I think that I may have just found the best hummus in Buffalo. Did you know that the first urban Iraqi restaurant has opened on Hertel Avenue? I ate there moments ago and found the Iraqi/Middle Eastern offerings to be the perfect thing to satisfy my craving for something light and delicious. Shish Kabab Express (SKE) opened a few weeks ago, and you know what gave away that the place was going to be good? The only customers that I have seen inside the eatery look to be from Middle Eastern descent. With the growing number of Iraqi people living in the area, there seems to be no lack of support for

Sometimes there's nothing like an old world family business to put a smile on your face. So often we're looking for the 'new' and the 'different' that we tend to underplay the 'traditional' and 'old world' businesses that act as the backbone of our neighborhoods. Many of those businesses have been around forever, while others occasionally open that reflect those same qualities. There is a new restaurant on Hertel called Victor's (opened four weeks ago) that relies on select Italian family recipes, passed down from generation to generation.  It's a family-owned operation with a father-daughter

If there's one thing that I hear over and over during the holidays, it's, "I remember when my mom used to take me downtown to see the decorated windows at the AM&A's building when I was a kid. Those were the good old days." There was never much that I could say in response to that other than, "Yeah, that sucks!" As the times continue to change in Buffalo we should give a big 'Thanks' this holiday season to the Theatre District Association (TDA) of Western New York and the Rotary Club of Buffalo for doing what should have been done a long time ago - they're bringing back to life 20 vintage decorated

FASHION MANIAC TEAM:

Features Editor : Cassie Elsaesser  
All Photography & Managing Editor : Cheryl Gorski
Stylists : Cassie Elsaesser & Cameron Richard 
Make Up : Dani Weiser
Guest Hair Stylist : Whitney Curry
Prop Stylist  : Todd Warfield, Lucy Mancuso, Michael Merisola
Executive Producer / Video Journalist : Richard Renda

Love Never Dies by Cassie Elsaesser:

In fashion, designers often pull inspiration from decades that have passed. This

On Saturday, November 6, the Massachusetts Avenue Project (MAP) will be having its Organic Vegetable and Fish Market open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at their farm on Massachusetts Avenue (find location).

The market will feature home-grown tilapia sold by the pound and several varieties of fresh autumn vegetables. Included will be sweet potatoes, butternut squash, and broccoli, among others.  Purchases

Uniland Development Co. surprised the downtown development community when the firm purchased the shuttered Dulski Federal Building on Delaware Avenue and announced plans to convert the 15-story structure into a mix of office, hotel and high-end condominium units.  Though Uniland is the region's largest real estate developer, the company had limited experience in residential and hotel development.  The skeptics have been proven wrong and the Avant has set a new standard for development not only in

We love to hear from our readers, especially when they present ideas that can take a good project to an en excellent one. Many of these ideas come from attempting to turn lemons into lemonade. Say, for example, the Buffalo Maritime Center loses its home out at the Outer Harbor (it just did)... and at the same time various other waterfront advancements are moving forward right around the corner... opportunity knocks? The following submitted by C. Andrle:

"The recent news about the re-opening of the Buffalo Lighthouse next year included information that the Coast Guard will be releasing

On Saturday, November 13, the city of Buffalo will be showing New York City its party potential with the Fourth Annual Party to benefit Buffalo's neighborhoods, hosted by People United for Sustainable Housing (PUSH).  PUSH will be taking the big city by storm with this tailgate party in Times Square.

The party will be a celebration of Buffalo's culture and all the positive things happening in the city's neighborhoods this year.  PUSH will also be honoring Buffalo Olympic Gold Medalist and World Champion Bobsledder Steve Mesler.  A dinner date with Mesler will be one of

You've seen the gardens spring up in your neighborhood. You've watched the transformation, as derelict empty lots are converted into community gathering spaces. You've been wanting to thank the people behind the effort, but you weren't sure exactly how to do that. On November 4th Grassroots Gardens is hosting the 4th annual Harvest Celebration at the stunning Karpeles Manuscript Museum (5:30-9:00pm). This is the organization's big push to raise money so that it can continue to revitalize our neighborhoods one garden at a time.

