Info for fans visiting Buffalo

[ZZamboni]

Hey whats up everyone, I'm planning on coming up from Long Island next month to catch a couple games and had few questions before I make the trip...

-I'm staying at the Holiday Inn Downtown which it says is about a mile away from the arena is there any good bars/restaurants in the area that we could frequent while on the trip?

-I was thinking about making a trip across the border at one point. Problem: I don't have a passport, does anyone have any experience with an enhanced drivers license? It seems like it would be a quicker/cheaper option.. Does that allow me to enter Canada and return to the USA just like a passport?

-What time do the bars close up/last call up there?

-Any cool food places/sights I should definitely check out while we are up there?

If you go to mapquest, and located the First Niagara Center, there's an option to show restaurants in the area.

I cross the border with an enhanced drivers license often (6-7 times a year) and never have a problem.

Points of interest while visiting ... Niagara Falls on both sides of the border. It's cool from different perspectives.

The bar area is on Chippawa street. Many bars and I think most stay open until 3-4 am?

Do a little googling when it comes to restaurants/bars to find exactly what you're looking for. They range from a loud dive to nice quiet places. All depends what you want.

In other words, you'll get others opinions, but it may not be what you want. Trust your own research.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

If you go to mapquest, and located the First Niagara Center, there's an option to show restaurants in the area.

I cross the border with an enhanced drivers license often (6-7 times a year) and never have a problem.

Points of interest while visiting ... Niagara Falls on both sides of the border. It's cool from different perspectives.

The bar area is on Chippawa street. Many bars and I think most stay open until 3-4 am?

Do a little googling when it comes to restaurants/bars to find exactly what you're looking for. They range from a loud dive to nice quiet places. All depends what you want.

In other words, you'll get others opinions, but it may not be what you want. Trust your own research.

Thanks definitely appreciate it.. I've done plenty of research just always good to get the opinions of the locals though.. Thanks again.

 

[smithformeragent]

B's fan coming in peace. What is my cheapest option for parking tomorrow night?

Looks like maybe park and ride at U of Buffalo and take the train?

Thanks, and good luck. Hope it's a great game!

 

[OhreallyOrielly]

B's fan coming in peace. What is my cheapest option for parking tomorrow night?

Looks like maybe park and ride at U of Buffalo and take the train?

Thanks, and good luck. Hope it's a great game!

Parking within a block of the Arena is like $15. Park and ride is a cheaper option. Are you staying overnight? If so there may be options from your hotel.

 

[Woodhouse]

B's fan coming in peace. What is my cheapest option for parking tomorrow night?

Looks like maybe park and ride at U of Buffalo and take the train?

Thanks, and good luck. Hope it's a great game!

I believe UB South parking is still free, but train tickets are a couple dollars, so I guess it all depends on how many are in your party and/or if you need extra time to sober up. The Washington/Exchange ramp, in right field of the AAA ballpark, is still in the $8-10 range I think and is a straight quarter mile walk to the arena. It's easy to get to if you take the 33 downtown, as you'd make the first right onto Genesee (once you ride it to the end; exits onto Oak) and then a left onto Washington, where you'll have your pick of a couple farther, smaller lots before hitting the ramps and then the more pricier lots neighboring FNC. Leaving, the 33 entrance would be on Elm, which is a block to the left where you exited onto Oak.

Though someone still local could probably give you more accurate help.

 

[smithformeragent]

Looking to not spend a fortune. Sobering up isn't an issue but getting out quickly is as I have a nice drive back to Auburn NY and my fiancé has to work in the morning.

 

[RattleYourSabre]

Okay, so I'm headed to Buffalo tonight for the game. We'll be departing from Rochester around 3:30, which figures to put us in Buffalo around 5.

Couple questions:

1) What food places do you recommend stopping? I was thinking Duff's.

2) What time do you think I should arrive near the arena for parking? How close is parking in relation to the arena? We want to get there close to the arena opening the gates so we can roam around and explore a bit. Might have to bypass food and just eat something there.

 

[La Cosa Nostra]

Okay, so I'm headed to Buffalo tonight for the game. We'll be departing from Rochester around 3:30, which figures to put us in Buffalo around 5.

Couple questions:

1) What food places do you recommend stopping? I was thinking Duff's.

2) What time do you think I should arrive near the arena for parking? How close is parking in relation to the arena? We want to get there close to the arena opening the gates so we can roam around and explore a bit. Might have to bypass food and just eat something there.

