Buffalo Rising Online

I stopped by Torches last Monday to have some dinner and found that it was a “theme” night. Generally, if anyone uses the word “theme” regarding a restaurant or bar, I cringe. That wasn't the case on this warm summer evening.

I arrived to find that a special menu was being offered, featuring Torches interesting take on Italian cuisine. A live entertainer would also be performing classics originally sung by Italian-American singers.

Quite honestly, I have eaten enough lasagna and listened to enough Sinatra for a lifetime. But this menu was nothing like the area offerings of dried out baked ziti and margarine soaked “garlic” bread. And those grotesque caricatures we are often subjected to as Martin/Sinatra cover bands were nowhere to be seen. The Caputi-Starr Duo successfully entertained the packed bar while providing a great backdrop for those of us seated in th…

In the spring, sparkling ice floes break free, gracefully making their way down the river. Throughout the summer, warm weather and breathtaking sunsets can call the most stubborn of land lovers to our river's edge. Autumn provides a colorful and lush view of the changing leaves along the Canadian border. Winter finds a sky that is often crystal clear, the sun bouncing off of the lake's pristine blanket of snow and ice.

Harry's Harbour Place Grille is a hot spot in the spring and summer season, its expansive patios an ideal place to enjoy a fine meal or refreshing cocktails. But, don't fool yourself into thinking that Harry's is any less stunning in the colder months.

In its tenth year, Harry's Harbour Place Grille has undergone its share of changes, and the very recent return of former General Manager Jeffrey Lang is certainly one of them. Those that have not dined at Ha…

At least that's what Chef/Owner JJ Richert told me when I called him last week. I was calling to verify the name of the upcoming, and obviously very competitive, barbecue throw down taking place on August 12th. The battle between Chef Kevin O'Connell of O'Connell's Hourglass and Chefs JJ and Kevin Richert of Torches is sure to be heated as the grills themselves as each compete for the title of, well, maybe we can call it Kenmore Avenue BBQ Master.

“Blood in the streets,” was uber-barbecuer Richert's reaction, a wry and friendly guy. We talked about the event, the food, and how much fun it would be- the kind of conversation I've come to expect from the very entertaining Richert.

It was a far cry, though no less satisfying, from O'Connell's response to Richert's joke. “Sure it's going to be fun, and people are really going to enjoy themselves. But my main goal is for…

If I have to eat another sandwich, I think I'll die, I thought to myself last week. The food writer's life is not all escargot and champagne, artisan breads and hand-harvested coffee. I eat as many bad meals as I do good ones (if not more), and when I'm not eating at a local establishment, I'm wishing I had remembered to go to the grocery store so that I won't have to eat another sandwich.

When I'm in our Cobblestone District office I try to bring lunch, but that again is a sandwich. And most of the lunchy restaurants downtown serve sandwiches too. A salad can offer a little relief, but it's only temporary. Stick it between two pieces of bread and it's just another sandwich.

So, as I said, I was sitting at my desk, dreading the sure-to-follow sandwich. As usual, I began visualizing the city's blocks in my head, wandering up and down the streets, trying to remembe…

Moving to a new city isn’t an easy thing. Opening a new business, particularly a restaurant, isn’t simple either. For Khondoker Karim and wife Selina Afroj, the undertaking of both ventures has proven to be worth the stress and aggravation.

The move to Buffalo from their former home on Long Island has provided them with opportunities they might not have otherwise had. Karim credits Buffalo’s economic climate with his ability to own three rental properties as well as the building within which their new restaurant is housed. “To open this place on Long Island would have cost us millions of dollars,” he told me.

Street Café and Halal Foods offers a unique menu and what Karim believes to be the only halal restaurant in the city. (Halal means “permissible” in Arabic, and pertains to foods that fall within Islamic dietary restrictions). The family’s commitmen…

For over 30 years, Ristorante Lombardo has been satisfying Buffalonians in search of refined Italian cuisine. The business has seen the many phases of development along Hertel Avenue, and owner Tom Lombardo believes the current renaissance taking place on the street is the best yet.

“I think it's great,” Lombardo said of the wave of establishments which have opened their doors along Hertel over the past few years, “when we started there were more coffee shops than anything else.” Now that there is a diverse mixture of retail shops, cafes, and fine dining, Lombardo is beginning to see more foot traffic along the strip. “People walk from their homes in the neighborhood, but we also get people from Clarence and Williamsville that come down to walk around, shop, and eat.”

His business is upscale but varied, and caters to many types of clientèle. The food is fresh…

Parkside Candy located on Main near UB's south campus, is a charming candy shop and ice cream parlor. They moved from their first location on Main Street to this one in 1927. That's right, 1927- and hardly anything has changed since.