If you're

The reconstruction of Prime, Lloyd, Perry and Hanover streets at Erie Canal Harbor is complete.  Roads feature cobblestones, exposed aggregate concrete sidewalks, new street lighting, granite curbing, and landscaping work were designed to align with the existing street grid as much as possible, while retaining its historic location.  Work started in September 2009.  Lloyd and Prime Streets will accommodate two-way traffic, while Hanover and Perry provide one-way traffic beginning

Leave it to an astrophotographer in Buffalo, NY to show the world a different viewpoint of the sun. This incredible shot, and others (see below), are being featured in myriad magazines at the moment, ranging from Wired.com, Discover Magazine and Telegraph. Alan Friedman, president of Buffalo

145 Kehr Street is gone.  Final resting spot unknown.  The early 20th Century brick masonry structure was torn down by owner George Rogers.  Rogers operates Kehr-Buffalo Wire Frame and Rogers Industrial Springs, family-owned and operated companies located at 127 Kehr Street at Urban Street.

The Buffalo Preservation Board signed-off on the demolition last month.  Rogers has owned the property for over 30 years and is proposing to erect a one-story metal building on the property.  A decade ago, a fire sprinkler was reportedly set off and damaged the building's

As we wrote about yesterday, the Buffalo School District spent nearly $9M on cosmetic surgeries for teachers and staff last year.  Given the exorbitance of this expense, this story has been picked up by national news sites including the Huffington Post and the Washington Post.  And while the $9M

By Gwen Ito:

The year was 1954. Buffalo Seminary, an all-girls high school located on Bidwell Parkway, had just purchased the John D. Larkin Estate on the corner of Forest Avenue and Lincoln Parkway. Within months, the back yard to the 1915 mansion was transformed into a playing field for competitive sports, including field hockey and soccer. A quote from the school's publication that year summed up the significance of the acquisition: "This field will be wonderful for the students, especially for those who have had to deal in the past with slopes, ruts and mud holes. At last

On Saturday, October 30, the Bulger Communication Center at Buffalo State College will be hosting the Buffalo premier of GASLAND, a film by Josh Fox.

The film, which won the Special Jury Prize for Best U.S. Documentary Feature at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, chronicles journey of filmmaker Fox as he uncovers the truth behind the natural gas-drilling industry and the new hydraulic fracturing drilling technology developed by Haliburton known as "fracking."  Fracking involves injecting millions of gallons of water, sand and proprietary chemicals under high pressure into a drilled

Through The Expat Buffalo Network (BEN) Facebook page I was directed to Rustwire.com which is a Cleveland based Midwest -rustbelt city centric blog.  They put out a call for entries called "The Big Urban Photography Project". The text from their invite is as follows:

Rustwire is recruiting photographers across the Midwest to take part

Shea's Performing Arts Center is welcoming all literacy advocates to join them for a "novel" event on Thursday, November 4.

The "Cocktails in Character" fundraiser, presented by M&T Bank, will bring together Buffalo's book lovers to help support Literacy Volunteers in Buffalo & Erie County.  The event will start at 5:30 p.m. and run until 8 p.m.

Several literary figures will be making an appearance at the theater.  Amongst them will be Scarlett O'Hara, the Cat in the Hat, Zorro, Dracula, Clifford the Dog, Long John Silver, Cleopatra, Alice and the Queen

There's an important message that needs to be sent to the DEC by the people of Buffalo. To those who would stand to make the big bucks while causing environmental turmoil, and putting people's health at risk, the message is, "This is NOT acceptable." Join protesters after work today (4pm) at 270 Michigan Avenue (corner of Seneca Street) to demand that the DEC not endorse the practice of deep well hydrofracking.

Not only does hydrofracking involve mixing millions of gallons of water with over 500 different chemicals that endanger our drinking water, it has also recently been reported

It was just this morning that we learned that Merge will be hosting a Rally to Restore Sanity rally in Buffalo, this Saturday, October 30th from 12:00pm - 3:00pm. Until this point a number of readers had sought out information wondering if Buffalo was hosting a rally and if so, where.

"Could we pull off a satellite gathering for the Rally to Restore Sanity? It's happening all over the country, why not Buffalo? Albright-Knox? Bidwell Park? Lafayette Square?... MERGE!"

Supporters of the Concerned Citizens Coalitions who are

In 2004, the Buffalo Public School District spent just under $1M on cosmetic surgeries for teachers.  Last year, the district spent a cool $9M on cosmetic surgery procedures for teachers.  It makes you want to crank the Van Halen, doesn't it? 
90% of the procedures were chemical peels, skin rejuvenation, laser hair removal and other skin treatments.  This spending is taking place against the backdrop of unprecedented budget deficits