Duffs is great but if you like Subs/burgers/chicken fingers etc and don't want to go in and dine at a restaurant and would prefer to get your food quick then Jim's Steakout would be a good choice, they have some of the best subs in Buffalo (though its a little expensive)

As for parking, I like getting there 20-30 minutes before puck drop. The ramp at Washington is about a 3-4 minute walk straight down to the arena and its only $10.Closer to the arena its usually $15 or $20 which is a lot. And Don't bother getting food at the arena unless you want to pay outrageous prices for dinky portions. The food isn't good and you will still be hungry when you have finished your food.

 

[RattleYourSabre]

Awesome. Great tips. Thanks.

There are four of us going. My girlfriend can't eat meat due to lent, the rest of us aren't religious so we'll eat anything. So I'd have to find some place with a good fish fry. Might just eat in Rochester and head that way afterwards.

Know of any places around that area with a solid fish fry?

 

[bpc2083]

Awesome. Great tips. Thanks.

There are four of us going. My girlfriend can't eat meat due to lent, the rest of us aren't religious so we'll eat anything. So I'd have to find some place with a good fish fry. Might just eat in Rochester and head that way afterwards.

Know of any places around that area with a solid fish fry?

Gabriel's Gate is one of my favorite places in Buffalo, both for their wings and their fish fry. Plus it's a cool looking place right in the heart of Allentown. Only like 10 mins from the rink. I would go there. It's not some crappy chain restaurant.

 

[RattleYourSabre]

Gabriel's Gate is one of my favorite places in Buffalo, both for their wings and their fish fry. Plus it's a cool looking place right in the heart of Allentown. Only like 10 mins from the rink. I would go there. It's not some crappy chain restaurant.

You may be my savior. I'll let you know for sure after we eat

 

[SuperNintendoChalmrs]

You may be my savior. I'll let you know for sure after we eat

Good call by bpc2083... Gabriel's Gate is solid.

 

[RattleYourSabre]

Gabriel's Gate was great! And the Sabres won. I'm 7-0 when attending Amerk or Sabre games this year. Thanks for the help, folks!

 

[Repoman]

I'll be in the Toronto area around the 22nd of April so I am going to try and attend the game. Best place to buy tickets? I see a bunch on stubhub. Is that where most season ticket holders sell their tickets?

 

[Hip Czech]

Parking within a block of the Arena is like $15. Park and ride is a cheaper option. Are you staying overnight? If so there may be options from your hotel.

Looking to travel to Buffalo for a game soon. Anyone recommend a clean hotel?
How is the area around the parking area?

Thanks in advance guys!

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

Hey guys,

Me and my GF are doing a little trip to Buffalo/Niagara from May 7-9. She lives in Vancouver, I live in Toronto so she is coming to visit for a week. We decided to go to Buffalo and area for a couple days for shopping and neither of us have really checked out that region too much. I've been to Niagara a bunch and while it is nice to look at, it's a little boring. Always wanted to check out the sights and scene of Downtown Buffalo as I figured there's probably some great gems that are just overlooked.

We are staying at Salvatore's Garden Place Hotel, in Williamsville because apparently it is nice and romantic and we got a good deal on it. http://www.salvatores.net/

She wants to hit the Walden Galleria and Fashion Outlets Niagara. But we wanted to roam around downtown a bit, hit some nice bars and restaurants. Any suggestions for areas or places to go? We will have a car, obviously so transportation is not an issue. I guess a bit more date friendly or anything quirky, different or a Buffalo/WNY staple would be great to.

I'm reading through some of the other food threads on here but they date back a ways so I don't know how current some of that info is. Any feedback would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[Chainshot]

Thanks HockeyH3aven!

We have a 20.00 coupon for Salvatore's restaurant. The menu looks great but it is a bit pricey even still since we're trying to do this on a budget considering her flight out here was like 500.00. So maybe we'll do that for a lunch. She loves Japanese and Sushi and she was researching that Buffalo had some good spots so Fuji Grille is definitely a place we will try to check out.

She's big into walking, so If Elmwood and Allentown are a little more dense in terms of bars and little shops and stuff that would be nice. Was thinking of maybe going to Tiff Nature Preserve? Maybe a picnic or something like that if the weather is nice.

I've been to Anchor Bar before and found it 'ok' but nothing great. I do love wings and southern food so any suggestions would be great. She's a bit of a health nut so I don't know if she'll go for it but I'm the one driving so she'll have to deal with it.

