This year two restaurants in Buffalo were James Beard Finalists and Waxlight Bar à Vin in the Black Rock Neighborhood is one of them in the Outstanding Wine and other Beverages category. They have a creative seasonal menu, and are known for their roast chicken potato chips. Their summer menu had snacks and small plates, like bread and butter pickled mussels and barbecue shrimp ‘njuga with preserved corn, and large plates, like tomato leaf creste di gallo with braised duck leg and strawberry marinara or squid ink gnocchetti with calamari bolognese and rocket pesto. Ask their certified Sommelier, Jess Railey-Forster, to pair a bottle of wine with your meal.
And while I’m on the subject, I’ll briefly jump ahead to the next category of cocktails. Waxlight’s stylish bar, which blends gilded age touches with blue velvet couches and gaslamp-style lighting, has a range of refreshing cocktails, including the daisy (gin, shochu, salted lime), mezcal sour (mezcal amaro, citrus, sage, beet, blackberry), or improved tequila (reposado, spiced pear, fino, charred onion).
