Our Favorite Meals of 2023: Part Two
Our second part of the series features DoorDash discoveries, Mom's favorite restaurant, five memorable bottles of wine, a bad date in Toronto and more!
For the 12th year, we have reached out to various people tied to the Buffalo community to ask about their favorite meals from this calendar year. The parameters are wide open, these meals can be from anywhere and the folks we ask can write as much or as little as they’d like.
Enjoy the following 11 stories of favorite meals from our pals…
“Shy Guy” Shawn Vanpatten
Radio DJ on Kiss 98.5
4x Favorite Meal Contributor
I made it a point to try out a lot of new places this year. Most of them near me, where I live in Amherst, but I also got on this kick where I would seek out new places via delivery apps and order something new or different and pick it up. Combine all of those things and here’s my list of best meals in 2023:
Boti Beef Kebab from Alibaba Kebab
I had been wanting to try this place for years but I’m rarely by its William St. location. Thanks to their new location on Military in Kenmore, I have been going here quite frequently and tried almost everything they have. My favorite is their Boti Beef Kebabs (pictured above). The meat is so tender and flavorful. I’m legit obsessed.
Waakye from Yalley’s
Yalley’s is on Kenmore and specializes in the real deal when it comes to African food.
I visited Ghana back in 2020 and their native dish was this thing called Waakye (pronounced Wa-Chee). It consists of smoked fish mixed with rice and beans and the spices are incredible. I never thought I would find a place in WNY that served this, but now I have!
Dan Dan Noodles from Miss Hot Café
I passed by here all the time in Amherst and never stopping in until I saw a picture of the Dan Dan Noodles randomly on DoorDash. It looked so good I gave it a shot. This might be my favorite so far of all the new meals I tried in 2023. I probably order it at least two to three times a month. It’s also spicy which is a plus for me.
Chicken Slider from Dave’s Hot Chicken
I know this place just recently opened and there’s always a line outside the door but it’s worth it. I’m not a big fan of chair restaurants normally but I have to say that out of all the “hot chicken” places that have popped up in WNY the past year or so, this one’s my favorite. The sauce they give you on the side for the sliders or fingers is the cherry on top if you ask me. Really tasty!
Hot & Sour Soup from Roma Thai & Burmese
My friend turned me on to this and said it was the ‘best soup he has ever had.’ While I wouldn’t go as far as saying that…it’s pretty friggin’ good and I’ve now ordered it a few times this year. It’s not at all what you expect your typical “hot & sour soup” to be like from other places. They throw in some things that make it exciting.
Gina Nalbone
Pastry Chef at Remedy House and Flint
First Time Favorite Meal Contributor!
My favorite meal this year was actually several meals over a week in the summer. Myself, my boyfriend Manny and his family have made it a tradition to go to the Catskill Mountains each year. Planning the food is always one of my favorite parts.
On the way to the mountains we got bagels from Dopest Dough. Everyday that week I had a toasted everything bagel with cream cheese and local heirloom tomatoes which, in my opinion, is a perfect meal. We also raided Paradise Wine and stocked up on all of our favorites before heading out.
On those hot summer afternoons we snacked on oysters, hummus, cheese & bread with Aperol Sprizts. Every night we made an elaborate dinner like Italian sausage or charcoal grilled steaks with corn & pasta, potato and Caesar salads. For our last dinner Manny’s mom made pernil. We ate it with tortillas & pico di gallo and it was the best.
I always make a coconut cream pie for dessert. This year I added a crisp with local nectarines, blueberries and freshly whipped cream. The peak summer fruit spoke for itself.
These were my favorite meals of the year because it was all incredibly delicious and eaten with people I love.
Donny Kutzbach
Owner of Town Ballroom
5x Favorite Meal Contributor
It’s been a tough couple months because we lost my mom Linda after her long and very courageous battle with cancer. She truly liked to cook but restaurants were her nirvana. I sincerely think – no, I know for a fact – that her favorite thing in the world was going out to dinner with her sisters Bonnie and Sharon. It was something she did probably three or four times a week and managed to do pretty much up until the very end.
If push came to shove their most frequented and favorite place was Marotto’s, which closed its doors in Tonawanda within just a couple days of Mom checking out of planet earth. Chef and owner Mark doted on my mom and aunts. He treated them like royalty and when we’d all be there for special dinners, he treated us all like family.
I used to try to cajole my mom into trying Mark’s famous tripe, a tough dish to get anywhere. She never would always instead sticking to the more traveled, tried and true fare like a steak or the fish special.
