I live in Buffalo. I like Buffalo. If you're coming, ask me questions, I'll answer. Food, drink, etc.
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August_West
Universal remote, put it down on docking station.
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Yeah, I’ve got a question. How do you sleep at night knowing you live in a city with a psychopath* on the loose?
* =
* =
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Might be hard to come by. Labatt's. also, I'll let you know which are the good breweries, as opposed to the blah breweries.
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Wing's in the city: Gabriel's Gate
Wings in the burbs: Duff's
Wing in East Aurora: Bar Bill
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I have heard that the best wings in Buffalo can be found at a place called "Wingnutz" operating out of the Knights of Columbus on Kenmore Ave. Can you confirm?
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3rd tier is really high, higher than XL center. Try for first 2 tiers. It's just a straightforward no frills arena. Nothing much to recommend it. You can see well from every single seat but from way up in the 3rd, the players will seem tiny. So... no recs. I'm going for behind the basket because I know I can get them for a decent price, that's where I can get closest, bang for the buck.
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You crashing at his house? Make a long weekend out of it but no music, movies, alcohol, or women allowed. UConn basketball and rolling rocks (not the beer) around his yard.
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Will second the Gabriel's Gate recommendation. And Duff's over Anchor Bar
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I live 5 minutes from there and almost no one I know goes there, and we all wonder why those people push it so much. But maybe I should try. I know about the hype, but those who have tried it have shrugged. Gabriel's Gate is still the best place in the city. None of these places are worth going out of the way for, as long as you go to one of them. South of the city it's either Duff's or Bar Bill. East is a Duff's location. In the city it's Gabriel's Gate.
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i went up a couple years ago. There are some solid breweries around. It's not a bad city. Niagara is way worse
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UConn gotta take over Buffalo
August_West
Universal remote, put it down on docking station.
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Nope . The Westin. Soon to be christened “The August_Westin” after we win Buffalo.
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Really wish it was Friday-Sunday. If we win Thursday might have to drive up for the Saturday game.
SubbaBub
Your stupidity is ruining my country.
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He slept with his wife.
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I think duffs is overrated and has gone downhill
I think doc Sullivans were much better when I was up there this summer
August_West
Universal remote, put it down on docking station.
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Also my first order of business after (semi) hostile takeover is to rename the bar the “BigErnMcCracken sports bar and lounge” - all bartenders and waiters will wear Striped ref shirts and instead of bringing complimentary bread out before food order it will be a plate of cookies.
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OK, here's my advice:
1. Realize, Buffalo has a subway system. If you're staying in downtown or uptown hotels, there's a high probability that you will be within easy walking distance of the subway. This is the ideal way to go to the arena since the last stop is the arena, right at the harbor's edge. The subway rises above ground for the last 6 stops of downtown (about 2 miles) and you can get on for free when it's above ground.
Downtown bars near the arena:
1. Southern Tier Brewery restaurant, has a massive TV, 2 tiered viewing seating, will likely be jampacked. It's connected to Harbourside which is connected to the arena, so if you can get a seat, it's a good sports bar brewery. I would avoid because of the unlikelihood of finding a seat.
2. Union Pub, a classic sports bar, probably the most popular one for those who attend Sabres games or Bisons games (AAA baseball).
3. Pearl Street Brewery is the oldest of the "new" Buffalo breweries, and not quite up to snuff like the others. Place is 20+ years old. But the food is decent, and again, feels like a sports bar.
4. SATO Brewpub, Asian food and beers.
5. There are nearby places like the Draft Room and Cobblestone and Ballyhoo, but I've never been to any of them for drinking. Ballyhoo has reasonably priced food, but you can do better.
Midtown bars & restaurants I'd recommend:
1. Lafayette Brewpub: they get most of their beer from Pearl Street, but it's a much better atmosphere than Pearl Street Brewery.
2. Misuta Chow's: it's a barcade type place that looks like a Japanese fast food open air alley food stall, but indoors.
3. Hatchets & Hops: yes, throwing hatchets.
4. Mohawk Place & Electric Avenue: dive bars. Both are good dive bars.
5. Tappo Restaurant: it's a bar really, lots of people drinking, but they also do dinner. Food is mediocre but good, if that makes any sense. Reasonably priced big portions, the kind of place where spaghetti and meatballs is on the menu, and it is, well, spaghetti and meatballs. But not bad spaghetti and meatballs.