If you are looking for some trusted voices for culinary guidance, check out: http://blogs.buffalonews.com/hungryformore/

It's the one thing in the News that I trust.

Another that I don't always agree with but has multiple reviewers so a broader range of tastes are considered is here: http://www.cse.buffalo.edu/restaurant.guide/

Hertel Ave has a number of good, and often smaller restaurants as well as the Elmwood and Allen areas. "Health nut" and "Buffalo cuisine" are usually not part of the same sentence, but there are plenty of places out there. Lunch-wise, I'm a big fan of the Globe Market on Elmwood. Seabar is good, although I'm often left feeling like I'm missing *just* something. Break'n'eggs on Main in Amherst is a crepery, recently opened that has a number of tasty things -- I can recommend the tenderloin crepe as well as the bacon-chicken-cheddar one. Butterwood in the newly remodeled Hotel Lafayette. Mike A's and the Pan-American Grille are there as well, haven't eaten in Mike A's yet and the Pan-Am is ok. If you can twist her arm a bit, Grover's on Transit (about 15 minutes up the road from where you are staying, or less if you make a few lights) has some dynamite burgers.

I'm not big on nightlife -- 2 kids under 10 will do that. The Albright-Knox has free admission on Friday's and there is a bar -- you can have a few, then walk around and look at the art.

 

[sabrescupchamps2099]

Hey guys,

Me and my GF are doing a little trip to Buffalo/Niagara from May 7-9. She lives in Vancouver, I live in Toronto so she is coming to visit for a week. We decided to go to Buffalo and area for a couple days for shopping and neither of us have really checked out that region too much. I've been to Niagara a bunch and while it is nice to look at, it's a little boring. Always wanted to check out the sights and scene of Downtown Buffalo as I figured there's probably some great gems that are just overlooked.

We are staying at Salvatore's Garden Place Hotel, in Williamsville because apparently it is nice and romantic and we got a good deal on it. http://www.salvatores.net/

She wants to hit the Walden Galleria and Fashion Outlets Niagara. But we wanted to roam around downtown a bit, hit some nice bars and restaurants. Any suggestions for areas or places to go? We will have a car, obviously so transportation is not an issue. I guess a bit more date friendly or anything quirky, different or a Buffalo/WNY staple would be great to.

I'm reading through some of the other food threads on here but they date back a ways so I don't know how current some of that info is. Any feedback would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

Hello!

My suggestion for a restaurant for dinner or whatever is Pearl Street Grill & Brewery downtown. Not the cheapest place but good food and beer.

I also recommend Anchor Bar. The birthplace of Buffalo wings.

If you want a place to go after you're done eating, the waterfront is nice and the old ships docked there should be open for tours by then.

I kind of needed to rush this so sorry for not giving some more in depth info but hope I helped ya a little.

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

Hello!

My suggestion for a restaurant for dinner or whatever is Pearl Street Grill & Brewery downtown. Not the cheapest place but good food and beer.

I also recommend Anchor Bar. The birthplace of Buffalo wings.

If you want a place to go after you're done eating, the waterfront is nice and the old ships docked there should be open for tours by then.

I kind of needed to rush this so sorry for not giving some more in depth info but hope I helped ya a little.

No that's great. Waterfront sounds nice since we're on a budget and she likes to go for strolls and things like that. We don't mind spending a little more on food and drinks if it's nice or a bit unique. Just don't want to break the bank at tourist traps or anything like that. Much appreciated!

 

[flyingpig]

Hey guys,

Me and my GF are doing a little trip to Buffalo/Niagara from May 7-9. She lives in Vancouver, I live in Toronto so she is coming to visit for a week. We decided to go to Buffalo and area for a couple days for shopping and neither of us have really checked out that region too much. I've been to Niagara a bunch and while it is nice to look at, it's a little boring. Always wanted to check out the sights and scene of Downtown Buffalo as I figured there's probably some great gems that are just overlooked.

We are staying at Salvatore's Garden Place Hotel, in Williamsville because apparently it is nice and romantic and we got a good deal on it. http://www.salvatores.net/

She wants to hit the Walden Galleria and Fashion Outlets Niagara. But we wanted to roam around downtown a bit, hit some nice bars and restaurants. Any suggestions for areas or places to go? We will have a car, obviously so transportation is not an issue. I guess a bit more date friendly or anything quirky, different or a Buffalo/WNY staple would be great to.