We were able to have a few family and holiday celebrations at Marotto’s this past year. The last time a couple months ago, I decided to get the spaghetti and meatball entrée. You could never go wrong with this massive plate of perfectly cooked pasta, the house red sauce and the dense, sumptuous meatballs seasoned just right. As I twirled the spaghetti on my fork and sipped a cabernet sauvignon, I looked at Mom next to me. She was happy to be there with her family at her favorite place.
So that spaghetti and meatball dinner is what I remember as my favorite meal for 2023.
Courtney Marcello
@biteofbuffalo
First Time Favorite Meal Contributor!
I have to say my favorite meal or 2023 was at Wolf and Workman in Montréal. I’ve been wanting to go to Montréal and finally made it happen this fall. It was a rainy weekend but the food definitely made up for it. We sat in a covered little courtyard which was such a cool vibe!
We couldn’t decide what to start with, braised porc croquettes or scotch egg, and I am so glad we decided to get both! They were incredible! As if it couldn’t get any better, I ordered the chicken pot pie which was a perfect choice. It was literally the size of my head! It was served the best way possible with the freshest puff pastry over top (believe me some people serve it differently). Pot pie is a comfort meal of mine. It always reminds me of my dad who passed in 2015. It was such a memorable meal in a new city and that’s why I’m calling it my “favorite meal of 2023”.
Bridget Murphy
Co-founder of Extra Extra Pizza
First Time Favorite Meal Contributor!
When I’m thinking of memorable meals + bites I’ve had, what usually sparks the memory is what I was drinking at the time– so with that being said, I’m going to give you my five memorable bottles, and what snacks accompanied them:
Soon Ho and I traveled to New York in the spring to attend a portfolio tasting, and believe it or not we still wanted more that evening! We went to Ruffian for a quick glass before our dinner at HAGS: Everything about the evening was incredible. We did the (smaller) 3 course tasting, and the mostly vegetarian dishes blew us away. We were having such a lovely time, we split a bottle of Kalche Mimeomia after our meal and just enjoyed the cozy intimate space. As with most of my favorite meals with my favorite people, I got exactly two photos, neither of the food.
My next bottle was the Beurer Rose– we had this at Extra Extra and described it as “salty watermelon gatorade.” We spent the 4th of July in a beautiful house in the Hudson Valley with our fellow worker-owners and the Natty Wine School crew. Needless to say, there were a lot of delicious bevs. But this day I had just put my son down for a nap, and headed straight to the pool. It went way too fast but was EXACTLY what I wanted on a humid sunny summer day
The next bottle was at the end of our 1st year anniversary– we (foolishly) offered dollar slices and wine pours, and over 400 people visited. At the end, as the sweat dried on my forehead and I munched on some empanadas our besties at Mint brought over, I opened a skin contact blend from Schodl called “Free your Mind.” Maybe it was the dehydration, exhaustion, or the extreme gratitude and love I felt, but that wine made me blush and smile from the inside. It had bright acid, and just such a joyful silliness to it
When I’m not at the shop, I’m usually with my 2 year old son, who turns out is mostly an awful dining companion, so I didn’t dine out as much as I would have liked this year. But I did find myself at The Little Club on a warm August night with a very dear friend. We told ourselves we were just going to have a glass and a little snack, which we did! And then Erika guided us to a Sylvaner from Wein Goutte called “Everyone is Thirsty and Annoyed” (ironically enough, my friend and I were both). We paired it with mostly veggies, and it was textural, savory and herbal, and I never wanted to reach the end of the bottle!
My family decided to do Thanksgiving early this year, at 12pm. They’re not very adventurous when it comes to bevs, but as the baby of the family I have no problem ignoring their wishes– I brought some “weird” Spanish beers from Cyclic Brewing I had gotten, and surprisingly everyone loved them! My favorite of the day was called “Skin Contact” a saison co-fermented with Cab Sauv must that was perfect for a thanksgiving brunchy vibe.
Brad Rowell
Co-Owner of The Grange, West Rose, Wayland Brewing, Grange Outpost
10x Favorite Meal Contributor
My top food experiences of the year occurred in London, where I went in October for the Bills/Jaguars game. I traveled with my wife and four friends—who all put dining experiences on par with the game itself in level of importance for the trip.
Our first meal was lunch at St. John in Marleybone shortly after arriving in London. We shared multiple orders of crispy Welsh rarebit, cod roe toast, skate wing, and several other dishes that give British food a good name. We had dinner at The River Café (a London institution) where we essentially ordered everything on the menu. The River Café serves simple, perfect Italian food and, in my opinion, is one of the most beautiful and uniquely designed restaurants in the world. A few other highlights were Borough Market for morning oysters and impeccable British cheeses, Normans for arguably London’s best breakfast, and the Michelin-starred wine bar Leroy.
