3/21/2002 Last
week Michael Andrzejewski (former chef at Oliver's; now chef
at Tsunami) and
Brian Mietus (current chef at Oliver's) prepared a Wine
Lovers Dinner at The James
Beard Foundation in New York. This is the write up from the Foundation.
[http://www.jamesbeard.org/events/2002/03/011.shtml]
3/19/2002 Happy St. Joseph's Day
First - about the round of corned beef we had on Sunday - excellent. Very
lean, no waste,
very tender and every bit as flavorful as the brisket.
This Friday is the Spring Fund Raiser - "World of Flowers and Food" at
the Buffalo
Botanical Gardens. $40 for members and $45 for non-members. Call 827-1584
3/17/2002 Happy St. Patrick's Day
3/15/2002 Janice Okun
of the Buffalo News gave 3* toTeta's in East Amherst. Teta's specialty
is
Middle Eastern cuisine. They are at 9370 Transit Rd. 636-5944
Two newer restaurants were mentioned in Gusto last night :
Crabby Joe's Bar (Chef Rob Rizzo) 166 Franklin St. - 856-4849
Specialty - Sea Food - FRESH
Pokey Joe's Club Bar - 289 Austin St. near Grant and Military - 876-4111
3/14/2002 Tops market
made it easy to prepare for the annual Irish feast. All the ingredients
for
dinner were right at the entrance to the store at the Tops on Elmwood between
Hertel
and Kenmore. We are trying something different this year - the corned beef
is a round
instead of the usual flat brisket. I'll let you know how it was. (Tops
does have both types
of corned beef available)
3/10/2002
Just found
that there is a Food related Convention in Rochester next week for companies
in the food industry.
Western New York Institute of Food Technologists
Food Industry Expo
Rochester Riverside Convention Center
Rochester, New York
March 19, 2002 [details]
3/10/2002
Janice Okun
from the Buffalo News gave Fanny's 3*. Fanny's is located
at
3500 Sheridan drive 834-0400
Artvoice reviewed Arcobaleno at 8485 Transit Rd. in East Amherst
and enjoyed it very much.
In case the Transit Rd. address sounds familiar, it was the former home
to Il Fiorentino which
has moved to Hertel Ave.
3/7/2002 Bob
Bolt from Mike's Subs in Kenmore,
sent an update on Taste of the Town of Tonawanda.
"Attached is a fact sheet about the Taste that we are giving to prospective
restaurants.
We are going to offer a special that anyone who signs up AND PAYS by the
end of March
will get a hundred dollars off the booth rate on the sheet." [Fact
Sheet]
3/6/2002 Very
soon, people in Western NY will be preparing for the the annual Feast of
St. Joseph.
Definitely a food celebration! Here is a link to read all about this wonderful
tradition.
The Feast of St. Joseph is on March 19th.
http://www.josephsaint.freeserve.co.uk/Information.HTM
There is a link on that page to some cherished family recipes used on this
celebration.
Forgot to mention that in the Tai Truong article, Lois also said that Tai
and Mike have
been inviited to the cook at the James Beard Foundation on March 13th.
This is a great
honor. Best of Luck!!
3/4/2002 The
Buffalo
News' featured Gourmet article by Lois Baker highlighted
Tai
Truong - head
chef at Saigon Café 1098 Elmwood ave. 883-1252. The article
also brought out that
Tai and former chef at Oliver's - Mike Andrejewski, will be opening
up a new restaurant
on Kenmore Ave. - Tsunami
3/2/2002 Janice
Okun gave 3 ½ * to Arcobaleno, 8485 Transit Rd. East Amherst
639-7394 open Tues. - Sat. Read the whole review in the Buffalo News
Gusto
Heard some sad news, the Calumet will be closing.
Heard that the Pier will reopen for special events - more details later.
2/21/2002
The food
winners at Buffalo's Winterfest last weekend were:
Soup Cook-off -- 1st Place - J.P. Bullfeathers ; Peoples Choice - Wellington
Pub
Chili Cook-off -- 1st Place - Lydia's Pearl ; Peoples Choice
- Cole's
A new personal chef, Gretchen Ohar, Chef/Owner of dinner
by gretchen,
has been added to the Personal Chefs page. Her web site is:
http://www.dinnerbygretchen.com
2/3/2002 Don't
miss the Wine & Chocolate Weekend on February 9th & 10th.
