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Jim's Visitor's Guide to Buffalo and Western New York....
A couple of weeks ago, one of my clients mentioned that he was headed to Niagara Falls to meet up with some friends from Vermont. He said it was an ideal halfway point. Since that's my old stomping grounds, I offered to send him a lit of restaurants, aerospace sites, byways, and attractions.
Here's the list, featuring some of my favorite restaurants, byways, hangouts, and aerospace sites in the Buffalo and Western New York area. Every time I go back home, I try to hit these sites. (I'll work on fixing the formatting later.)
Food
Chicken Wings: Duff’s Famous Wings, corner of Sheridan Dr. and Millersport Hwy. in Eggertsville. Heed the warning: “Medium is Hot. Medium Hot is Very Hot. Hot is Very Very Hot.” http://www.duffswings.com/
Beef on Weck: Charlie the Butcher, 1065 Wehrle Dr. (near the airport). Buffalo’s other contribution to American cuisine. Roast beef, au jus sauce, and horseradish on a kümmelweck roll (hard roll with caraway seeds and kosher salt). http://www.charliethebutcher.com/
Frozen custard: Anderson’s, various locations. They also serve a great beef on weck sandwich. http://andersonscustard.com/
Hot Dogs: Ted’s, various locations. Charcoal-broiled hots year-round. http://www.tedshotdogs.com/
Tacos: Mighty Taco, various locations. Great for the late-night munchies. Puts Taco Bell to shame! http://www.mightytaco.com/
Pizza: Bocce Club, La Nova, Franco’s, various locations. Buffalo-style pizza has a hand-tossed crust and a tangy sauce.
· Bocce Club, 4174 Bailey Ave., Amherst (and 2 other locations). Take-out only. http://bocceclubpizza.com/
· La Nova Pizza & Wings, 371 W. Ferry St., Buffalo and 5151 Main St., Williamsville. http://lanova-pizza.com/
· Franco’s Pizzeria , various locations. http://francospizza.com/
Coffee & baked goods: Tim Horton’s, various locations. Founded by the former Leafs and Sabres defenseman. The store by Key Bank Arena in downtown Buffalo is practically a shrine to him. http://www.timhortons.com/
Craft beer: The Buffalo Brew Pub, 6861 Main St., west of Transit Rd. Amherst. They’ve been brewing on-site since 1986. My favorite is the Amber Ale. http://www.buffalobrewpub.com/
BBQ Chicken: Chiavetta's, 6100 Fisk Rd., Lockport, NY 14094 and 10654 Brant-Angola Rd
Brant, NY, 14027. Excellent rotisserie chicken, with their famous a vinegar-and-spice marinade. https://www.chiavettascatering.com/
Aerospace
Niagara Aerospace Museum, 9990 Porter Rd., Niagara Falls, NY. This used to be a terminal at the Niagara Falls Airport. Open Thu-Sun. http://niagaraaerospacemuseum.org/
Niagara Falls ARS. On the north side of the Niagara Falls Airport. Home of the 914th Air Refueling Wing. https://www.niagara.afrc.af.mil/
Aerospace companies in WNY:
· Bell Aerospace (Wheatfield (between Niagara Falls and North Tonawanda)) – history and timeline at https://buffaloah.com/h/aero/bell/ .
· Calspan, Genesee St., Cheektowaga (near the Buffalo Airport). Originally the research lab for Curtiss-Wright, it was donated to Cornell University and called the Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory before it was spun off. http://www.calspan.com/ .
· Moog Inc. (East Aurora) -- Builds controls and control systems. http://www.moog.com/ .
· Curtiss-Wright (no current facilities exist; former plants on Churchill St., Elmwood Ave., Kenmore & Vulcan Sts. In Tonawanda, Genesee St. in Cheektowaga; Curtis Pkwy. In Tonawanda follows the old flight line) -- history and time line at https://buffaloah.com/h/aero/curt/ .
Glenn Curtiss Museum, Hammondsport (near Rochester). http://glennhcurtissmuseum.org/ (This is a bit out of the way, due south or Rochester, at the southern end of Keuka Lake.)
