The 2022 Best French Onion Soup Tournament

In November 2022, we tried to find the best French Onion Soup in WNY.

Folks, it’s soup season.

In our humble opinion, there is no better soup to warm yourself up from a cold Buffalo day than a crock (has to be a crock) of French onion soup and what better way to honor this delicious soup than a 32 seed Tournament to have our followers decide who has THE BEST French Onion Soup in town.

What makes an excellent French Onion Soup? A heavy handed dose of melted cheese. The crispy bites of melted cheese on the outside of the crock. A rich broth with some depth of flavor that’s also properly seasoned. An ideal ratio of broth, cooked down onions and toasted bread. Some good winter restaurant vibes.

To come up with our list of competitors for this year’s FOS tournament we asked our followers, we discussed candidates internally and we are left with 32 restaurants across all areas of Western New York. As always, voting will take place on twitter on a daily basis. The polls will run from 10am to 8pm, you’ll find the full schedule and list of competitors below.

If you’d like some more soup content, watch to our own Mark Goodwin talk all things French Onion Soup below on WIVB 4 and if you’d like to share your love of FOS with others, grab one of our Crock or Die stickers via Buff-a-logo!

The Contestants

1. Gabriel’s Gate (145 Allen St, Buffalo, NY 14201)

2. The Place (229 Lexington Ave, Buffalo, NY 14222)

3. JP Fitzgerald’s (4236 Clark St, Hamburg, NY 14075)

4. Waxlight Bar a’ Vin (27 Chandler St, Buffalo, NY 14207)

5. The French Pub (1250 French Rd, Depew, NY 14043)

6. Mike & Pops Bistro & Tavern (3020 Delaware Ave, Buffalo, NY 14217)

7. Webster’s Bistro and Bar (102 Webster St, North Tonawanda, NY 14120)

8. Gene McCarthy’s Pub (73 Hamburg St, Buffalo, NY 14204)

9. Cole’s (1104 Elmwood Ave, Buffalo, NY 14222)

10. The Wellington Pub (1541 Hertel Ave, Buffalo, NY 14216)

11. The Little Club (1197 Hertel Ave, Buffalo, NY 14216)

12. 189 Burger (189 Main St, East Aurora, NY 14052)

13. The Eagle House (5578 Main Rd, Williamsville, NY 14221)

14. Lucia’s On The Lake (4151 Lake Shore Rd, Hamburg, NY 14075)

15. Creekview Restaurant (5629 Main Rd, Williamsville, NY 14221)

16. Ebenezer Ale House (4348 Seneca St, West Seneca, NY 14224)

17. The Roycroft Inn (40 S Grove St, East Aurora, NY 14052)

18. Big Ditch Brewing (55 E Huron St, Buffalo, NY 14203)

19. Doc Sullivan’s (474 Abbott Rd, Buffalo, NY 14220)

20. Glen Park Tavern (5507 Main Rd, Williamsville, NY 14221)

21. The Poppyseed (3670 McKinley Pkwy # 23, Blasdell, NY 14219)

22. Hoak’s Restaurant (4100 Lake Shore Rd, Hamburg, NY 14075)

23. Forty Thieves Kitchen & Bar (727 Elmwood Ave, Buffalo, NY 14222)

24. Wallenwein’s Hotel (641 Oakwood Ave, East Aurora, NY 14052)

25. Mooney’s Sports Bar and Grill (Multiple Locations)

26. Parkside Meadow (2 Russell St, Buffalo, NY 14214)

27. Ulrich’s 1868 Tavern (674 Ellicott St, Buffalo, NY 14203)

28. Pizza Plant (Multiple Locations)

29. This Little Pig (4401 Transit Rd, Williamsville, NY 14221)

30. The Blackthorn Restaurant & Pub (2134 Seneca St, Buffalo, NY 14210)

31. GDI Countryside Inn (2049 Sandridge Rd, Alden, NY 14004)

32. Alton’s Restaurant (Multiple Locations)

Elite Eight – Friday December 16th

• 1. Gabriel’s Gate defeated 8. Gene McCarthy’s Pub

• 13. The Eagle House defeated 5. The French Pub

• 10. The Wellington Pub defeated 2. The Place

• 6. Mike & Pops Bistro & Tavern defeated 3. JP Fitzgerald’s

Final Four – December 19th

• 1. Gabriel’s Gate defeated 13. The Eagle House

• 6. Mike & Pops Bistro & Tavern defeated 10. The Wellington Pub  

Final - December 21st

• 6. Mike & Pops Bistro & Tavern defeated 1. Gabriel’s Gate