Lafayette Hotel, it's time for your comeback.

Thanks to Rocco Termini, the Lafayette Hotel might not be a lost cause after all. He recently bought the property, which opened in 1904, and although he isn't saying what he's doing with it quite yet, anything will be better than the waste of space it is right now. Termini has a unique talent for restoring old, seemingly decrepit buildings into gorgeous living spaces that still retain the charm and character of the building's former self. Anyone who has seen his work on other buildings in downtown Buffalo knows that he works hard to make sure the building’s character stays intact, but the building itself becomes useful again, rather than being another reminder of what Buffalo used to be. That gift for finding the balance between restoration and renovation seems to be key in making the Lafayette Hotel another building to be proud of in this city. Back in the day it was quite an impressive hotel, one of the 15 best in the country (think back to the Statler, anyone seeing a trend?) and its amenities and grandeur were certain to cement its place in history. Many of the timeless features of this hotel still stand, in terms of architecture and decor. The pillars are from its opening, the original chandeliers still hang, and the once-grand ballrooms can be restored to their original designs. While the previous owners didn't do much to keep the hotel in good shape, they did leave everything intact that it came with, which means the Lafayette Hotel still holds many of its beauties from 1904. That's a key selling point for a building that, now, is something most people haven't even heard of.

Termini plans to keep the original antiques and restore what he can of the things that need to be fixed. He wants to bring back the Lafayette Hotel of the 1900s glory days, rather than gut it and start from scratch. Calling it, "the crown jewel of downtown," it's obvious that his intentions are to bring back the pride of the hotel in its origin. As I mentioned before, he hasn’t said specifically what his plans are for the building, but he has said he’s considering restoring it as a running hotel or possibly converting the rooms to apartments. Either way, the space will become functional and attractive, rather than an unoccupied eyesore that really serves no purpose. It's refreshing to hear that someone wants to restore the things that made Buffalo what it is today, and Rocco seems to be doing all he can to revitalize our city and save our history.


Source:
http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/837702.html

We’re Clearly not Capable of Taking Care of Ourselves…

Last week an inmate at the Erie County Holding Center escaped, while shackled, in his cell, and behind a protective barrier, out onto the roof where he smiled and waved to cameras as the officers tried desperately to get him back into custody. Brian Collins rigged his cell door, learned the guards’ routine, and timed it perfectly. He even took a radio and used it to tell guards to open doors, and they had no idea they were talking to an escaped prisoner. It took two months to plan, and the whole point wasn’t even to escape, it was to do exactly what he did- cause a spectacle and make fools of the people who are supposed to be keeping us safe. Only in Buffalo do we have prisoners trying to get on the roof rather than flee the building. Thanks, we’d much rather look like asses while you’re all over our TVs than search the city for you.

Because that wasn’t enough of a spectacle, yesterday a 21-year-old at the Tonawanda police station maneuvered out of his handcuffs, escaped the building, and disappeared for a few hours before strolling back to the station to turn himself in. That was very considerate of him, considering no one could find him until then. How does one get out of his handcuffs? By licking them, obviously. Derek Schlifke licked his wrists and then slid his cuffs right off and walked out the door. It took an hour to realize he was missing, and four hours later he came back.

If you’re keeping count, that’s twice in two weeks that prisoners have gotten out of different jails in the area just to prove they could do it. That’s not good. Especially when you think back to the whole Bucky Phillips fiasco, which was far more dangerous and lasted for months before he decided to stop playing games with troopers and show himself. I know these places weren’t built to be Alcatraz, and even that had one or two jailbreaks, but this is ridiculous. I feel like these people are being put in Monopoly jail or something- you get arrested, go to jail, then take your turn rolling dice until you get doubles, then you’re free! How does this happen, and why is it always here? Buffalo needs a babysitter or something to make sure we don’t hurt ourselves because we obviously aren’t old enough to take care of ourselves.