Tickets are just $21.00 per person, and each guest will receive
a recipe book, a complimentary wine glass and a taste of
a special chocolate creation paired with a glass of wine
from each winery listed below.
All tickets will be pre-sold, call the Fredonia Opera House Box Office
at 716-679-1891 to order tickets.
Blueberry Sky Farm Winery
Schloss Doepken Winery
10234 North East Sherman Road
9177 Old Route 20
Ripley, NY 14775
Ripley, NY 14775 Phone 716-326-3636
Johnson Estate Winery
Vetter Vineyards Winery
West Main Road (Route 20)
8005 Prospect Station Road
Westfield, NY 14787
Westfield, NY 14787
Phone 716-326-2191
Phone 716-326-3100
Woodbury Vineyards
WinerWillow Creek Winery
3230 South Roberts Road
2627 Chapin Road
Fredonia, NY 14063
Sheridan, NY 14135
Phone 716-679-9463
Phone 716-934-9463
Roberian Winery
Merritt Estate Winery
P.O. Box 189, King Road
2264 King Road
Sheridan, NY 14135
Forestville, NY 14062 Phone 716-965-4800
Artvoice's
food feature good taste by Kevin Carey was about Cozumel Grill
and
Tequila Bar
at 153 Elmwood Ave. Their web site is http://www.tenthhouse.com/cozumel.
The full article is
at the Artvoice web site.
1/18/2002 Lauranda's
Bake Shop - North Tonawanda, 615 Ward Rd. 694-4886
Just had to mention it. Stopped to pick up a danish and was impressed by
all they had to offer. Coffee cakes, danish, wide variety of breads. Everything
looked great!
On their business card they also list a location in Niagara Falls, 7609
Buffalo Ave.
283-1137
Arthur Page from Artvoice visted La Marina - now at a new
location at 1502 Hertel Ave.
(It had been at 1264) It's specialties are seafood - brought in daily from
Boston. . Everything sounds wonderful. The full article is in this week's
Artvoice.
Last
week in Artvoice Joe George did a review of Town Restaurant
- Allentown- in his
column called Joe G's Joints. You can read the full article at:
http://www.artvoice.com/jan10_18_2002/pages/joegsjoints.html
12/4/2001 In
last Friday's GUSTO Janice Okun reviewed the Creekside Restaurant
at 5629 Main St.
in Williamsville (632-9373). She gave it 3½*. It's located in the
heart of Williamsville and
overlooks Ellicot Creek.
In Artvoice, Joe George has a great article about the increasing
popularity of broccoli in
America and gives three recipes for this delicious and nutritious vegetable.
Michael Calleri from blue dog press had the pleasure of reviewing
May
Jen, a Chinese
restaurant , located at 47 Kenmore Ave. by the University Plaza. He gave
it 4* for Food,
3* for Service and 3½* for Ambience. Their telephone number is 832-5162.
They do have take-out.
9/2/2001
Mark Strassel
from blue dog press went to Edritos Grande Burritos
1009
Elmwood Ave.
887-2963. He gave it 3½* for Food and Service and 3* for Atmosphere.
Janice Okun from the Buffalo News gave 2* to Portabello's,
5246 Transit Rd. Depew, 683-0100
8/12/2001
There will
be a Second Annual Buffalo Brew Fest
held this year at Dunn Tire Park on
September 1, 2001 at Dunn Tire Park from 1pm-5pm. The proceeds will benefit
Roswell Park
Cancer Institute.
I
recently heard from Jim, at
AllenStreet.com,
that the Java Temple Coffeehouse on Allen
Street has been remodeled and reopened as The
Cafe at 59 Allen. Check it out
- it sounds great! Also check out AllenStreet.com
- lots of info and links for this unique
area.
