Killing Time in ultra-north WNY

I’ve lived in Western NY for a long time, but never really ventured north of the 290 that frequently. I’ve been to Lockport on purpose less times than I can count on both hands, and my mental map of North Tonawanda and Niagara county is just a blur of unknown streets. I have heard people talk about Sanborn, Ransomville and Wheatfield, but never really experienced those towns, nor knew how to get to them. So I was a little nervous when my wife told me she had a baby shower in Sanborn this past weekend. Guys are not traditionally invited to baby showers, and while I knew the family hosting the shower probably would have let me chill out there so I didn’t have to drive back home after dropping my wife off, I took the opportunity to do a little exploring.

What do I mean by exploring? Finding a place to do some swillin’ and see what the locals are up to.

Thanks to Yelp and other review sites (free plug) I can look up places to get my swill on, and that’s what I did. I forgot to check the ‘open now’ tab and the first spot that I want to go to was closed. This is a bummer when you’re out in the Sanborn area because the establishments are not near eachother – they’re spread pretty far apart. So from there, the closest bar/eatery was in Ransomville – Johnston’s Restaurant. 

I’m not going to lie, from the outside, I had no idea what to expect on the inside – I thought there might be a record player screech and everyone would look my way and smell the city-slicker stench on me and stare me down. Actually, the staff was welcoming and I was able to take a spot right at the bar. I got myself a Yeungling black and tan to sip while looked over the menu.

Highlights from last year’s football season played on the TV and filled the silence that the bartender and I had going on. It was fine, I wasn’t feeling so talkative – I actually didn’t feel so hot from the day before, and enjoyed the silence, coupled with the sensation of not having anywhere to be or anything to do. I asked for recommendations on the menu, and got the standard ‘everything’s good’. Well, I always judge a place that sells a Reuben sandwich by their Reuben sandwich – so I got one of those:

It was a decent Reuben – perfectly executed. I slugged down another beer and slowly munched my sandwich and fries while the highlight reels kept playing. Another beer would have given me an improper buzz for the time of day, so I chose to pay the tab and find a new destination. Speaking of tab – not too bad!

On my way out the door – I noticed something in the back yard of the place – Is that what I think it is?!

Sure enough – horse-shoe pits – specifically set up for tournament play! WOW. (and check out that ATV! )

After some screwing around on Yelp, I realized that Griffon Gastro Pub had it’s original (?) location in the ultra-north somewhere, so why not check that out! Yes, it was about a 15-20 minute drive from Johnston’s, but the day was beautiful, and driving through the country can be therapeutic!

I arrived. The smell from the landfill near by added a familiar funk to the air that reminded me of Niagara Falls. Maybe I was in Niagara Falls – it didn’t matter- O went inside. Compared to the Sheridan/Transit area Griffon, this place had about half the amount of taps, but it was definitely set up with great beers to choose from:

And what did I choose? a heavy duty IPA:

That was one of the best 9+ ABV IPAs I have had in a while – talk about balance!

I sipped the 12oz pour delicately, and admired the decor of the pub:

I was about to order another beer, but got the call from the mrs that the baby shower was starting to break up.

While short-lived, my cruising around the ultra north was a great time, and I would love to do it again sometime. There were a lot of different places to check out – especially in North Tonawanda, that are totally on my list now. July is one of the busiest months of the year for me, but I hope to check out some of these uncharted areas soon!

 

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