I’ve covered food and drink culture around the world as a journalist, and few places match Buffalo’s uniquely deep bench of hyper-regional products and the diehard loyalty that keeps them thriving.
This isn’t just about good chicken wings. It’s more like, “We will have a knock-down, drag-out fight about who makes the best wings right in the middle of this family gathering.” In fact, one of this city’s greatest love languages is feeding you … and then immediately correcting you if you don’t eat it the right way (spoiler alert: it’s not with ranch).
This story isn’t a “where to eat and drink” guide. It’s a round-up of everything you need to try if you find yourself in the City of Good Neighbors. Some of these are famous outside of Western New York (like wings). Others are deeply local obsessions that make Buffalonians light up like you just told them the Bills won the Super Bowl…