Stepping into this fantastically preserved shop is like stepping back in time. The interior is extraordinary, boasting antique tables, chairs, and decor. The old fashioned ice cream fountain is an attraction in and of itself, the vintage wooden cabinet and the display of various sundae dishes hearkens back to the pre-World War II era. The round, inset ceiling is lined with ornate scroll work and highlighted by indirect lighting. Housemade confections are presented in the store's original wooden display cases, and two lifesize "street lamps" stand in the middle of the floor. If passers-by make judgments based on the building's less than well-pres…

With one steep step up into the Sit & Chat Cafe you'll find yourself amongst an assortment of Coca-Cola memorabilia, a bar stool-lined counter, and a devout set of regulars seated at the small establishment's handful of tables.

The Sit & Chat serves breakfast and lunch every day and dinner on Fridays. The options for the morning meal fall in line with the classics- homefries, omelets, pancakes, etc. Lunch consists of hoagies, melts and clubs, dogs, burgers and a special or two. On the day I visited, the popular special was a pork chop and applesauce. I opted for the grilled cheese with tomato on rye and a side of onion rings. The portion size was large, and though both items are far from low fat, they weren't overly greasy either. Both ran me less than $5. Friday's dinner choices include the lunch menu as well as Friday-ish offerings like the classic fish fry and linguin…

Snooty Fox Lounge is a wonderful addition to our burgeoning population of chic, upper scale hang outs most likely fostered by the influx of re-pats, ex-pats, and well, new pats. Its next door to Prespa, down the street from Stillwater and around the corner from Scarlet and Mothers. Snooty owner Salvatore Buscaglia refers to this area as Midtown Buffalo.

The natty new hot spot has been likened to a Buddha Bar, and is considered by its owner to be an Enoteca-style lounge. But disregard the labels and feel the vibe yourself.

The atmosphere is comfortable in a classy, “loungy” way, furnished with posh couches and plush ottomans. The environment is intentionally well-lit and therefore conducive to enjoyable group interactions- you can actually see and hear your friends! If you prefer, you can be as intimate as y…

Early last week, our online ARTS staffer and I headed to SAMPLE for a press event. We were being given a golden opportunity. Selections from SAMPLE's new spring menu and killer cocktail repertoire would accompany a series of minute-long previews from performers scheduled to entertain at this summer's Infringement Festival.

The evening's MC and Infringement Festival volunteer Ron Ehmke summed up the festival's connection with SAMPLE best. “We're here because SAMPLE is based in Allentown and Allentown is kind of our home base. SAMPLE is also a home for experimental food. They're presenting food in a completely different way, a new way way that Buffalo has never seen. And the attitude with SAMPLE's happy hour is to just try stuff and see if people like it, and that's the spirit of the festival as well.”

I think he was right. The SAMPLE concept is new and different here …

El Flamboyan has recently opened the doors to it's small location on the southeast corner of Elmwood and Amherst. The space is simple and so is the Puerto Rican menu.

The portions are ample, as you knew they would be, the food hearty and good. Lunches include your choice of meat and one of four traditional rice dishes, three of which use yellow rice, a rice made with sofrito. (Sofrito is a sauce made of green peppers, onions, garlic spices and the yellow-imparting annatto seed.) At El Flamboyan you can order your yellow rice with pigeon peas, white beans, or chicken. Simple white rice is an option as well. Regarding the meat choices, there are five to choose from: pernil (pork), pollo guisao (chicken stew), bistec (steak), chuletas (pork chops) and pollo frito (fried chicken). The lunch size portion is large and runs $5.99, the dinner is even larger and only $7.99.

Othe…

Jerry Scharf, owner of Scharf’s Schiller Park Restaurant, knows all about the grind of preparing for the Taste of Buffalo. Scharf’s, one of the longest standing participants, has been a vendor at the Taste of Buffalo for 14 years. “This year, we’re taking our vacation week the week before the Taste,” Jerry says- but it won’t be a normal vacation- “it’s a full week of intense preparation.”

Not quite downtown, but just moments away, the Niagara Café and BBQ offers authentic Latino delights for those who venture to Buffalo’s west side.

Proprietor Raul Hernandez, a past recipient of the Thomas Foster Memorial Business Award, prepares the assorted menu and daily specials luring many to Niagara Street.

Nestled amongst obvious signs of redevelopment, this kitchen is responsible for more than ten years of great, moderately priced food and tireless community service. This feat becomes more impressive, when one considers the difficulties in business retention for low-income communities.

It was in the spirit of community that this restaurant first began. “I want to be an example to young men on the street that hard work pays off,” said Hernandez. And what an example he is! His daughter Lillian Hernandez, celebrates her third anniversary as owner of Latin Roman…