Chris Owen
Radio DJ at 106.5 WYRK
First Time Favorite Meal Contributor!
When I look back on the delicious meals I had the pleasure of eating this year, I was surprised at just how many of them there were, so there are many who I won’t mention that I feel are worthy of it. Because of that dilemma, I’m going to cheat a bit and talk fondly of one in Buffalo, and another in Nashville.
As someone who lives in South Buffalo, I have been to the Nine-Eleven Tavern quite a few times, although on this occasion on a rather warm spring day, I took my father to the establishment for the very first time.
He asked me what to get and I immediately said, “20 medium wings with an order of their fries.” The wings were about as perfect as I ever could remember them being – juicy, perfect crisp and the medium wing sauce was just hot enough but packing a lot of flavor…literally why Nine-Eleven has won over so many fans.
The fries were amazing and for my money, the best in Buffalo. After the meal, my dad stated that was the best medium wing he has ever had in his life. Mission accomplished.
Hawkers Asian Street Food in Nashville was recommended to me by a few friends, and I decided to go for the first time on one of my trips in the late winter, early spring of 2023.
I was blown away by the décor – a very New York City kind of vibe, with food that is brought out to you when it’s ready. That could be one or two dishes at a time, all at once, or once every five or 10 minutes. They also have a wide craft beer selection.
I ordered their bao buns, roti canai, soup dumplings and their double-fried Korean BBQ wings. Bao buns were soft and juicy (like a mini taco, with shredded duck), the roti canai warm and melted in my mouth (Malasian flatbreads with a spicy dipping sauce), soup dumplings were juicy and flavorful and the double-fried Korean BBQ wings were easily the best crispness of any wing I’ve had not in Buffalo. If you go to Nashville, go here immediately.
Camera Guy Bill
Lead Content Producer at First We Feast, Hot Ones
First Time Favorite Meal Contributor!
Having a job where you get to run around filming food in one of the biggest cities in the world certainly has its perks. I have had the privilege of eating at many restaurants over the years—some well-known establishments in the NYC area and some lesser-known mom-and-pop shops. What I’ve been able to taste has transported me all over the globe, and I never had to leave the 5 boroughs. However, nothing quite energizes my taste buds like a home-cooked meal. That’s why my favorite meal this year was a Greek Easter feast I had while I was in Germany in April with my wife.
A little backstory on me: I am a Buffalo boy, born and raised. Every Christmas when I was younger, my Grandma Dini would be in the kitchen cooking us an authentic German meal of homemade dumplings, fresh-made noodles, sauerbraten roast with gravy, and red cabbage with so much vinegar in it that it would make an elephant cough. Those are fond memories I have of my heritage and what I think of when I recall a home-cooked meal.
All that changed, though, when I met my wife, Christina. She is a first-generation Greek American. Her parents immigrated to the United States, and sadly, most of her family is still overseas. For the past 6 years, I have been fully immersed in the Greek culture.
Every single thing my mother-in-law cooks is from scratch, and everything she prepares is more delicious than the last. There is always way more than enough food for us to eat, but just when you think you are done eating, there’s more in the oven or a second cake in the fridge to cut into.
Holidays are no exception to this, especially Greek Easter. They really go all out. This was the case this year when my wife and I took a trip to Gaildorf, Germany, to see my wife’s Greek-German family on Greekster. The night before, a full goat was picked up from the butcher. It was processed down in the basement while we drank beer, and I tried to decipher the conversations that were flying around in in multiple different languages. The goat was cleaned, and the inside was rubbed down with butter, fresh herbs, and a variety of greek cheeses. The goat was then closed up, and the legs were tied to a metal pole that would allow it to be placed on the charcoal spit in their backyard the next day.
We woke up at dawn and came downstairs to see the goat already spinning above the red coals, its juices dripping and making a hissing sound that filled the quiet morning air. The men and boys all stayed outside in the frigid early spring air, drinking dark German beers and slicing off fresh, hot samples of the goat just to make sure it was tasting right.
Greek bouzouki music was blasting through a radio as we sat watching the goat make the slow roasting rotations. While the goat spun, a plate came around filled up with Kokoretsi. Kokoretsi consists mainly of seasoned pieces of goat offal—sweetbread, hearts, lungs, or kidneys. It was delivered steaming and splashed with fresh lemon juice. Not for the faint of heart, but it’s something I’ve come to look forward to on Greekster. I highly recommend trying it if you’re ever given a chance.