In today's Buffalo News - Tai Truoug took over the former Pad Thai restaurant
on
Elmwood near Forest and has opened the Saigon Cafe. They offer Vietnamese
and
Thai cuisine.
7/29/2001
The "home
grown" corn is now available throughout the area. We just picked up some
in Sanborn
the other day and roasted it on the grill. What an incredible flavor!!
Sooo sweet!! We also picked
up some peaches that were grown in Ransomville. They were at peak perfection.
Sliced
and allowed to marinade in some peach schnapps and served over a half biscuit
with a generous
dollop of fresh whipped cream. It doesn't get better!
All the local fruits and vegetables are hitting the market now, but sometimes
half the fun is
taking that extra minute to stop at the roadside stand, and buying it there.
It's the next best
thing to growing it yourself. Have a good one.
7/18/2001 There is
a "Global Potluck" Thursday, August 8, 2001, 5:30- 7:30 It
really sounds interesting.
Read all about it on the Food Events page.
7/4/2001 Happy 4th
of July !!!!
This is the time of year that
many organizations have their annual fund raising Lawn Fetes and Summer
Celebrations. Food is usually one of the features of these events.
A listing of some of these local
events are on the Food Events page.
Please send me a note if you know of any others. I'll also be watching
the papers.
I know that there is a Taste of Lewiston and a Taste of Lancaster coming
up, but I don't have the
dates yet.
HINT - The one's that feature chowder are usually sold out really fast;
so come early!
6/30/2001
The
Rue
Franklin wrote to say that they now have their own web site! There
is a menu section that
will keep current, pictures, phone numbers etc. This is a really fabulous
restaurant. If you're from the
Western NY area and haven't been there yet be sure to keep it in mind.
If you are from out of town and
are looking in the downtown area for fine food in a wonderfully relaxed
atmosphere, this is the
place.
4/1/2001
Janice Okun from the Buffalo
News dropped in at Frank's Sunny Italy ( 2491 Delaware Ave.
-between Hertel and Kenmore Ave. ) 876-5449 She gave it 2 out of
4 stars. The portions are
large and the price is reasonable. Friends that I work with go there often
and like it very much.
Mark
Strassel from blue dog press went to the revolving
restaurant in the Skylon Tower in
Niagara Falls Ont. ( 5388 Robinson St. (905) 356-2651) It sounds
a bit pricey, but he gave
the Food Wine /Beer and Service 4* and the Atmosphere 4 ½*
3/20/2001
Mark Strassel from blue dog press
reviewed The Poppyseed. For his full report
click here [Dining]
3/4/2001
A Special notice from Premier:
GOURMET BEER DINNER
SATURDAY, MARCH 10TH
Next weekend, Wendy
Littlefield and Don Feinberg - the founders/owners of
Brewery Ommegang and
Vanberg & DeWulf Importers will be visiting Premier!
Although it is very
short notice, we wanted to give every WNY beer-lover the
opportunity to meet
and talk to the couple responsible for so many of the
beers we all cherish.
Therefore, we have arranged a special gourmet beer
dinner featuring their
wonderful brews!
The dinner will begin
at 6:30PM, in the Premier Gourmet Café. Chef Diane
Riedel and the rest
of our kitchen staff will be preparing a wonderful
gourmet meal - 3 courses
plus dessert, each paired with a different beer.
Wendy and Don will
of course provide expert commentary on the brews, while
Chef Diane will comment
on the recipes and "cooking with beer." The cost
for the dinner is
$30/person.
We realize that this
is very short notice, however we couldn't pass up this
wonderful opportunity
for a truly unique and fantastic gourmet experience.
If you would like
to attend, please call Lisa at 877-3574, ext. 320 to
reserve a spot ASAP.
If we do not have enough reservations by this
Wednesday, we will
have to cancel the event.
Stay tuned for a full
edition of our e-brewletter in the next few days
2/27/2001 Happy "Fat
Tuesday"
It was announced in the Buffalo News yesterday that there will be
three new
Perkins Restaurants opening in the Western NY area. One at 1140 Niagara
Falls Blvd., one on Transit near Maple and the third in Hamburg.
