Food recs for Buffalo, hospital district

January 5, 2020 9:45 AM

My dad just had surgery at Roswell Park cancer center in Buffalo. His wife and I are staying in an adjacent hotel; the food options in these spaces are limited and bland.

I want your best advice about where to eat when we need a break. It would be nice to walk but we have a car, so while I don’t want to go super far from the hospital we are mobile. My dad’s wife is not that interested in seeking food but loves to pick from a range of options.

We ordered pizza yesterday and I don’t want that again. Two days ago we walked to Bistro Coco, which was tasty and fresh. We’ll be here several more days and possibly as long as a week, so multiple suggestions for lunch and dinner are welcome.

Thanks in advance!

posted by Lawn Beaver to Food & Drink (13 answers total)

Is there any kind of food you want to try? Or avoid?

If you're into chicken wings, their place of origin, the Anchor Bar, is on Main Street and within walking distance.

Expo Market (accessible from Washington or Main) is kind of like a higher-end food court. A bunch of restaurants who have other locations have counters where they serve limited selections from their menu.

Dinosaur Barbecue on Franklin is really good (great coleslaw). There's also Fat Bob's on Virginia for another barbecue option.

I'm guessing you're looking not looking for expensive or fancy stuff, but if you are there's a bunch of great options not too far away (Tappo, Toutant).

Make sure you get some sponge candy while you're here!
posted by jonathanhughes at 10:12 AM on January 5, 2020 [2 favorites]

The Pearl Street Grill is amazing, 10 minute drive or 30 minute walk.
posted by biscotti at 12:06 PM on January 5, 2020

Response by poster: We went to Betty’s for lunch today which was pretty good! Thank you for answers so far, keep ‘em coming. We may venture over to the used bookstores of Grant St. tomorrow, so options over there are of interest too.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 12:11 PM on January 5, 2020

I haven't been to the Anchor but by all accounts it is not worth seeking out. If you want wings, I'd just go to whatever bar is most convenient; the thing about metro Buffalo isn't that the wings are super-great necessarily but that the floor for wings is pretty high. Gabriel's Gate on Allen is consistently either the best or top-few wings places in Buffalo; expect to wait.

The other thing Buffamalo is known for is beef on weck, which is a roast beef sammich on kimmelweck, which in turn is sort of halfway to a pretzel and sprinkled with caraway. I suspect it's rather less traditional than you'd get lots of places, but I really like the BOW at the Lake Effect, which is on Main nearish to UB's south campus. Which is to say, almost in Amherst.

If, ojala, you get some news to celebrate, you might try Hutch's or Left Bank for a mildly fancypants dins.

You might post this to r/buffalo which is mostly nontoxic.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 12:15 PM on January 5, 2020

Anchor Bar is absolutely worth seeking out if you like wings. The wings there are excellent. But Gabriel's Gate would be a less touristy option.

If you're interested in trying Beef on Weck, Ulrich's Tavern would be a good choice. It's on Ellicott and walking distance from Roswell.

If you're on Grant, check out Sweetness 7 Cafe.

Also on Grant is the West Side Bazaar. Kind of like the Expo Market I mentioned, it's like a food court except with vendors of various mainly Asian cuisines (Buffalo has had a big influx of Burmese immigrants in the past decade, so there are a lot of Burmese choices there).

Speaking of Burmese, Sun restaurant on Niagara street is excellent.

Not too far from the medical campus is the Larkinville area, where you can choose from the Filling Station, The Swan Street Diner, and the Hydraulic Hearth.
posted by jonathanhughes at 12:33 PM on January 5, 2020 [2 favorites]

I also recommend Dinosaur BBQ, The Swan Street Diner, and Paula's Donuts. You're also pretty close to Toutant--I haven't been there myself, but have heard good things about it.

If you are willing to drive a bit further north in the city, other suggestions include The Dapper Goose and Inizio.
posted by oiseau at 1:18 PM on January 5, 2020

Allen Burger Venture is pretty close.

There’s a Jim’s Steak Out near there, too, which is never a bad idea.
posted by kevinbelt at 1:20 PM on January 5, 2020

Here are some options quite close to RPCC: During the week, Roly Poly at Main and a Virginia has good fresh lunch options. There’s a good cafeteria on the first floor of Buffalo General Medical Center. Joe’s Deli -Oishei has sandwiches, salad bar, hot bar and even soup and fish fry, on the second floor of the Oishei Children’s Hospital. (The second floor has a connection from the Conventus Building at Main and High through’s, Buff Gen to parts of Roswell. ) Tikka House and Cafe 59 are on Allen near Main, and there are a few more decent options on the north side of Allen between Franklin and Delaware—Giacobbi’s, Colter Bay, Fresh & Tasty Ethiopian, Don Tequila Mexican.

Absolutely go to West Side Bazaar if you get to a Grant. Note: Rust Belt Books on Grant is closed until January 11 for a winter break.
posted by Riverine at 2:40 PM on January 5, 2020 [1 favorite]

Gabriels Gate is ubdoubtedly better than anchor bar and it would be a real loss if you were that close but didn't try it. Cafe 59 is also excellent.
posted by Amy93 at 2:41 PM on January 5, 2020 [1 favorite]

I recommend dinner at Toutant, 437 Ellicott Street, a 15 minute walk. This past summer, the Southern Louisiana-inspired food was very good - gumbo and fried chicken and housemade sausage. Nice setting, huge portions, very housemade.

Got takeout from Gabriels Gate and would recommend their wings for traditional Buffalo style.
posted by RoadScholar at 3:51 PM on January 5, 2020

Lloyd taco truck (or brick and mortar on Hertel Ave.) if you like different takes on tacos. I've never had anything I didn't like from them. They're @whereslloyd on Twitter if you want to check where the truck is. Their brick and mortar has excellent cocktails as well as food.
posted by DEiBnL13 at 7:15 PM on January 5, 2020

Some excellent suggestions already. I'd second West Side Bazaar for Burmese, Thai, and dim sum, and Kelly's Korner for wings and beef on weck in definitive old-school Buffalo tavern setting. If you have any specific wants or detail questions, as The Buffalo News' food editor, I would be happy to help. I'm at [e-mail]
posted by Andrew Galarneau at 1:13 PM on January 7, 2020 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: I'm marking this resolved, since I'm leaving very early Thursday morning. We've tried Tikka House, which hit the spot, and Sun on Niagara, where maybe we ordered wrong because I found it a little boring.

Although we didn't go for wings or BBQ (neither of us is big on them as a concept, and my dad's wife doesn't eat spicy food or red meat at all) I really appreciate the time and effort from you all. As we all probably know, spending time in hospital is super stressful and tiring, and having a list to look at when we noticed we were hungry was just so helpful. Thanks for taking a little time to help out some weary out-of-towners.

My dad is doing really well, and I can't wait to go home.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 6:15 PM on January 7, 2020 [1 favorite]