While the goat was crisping up outside, more was being prepared inside. My wife’s cousin was preparing fresh-made tzatziki, tirokafteri, Horiatiki salata, as well as traditional German spaetzle noodles and roasted pork loins in gravy. By the time the goat was carved up and brought inside, you could barely see the table anymore. It was enough food to feed an entire small army. I filled my plate up with a mountain of every single food, I ate it all, and then loaded up my plate up again, all the while washing everything down with a Gaildorfer Spezial weisbeir. I ate so much I almost exploded at the seams. It was a sacrifice that I was willing to make a million times over. Throughout the entire meal I got emotional thinking back on those home-cooked Christmas German meals my grandmother would make us when I was a child. To be in Germany and eating home-cooked German food hit me hard, especially while being with my new family—my Greek family. A new culture that I knew almost nothing about until I met my wife. A culture that prioritizes family and the importance of getting together to eat and eat and eat and eat. It made me so happy that I am able to experience all of this with my wife and to realize how lucky I am to have found this new family. I will never forget that meal and all the laughter, dancing, and smiles that came with it. Γειά μας!
Paul Hamilton
Sabres Reporter for WGR 550
3x Favorite Meal Contributor
I was with one of my best friends in the world who lives in Wisconsin and we were in Niagara Falls, Ontario right at the Falls. We looked up and saw the Queen Victoria Place Restaurant. Their patio overlooks both Falls which of course was gorgeous, but we also found very good food that was very reasonably priced.
I had Reuben Sliders that were filled with Montreal smoked meat on Pretzels rolls. They were so very good. She had Panko Parmesan Chicken which again, was very reasonably priced, especially when you get the exchange rate on your credit card. She said it was seasoned just right and was also excellent.
Reid Ferguson
Buffalo Bills Longsnapper, Co-Host of After the Snap
2x Favorite Meal Contributor
For this special edition of “Favorite Meals 2023” I am actually going to share TWO meals that I look back fondly on this year.
First off, last year for Christmas my wife bought me a Blackstone griddle. I can remember being so excited to use it knowing how versatile they are with cooking and grilling. So obviously the first thing I had to do was make breakfast! Some crispy hash browns and pancakes on the griddle were a staple of my childhood so I knew that was the first meal I had to try.
My second meal I’d like to share was actually just last week! My wife decided to make some short ribs we had gotten from a local farmer and boy I tell you what. She did NOT disappointment. I told her it was quite possibly the best dish she has ever made since we’ve been together, and she makes a mean chicken pot pie, among other things. The flavors of the natural herbs she used tied with some bites of garlic mashed potatoes, man my mouth is watering as I type!
Big thanks to Donnie for putting this together every year!
Lindsay Robson
Founder of Nickel City Pretty & Copper & Steel
6x Favorite Meal Contributor
I always like contributing to these favorite meal of the year posts, as it allows me to reflect on all of the yummy dishes that I've had throughout the months. This year's favorite meal is a bittersweet one. The food was incredible, and the company was great at the time, but then said company proceeded to gaslight me after a particularly weird evening, and alas, we no longer talk to each other. But I'll save those details for the "most uncomfortable date of the year" post (does Buffalo Eats also do that?)
I've been going to Toronto a LOT this year. I'm a bit of a concert junkie, and TO gets all of the good bands at really amazing smaller concert venues, and we are fortunate as Buffalonians to have this amazing big city within a two hour drive from here. Most of the times that I've been to Toronto this year, I've gone out for Thai food (except one time where this particular friend took me out for wings and they were the WORST wings I've ever had in my life.) Pro tip: never get wings in Canada, especially if they are from some weird medieval-themed bar. Also, they served watered down ranch as the dipping sauce. Need I say more?
Back to my most memorable meal. "Most uncomfortable date man" took me to a Thai restaurant called Lao Lao Bar. It was a beautiful August day, so we sat outside on the patio. One of my favorite things to do when going out to a new restaurant, or any restaurant really, is to order a bunch of small plates and share. That way you get a little bit of everything instead of just one big main dish. We ordered a smattering of dishes - mango salad, beef jerky, pork skewers, pineapple fried rice, and the bbq chicken. Every dish was equally as amazing as the one before it, but the one that stood out the most was the beef jerky, which was a shock to me. I am not a beef jerky gal at all, I've never liked it, it all just reminds me of a Slim Jim, but the flavor of this jerky was absolutely insane. Whatever spices that they used complimented the flavor of the meat so well, and it wasn't overly dehydrated like shoe leather. Just thinking about it is making my mouth water. The meaty goodness of the jerky and the bbq chicken plus the freshness of the mango salad and pineapple in the fried rice (love that it's served in the halved pineapple) made for the most perfect meal.
So if you're ever in Toronto, I highly recommend Lao Lao Bar as your dinner restaurant of choice. But the weird uncomfortable date? Definitely not highly recommended.