The Chicken Wing Alternative?

A few times a year, especially around Super Bowl time, Chicken Wing shortages will make the news. And of course people here in Buffalo take this very seriously ;-) SO how about some Chicken Feet? Enjoy the fun video by the folks at Foodtease.com. If you're adventurous, they also have Braised Cow Lips on the site. Yum!

Cruisin' the Hoowah Supermarket

L1010373hoowa by libbystack on Zooomr

If cooking Asian is your thing, the you must make a trip to Hoowah. On Sheridan near Bailey Avenue, you'll find just about any Asian ingredient you need, and you'll be entertained as well. My main goal today was to stock up on the winter rice supply and get some of the very skinny Asian noodles I like. I also needed to restock my supply of Black Tapioca Pearls for Bubble Tea.


L1010372whitefungus by libbystack on Zooomr

Strolling the aisles, you'll find the mundane to the unusual. Today's fun find was White Fungus. Now, if anyone has a recipe for Mycete Blanc, then please let me know, because I've never met a Fungus I didn't like!


L1010369mockmutton by libbystack on Zooomr

And who can resist Mock Mutton?

I enjoy every trip to Hoowah. Produce availability can vary. The best pickings arrive Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings. Today there were crates of fresh Persimmons and Asian Pears, some melons, plus the usual scallions etc. They also had some great baby bok choy which can be a nice complement to any meal. Refrigerator cases hold special items that you may have never heard of. If your in the market for commercial style stock pots, ladles, or some Oriental style serving ware, you'll find some of that here too.

Hoowah has about the best selection of Asian noodles I've seen. On my last trip, I got something called Green Bean Noodle. They were a wide cellophane type noodle. I cooked them up with some fresh pea pods and carrots and they were quite good.

If sweet treats is your thing, you must cruise the aisles here. Lots of Oriental candy and sweet concoctions, and not all of the packages are in English ;-) But they are colorful and fun. I've always loved the Hello Kitty style Japanese packaging. Very kicky!

The staff here can sometimes have a little trouble with English but they're very congenial and will do their best to help you out.

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Hoowah Supermarket
3175 Sheridan Drive, Amherst
Handicapped Accessible: Yes
Entrance at Rear of Store, Parking Lot in Rear

Paula's Donuts And Bonus Mondays

I was sitting in a local restaurant one day and as an after meal treat was contemplating a donut. There were a few in the case. I summoned my server, a pleasant older lady, and asked which donuts were good. She told me, "None of them. They're crap. If you want good donuts, go to Paula's on Kenmore." I appreciated the server's honesty, and because of the very candid nature of the conversation, the establishment where it took place shall not be identified.

About a week later, I was at a place on Elmwood, and a couple of the patrons were talking about, of all places, Paula's Donuts. And then it happened once more, at another restaurant. After these three bizarre occurrences, I made it my mission to visit Paula's. It's located at the corner of Kenmore and Englewood.



There's nothing fancy here, but the goods are well made, fresh, and everything is neat and tidy.



In addition to the regular yeast raised donuts and frycakes, there are danishes here too. And they look pretty good. Danishes are a separate purchase and are not included in the dozen rate for donuts.



The little pastry case changes daily. You'll find different items there on different days. On this visit, there were some frosted puff pastry hearts.



The carrot cake though seems to be standard on every visit. It must be good. (Note: I never officially asked, but I'm pretty sure it's carrot cake.)



And Halloween week, one of their big Texas Sized donuts was dressed up with candy corn.



Well it's time to make selections. It's always difficult here.



Here's my dozen, and even in their oversized box, it's bulging full. The donuts are a generous size here.



Let the Food Autopsy begin! No need to even cut into this one. The jelly is oozing out of the top of the frycake stick.



Let's give the Bear Claw a whack, purchased as an extra from the pastry case.



It is a little on the hollow side, but that is common with a lot of bear claws these days. The filling that is there is good quality though, and I'll forgive the little bit in the lack of volume for the good taste. The dough is also richer than the standard donuts, and the icing was just the right consistency.



This is their signature donut, the Cream Cheese filled. It's done in a half moon shape.



There is a nice amount of filling, and it's good tasting too! The cream cheese filled donut is considered a "regular" donut and is not charged as a premium item.

There is a little coffee counter at Paula's too, and if you're not in the mood for a donut a hard roll with butter is usually available.

So What About Bonus Mondays?

I thought you'd never ask! On Mondays, if you buy a Dozen at the regular price ($7.50 at this writing) You Get 2 Donuts Free. This offer looks like it has been in place for awhile. If things change, I'll let you know. We're now regular patrons at Paula's. It's a few miles out of the way for us, but the quality is worth it.



If you crave the old time hefty Peanut Sticks with real peanuts instead of some gruesome pulverized peanut powder, this is the place to get them.

More donut pics in the future as I shoot them.

Visit and enjoy!

Have You Been To Zesto's Lately?

I had some time to kill while in downtown Buffalo this morning and wandered up to the Food Court at Main Place Mall. And yes, Zesto's is still there. One of the original food vendors in the Food Court, Zesto's offers Greek specialties and has breakfast daily.



My choice was the Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Croissant. At $3.25 including tax, it's one of the best downtown breakfast deals going, and it's sort of the only game in town on a Saturday. Maybe you can find it cheaper, but you can't find it any better. The sandwich is hefty. I even asked the lady who cooks if it was a 2-egger, and no, it was only one. Surprising to me because there was such nice volume to the eggs.

I don't get to Zesto's often, but when I do go there, it's always good quality fare at food court prices.

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Zesto's
Main Place Mall
Buffalo NY
Telephone: (716) 854-9787
Mall Hours Monday thru Saturday

Fere'a New Digs

I recently got over to the new Fera's at the Electric Tower, and here's a nice little snap of the interior. They did a beautiful and truly elegant job on the buildout as you can see.

The little eatery is located on the lower level just inside the main entrance. The hours are 7 am to 3 pm Mon-Fri.

To see the rest of the lowdown, see the main post here.