Chinatown in Buffalo

[itch22]

Does Buffalo have a Chinatown? And if so, where is it?

Also, has anyone been to the following stores? If so, what did you think?

A'Chau 2 Oriental Grocery

833 Niagara St.

Buffalo Asian Market

594 Niagara St.

Phu Thai Oriental Grocery Store

355 Connecticut St.

Sungs Oriental Grocery & Gift Market

850 Niagara Falls Blvd.

[dorachadas]

I live just south of Buffalo and work downtown - I don't believe there is a "Chinatown". I'm sorry to say that in the 3 years I've lived here, I haven't had any Chinese locally other than your average takeout.

I've actually been planning on making a trip to the Asian market on Niagara for a couple months now, and haven't gotten around to it yet. We (coworkers and I) frequent a Vietnamese place (Pho 99) on Niagara that uses that market. I'll make a better effort to get over there this week and report back - what specifically are you looking for?

There's supposedly an Asian food court opening up on Niagara later this year - there's a sign up in Pho 99 about it - mentions Thai, Chinese, Japanese and Korean...really looking forward to this if it really happens.

[itch22]

Nothing in paticular. I'll be spending the whole day tomorrow in Buffalo and thought I'd take a look around, see what the US suppliers are bringing in compared to Canadian suppliers.

For example, though I am happy with a Thai fish sauce made in the style of Vietnamese fish sauce, called "Three Crabs Brand" I hear US asian markets are more likely to have "real" Vietnamese fish sauce. All the fish sauce available in Ontario are from Thailand.

[sacre_bleu]

Does Buffalo have a Chinatown?

No.

Also, has anyone been to the following stores? If so, what did you think?

A'Chau 2 Oriental Grocery

833 Niagara St.

Buffalo Asian Market

594 Niagara St.

Both are tiny pocket stores with Viet-Thai-Chinese etc. etc. basics. Mostly canned bottled and dried, a bit of frozen, a few veg and herbs. Stop by if you're in the neighborhood, it'll only take 5 minutes to decide if they have anything of interest.

Phu Thai Oriental Grocery Store

355 Connecticut St.

Haven't been.

Sungs Oriental Grocery & Gift Market

850 Niagara Falls Blvd.

A medium-comprehensive Asian grocery, heavy on Korean specialties and china/kitchenware.

The most interesting Asian groceries in the area (IMHO) aren't far from Sung's. About a mile away is Ni Hoowa, at 3173 Sheridan Dr., Amherst. It's the closest to a full-scale Asian grocery store that I know of in the Buffalo area. The usual Viet-Thai-Chinese-Japanese, plus some Cambodian, Burmese, and other cuisines. Vast array of dried noodles, spices, canned, mixes and drinks. Pocky. Relatively extensive veg section, invariably fresher and cheaper than Occidental groceries. Cases of ducks and pork belly, bushels of live crabs on the weekends.

I was in a full-scale Asian grocery last weekend, in Scarborough, Ont. Ni Hoowa would fit in its produce section. But it's well worth a browse, and I know they have Viet nuoc mam.

[sacre_bleu]

Also, if you will have lunch, do go to Pho 99. It's right across from City Hall. The menu is tiny but the pho, pork skewers and rolls are reliable.

The food mall concept is on hiatus for lack of interest, the owner told me last month. (Sigh.)

[itch22]

Thanks for all the detailed information. I'll check out Ni Hoowa and try and stop by Pho 99. A friend of mine, Ha Nugyen, runs a pho shop here in Belleville and I like to try other people's pho and let him know how he stacks up.

[dorachadas]

sacre_bleu,

do you have any recommendations for other Thai/Vietnamese/Chinese restaurants in the Buffalo area?

That's too bad about the food court - i had asked the owner also, probably over a month ago, and he said he didn't know for sure if he was going to participate until he found out when the city was going to take his property and for how much $$.

