Buffalo, NY and Niagara Falls, NY – Coffee, Wings, Niagara Falls, Concerts & More Wings

I arrived in Buffalo safe and sound, and we stayed downtown at the Embassy Suites. There aren’t a ton of options in downtown Buffalo, but the Embassy Suites was a newer hotel, close to Shea’s and plus, Hilton points. Overall it was a decent hotel, but the room service food could have been better.

I woke up early on Friday and went to the coffee shop across the street, Spot Coffee.

It’s rare that I order coffee these days, but today it was chilly and I felt like a mocha latte. It was really good and the coffee shop was large, with lots of tables and free wifi. I stayed there and got through some emails while I enjoyed my coffee.

After coffee I met up with my coworker, Ashley, as we had some big plans to try wings at Anchor Bar and go to Niagara Falls. First stop, Anchor Bar. I will compare the wings in Buffalo in my next post.

Back story: when Ashley asked what I wanted for my birthday, I told her the only thing I wanted was to go on the Maid of the Mist Niagara Falls boat tour, as I had never been to the falls. So, after getting lunch at Anchor Bar, it was time to head to Niagara Falls. It was a quick drive, maybe 30 minutes from Buffalo and parking was easy (though there was a small toll to get there, maybe $1.00?).

We arrived at Maid of the Mist and it was time to set sail. In addition to the boat ride, Maid of the Mist also included a view from the observation deck and a snazzy poncho, which was greatly appreciated as we were pelted with mist.

Niagara Falls is one of the Seven Wonders of the World (though I could never confirm that, just a lot of people kept saying that, but in my opinion rightfully so). I can’t even explain how beautiful it was, so instead I’ll just post a lot of pictures. Fun Fact: Niagara Falls is made up of three falls, American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, and the largest falls, Horseshoe Falls.

We decided not to walk under a portion of the falls, as it was really wet and chilly. But I did snap a pic of Rainbow Bridge and the fall foliage.

After our outing, I went back to the hotel for a bit before meeting up with my coworkers to check out Duff’s and compare it to Anchor Bar. It was a little far from downtown Buffalo, and we had to cab it.

Again, I’ll write a different post with the outcome of Duff’s vs. Anchor Bar for wings.

On the way back from Duff’s, we asked our driver to take us to a happening spot near our hotel. He took us to Chippewa Street, which really was happening – sort of. It seemed every club had a line and the bouncers were patting people down and cops were everywhere – kind of like 1st Avenue in Belltown. We ended up at a wine bar that seemed pretty relaxed, Bacchus. We ordered bubbly (of course).After going out for bubbly, we went back to the hotel bar for a nightcap. There were a few weddings happening, so they kept the bar open late that night and served bubbly in splits, so that was a bonus. Then it was time to go to bed to get ready for our concert the next day.

Our show was at Shea’s Performing Arts Center. I guess the story is this place was built in one year and one day and opened in 1926. I was told that it was destined to be a parking lot, but a group came together to restore it. It is a beautiful theater and still has a theater organ that is still in use.

After the show, we walk across the parking lot to Dinosaur BBQ. There was a band playing when we walked in and it was crazy loud. So loud that we could barely talk to one another. And we’re not old or lame, it was just really loud. It’s funny, the band finally stopped playing when we left.I ordered the combo with pulled pork, BBQ brisket and, of course, wings. It also came with two sides and was a ton of food. In addition to our meals, a few people at the table ordered desserts to split.

By the time we were done at Dinosaur, we were exhausted and headed back to the hotel, to get ready for our early flights back to Seattle. Of course when we go to the airport, we need a bite to eat, so we went to Anchor Bar at the airport. I’ll have more on those wings in my next post.