6. Dinosaur BBQ: very good!
AVOID: Deep South Taco. They done messed up the concept of tacos.
AVOID: Chippewa Street and nightclubs, unless you're under 25 years old and are comfortable with sleaze.
Theatre District & Allentown favorite spots (these places are further away from the subway, with only Founding Fathers on the verge of walkable).
1. Founding Fathers: maybe Buffalo's best bar; if you don't know any better, you might be put off by the politics theme, but it's a big hangout.
2. Gabriel's Gate: best buffalo wings in the city, good bar.
3. Old Pink: kind of a punk hipster institution, usually doesn't get rolling until 11 pm. Remember, Buffalo has New York City hours, closing time is 4 am.
4. Hardware: good place for a drink and food, reasonable.
5. Allen Burger Ventures: best burgers in town, restaurant pricing, $17.
Breweries:
1. Big Ditch is right downtown, so for those looking to get some good beer and then hop right onto the subway trolley, this is a good choice. They are the 3rd best brewery in town.
2. Community Beer Works: for my money, they make the best beers and if they were a little bigger, might be better known on the east coast. They are very good. Need a car to get there as they are on the west side very near the Peace Bridge to Canada.
3. Thin Man Brewery: highly recommended, they are a close #2 to Community. Make prize winning beers, and unlike Community they do have recognition. Located in Elmwood Village so a short car drive, 10 minutes from the arena, maybe less.
AVOID: Resurgence Brewing, some of the daffiest beer concepts around.
* Places to get good American and international beers on tap, almost all of these owned by the same guy, all serve food.
Colter Bay, Moor Room, Thin Man, Coles, Allen Burger Venture
Upscale restaurants (these are just my recommendations, you may want to avoid Buffalo Italian restaurants as they are, well, local Italian cuisine, but there are some very good ones):
1. Black Sheep, by far the best Buffalo restaurant, if you ask me. Limited hours, make reservations. The chef takes meat seriously. Eastern European ideas.
2. Dobutsu, Asian but it's changing over.
3. Las Puertas, fusion type Mexican food, really good Chef, not typical Mexican
4. Toutant: southern American cuisine, New Orleans, etc.
5. Waxlight Bar a Vin, never know what you'll get, it's a shared concept of rotating chefs from other restaurants trying experimental cooking
6. Hutch's restaurant: straight ahead American fare
More affordable than the above:
1. Roost: American and experimental cuisine
2. Mother's: American
3. Left Bank: American
4. Casa Azul: Mexican
A new place has opened up called Moriarty's Meats, and it has a lot of great reviews in a short time, haven't been. It's a butcher shop, with a cafe bar with limited hours, but apparently, you can't get a better sandwich anywhere in this world.
1. Realize, Buffalo has a subway system. If you're staying in downtown or uptown hotels, there's a high probability that you will be within easy walking distance of the subway. This is the ideal way to go to the arena since the last stop is the arena, right at the harbor's edge. The subway rises above ground for the last 6 stops of downtown (about 2 miles) and you can get on for free when it's above ground.
Downtown bars near the arena:
1. Southern Tier Brewery restaurant, has a massive TV, 2 tiered viewing seating, will likely be jampacked. It's connected to Harbourside which is connected to the arena, so if you can get a seat, it's a good sports bar brewery. I would avoid because of the unlikelihood of finding a seat.
2. Union Pub, a classic sports bar, probably the most popular one for those who attend Sabres games or Bisons games (AAA baseball).
3. Pearl Street Brewery is the oldest of the "new" Buffalo breweries, and not quite up to snuff like the others. Place is 20+ years old. But the food is decent, and again, feels like a sports bar.
4. SATO Brewpub, Asian food and beers.
5. There are nearby places like the Draft Room and Cobblestone and Ballyhoo, but I've never been to any of them for drinking. Ballyhoo has reasonably priced food, but you can do better.