2/23/2001 The
20th Annual Ken-Ton Chamber of Commerce Showcase and Taste of the Town
is slated for May 18th and 19th at Lincoln Park Arena. If any business
or
organization is interested in renting space - you can call 874-1202 for
more info.
2/4/2001
Last week the Niagara Gazette published their "Best of" list.
The food choices are listed below:
Italian Food: Michael's Restaurant, 3011 Pine Ave. 282-4043
Sandwich: McLeod's Deli, 947 Cleveland Ave., 285-2976
Breakfast: Knack's Parkside Cafe, 2110 Hyde Park 283-6304
Restaurant: Provenzo's, 1300 Buffalo Ave. 278-1264
Greek: The Alps Chalet, 1555 Military Rd. , 297-8990
Subs: Viola's, 1539 Military 297-3550 and 1717 Elmwood 282-7094
Pizza: Gagsters 708 Market St., 282-3278
Chinese: Chinese Buffet, Ames Plaza, 2429 Military Rd., 297-3432
2/3/2001 The
Osaka Bar and Sushi Grille was reviewed by two newspaper food editors
this past week; Janice Okun of the Buffalo News and Kevin Carey
of Artvoice.
The Osaka is located at 3112 Main Street 831-0443.
Janice Okun gave it 3 out of 4 stars and found the sushi to be her favorite
dish
"especially unagi and broiled eel".
Kevin Carey gave a very extensive and detailed review of the restaurant
and
its food. (He does not give star ratings to the restaurants he visits).
He did give
their we site address http://www.osakasushi.com
and
"I highly recommend you sample this menu in person"
Mark Strassel from Buffalo Beat went to Chili's 1145 Niagara Falls
Blvd.
832-3730. He rated their Food at 3½* and the Service and Atmosphere
at 3*
1/23/2001 Mark
Strassel from Buffalo Beat recently visited the Valley Inn located
at
18651 Main St. in Clarence (7596232 and gave the following ratings: Food
4*,
Wine and Beer 2½* , Service 3* and Atmosphere 3*.
1/21/2001 Local
Chef Andy DiVincenzo (Billy Ogden's) will be at the 10th Annual Taste
of
the NFL next week. There is a book "Taste of the NFL Restaurant Guide"
that
has all the recipes. It is available at Billy Ogden's for $15. or e-mail
chefandy@aol.com
9/17/2000 "Bye"
pass the Bills next Sun. and go for a real treat at Premier (3465 Delaware
Ave. 877-3574) for a cooking session with Joe George (Artvoice)
and beer.
We attended the session Sun. Sept. 17 and were very glad we did. Do to
the
overflow of requests, they will be running the same program next Sun. Sept.
24th.
We started eating as soon as we were seated. Small salads of mesclun with
raspberry vinaigrette were served. We were most impressed with the freshness
of the greens. Raspberry vinaigrette is raspberry vinaigrette with or without
the beer.
Everyone makes it. However, the second salad with dried cherry vinaigrette
was
delicious. I wouldn't even play with that recipe.
Next came mushrooms braised in Orval in puff pastry. Very tasty, but the
beautiful part was the perfect puff pastry. You can buy pastry, but not
like this.
The star of the show was littleneck clams with chorizo, beer and spices.
The clams were wonderful, the sausage and spices were great - if you happen
to have shrimp, all the better. Personally, I wouldn't worry about the
kind of beer
to add. If I had a bottle of Heineken to add, I'd be perfectly happy.
Ditto for the potato bisque with gruyere cheese. Any beer will do, but
I really
think 3/4 teaspoon dry mustard would add more zip than any beer could.
Joe is a great teacher and host and therefore makes this a worthwhile
experience. He is the new chef at Premier and a little more cautious in
his
cooking there than in Artvoice. We plan to attend more of his classes
at Premier
while comparing those recipes to past and future Artvoice recipes.
Very interesting!
8/15/2000 Announcement
- WNY Winefest - Aug. 26. [Click for details]
8/6/2000 This
week's Restaurant Report.
8/2/2000 A letter from
Lyle Ostrow with the latest info on the Buffalo Brew Fest!
[Buffalo Brew Fest letter]
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