Allison and Chris Corbin
2:30pm on a Sunday
at Moonlight Creamery

Interview by Maria Gorre.

Published November 9, 2015.

Where are you originally from?

Chris: I’m originally from Rush, NY.

Allison: I’m originally from Hemlock, NY.

Why did you move to Rochester?

Chris: I went to RIT because it was one of the only schools that had the program that I really wanted. And then I moved out here because I work out here. So I went from a 45-minute drive to a 10-minute drive.

Allison: I forgot what really interested me in RIT at first, probably the art program. And I really liked the school and the idea that it wasn’t just an artsy school. It had technical aspects to it too.

Chris: All the boys.

Allison: (laughs) All the boys. And then I stayed for you guys.

What were your first impressions of Rochester?

Chris: It’s much older than you originally think it is. You think, “Oh, it’s just a small city.” But then you go down there, and you’re like, “This building was built when?”

Allison: For me, because I grew up out in the boondocks, I was like, “Wow, it’s like being in New York City!” And now I’ve been to New York City, I realized I was so, so wrong. (laughs) It’s like a block of New York City. And it was stressful to drive in.

What's your favorite part of living in Rochester?

Chris: My family is here. The job market, at least for me, is pretty wide, with about three major companies in the Internet Service Provider industry. There are a lot of opportunities for me.

Allison: I like that I can be close to my family, but I’m not as isolated as I was when I was in Hemlock. When you’re out here you’re only 15 minutes from the city.

Chris: There’s a lot more to the city than people realize. There’s paintball, there’s climbing places…

Allison: Right, there’s a lot of stuff to do, which beats Hemlock’s trip to Wal-Mart as the big to-do weekend.

Do you have a favorite neighborhood?

Chris: I like our neighborhood, the one we live in now in Penfield.

Allison: Yeah, because it’s close to everything. But I like to go to Pittsford and pretend I’m fancy.

Chris: It’s close to everything, but it’s a suburban neighborhood. You can hop right on the expressway. We’re not on a main road, and there’s not that much traffic.

What’s your favorite day of the week?

Chris: Friday nights.

Allison: Friday night, because then I still have Saturday and Sunday to recover.

Chris: Friday night is the best night to go out in the city because everyone’s like, “Aww, this week was such…”

Allison: Crap!

Chris: So everyone goes “I’ve had a long week, let’s go get drunk.” I feel like you get more people who are blowing off steam. You leave work, you go out to the bar with all your coworkers, and then you slowly lose them throughout the night. (laughs)

What’s your favorite time of day?

Both: Five o’clock. (laughing)

Do you have a favorite bar?

Chris: [To Allison] I swear if you say The Old Toad…(laughs)*

Allison: Me? No, I was going to say Monty’s, but now it’s gone. Where else could I have the glory of having a drink and skeeball?

Chris: Yeah, that was my favorite bar.

Allison: Moment of silence.

Chris: I’ve always liked O'Callaghan's. It’s the only place that will show soccer and rugby on the TVs.

[To Allison] What’s your second favorite bar?

Allison: [Long pause]

Chris: Go ahead…

Allison: The Old Toad! (laughs) I like how you can sit and hang out. It’s got a cool vibe. And then the bartenders talk to you and they sound so great, and then you say something and you’re like, “Oh my God, I sound awful.”

*A little backstory, we go to The Old Toad a lot. I mean, a lot, a lot. Basically every time I’ve gone out with these two since I turned 21, we’ve gone there.

What’s your favorite hungover eating spot?

Allison: You gotta get a garbage plate.

Chris: I used to go to Fairport Hots all the time.

Allison: But I’ve never been hungover, so…

I know! God, why did I even ask you that question?

Allison: So I just eat a normal breakfast, because I’m completely normal.

Chris: That’s actually what I eat to not get a hangover. But it’d be Fairport Hots if we haven’t gone to Tahou’s.

I was going to say a hard whiskey. I’m thinking of Rochester during the winter, which is like a cranky old man.

Describe your dream Rochester Day.

Allison: I wake up, and we go to the Delmonte, which is surprisingly free that day. (laughs) Start off the day with a massage, and then we go on a wine tour around the Finger Lakes. And then we come back and we have dinner at my favorite restaurant in Canandaigua, Rio Tomatlan. And then we go all go out to a movie at the AMC theater in Webster. After that we’d hit the bars, and then call it a night.

Chris: Wake up, go have breakfast at Riki’s. Go for a walk along the canal.

Allison: Ooh, that sounds nice. I might steal that.

Chris: (laughs) I’d go train at my karate studio. And then I’d have everyone go out to the park, and have a cookout.

Allison: That sounds good too.

Chris: And then go to the park by the beach, walk the boardwalk for a bit. Then probably go out to the bars later that night. And then if people are still hungry, go eat at Good Luck.

Allison: Ooh, that’s a good choice. I like how everything is made with butter. Can we combine both of our days? Because that sounds really nice. Except for the part where you’re training. I’ll skip that.

(laughs) Allison will be at the spa.

Chris: You’ll be at the spa while I go train.

Allison: That sounds good. I’m releasing toxins, so it’s like the same thing.

What's your favorite Rochester memory?

Chris: Our wedding.

Allison and I: Awww!

Allison: Wait, does that count? Because it wasn’t technically in Rochester.

Chris: Okay then, in Rochester, seeing you for the first time.

Allison and I: Awww!

Chris: At Magpie.

Allison: And then we went to go get sushi.

Chris: And you were talking really loud about stealing soy sauce containers.

Allison: And she took them away from us! I wouldn’t have actually stolen them. That was at Piranha. I think they closed. For me, other than our wedding, I would say RIT in general, because it was so fun and different than growing up in the country.

If Rochester were a drink, what would it be?

Chris: (laughs) I just want to say Genny Light.

Allison: Whatever the Genesee River tastes like, that would be it.

Chris: It’s good enough. (laughs)

Allison: (laughing) It’s good enough? That’s terrible! I want to say some kind of hard whiskey…

Chris: It’s really cheap, but you know what, it’s not that bad.

Allison: That was beautiful. That was very poetic. I was going to say a hard whiskey. I’m thinking of Rochester during the winter, which is like a cranky old man.

So what’s a cranky old man drink?

Chris: But the summer is so nice here!

Allison: Okay, it would be two drinks. In the winter, cranky old man whiskey. And the summer, it would be Lilac Hill Casa Larga Wine. Don’t mix them together. That would be bad. (laughs)