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Outta the box WNY daytrips
Old World days, New Buffalo nights
By Jessica Keltz; photos by kc kratt
Most Western New Yorkers know that Buffalo is strong in European heritage and history, from the Old First Ward to the Lower West Side to Broadway and Fillmore. Next time you have visitors, why not show off a few of the hidden gems that survive from Buffalo’s early days?
After breakfast at your favorite neighborhood diner, stop into the Broadway Market and hit up E. M. Chrusciki for some authentic Polish pastries to go. Then, take a look around St. Stanislaus (123 Townsend Street 854-5511, office closed at 2 p.m. and on Fridays) or Corpus Christi (189 Clark Street 896-1050, open to the public from 6:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily). Both churches feature weekly Polish language masses and were built before 1900.
For lunch, try Schwabl’s, a German/American restaurant that’s been serving customers since 1837, and at its current location since 1946. Schwabl’s (789 Center Road, West Seneca, 674-9821, schwabls.com) does simple homestyle food as well as, if not better than, anyplace in Western New York. It’s old fashioned without being seedy, cozy without being cramped, and has the best homemade soups around. Other good choices include Scharf’s Schiller Park Restaurant (34 South Crossman Street, 895-7249, www.scharfsrest.com) and Ulrich’s (674 Ellicott Street, 855-8409). Scharf’s is open for lunch Wednesday–Friday and Sunday, and Ulrich’s serves lunch Monday–Friday.
Next, head to Kaisertown, said to be named after St. Casimir (160 Cable Street, 824-9598), the neighborhood parish. Kaisertown is still home to many first-generation Americans, making it the perfect home for Poltez International, a European grocery store located at 1972 Clinton Street featuring foreign language magazines, imported beer, packaged foods, and all the sausages you could want.
If you have time, a stop at the Adam Mickiewicz Library, (612 Fillmore Avenue, 847-0839, open to the public on Fridays and Saturdays) is a must. The “library”—it houses thousands of books in addition to a stage/banquet hall, bar, and pool room—is said to boast the best selection of Polish beers this side of Chicago, as well as German, Czech, and American choices, and an unusual variety of vodkas as well. If English is your first language, you may be the only native speaker in the place.
For dinner, show off modern Buffalo’s trendy side with a meal at Bistro Europa, (484 Elmwood Avenue, 884-1100, europabuffalo.com), which features specialties from around the continent, including Hungary and Portugal, in a stylish atmosphere. Dinner is served until 11 p.m., midnight on weekends. Other good choices include new-ish French restaurant Tabree (423 Elmwood Avenue 844-8477 tabreerestaurant.com), or upscale German/Polish food at Prosit (5428 Main Street in Williamsville, 633-8975, www.prositrestaurant.com). All three are located in nightlife-packed neighborhoods full of options for a post-dinner glass of wine, and all three are guaranteed to wow a guest who may only have heard not-so-nice things about our fair city.
Buffalo architecture 2.0
Been up to City Hall’s observation deck one too many times, or just afraid of heights? Had your fill of Darwin Martin House tours and Richardson Towers drive-bys? Maybe a new generation of building tours is in order—one that looks at the way Buffalonians have rehabbed, reworked, and reused some of our historic building stock.
Start with breakfast at Sweet_ness 7 (220 Grant Street, 883-1738), a West Side coffee shop that’s quickly catching on with the Elmwood Village crowd. With its collage-topped tables, built-in wooden benches, exposed brick, and mismatched mugs, Sweet_ness 7 is a tribute to the aesthetic of reuse. Then, cross over to the East Side for some shopping at ReSource (298 Northampton Street, Tuesday–Saturday 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m., 882-2800), Buffalo ReUse’s outlet for items salvaged from deconstructed and demolished buildings.
For lunch, try a sandwich, salad, or a bowl of chili at The 2nd Cup (36 Broadway, 840-0048). Located in downtown’s Buehl Block building, famous for its role in a Charles Burchfield painting, the coffee shop and lunch spot occupies what was nearly a demolition site but became sleek commercial space with upscale apartments upstairs. Or, cheat a little and head to Sea Bar’s city location (475 Ellicott Street, 332-2928, www.seabarsushi.com), a sushi/fusion restaurant housed in an infill project built to fit the neighborhood’s historic context. Sea Bar serves lunch on weekdays.
In the afternoon, consider perusing the galleries at Hallwalls (341 Delaware Avenue, 854-1694, www.hallwalls.org), located in Babeville, Ani DiFranco’s famous converted church, or Buffalo Arts Studio (2495 Main Street, 833-4450, www.buffaloartsstudio.org), housed in the converted Ford plant now known as the Tri-Main Center. If sports are more up your ally, take a shopping trip to New Era Cap’s downtown headquarters (160 Delaware Avenue, 604-9193, www.neweracap.com), formerly the local home of the Federal Reserve.
When you’ve had your fill of browsing, visit Just Vino (864 Main Street, 725-0166, www.justvino.net) for a glass (or flight) of wines and a cheese board. Just Vino occupies first-floor space at the Granite Works, another nearly demolished gem that was successfully converted to upscale housing.
For an upscale dinner, make a reservation at 31 Club (31 North Johnson Park, 332-3131). This former supper club housed a gay bar for years, but was recently converted back to its original use. If you’re headed to the southtowns, another option is Tantalus (634 Main Street, East Aurora, 652-0341), located in a former mill.
At night, there’s always Allen Street Hardware Cafe (245 Allen Street, 882-8843, www.allenstreethardware.com). As the name suggests, this former hardware store has gone from hammers and nails to the place to see and be seen in Allentown, with roots rock on Thursdays, DJs on weekends, and great appetizers, sandwiches, beer, and wine all week long.
Jessica Keltz is an attorney, freelance writer, and Buffalo neighborhoods aficionado who’s introduced more than one newcomer to the place.
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