Original sources:

http://www.wgrz.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=70829&catid=13

http://www.wgrz.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=71032&catid=37

The Eternal Optimist

It would appear as though my opinion of the Bills has upset one of their loyal fans. Thank you to that fan for being a perfect example of that blind faith I talked about, and I’m going to post his comment verbatim (from the Facebook fan page) and leave it to the readers to respond…

"I love Buffalo, and do not think I would want to live anywhere else. You are totally correct that there is more to Buffalo than our sports teams. However, it is those teams that joins us together...when they win, the area is electric, with a buzz in the air. When then lose, it is so depressed. But, after a loss, I avoid local radio and the ... Read Morenewspaper because the so-called voices of Buffalo just pile on and make it worse. This blog does that same thing. Being a Buffalonian means being an eternal optimist, always looking for that glimmer hope. Yes, the Bills are 1-4...at rock bottom. The division leader is 3-2. A few simple changes and that can change. Use this forum to be a positive voice, not the same old negativity we are already exposed to."

The Buffalo Bills should be grateful for blind faith.

If you're born and raised in Buffalo, it’s hard not to form some kind of attachment to our sports teams. Not everyone is a die-hard fan, follows them regularly, or even watches the games, and some people are entirely detached from our sports. But, every single Buffalonian shares one thing no matter how detached they may be- everyone feels that same sense of pride, that same spark in their heart, when the teams do something to be proud of. That something doesn’t have to be season-changing or highlight-reel worthy, it can even be a loss if the team fought hard and showed an effort to win. We’re all about the effort here. Fans are pretty happy as long as we aren’t embarrassed to be rooting for them. It really takes a lot to discourage a Buffalo fan. We suffer from “blind faith syndrome” like no other city.

The Bills, overall, tend to be more embarrassing than the Sabres for the always-loyal fans. Anyone who knows anything about sports knows how terrible the team is this year, and that’s with the addition of “superstar” Terrell Owens. Silly athlete, making fans believe the Bills were going to blow everyone out of the water. Don’t you know that we never win? You won’t change the Bills, they will change you. Has the team gotten any better since you joined us? No. Have you been playing like the all-star you used to be? Nope. You came to Buffalo, and now you suck. That’s just how things go here. Every season you hear Bills fans shouting from the roof that this is the year we’re going to make it. It’s funny, but also so sad.

Last year at least the fans had a reason to celebrate for a few weeks; the Bills went 5-1 at the start. They tricked their fans into thinking they were really going to prove themselves as a team to be taken seriously. Fans loved it. Super Bowl talk was everywhere, everyone bragged about players’ stats, and Ralph Wilson stadium was alive with pure pride and love. Then they lost their next 4 games, and everyone shut up. People were so shocked that the team just fell apart after such an unbelievable start.

My question is, why? Why were people so shocked that the Bills didn’t make it? They never do. They disappoint every single season and fans never seem to figure it out. Maybe it’s the city, maybe Buffalo is just not meant to be a championship city. I really hope that’s not the case but at the same time I was under the impression that our NFL team was made up of professional athletes, not local high school kids picked from a lottery. Which is what we looked like these last two weeks when we got beaten by teams that were winless before they played us. Because the Bills suck, Buffalonians are putting up one hell of a fight to try and get the coach fired. This whole thing can’t possibly be his fault, can it? For a Bills fan, it most certainly is his fault. Even though he’s not on the field playing, and he doesn’t actually control the players like they’re little puppets, it’s entirely his fault. It’s not our shitty, inexperienced quarterback or our offensive line that can’t protect the newbie. I get the whole coach-firing thing in the grand scheme of things, because the Bills have consistently failed under his control. But seriously, our disastrous season is entirely his fault? Thank you blind faith, for letting Buffalo leave the rose-colored glasses on. Our players aren’t bad, and we would never blame them for poor coaching. Like I said, they all go out there and play, and we’re all about the effort here. Take a step back and look around, our team has been a joke since long before Dick Jauron. So the question has to be asked, who’s really to blame?

The Lafayette Hotel- Once classy, turned trashy.

