It's funny...because I have out-of-town business contacts who rave about Buffalo's restaurants (they even notice that there's not many chain restaurants in the city, unlike a lot of newer cities). At the same time, I have other out-of-towners who want nothing but chicken wings (or at least once during their stay in Buffalo). So I guess we are cursed and blessed.
Funny that the picture posted clearly points toward molecular gastronomy or whatever the heck they call it. Bourdain is definitely more interested in street food IMHO, and his shows focusing on that are much better than the ones where he's in a fancy restaurant (with one possible exception where he swooned over the fries at French Laundry). What does a city need to be a food destination? A good sandwich that's rarely/never made elsewhere? Check, Beef on Weck. A specialty to call her own, again that nobody else seems to do well? Check, chicken wings (sure we take 'em for granted). Our pizza is underrated and we have some great chocolate too. There's plenty of fine restaurants too, so we've got plenty going for us.
First, Bourdain's show is based on cuisine that defines a culture and vice versa. It isn't, and never has been about exploring haut cuisine. Buffalo definitely has a food culture although not overly exotic. We may have been snubbed by the Travel Channel but WNY has been featured in several shows on the Food Network
The second issue of Buffalo's lack of contemporary cuisine is an issue. Its also not an easy one to tackle when so much of our culture is bar and comfort food. And that certainly doesn't mean Buffalo food is not good, because it is great.
"Limp radicchio, sorry fugu." I find nothing wrong with the classic interpretations of recipes offered by the likes of Buffalo chefs like J. Stainrook, R. Buckley, C. Kley. They admittedly are not cutting edge. Buffalo chefs cannot afford to be cutting edge in a town where people want nothing more than a med well steak with a starch and a green at a rock bottom price with enough to take home for tomorrow's lunch. Sadly our most popular restaurants rely solely on salt and cheese, constantly reinventing the McDonald's cheeseburger, (Sample and left bank I'm looking in your direction!). If you want modern food save yourself up 500 bucks and get a plane ticket... http://www.alinea-restaurant.com/index.html
"Limp radicchio, sorry fugu." I find nothing wrong with the classic interpretations of recipes offered by the likes of Buffalo chefs like J. Stainrook, R. Buckley, C. Kley. They admittedly are not cutting edge. Buffalo chefs cannot afford to be cutting edge in a town where people want nothing more than a med well steak with a starch and a green at a rock bottom price with enough to take home for tomorrow's lunch. Sadly our most popular restaurants rely solely on salt and cheese, constantly reinventing the McDonald's cheeseburger, (Sample and left bank I'm looking in your direction!). If you want modern food save yourself up 500 bucks and get a plane ticket... http://www.alinea-restaurant.com/index.html
When I think modern I think immediately of the elimination starch-based thickening (no more roux) in sauce making. This simple transition to a large extent, to me, is defining the term 'modern cuisine'.
Secondary but following this idea you see lighter broth based sauce preparation that incorporates intense aromatics. The bowl bottomed serving plate is an effect of this change.
Then use of global ingredients (at the expense of eventual homogenization of local flavors, the irony...), at the state of the art perhaps use of plant based organic chemicals to shift textures and consistencies (agar, methylcellulose), and presentation (geometric, 'deconstructed', etc.).
I would propose that Buffalonians would take to these ideas if they were used on familiar dishes, then grow from there. Just as been done in other cities. I believe most fine dining places still are clinging to old school sauce making techniques and when you start to see that fade away you will see the rest of the package.
The whole locavore, local local local thing is a separate (nauseating at this point) concept. Do the locavores eat sushi or is that not cool these days?
Anyone selling Toronto Bills tshirts yet?
It seems to me that those who complain that Buffalo has nothing to offer in the culinary sense obviously do not get out much! I've lived in NYC all my life and no doubt that NYC has amazing food. But Buffalo has amazing food also. And the ethnic cuisines available here, IMO, rival those of NYC or any big city. Um. Let's see...Latin food-Niagara Cafe, Indian-Taste of India, Chinese-May Jen, Vietnamese-99, Thai-Spicy Thai, Japanese-Kuni's...you want fine dining there is Chophouse, Mothers, Rue Franklin, The Left Bank, Fiamma Steak (I just ate there it is REALLY good!). You want soup and sandwiches there's Louie's Deli on Transit. And that's just to name a few! And half the pizza and sub places make the best subs and the best pizzas I've had in any state.