Byways
PA route 5 and NY route 5. Runs along she shore line of Lake Erie, from Erie PA to downtown Buffalo.
Niagara Scenic Parkway. Runs along the eastern shore of the Niagara River from Grand Island to Lewiston (discontinuous near the Falls and the Rainbow Bridge; use surface streets for this section).
Lake Ontario State Parkway. Runs along the southern shore of Lake Ontario from Carlton to Rochester. NY 18 runs along the shore from Fort Niagara to Carlton, and beyond.
NY route 104. Runs along the Niagara Escarpment, from Niagara Falls, through Lockport, to Rochester, and points beyond.
I-86. Formerly NY route 17, aka the Southern Tier Expressway. It runs along the southern edge of the state.
Other attractions
SUNY at Buffalo. My alma mater (class of ’88). One of the engineering buildings on the Amherst Campus is named for alumnus and payload specialist Greg Jarvis, who perished in the Challenger explosion. Two other buildings are named for Lawrence Bell (founder of Bell Aerospace) and Clifford Furnas (first director of Curtiss-Wright Corp.) http://www.buffalo.edu/
Lockport. Site of some of the original Erie Canal locks.
Ellicott Creek Falls, Main St., Williamsville. Here is where the creek runs over the Onondaga Escarpment. There is an old mill near this site.
North Tonawanda: The Allen Hershell Carrousel Museum, 180 Thompson St.,
NT, NY 14120. This old factory has been restored to its former glory. Include a working carrousel which you can ride.
https://www.carrouselmuseum.org/
Jamestown: Lucille Ball & Desi Arnaz Museum. Jamestown is Lucy's hometown.
https://lucy-desi.com/
Downtown Buffalo: Canalside. Over a century ago, this was the "Little Italy" section of town, and many Italian immigrants resided here. The tenement houses have long been since demolished.
https://buffalowaterfront.com/canalside
Letchworth State Park, in Castile. The Genesee River gorge is contained in this park. It's often called "the Grand Canyon of the East".
https://parks.ny.gov/parks/letchworth
I’m sure I’m missing a few sites; I’ll add them in a future release.
Here's the list, featuring some of my favorite restaurants, byways, hangouts, and aerospace sites in the Buffalo and Western New York area. Every time I go back home, I try to hit these sites. (I'll work on fixing the formatting later.)
Food
Chicken Wings: Duff’s Famous Wings, corner of Sheridan Dr. and Millersport Hwy. in Eggertsville. Heed the warning: “Medium is Hot. Medium Hot is Very Hot. Hot is Very Very Hot.” http://www.duffswings.com/
Beef on Weck: Charlie the Butcher, 1065 Wehrle Dr. (near the airport). Buffalo’s other contribution to American cuisine. Roast beef, au jus sauce, and horseradish on a kümmelweck roll (hard roll with caraway seeds and kosher salt). http://www.charliethebutcher.com/
Frozen custard: Anderson’s, various locations. They also serve a great beef on weck sandwich. http://andersonscustard.com/
Hot Dogs: Ted’s, various locations. Charcoal-broiled hots year-round. http://www.tedshotdogs.com/
Tacos: Mighty Taco, various locations. Great for the late-night munchies. Puts Taco Bell to shame! http://www.mightytaco.com/
Pizza: Bocce Club, La Nova, Franco’s, various locations. Buffalo-style pizza has a hand-tossed crust and a tangy sauce.
