• Chicken Wings / Buffalo Wings: We strongly recommend the Amherst location of Duff's; we prefer Duff's wings by a wide margin to The Anchor Bar, which invented spicy wings. See also our four part series on the annual Buffalo Wing Festival (1, 2, 3, 4).
  
• Beef on Weck: For this famous and excellent local sandwich, we recommend Charlie the Butcher and Eckl's.
  
• Buffalo Pizza: If you want to try WNY's world-class versions of pizza, we strongly recommend Bocce's on Bailey/Amherst or Transit/Williamsville for a traditional Buffalo pizza and Just Pizza for a unique one.
  
• Chiavetta's Chicken: As Buffalo's "other locally famous chicken," Chiavetta's BBQ is made with a special vinegar marinade. It is served at numerous weekend and weekday local BBQ fund raisers, while the marinade can be purchased at Wegmans if you want to make it on your own grill.
  
• Sponge Candy: For this chocolate and honeycomb candy, we recommend Watson's, Palace of Sweets, and Wegmans.
  
• Pastry Hearts: We recommend Russ's Bakery for this intoxicatingly sweet pastry.
  
• Sahlen & Wardynski Hot Dogs: Though you can buy them at Wegmans and charcoal grill them yourself at home, Ted's Hot Dogs serves Sahlen's year round, and the main location of Charlie the Butcher offers both brands.
  
• Steak: We recommend Buffalo Chophouse for a deluxe steak dinner and Black & Blue for a great but more affordable one.
  
• Coffee: Go cheap with Dunkin' Donuts or get deluxe coffees at Spot Coffee and Clarence Center Coffee Center & Cafe.
• Chinese: There is no truly outstanding Chinese pick in Buffalo or its suburbs. For local Dim Sum, we recommend Uncle John's No. 1, and for a number of authentic dishes, Gin Gin. Chang's Garden of West Seneca is another option, however, Ming Teh in Fort Erie, Canada is a strong pick.
  
• Japanese: Fuji Grill in Williamsville and Wasabi are our two top picks.
  
• Korean: Arirang is Western New York's best Korean pick.
  
• Thai: The King & I in Amherst, Taste of Thai in Buffalo, and Thai Orchid in Williamsville are all impressive in their own ways.
  
• Vietnamese: We'd pick Saigon Bangkok in Amherst first; 99 Fast Food Restaurant offers Banh Mi.
  
• Indian: We strongly recommend Kabab & Curry.
  
• Other European Picks: Prosit for German/Eastern European food, Tempo and Siena for Italian, Pano's for Greek, The Irishman for Irish.
• Breakfast: It's almost impossible to go wrong with the food at Original Pancake House, particularly the packed Main Street location in Williamsville.
  
• Drinks: One of Western New York's long-time specialties is Loganberry, an outstanding beverage that can be had at many local restaurants, including Ted's, Anderson's, and many, many more. Two locally popular classic soft drinks, Birch Beer and Vernors, have become hard to find outside of this area but can still be had at Consumers Beverage Centers. If you want to try local wines, we have tips on visiting the Niagara Wine Trail, which hosts 13 local wineries. Local brewery Ellicottville Brewing Company is an hour outside of Buffalo in Ellicottville, offering a very nice on-site restaurant and bar.
  
• Dessert: Buffalo's Chocolate Bar, Williamsville's Dessert Deli, and North Tonawanda's Muscoreil's are all great choices, with differing strengths noted in their individual reviews.
• Notable Festivals: Taste of Buffalo, Taste of Williamsville, and the Buffalo Wing Festival.

Check out our Top 100 for even more of the best foods and restaurants from Buffalo and Western New York!