I am and will always be a New Yorker at heart but seriously don't down your own city unless you can actually back up your reasons. Buffalo has a lot to offer, especially in the culinary sense.
"Modern" is fusion, the artful combination of ingredients, techniques and flavors from different cuisines to form a new, hopefully sophisticated layering of tastes. The ingredients must be fresh and high quality to emphasize their characteristics. Bland or muddled ingredients spoil the whole point of these pairings. The 'science' is all about balancing the Ph in the mouth and targeting receptors on the tongue. The technique is about melding raw and cooked ingredients in ways that heighten the sensory experience: pouring hot sake over raw sashimi to delicately cook the fish while maintaining its fresh flavor, or making a lobster gelatin to support a corn grits galette dappled with truffled squid ink. It's multidimensional and fresh, conceptually and literally. And any chef in Buffalo could master this if they cared to.
"Cutting Edge" is overrated and showy. Give me the best and freshest ingredients and prepare a simple well executed meal with a good wine/beer/spirits selection. Buffalo's selection of restaurants is better than it should be but there is still room for inprovement. My collegues from NYC say all the time that Buffalo has it all over the rest of state (except the city of course) when it comes to dining out and the food scene in general. We could be better but there is something here to talk about thats for sure.
Rue Franklin, Left Bank, Hutch's, Le Metro, Olivers, Bacchus, Sample, Fiddle Heads, Shango, Buffalo Chophouse; these are all fine dining restaurants in Buffalo which all offer different things. So our city definitly has other things to offer that aren't italian, wings, or pizza.
For all the time some posters spent b**chin about Buffalo& Buffalo cuisine they could have driven to Toronto-and while waiting for their dinner check (for the meal they cant seem to find in Buffalo) they could have checked out real estate section and then maybe stopped complaining and remember why they live here
It just kills me with these comments. These people comment on Buffalo's cuisine like that have a clue. The same people that shed all these negative vibes are the kind of people that are too cheap to spend a buck on a decent dinner somewhere so they eat at a Greek place and have a soulvaki. Your not born with class it is acquired. I have many friends from Boston, Philly and other large Metropolitan cities that comment on the quality and number of great restaurants in Buffalo. With additions like Black & Blue, Sea Bar, Touch and others I think we are doing just fine
Epicurean - those restaurants aren't in BRO's universe as they are not within the city limits.
I take it you have the real clue? You may be surprised at the identity of some of the so-called "negative" posters. I don't think we're eating at the greasy spoon. Some (most?) of us don't even live in Buffalo, just were born there and frequently visit.
Do you intimidate your big city friends with the popular overzealous Buffalo pride so that they patronize you? I wonder. I just hear that comment so much on BRO, yet my big city friends don't seem to share it. I guess we have different big city friends.
I'm putting on my armor, I'm gonna go on a roll the next few days,
The food in Buffalo is overpriced on a quality basis, the service is juvenile, the wine lists are pathetic, there is no "local" produce of any substance that is worth speaking of, the chefs give in to the boring clientele, and the food critics are overcredited and have little culinary experience outside of WNY.
Let's see if I get more silent treatment....
Just look at some of the menus at a few upscale places in niagara on the lake, right across the border, and tell me if any of our menus are progressive or display 'local' ingrediants., I love a lot of our restaurants, but pertaining to this post I think a few of the places in NOTL are prime examples of this topic that easy are examples of this.
To expand on my previous post, i think a lot of people in buffalo have really 'heavy' pallets, anything they eat, or were raised eating is really sweet/salty/acidic, just look at all of our regional specialties.... they are all just a big huge wallop of sweet/salty/acidic mess, although good. Eat good quality fresh food and you can appreciate a contemporary menu ripe with fresh and delicate ingrediants,
RisingDamp, Is modern food fusion? Fusion was ridiculous 10 years ago and now is completly out. I will take local ingredients and simple preperations with a well thought out philosophy any day of the week. The problem in Buffalo is that the majority of the restaurant have to cater a clientel who want a filet and lobster tail and a glass of White Zin. Bummer
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