Midtown bars & restaurants I'd recommend:
1. Lafayette Brewpub: they get most of their beer from Pearl Street, but it's a much better atmosphere than Pearl Street Brewery.
2. Misuta Chow's: it's a barcade type place that looks like a Japanese fast food open air alley food stall, but indoors.
3. Hatchets & Hops: yes, throwing hatchets.
4. Mohawk Place & Electric Avenue: dive bars. Both are good dive bars.
5. Tappo Restaurant: it's a bar really, lots of people drinking, but they also do dinner. Food is mediocre but good, if that makes any sense. Reasonably priced big portions, the kind of place where spaghetti and meatballs is on the menu, and it is, well, spaghetti and meatballs. But not bad spaghetti and meatballs.
6. Dinosaur BBQ: very good!
AVOID: Deep South Taco. They done messed up the concept of tacos.
AVOID: Chippewa Street and nightclubs, unless you're under 25 years old and are comfortable with sleaze.
Theatre District & Allentown favorite spots (these places are further away from the subway, with only Founding Fathers on the verge of walkable).
1. Founding Fathers: maybe Buffalo's best bar; if you don't know any better, you might be put off by the politics theme, but it's a big hangout.
2. Gabriel's Gate: best buffalo wings in the city, good bar.
3. Old Pink: kind of a punk hipster institution, usually doesn't get rolling until 11 pm. Remember, Buffalo has New York City hours, closing time is 4 am.
4. Hardware: good place for a drink and food, reasonable.
5. Allen Burger Ventures: best burgers in town, restaurant pricing, $17.
Breweries:
1. Big Ditch is right downtown, so for those looking to get some good beer and then hop right onto the subway trolley, this is a good choice. They are the 3rd best brewery in town.
2. Community Beer Works: for my money, they make the best beers and if they were a little bigger, might be better known on the east coast. They are very good. Need a car to get there as they are on the west side very near the Peace Bridge to Canada.
3. Thin Man Brewery: highly recommended, they are a close #2 to Community. Make prize winning beers, and unlike Community they do have recognition. Located in Elmwood Village so a short car drive, 10 minutes from the arena, maybe less.
AVOID: Resurgence Brewing, some of the daffiest beer concepts around.
* Places to get good American and international beers on tap, almost all of these owned by the same guy, all serve food.
Colter Bay, Moor Room, Thin Man, Coles, Allen Burger Venture
Upscale restaurants (these are just my recommendations, you may want to avoid Buffalo Italian restaurants as they are, well, local Italian cuisine, but there are some very good ones):
1. Black Sheep, by far the best Buffalo restaurant, if you ask me. Limited hours, make reservations. The chef takes meat seriously. Eastern European ideas.
2. Dobutsu, Asian but it's changing over.
3. Las Puertas, fusion type Mexican food, really good Chef, not typical Mexican
4. Toutant: southern American cuisine, New Orleans, etc.
5. Waxlight Bar a Vin, never know what you'll get, it's a shared concept of rotating chefs from other restaurants trying experimental cooking
6. Hutch's restaurant: straight ahead American fare
More affordable than the above:
1. Roost: American and experimental cuisine
2. Mother's: American
3. Left Bank: American
4. Casa Azul: Mexican
A new place has opened up called Moriarty's Meats, and it has a lot of great reviews in a short time, haven't been. It's a butcher shop, with a cafe bar with limited hours, but apparently, you can't get a better sandwich anywhere in this world.
8893
Curiouser
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I have no chance of getting to the Thursday game. I am humoring myself about tentative Saturday plans. My wife went to college in Buffalo and I hated that drive; I ultimately settled on taking the train from Albany most times. So that's around two and a half hours to Albany for me, and I see a 10 am train from Albany that gets into Buffalo at 3:14, with an early morning return the next day.
Aaaand, just in the time that I have been typing this post the Amtrak ticket prices have doubled. I won't know if I can go until Friday, and I'm guessing it will be sold out by then.
All of which is to say, if you are thinking of taking the train, book now!
Aaaand, just in the time that I have been typing this post the Amtrak ticket prices have doubled. I won't know if I can go until Friday, and I'm guessing it will be sold out by then.
All of which is to say, if you are thinking of taking the train, book now!