Dan's Tavern
Known Name(s)
Dan's Tavern
Address
293 Clarissa St. Rochester, NY
Establishment Type(s)
Tavern
Physical Status
Extant
Description
Dan’s Tavern at 293 Clarissa Street is a single floor restaurant building, built in 1930. The main structure has a wooden frame with a single floor, and a brick façade, with interior walls of hollow concrete or cement block construction. Four additional rooms attached to the main restaurant floor are all single-story.
Detailed History
Dan's Tavern had a variety of owners throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. While it was listed in the Green Book between 1948 and 1955, it was owned by Joseph H. Daniels, who was the first African American man in Rochester to own a liquor license in 1931. He opened Dan’s Tavern in 1940 and sold it in 1968, when it became Shep’s Paradise. Under owner Ruther B. Sheppard, Shep’s Paradise operated from 1968 until 2002. This structure served as a popular neighborhood restaurant and music venue for decades and was known for supporting local and celebrity jazz musicians. Locals in Rochester today still recall, with fondness, the music and hospitality that a visit to the tavern offered.
