saint_em

Hi all,

Me and my husband are heading to the Buffalo/Niagara Falls area in July to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. We've got 3 nights in Buffalo, 2 in Niagara (Ontario) and 1 night in NYC on our way home (plus one at YYZ and one near Rochester).

I'd like to find a good restaurant for a nice celebratory dinner in one of those cities. I don't want super smart (no jacket or tie!), just decent food in a nice atmosphere (not too loud and not too dark - no candles!).

We like pretty much everything cuisine-wise, but I'm thinking maybe Italian, Mexican, steak, or 'American' for this occasion. Somewhere we can take our time over several good courses rather than feel rushed would be nice.

Budget - if it's really good we'd go to $200 total I think, but if the best spaghetti in Buffalo costs $10 that's great - we don't have to spend a lot for a meal to be special.

We'd probably be looking at a Tuesday night if it's Buffalo, Wednesday or Thursday in Niagara or a Friday in New York just in case that makes a difference.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

travelmad478

There is a rather stark difference between what's going to be available (and prices) in Buffalo, which is a mid-size Rust Belt city, vs. Manhattan. If you want a superlative meal then you should get it in NY; if you want a good meal for a lot less money I'm sure you can get one in Buffalo. There are plenty of websites that specialize in restaurant discussion and reviews (Hungry Onion and Chowhound are two options) so I would head there for recommendations. I will warn you that posting on either of these with a request for a restaurant in NY like the one you've posted here is going to be met with some aggravation; your desires could be met with any one of probably 500 restaurants in Manhattan.

OpenTable is also a good place to look for available options that you can reserve in advance; you can look at ratings and menus on that site.

saint_em

Thanks - I know the request was pretty vague, I guess I was hoping for some recent personal recommendations. As you say, there are hundreds of restaurants in Manhattan that fit the bill, even after narrowing it down to those recommended in various publications.

Non-NonRev

Even in Manhattan it' possible to enjoy a special night without breaking the bank.

For example, the four-star Jean Georges has great food but high prices and a more formal atmosphere. But right next door is its more casual sister, Nougatine. Same kitchen, at more affordable prices with relaxed atmosphere.

KRSW

We very much enjoyed Napoli's in Niagara Falls back in October. Italian, obviously, but it was quiet, away from the touristy areas. Fresh pasta made on-site.

Manhattan...well... it's difficult to have a bad meal there. Too many great restaurants to even begin to list. For atmosphere and service, I do like Keens Steakhouse. Not the best steak in Manhattan, but if it were anywhere else in the USA, it'd be the top steak in town. Still a very good steak. Service is comfortably paced. I've never felt rushed here and it tends to be quieter than the other NYC stalwarts. I also like the large collection of churchwarden pipes which line the ceilings. The modern world disappears for a few hours while I'm there and that's why I keep going back.

Yoshi212

Niagara on the lake has many dining options that are nice.

Manhattan: you can't go wrong with Keens and the other couple of hundred awesome restaurants we have.

Buffalo: Mothers (nice but lower end of the nice spectrum for cost), Left Bank, Olivers are a few options.