New Orleans Chow: The Powerful Drinks + Standout Seafood

The parallels mightn't be exact, but we see bits and pieces of Buffalo in New Orleans: in Buffalo's case, years of neglect and decline led to a slow corrosion of the city with some simultaneous growth in the suburbs, while...

Posted on March 10, 2010

SoCal Chow: Kogi BBQ + Bass Pro Shops, Or, On Surprises

A funny thing happened on our way back to Buffalo from testing Apple's new iPad in San Francisco this week: a snowstorm. Given the choice of being stranded in Las Vegas overnight or staying with family in Southern California, we...

Posted on January 31, 2010

At Williamsville's Red Mill Inn, Age As An Asset And Challenge

Rarely do our editors' opinions diverge sharply on any facet of a review, but it happens, and this time, the subject is Williamsville's Red Mill Inn - a landmark on Main Street near Clarence. Once known as the Old Red...

Posted on January 25, 2010

Las Vegas Chow: Lotus of Siam + Thomas Keller's Bouchon

During the week we spent in Las Vegas, we had so many memorable meals - good and bad - that we could easily have filled the entire Buffalo Chow page with articles, but out of respect for readers who mightn't...

Posted on January 15, 2010

Las Vegas Chow: Firefly Tapas, Burgers, Gelato + Wynn Buffet

During the week we spent in Las Vegas, we had so many memorable meals - good and bad - that we could easily have filled the entire Buffalo Chow page with articles, but out of respect for readers who mightn't...

Posted on January 15, 2010

Top 10 Great Chain Restaurants Buffalo Should Have

Locally owned and operated restaurants are great - except when they leave big gaps in local food expectations. How many years has Buffalo gone without a truly awesome Mexican restaurant? Considered Burger King or Wendy's to be the pinnacle of...

Posted on December 14, 2009

Kyoto Chow: On Kaiseki, Japan's Gentle, Colorful High Cuisine

Though the phrases "high cuisine" and "low cuisine" suggest classism - meals for the wealthy and discerning as opposed to items that are cheap and simple - the reality is more complex: regardless of the patron's income level, there are...

Posted on November 15, 2009

Oshi-zushi, The Sushi You've Never Heard Of, Plus Takoyaki

Depending on whether you're willing to ignore the literal meaning of its name - "sour, vinegared rice" - two or three types of sushi are commonly found in the United States. Nigiri sushi, known in Japan as "nigiri-zushi," is a...

Posted on November 12, 2009

O.C. Chow: How Mexican Food Is Supposed To Look & Taste

"Why is authentic Mexican food so hard to find in Buffalo?" Readers ask us this question at least once a month, demonstrating that they know the difference between real Mexican cuisine and the stuff that's most commonly served in Western...

Posted on September 25, 2009

The Shores: Seafood + Sandwiches On Tonawanda Island

If you aren't familiar with the geography of Tonawanda, you mightn't know that it includes an island - Tonawanda Island - which has its own marina and restaurants. One is the small and aptly named The Shack, which serves hot...

Posted on September 3, 2009

Elmwood Additions: Zillycakes + Captain Jack's Fish N Chips

When friends and readers ask us about recently-opened local restaurants, we're torn: on one hand, we want to offer immediate impressions as soon as they've opened - if they're selling to the public, the public deserves to know - but...

Posted on August 30, 2009

At Hayes Seafood Market, Fish is Unpretentious, Affordable

To understand the appeal of Hayes Seafood House in Clarence, begin by letting your mind's eye conjure up the image of a seafood entree at your favorite fancy restaurant. Then remove the fancy restaurant and its fancy servers, replace its...

Posted on August 27, 2009

A Simple Menu With Good Picks at Williamsville's Protocol

Only one thing is on our minds when we visit a restaurant: we hope to have a truly good or great meal. Unlike the average diner, who finds a handful of comfortable places to visit repeatedly, we so frequently eat...

Posted on August 23, 2009

Taste of Lockport: A Triangle Of WNY Wineries & Foods

Lockport's Ida Fritz Park isn't easy to find with Google Maps - it's at the corner of Transit and Lockport's West Main - but for several hours on one summer day, it hosts what now may well be Western New...