I'm reading through some of the other food threads on here but they date back a ways so I don't know how current some of that info is. Any feedback would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

I say walk the Elmwood Strip. Restaurants, galleries, stores, coffee shops, bars of all sort. "Friend" Lloyds Taco Truck and see where they will be that weekend. Excellent true mexican food truck and cheap. Some cool and quirky bars/restaurants might include The Place, Vera Pizzaria (old school serious cocktails) Blue Monk for good beer selection, Gabriels Gate, Saigon Cafe if you want ethnic, Globe Market foe sandwiches for lunch,Left Bank for higher end romantic place, but need reservations asap.

To stop for a cocktail,check out the refurbished Lafayette Hotel. A couple of good bars inside there. Statler Hotel has this great dark mahognoy wood bar with finger foods including tater tots.

For live music, go to Neitzche's or Docs Bohemian Groove Bar. Both on Allen Street across the street from each other.

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

I say walk the Elmwood Strip. Restaurants, galleries, stores, coffee shops, bars of all sort. "Friend" Lloyds Taco Truck and see where they will be that weekend. Excellent true mexican food truck and cheap. Some cool and quirky bars/restaurants might include The Place, Vera Pizzaria (old school serious cocktails) Blue Monk for good beer selection, Gabriels Gate, Saigon Cafe if you want ethnic, Globe Market foe sandwiches for lunch,Left Bank for higher end romantic place, but need reservations asap.

To stop for a cocktail,check out the refurbished Lafayette Hotel. A couple of good bars inside there. Statler Hotel has this great dark mahognoy wood bar with finger foods including tater tots.

For live music, go to Neitzche's or Docs Bohemian Groove Bar. Both on Allen Street across the street from each other.

WOW! That's amazing. Thanks for all the info. I don't think we'll be able to fit all that in but we will try! In terms of live music, I know this might be a long shot but she is a huge fan of dueling piano bars and places like that. Anything like that happening around Buffalo at all?

 

[flyingpig]

WOW! That's amazing. Thanks for all the info. I don't think we'll be able to fit all that in but we will try! In terms of live music, I know this might be a long shot but she is a huge fan of dueling piano bars and places like that. Anything like that happening around Buffalo at all?

nope.

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

nope.

Oh well. We'll figure out something I guess

 

[sabrescupchamps2099]

No that's great. Waterfront sounds nice since we're on a budget and she likes to go for strolls and things like that. We don't mind spending a little more on food and drinks if it's nice or a bit unique. Just don't want to break the bank at tourist traps or anything like that. Much appreciated!

The waterfront has a beautiful sunset too. Hopefully its warm and sunny when you go to go in the water and stuff if you want a romantic evening with your girl.

Yeah, there's a whole naval park there with all sorts of World War and World War 2 things to look at. Like I said, there's ships and a submarine open for tours. Rumor is, one of them is haunted. Don't remember the names of em even though I've been on em over 50 times, lol.

I recommend Elmwood Village as well as the other guy who replied, Albright Knox art gallery, Buffalo Historical museum. Coffee shops, and little local shops that sell all sorts of things. Don't want to bombard you with things to do but yeah, there's stuff to do in Buffalo even though its not a major city for tourism. Just don't go on the East side and you'll be fine. Its the 'hood' and makes the city look bad with vacant, rundown buildings.

 

[Chainshot]

I say walk the Elmwood Strip. Restaurants, galleries, stores, coffee shops, bars of all sort. "Friend" Lloyds Taco Truck and see where they will be that weekend. Excellent true mexican food truck and cheap. Some cool and quirky bars/restaurants might include The Place, Vera Pizzaria (old school serious cocktails) Blue Monk for good beer selection, Gabriels Gate, Saigon Cafe if you want ethnic, Globe Market foe sandwiches for lunch,Left Bank for higher end romantic place, but need reservations asap.

To stop for a cocktail,check out the refurbished Lafayette Hotel. A couple of good bars inside there. Statler Hotel has this great dark mahognoy wood bar with finger foods including tater tots.

For live music, go to Neitzche's or Docs Bohemian Groove Bar. Both on Allen Street across the street from each other.

I forgot the Blue Monk. Depending on time of day, you may enjoy some fine craft beers. Or stand near some fine craft beers while packed into a sardine can. Love it there, but not when it's overflowing.