[phaelon56]

I think Buffalo is much like Rochester, Albany, Syracuse and others cities of that size or a bit smaller. Not large enough to have a "Chinatown" but the majority of the Asian markets will be in one end of town. It's also worth noting that although most Asian markets in these cities will stock goods for a variety of ethnic cuisines (e.g. Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean and Thai), they'll have a tendency to focus most heavily on the cuisine that is native to the owners of the store. I can find some Japanese items at our area's largest Asian market but the really good selection (and better quality) is to be found in another store that focuses more on Japanese and Korean goods. Likewise, some basic Vietnamese items may be foudn in all these store but to get the more esoteric items it's necessary to head to the other side of town to seek out a small Vietnamese grocery.

[itch22]

Well I went to Ni Hoowa, which was a little confusing at first because by looking at the exterior one would think they wre no longer open. (Boxes and furniture stacked up against the windows.) Around back, in the "take out restaurant" I found the entrance. In size it was comparable to ones near here in Belleville (population 47,000), ON. I didn't find anything paticularily interesting, compared to here.

I also went to Sung's, which had a great selection of Japanese and Korean foods that could even give Little Tokyo in Toronto, ON a run for its money. It did have very little in the way of "gifts" but the proprietor apologised for that saying the Christmas shopping season wiped her stock out.

I went to Pho 99 for lunch as suggested. The place was packed, and people stood in the doorway waiting for tables. I parked in a pay lot around the corner, and the gentleman who ran it seemed very apprehensive about us using it. I conviced him to rent me his last parking spot after I told him I'd be less then an hour. He asked about why so many people were headed to Pho 99, I guess other people parked in his lot were headed there.

As for the food, I had the Pho Tai and a pork skewer. The pork was alright. The Pho was pretty good, not the best I've ever had though. I was pleasently surprised that I got saw tooth with it (in addition to the basil), but was disappointed that there was no cilantro. Service was slow, but there were only three staff members. Our waiter was very apologetic about it, saying he'd never been this busy before. When he told me that, I wondered if others in the Buffalo area saw your recommendation and decided to drop by. Anyway, I didn't mind the wait and I kept telling him it was fine. If I find my self in Buffalo again, I'll certainly go back.

[Susan G]

The closest Chinatown for Buffalo is in Toronto. And it's very good!

[sacre_bleu]

itch, sorry, should have warned you that you need to go in the back at Ni Hoowa. And they still have that silly restaurant sign up.

Regarding Pho 99, I must confess that whenever I'm out for lunch within 10 miles of its City Hall location or on Bailey Ave by UB's South (Main St) Campus, I always head for Pho 99.

dorachadas asked:

do you have any recommendations for other Thai/Vietnamese/Chinese restaurants in the Buffalo area?

Well, yes, actually, I do. My favorite Chinese in WNY is Chang's Garden on Maple Rd in Amherst. It's not Manhattan fabulous, but it's where Chinese from UB often go, so I feel better. They have a second menu, separate from the regular American chinese food, with "Northern Chinese Specialties" on it. (Ask for "the blue menu" if your server looks blankly at you.)

Especially recommended off the blue menu: braised beef noodles and tasty pork chop noodles; appetizer of duck in chef's special sauce. The duck dish is a roasted breast served cold, hacked, still with bones inside. If you find gnawing disagreeable, don't get it. But the sauce ... oh my. Put it this way: the sauce makes me want to knaw cold duck off the bones. It's that good.

Thai: No huge favorites. I find Jasmine II, on Niagara Falls Boulevard opposite the Boulevard Mall, to be ahead by a nose when it comed to decent Thai food.

Viet: Besides Pho 99's two locations? No. The Viet resto on Elmwood (south of West Utica) recently changed hands. It was mediocre before, and I haven't been in for my subsequent inspection.

But I do have good news: Amherst has an excellent Korean barbecue place, Korea House, on Evans by Sheridan (near the Georgetown Plaza). It's about $20 a person, but you can grill your own bulgoki (beef) and dwaejibulgoki (pork) while enjoying all the rice and pickled side-dishes you can handle. Seriously, if you haven't been, you have to check it out. Tell the server you want a barbecue table, you have to order two entrees, but other than that it's really up to what you want.

So I hope I've helped.