Posted on August 16, 2009

Lake Effect Diner's Retro Curves, Neat Menu Merit A Visit

When you're sitting in the middle of something that looks like a diner - more specifically, a restaurant that calls itself a diner - the question, "what exactly is a diner?" doesn't normally come to mind. But as we closed...

Posted on August 15, 2009

Lockport's Garlock's Offers Dim Lighting, Fading Memories

We're not going to make excuses for the photos of our recent meal at Garlock's: due to the weak lighting conditions in this well-established Lockport steakhouse, they're quite possibly amongst the worst we've ever published, and believe it or not,...

Posted on July 23, 2009

At Curly's, Class & Caribbean Influences Lift Lackawanna

Of the many towns and cities in Western New York, Lackawanna isn't known for the size of its population or its abundance of restaurants, but one name stands out on its list: Curly's. Alternately known as Curly's Bar & Grill...

Posted on July 5, 2009

Frog Hair: Smart, Tasty Meals Hiding Behind A Golf Theme

July's annual Taste of Buffalo is bigger and better-known, but August's Taste of Williamsville actually introduced us to several suburban restaurants that we mightn't otherwise have visited. Chief among them was Frog Hair Grille and Golf, a Transit Road establishment...

Posted on July 3, 2009

Taste of Chicago: The World's Largest Food Festival, Part 4

Our real Chicago Chow coverage is coming - we promise! But after a second stop at Taste of Chicago, we decided that we wanted to publish one last article worth of coverage regarding this event, filling in a few blanks...

Posted on June 28, 2009

Taste of Chicago: The World's Largest Food Festival, Part 2

After eating our way through the Taste of Chicago - the world's largest food festival, as discussed in Part 1 of our Taste of Chicago report - the two of us were surprised to find ourselves agreeing on something we...

Posted on June 26, 2009

Vintage WNY: Old Man River & King Condrell's Ice Cream

As years pass, restaurants disappear - it's just part of life. But some places are so locally beloved that they carry on for decades, even as their original owners tire of the grind. Tonawanda's Old Man River is one of...

Posted on June 23, 2009

Yes, It's a Chain, But Bonefish Grill Offers Seafood & Class

Chain restaurants aren't bad by nature, and over the past 10 years, certain upscale chains such as The Cheesecake Factory have demonstrated that patrons can benefit when smart people popularize winning formulas of decor, food quality, and pricing. Amherst's location...

Posted on May 29, 2009

From Modest Weck To Fancy Bisque, Eckl's Fills & Pleases

To describe the last seven days as our "too many cupcakes and roast beef sandwiches" week would be to wrongly suggest that we couldn't bear to eat one more. Of course not: we always have room for another beef on...

Posted on May 20, 2009

Sorry, Mom: Mother's Meals Are Better Than Homemade

As we drive through Buffalo's Virginia Place, a narrow side street near Delaware, it's impossible to ignore how many cars and restaurants are lining the sides of this single road: the eye spots conspicuous signs for Scarlet and Fat Bob's...

Posted on April 11, 2009

Liquid or Solid, Gin Gin's Chinese Treats Widen Its Appeal

We wish it weren't true, but authentic Chinese food is becoming more difficult to find in Western New York: low-end plaza take-outs with Americanized menus have multiplied across the area, as classier mid-range and high-end restaurants continue to disappear. Thankfully,...

Posted on April 6, 2009

As Chefs & Times Change, So Do Oliver's Focus & Flavors

"Your grandfather ate here when he was her age," said Dad, reflecting on both our young daughter's image in the semi-mirrored walls of Oliver's Restaurant, and the 73-year-old venue's debut on the Buffalo fine dining scene; "my brothers and I...

Posted on March 31, 2009

Within a Hotel, Plenty of Sizzle and Some Steak: Russell's

First impressions mean a lot, but they're not everything. Take Russell's Steaks, Chops & More, the just-down-the-street sequel to Russell Salvatore's well-known Salvatore's Italian Gardens on Transit Road in Lancaster, similarly designed to give off the air of success from...

Posted on March 29, 2009

Great Expectations, Partially Met at Small, Popular Hutch's

"Transcendent," explains the American Association of Food Journalists in its definition of a four-star restaurant, "a one-of-a-kind, world-class experience." We've eaten at such breathtaking restaurants. We can even recall the cities they were in, the items we ordered, and the...