The Lafayette Hotel in downtown Buffalo used to be one of the 15 greatest hotels in the country. Even though that was roughly a century ago, Buffalonians can still be proud, right? The architecture remains intact, the artwork is still breathtaking, and the manager is rumored to be a registered sex offender. If that's not enough to make your stay enjoyable, you can just rent a room by the hour if you happen to be passing through. For some people, that's quite the draw. Did I mention that the other rooms are rented as apartments to other sex offenders? The manager may be a rumor, but that is an absolute fact. Check out the sex registry, you'll see the eligible bachelors all have have addresses listed, many of which are at the one and only Lafayette Hotel.

Now I know there's really plenty already to boast about with this beautiful blemish on our city, but the list of benefits to this hotel isn't over quite yet. Thanks to the Buffalo News, it's time to learn about Mr. Efrain Rosado, a resident of this building and, if I do say so, the most patient drug addict I've ever heard of. It would appear that he decided, after lighting his crack pipe, that he didn't want to smoke it at 9:30 am. So he did what any practical man would do and stored it in his shirt pocket, where it wouldn't get lost. Only one problem- it was a LIT CRACK PIPE. So, what could have been good planning for the future ended up being more harm than good. See, he lit his shirt on fire when he put the crack pipe (did I mention it was lit?) in his pocket. I guess no one taught him to stop, drop, and roll, because he put his shirt in the garbage can, which then also caught fire. This gave the Buffalo Fire Dept. something to do for the morning but I think they're already fairly busy, what with all the arson. At the end of the day he got arrested on several charges, none of which involved the crack that started the fire. I don't get that part but that's only one of the questions raised. Why would he light a crack pipe, and then not smoke it? Saving it for later really works better if you don't light it, and since when are drug addicts fans of postponing gratification? They really strike me as the instant-gratification type, but I'm not a drug addict so who knows? Thank you Buffalo News, for giving me something to wonder about. Maybe if every crack addict decided to save their drugs for later, the drug problem would go away. Maybe this guy could start working for DARE, helping kids everywhere to properly store their crack.

http://www.buffalonews.com/437/story/819198.html

Google is helping to misrepresent Buffalo..

Never Google "things to do in Buffalo" or you’ll end up following the advice of an outsider on what the “Best Bars” are, and even better, what they have that is special enough to put them on that list. I don’t know when this grossly inaccurate list was concocted, or what individual at 10best.com had the honor of creating it, but I’m taking it upon myself to correct it before more people hate our city.

“Best Bars”- according to someone who doesn’t even bother to make it to ten for a website called “10best.com”

1. Eddie Brady’s
2. Club Diablo
3. Club Marcella
4. 67 West
5. Buffalo Brewpub
6. Swiston’s Beef & Keg
7. Left Bank
8. Bar-Bill Tavern
9. Mohawk Place


There’s a second list, entitled “10 Best Buffalo Nightlife” but I’ll address that in a different post. One disaster at a time, please. Whoever came up with this list was clearly a lazy jackass who never bothered to actually research Buffalo. Not that I’m surprised, because given our reputation why would anyone bother, but if you’re going to talk about our bars, that’s one thing we can give pretty good advice on. But no, instead you Googled Buffalo bars and combined their results to make a “great list.” You loved it, your editor loved it, next thing you know it’s out there for the world to see. You didn’t do the worst possible job, some of the bars are a legitimate good time and could be contenders… sort of. For the most part you blew it and there’s one problem with that mistake- every once and awhile someone from Buffalo stumbles across one of these and decides to make you look like an idiot.


I may as well start at the beginning- Eddie Brady’s is the best bar in Buffalo?! Maybe 10 years ago when I was too young to go experience the wonder that is the best bar in Buffalo, but now putting it at #1 is almost a slap in the face. Eddie Brady’s may not be the worst bar in Buffalo, but they’ve definitely peaked, long before this article was written. The Eddie Brady’s I know is a mix between uber-cool 17 year olds and middle-aged men who try and fuck them. Ok, so you pretty much have that at any bar here, I admit it. But most bars don’t have a rapist’s wet dream for a surrounding neighborhood. On either side of the bar is an abandoned warehouse, ripe for the picking when one of the homeless men living across the street decides to wander over and “play” with the kiddies. Oh yeah, there’s a group of homeless people living in the abandoned store front across from the bar.


