Leroy is a small town in central New York, not a little south and west of Rochester. Its major claim to fame is that it is where Jello was invented . In the building of Leroy’s old rail road station, there is a fun family friendly restaurant: the D&R Depot. I was in the area during the Christmas holiday, and it made for a great place to meet some friends.

The restaurant is in the original building of Leroy’s train station and much of the original decor is still there. Or perhaps it is merely decorated as such, but the atmosphere is authentic. It fells like that you are inside of an antique station. Even the cash register is behind a cashier’s window. And while it no longer functions as a station, the train tracks still run right by the restaurant.

The D& R Depot has a full menu, covering breakfast, lunch, and dinner. As we were there for dinner, I will only talk about that. A wide variety of appetizers are available from soups and salads, to brushchetta, stuffed mushrooms, clams, and even pierogies. I went with their “famous French onion soup au gratin.” I’m not sure what makes it famous, but this was the first time I have had French onion soup served with a pair of scissors. I used them to cut up the bread. Compared to how French onion soup is normally served, I though it was a bit light on the cheese. The soup was good, but not the best I have ever had.

For entrees, D& R offers everything from seafood, steak, and pasta. There is a special section of the menu for pot pies and another one for Dinner Classics, covering things such as Chicken Parmesan, fried chicken, and meatloaf.

From the pot pie section of the menu, I chose the house speciality: the Conductor’s Special – Chicken Pot Pie. This was a decent pot pie but, like the onion soup, there was nothing particularly special about it. My friends went for seafood and pasta. One got the Honey Garlic Glazed Shrimp and the other got the Garlic Lovers Delight. The garlic lovers comes with your choice of meat, and she chose shrimp. Both of my friends enjoyed their meal. My friends’ daughter got a child’s portion of the pasta and meatballs. I had a taste of the meatball, and it was quite well made. A solid meatball without a lot of filler.

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Where D & R Depot really shines, in my option, is with their desserts. We shared three of them: the peanut butter pie, the Bavarian cream puff, and the Tollhouse brownie pie. All three were fabulous. I have had peanut butter pie a lot recently, and theirs tops the list. The cream puff is their most popular dessert and I can see why. A light pastry filled with a rich cream, it is delicious. And the brownie pie was decadent. You just couldn’t go wrong with any of them.

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D & R Depot is a solid restaurant in a unique setting. I found the food well made but not exceptional, with the notable exception of the desserts which were fantastic. There is a wide variety of choices available, and I suspect that if I ordered other dishes I would have a stronger recommendation. It is a good place to go for comfort food.

The place was quite crowded when we were there yet the service was quick and the wait staff pleasant. I like what they have done with the rail road theme a lot. They have kept the look and feel of a station, but also give the feeling that you are in someone’s home. The ceilings and walls are amply decorated with rail road motifs, including model trains running on tracks. I’ve been to other restaurants in old stations that have not done nearly as well in providing such atmosphere.

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Overall, I would recommend eating at D&R Depot, for both the food and the ambiance.