Posted on March 25, 2009

Historic Eagle House Soars With Strong Food, Great Venue

Thanks to a combination of fond memories and less than kind gossip, The Eagle House has been idling on our "to do" list for months. We still recall visiting this 180-year-old restaurant on Main Street in Williamsville back 25 years...

Posted on March 22, 2009

For Surf or Turf, Marinaccio's is Unpredictable, Intriguing

During the many years we drove past this place on Main Street, we knew it as The Little White House - a large, imposing, and historic restaurant that we'd never actually visited. But in 2003, the building was renovated and...

Posted on March 22, 2009

Fondue, or Don't? Expensive, Unique Meals at Melting Pot

If you think you understand fondue, Switzerland's centuries-old molten cheese dip, think again: it may have peaked in American popularity a few decades ago, but a chain called The Melting Pot - recently opened in Cheektowaga's Walden Galleria Mall -...

Posted on March 7, 2009

Kennedy's Cove: A Homey But Pricey Clarence Steakhouse

Like many of Buffalo's decades-old restaurants, Kennedy's Cove has a reputation: specifically, it has been said to offer steakhouse-quality steaks at half the price of other local steakhouses. We hoped that this was true. Thanks to its Main Street, Clarence...

Posted on February 19, 2009

San Fran Chow: Trapped in America's Nicest (?) Food Court

To some, the very idea of eating at a food court is repulsive: at most malls, these collections of chain mini-restaurants serve little more than fourth-rate sustenance to keep local workers alive long enough for their next shifts. But there...

Posted on January 12, 2009

Steak-Off: Hyde Park Offers Fatty Meat, Sub-Prime Service

Prior to the opening of Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse in the newer, more upscale wing of the Walden Galleria mall, we weren't aware that it was part of an Ohio-based chain, that it planned to offer both food and decor...

Posted on December 30, 2008

Seattle Chow, Part 2: Pike Place Market, a Culinary Hub

We won't claim to be experts on Seattle's Pike Place Market, but it's quite possibly one of America's most interesting destinations for foodies. Where else can you see two guys tossing around whole fish, visit the country's first Starbucks, and...

Posted on November 29, 2008

For Dim Sum, Many Plates at Rochester's Cantonese House

Obsessed as we are with Chinese dim sum - small $2-$3 plates of unique steamed or fried snacks, served on weekends off of special "pick what looks good" carts by roving waitresses until you're stuffed - we're hard-pressed to recommend...

Posted on August 24, 2008

Williamsville's 2008 Taste, a Bit More Ordinary (1 of 2)

After attending the sprawling but somewhat internationally limited Taste of Buffalo this year, we weren't sure what to expect from the 2008 Taste of Williamsville - a smaller event held on one day, a Tuesday of all things, with only...

Posted on August 6, 2008

Taste of Buffalo 2008: Seafood Snacks (1 of 3)

Western New York has lots of food festivals, some ethnic, some geographic, and occasionally one or two dedicated to a specific type of food (wings) or drink (beer). Going forward, we're going to cover these events in a pretty straightforward...

Posted on July 13, 2008

Named "Number One," Ichiban Exceeds Expectations [Updated]

Opened in the same month as Clarence's Samurai, Amherst's Ichiban Steak and Seafood Restaurant took a substantially different - and ultimately winning - approach. We had low expectations for this teppanyaki house, which devotes half of its space to the...

Posted on July 9, 2008

Red Lobster: A Forgotten Seafood Chain Claws Upwards

Perhaps because Western New York has historically seen great things from small restaurants, some of the area's locals have taken perverse pleasure in bashing - or just ignoring - larger ones run by national chains. Over the course of our...

Posted on July 2, 2008

Though Pricey, Black & Blue Glows, With Crab and Steak

There are people who would argue that Western New York's blue collar leanings would militate against the opening of high class, high priced restaurants, and for sure, the ever-increasing number of places with sub-$20-per-person price tags suggests that upscale places...

Posted on March 14, 2008

Chester's Cajun Grill, Unpretentious Yet Addictive

There may be a better cajun style crawfish and rib shack in Western New York, but if so, we haven't found it, and after dining several times at Chester's Cajun Grill, we're no longer actively looking. Whereas the upscale Main...

Posted on February 14, 2008