If Club Diablo is the second-best bar in Buffalo, our city’s interests are far more subversive than I thought. I don’t know how this writer decided on Club Diablo but the description they give is hysterical- awesome dance nights, alternative music, great drinks. That’s all fine and good but they failed to mention the hardcore biker groups that hang out there, and that Club Diablo proudly hosted Buffalo’s first fetish party. Not to worry, if you missed it, they have more than one sex-themed show a year. I happen to be in the age group that spends a lot of time in bars and I can tell you that no one I know has ever gone to Club Diablo because, frankly, it looks fucking terrifying. From the outside it looks like the entrance to Satan’s private lair, and that’s not exactly what I’d consider #2 best bar material.


Club Marcella came in at #3 and while I wouldn’t have put it quite that high, their Googling served them well. It’s the closest they’ve come to finding a bar worth labeling as one of our best. They described the bar pretty well and it is a fun place to be. It’s Buffalo’s premiere gay bar and it’s always busy with good music and good drinks. Not to mention they put on a hell of a drag show.

At #4, 67 West is another one that wasn’t a bad choice. It’s in the right location in the heart of Chippewa, drinks are cheap, and it’s always packed to the walls with people. But no matter how packed it gets, it’s always a good time. They do call it “unpretentious” though and I’d have to disagree with that. Swarmed by better-than-you private school kids who first hang out there and then bartend there, pretention can definitely run high on certain nights.

Buffalo Brew Pub is #5 and this is an interesting choice. I’m torn because the location is not at all where a good bar would be, but they have endless beer selections, throw fun Oktoberfest parties, and really know how to drink. I guess on the basis of a bar alone, they can stay on the list.


Swiston’s Beef & Keg is #6 on the list, and all I can say is, huh? This restaurant is known for delicious beef on weck sandwiches, not their bar service. To make matters even worse, it’s in Tonawanda. No one would put a bar that far away on their 9 best list, it’s just not close enough to where the majority of the worthwhile bars are.


The Left Bank is #7. They have delicious dinners but I have never heard of people going there as a bar. Maybe dinner and drinks? But that’s more like cocktails, not what you envision when you think of one of the best bars in Buffalo. The semi-formal atmosphere is not very laid-back even during dinner, and the fact that it sits in a horrible area of the city is just one more reason to take it off the list.


#8 is Bar-Bill Tavern in East Aurora. Which is roughly 25 minutes from downtown Buffalo, where any of the bars on the list worth going to are located. It’s a back-in-the-woods restaurant that my friends’ parents go to for a 4 o’ clock happy hour. It’s not even really in Buffalo, and by a Buffalonian’s standards would never fall under the best bars in Buffalo. Best in the Southtowns? Who knows. But not Buffalo.


Rounding out the list at #9 (they were too lazy to find one more, remember?) is Mohawk Place. They tout the exciting list of bands that come to play there as enticement to go see the bar. Ironically, a bar is never mentioned. Just the music and the bands. Hmm.. Am I missing something? Yeah, Mohawk Place has cool concerts, but I thought this was a list about bars. If not the title of the list is very misleading. Not to mention the majority of the patrons of Mohawk Place nowadays are grungy emo teenagers all angry over nothing.


I really wish I could give these people credit for trying or effort but really, your list sucked. It was half-assed, poorly researched, and by no means showcases Buffalo’s best bars. We’re a city that’s proud of our drinking, and we take things like that very seriously. Next time, poorly represent a city that doesn’t spend so much time drinking and maybe it will go unnoticed.

"Best Bars" list came from http://www.10best.com/Buffalo,NY/Nightlife/Bars/