· Bocce Club, 4174 Bailey Ave., Amherst (and 2 other locations). Take-out only. http://bocceclubpizza.com/
· La Nova Pizza & Wings, 371 W. Ferry St., Buffalo and 5151 Main St., Williamsville. http://lanova-pizza.com/
· Franco’s Pizzeria , various locations. http://francospizza.com/
Coffee & baked goods: Tim Horton’s, various locations. Founded by the former Leafs and Sabres defenseman. The store by Key Bank Arena in downtown Buffalo is practically a shrine to him. http://www.timhortons.com/
Craft beer: The Buffalo Brew Pub, 6861 Main St., west of Transit Rd. Amherst. They’ve been brewing on-site since 1986. My favorite is the Amber Ale. http://www.buffalobrewpub.com/
BBQ Chicken: Chiavetta's, 6100 Fisk Rd., Lockport, NY 14094 and 10654 Brant-Angola Rd
Brant, NY, 14027. Excellent rotisserie chicken, with their famous a vinegar-and-spice marinade. https://www.chiavettascatering.com/
Aerospace
Niagara Aerospace Museum, 9990 Porter Rd., Niagara Falls, NY. This used to be a terminal at the Niagara Falls Airport. Open Thu-Sun. http://niagaraaerospacemuseum.org/
Niagara Falls ARS. On the north side of the Niagara Falls Airport. Home of the 914th Air Refueling Wing. https://www.niagara.afrc.af.mil/
Aerospace companies in WNY:
· Bell Aerospace (Wheatfield (between Niagara Falls and North Tonawanda)) – history and timeline at https://buffaloah.com/h/aero/bell/ .
· Calspan, Genesee St., Cheektowaga (near the Buffalo Airport). Originally the research lab for Curtiss-Wright, it was donated to Cornell University and called the Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory before it was spun off. http://www.calspan.com/ .
· Moog Inc. (East Aurora) -- Builds controls and control systems. http://www.moog.com/ .
· Curtiss-Wright (no current facilities exist; former plants on Churchill St., Elmwood Ave., Kenmore & Vulcan Sts. In Tonawanda, Genesee St. in Cheektowaga; Curtis Pkwy. In Tonawanda follows the old flight line) -- history and time line at https://buffaloah.com/h/aero/curt/ .
Glenn Curtiss Museum, Hammondsport (near Rochester). http://glennhcurtissmuseum.org/ (This is a bit out of the way, due south or Rochester, at the southern end of Keuka Lake.)
Byways
PA route 5 and NY route 5. Runs along she shore line of Lake Erie, from Erie PA to downtown Buffalo.
Niagara Scenic Parkway. Runs along the eastern shore of the Niagara River from Grand Island to Lewiston (discontinuous near the Falls and the Rainbow Bridge; use surface streets for this section).
Lake Ontario State Parkway. Runs along the southern shore of Lake Ontario from Carlton to Rochester. NY 18 runs along the shore from Fort Niagara to Carlton, and beyond.
NY route 104. Runs along the Niagara Escarpment, from Niagara Falls, through Lockport, to Rochester, and points beyond.
I-86. Formerly NY route 17, aka the Southern Tier Expressway. It runs along the southern edge of the state.
Other attractions
SUNY at Buffalo. My alma mater (class of ’88). One of the engineering buildings on the Amherst Campus is named for alumnus and payload specialist Greg Jarvis, who perished in the Challenger explosion. Two other buildings are named for Lawrence Bell (founder of Bell Aerospace) and Clifford Furnas (first director of Curtiss-Wright Corp.) http://www.buffalo.edu/
Lockport. Site of some of the original Erie Canal locks.
Ellicott Creek Falls, Main St., Williamsville. Here is where the creek runs over the Onondaga Escarpment. There is an old mill near this site.
North Tonawanda: The Allen Hershell Carrousel Museum, 180 Thompson St.,
NT, NY 14120. This old factory has been restored to its former glory. Include a working carrousel which you can ride.
https://www.carrouselmuseum.org/
Jamestown: Lucille Ball & Desi Arnaz Museum. Jamestown is Lucy's hometown.
https://lucy-desi.com/
Downtown Buffalo: Canalside. Over a century ago, this was the "Little Italy" section of town, and many Italian immigrants resided here. The tenement houses have long been since demolished.
https://buffalowaterfront.com/canalside
Letchworth State Park, in Castile. The Genesee River gorge is contained in this park. It's often called "the Grand Canyon of the East".
https://parks.ny.gov/parks/letchworth
I’m sure I’m missing a few sites; I’ll add them in a future release.