By Delorian Morrell

At seventeen years of age I left my fun Buffalo bubble. Skateland on Friday nights. The delectable food, our signature Loganberry drink, warm weekends walking down Elmwood and yes, Wegmans. I also left behind my neatly packaged North Buffalo life. The beautiful views of Delaware park from my bedroom window. Walking to the bus stop on spring mornings and seeing the Buffalo Zoo’s giraffes grazing on leaves. I left it all behind to pursue my undergraduate degree at Bennett College for Women. This was a rite of passage, part of my parents’ white picket fence dream. I was as excited as they were. I was going to meet new people, in a new environment, and start my journey into adulthood.

However during freshwoman Orientation Week, my enthusiasm quickly sputtered. As I proudly introduced myself and the Queen City I hailed from, the negative notions about my Buffalo were endless. Buffalo is a stark, seedy and bleak city. Buffalo is laughable when compared to other cities. During late night “getting to know you” talks in my dorm room, fellow underclasswomen hailing from Philadelphia, Washington DC and Los Angeles informed me that my city was just a small town you pass through, akin to a truck stop.

I was outraged. I had no idea that this was how people in other places viewed Buffalo. During those dorm room nights I made it my mission to make everyone aware of what I love about Buffalo.

Food
Buffalo is the birthplace of wings. Duff’s and the Anchor Bar are two historic and noteworthy wing emporiums, but it’s hard to find a mediocre wing in Buffalo. Heck, there’s an entire festival dedicated to wings each Labor Day weekend. My personal favorite? Caramel and chocolate wings. If you're really brave, try the habanero hot wings.

Speaking of festivals, I would casually say, Buffalo also has the second largest two-day food festival in the country. The Taste of Buffalo takes over Delaware Avenue every second weekend in July with stands featuring the top treats from more than fifty Buffalo restaurants, the majority of which are locally owned. There is hardly a chain restaurant to be found in my hometown.

And food trucks have become ubiquitous (I loved tossing in a fancy term or two. Take that!). Larkinville’s Food Truck Tuesdays draws more than 20 trucks and thousands of happy consumers, all while rocking to live music. My favorites are Lloyd's Taco Truck and now Ted’s Hot Dog Truck. But there are so many – from pierogis to pulled pork sandwiches, pasta to poutine. Yes, poutine. Buffalo is a 15 minute bicycle ride over the Peace Bridge from Canada.

Delaware Park
A park is a park, right? Well, growing up in North Buffalo made Delaware Park a very special part of my life. Jogging, biking, walking, and running are fun ways to get around Ring Road, especially on a Sunday morning. But this park also has basketball courts, baseball diamonds a nine-hole golf course – oh, and bocce courts. No kidding!

But it’s not all fun and games. The Rose Garden is beautifully landscaped with flower gardens, white pillars and stone bridges. A great place for wedding pictures, but also home to Shakespeare. Not the bard himself, but the second largest free outdoor Shakespeare festival in the nation. Just grab a blanket, pack a picnic and catch a scene from Romeo and Juliet or Hamlet. It’s a great way to spend a warm summer evening. Yes, I would hear myself say, there is a summer in Buffalo, and it’s pleasantly warm and inviting.

Prefer flicks to the boards? I’ll take you to Movies in the Meadow when you come visit me in Buffalo. Right at dusk during the summer months, movies are projected on an outdoor screen in Delaware Park. The movies are free, and you can buy fresh popcorn and candy.

Kostas
Buffalo has an almost embarrassing abundance of independently owned, local restaurants. More, in fact, than nearly any city its size in the country. So, it should be hard to choose a favorite, right? Not so. Ask any one from Buffalo and every single person will have a place that he or she prefers. But there will be as many favorites as there are answers!

Kostas is my all time favorite. I just love the chicken souvlaki and sweet potato fries at this Greek restaurant on Hertel Avenue. The faux Greek interior is sweet, and the outdoor/indoor patio is perfect. Huge windows make it a bright indoor sunroom during the winter, and slide open during the warmer months to let in the soft summer breeze.

The Ambassador
I don’t know precisely how many souls I sold on Buffalo during my four years at Bennett. But judging solely by how many of my classmates have taken the time to visit my fair city, I must have been somewhat persuasive.

When you truly love this place, the passion is contagious.