Live in any city long enough, and it’s easy to become cynical. Buffalo’s awkward transition from an industrial giant of the 1950’s has hit East Side neighborhoods hard.
But if you love this place, as Stan Smith does, you know that true Buffalonians aren’t cynics. The true members of this community are the tenacious and scrappy lot with the courage to open businesses and add value to their neighborhoods. Stan is the owner of Ssssmokin’ BBQ, a small stakeout on Box Avenue. He truly believes in the future of Buffalo, and with tears in his eyes, he doesn’t mind telling you so.
Since opening his restaurant last year, right in the heart of Buffalo’s checkered lower East side, Ssssmokin’ BBQ has quickly become a neighborhood favorite, as well as an inspiring case study in the entrepreneurial spirit. Stan is owner, head cook, and the sole employee of Ssssmokin’ BBQ, a venture that he decided on after watching his neighborhood decline for years. “One by one I saw the family businesses disappear until there wasn’t even a thing to eat out here!” Over a heaping plate of slathered ribs this lifetime Eastside resident will tell you “I’ve only got the Lord to thank for my success here.”
Just one bite of these ribs and you’ll be thankful too. A dark, sultry flavor born in the sweaty Eastside kitchens of the late 70’s, Stan’s signature sauces are a work of love he’s perfected through four decades of survival in Buffalo’s harshest era. Though he lacks any formal training in the kitchen, he knows his neighborhood clientele and what “they just love to eat.”
While Ssssmokin BBQ’s menu is somewhat limited, these ribs and steak hoagies are nothing short of exemplary in Buffalo’s best tradition of greasy eats. The ubiquitous fare is also well represented, with items such as the Polish sausage ($2.50), chicken finger plate ($7.00), and wings ($6.50 for a ½ order, $11.00 for a full order), all served as “spicy as you like ‘em.” Quality, locally purchased ingredients translate into the finest, messiest steak hoagie in town ($10.00 with the works).
The real treat, however, is the pork rib dinner (14.00). The ribs are slow cooked and give up the bone in moist, flavorful hunks. Try them with a bed of fresh coleslaw for a real Southern-style treat. Stan cooks up his beef and pork ribs in either his original, Alabama-inspired sauce, or with what he calls his own “special invention,” which is a sweeter, sassier variant.
Walking up to Ssssmokin’ BBQ on Box Avenue, the first thing you will notice – besides what is clearly not a typo on the sign – is the fact that between North Filmore and Kehr Street, it’s conspicuously the only thing open for business. But this clearly doesn’t faze Smith, who sits contently in front of his little corner of America at closing time, making friendly conversation with the locals passing by. Stan emotes hopeful optimism as he looks from his storefront to envision a brighter future.
“A chain restaurant just wouldn’t have the guts to open up down here,” says Smith with a smirk. He knows full well that this is perhaps one of Buffalo’s roughest neighborhoods. “What we have are local problems, and so they need a local solution…how can the young people make honest money unless they see somebody else doing it first?”
In all, the food at Ssssmokin BBQ is sublime, the company heart-warming, and the neighborhood something akin to an urban nightmare. This little rib joint is truly a diamond in the rough, and every bit worth the trip. And when you’re down there, be sure to take a good look at the state of affairs on Box Avenue. If you’re a true Buffalonian then you know it won’t look that way for long. Not if hardworking businessmen like Stan Smith have a stake in Buffalo’s future.