she visited The Owl House last month for her birthday and, “It was wonderful ... I like what they did with the house; there’s a nice, fresh look to it ... and I remember it from the 1960s and ’70s, when it was Ratso’s! It’s kind of tucked away, but I think it will appeal to the masses.”