West Side Bazaar

Step into an authentic multicultural experience at the West Side Bazaar on 25 Grant Street in Buffalo! Its open everyday except Sunday and Mondays, with on Street parking!
I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve been to this special diverse oasis because its been too many to count!
The West Side Bazaar promotes economic vitality within the Buffalo area and for possibly tourists that visit. When you enter you will find many different vendors from around the world selling authentic jewelry, clothing, purses, instruments and other unique gifts.
The employees are VERY FRIENDLY and helpful. Some of my favorite things I’ve bought or received for a gift were: a large silver and turquoise stone necklace and earrings from Zimbabwe (Southeastern Africa), Rings with cool stones from Peru, geometric banana leaf earrings from Rwanda (central Africa)
Who wouldn’t appreciate a unique gift from the West Side Bazaar?
Oh! I can’t forget the International Food Court! Here are some of the things they offer…
* 007 Chinese Steam Buns and Dim Sum (Kyel Sein Hein) & comes with complementary tea! I loved the pork and shrimp dim sum. The pork and vegetarian steamed buns were so tasty and light!
* Rakhapura Mutee and Sushi. delicious fresh sushi
* Abyssinia Ethopian Cuisine .my favorite is the vegetarian selections on the injera (light fluffy thin bread)
* Family Thai. chicken or shrimp noodle dish (outstanding Thai Spices)
* M Asian Halal Food. will try soon
* Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony. best and strongest coffee. Perfect cultural experience
* Gourmet Laos food
* Mr. Patty’s Jamacian Food. will try soon!
*Bubble tea and desserts… delish!
All of the gifts and food are reasonable! I like to bring cash but most businesses take cards as well :) I have spread the word to many of my students in the «burbs» and people about this wonderful multicultural establishment. Please go and check out again and again because one time isn’t enough to experience the many cultures present at the West Side Bazaar! Let me know how you like it… ;0)

figured i’d check out this place with my friends for a quick lunch. it is a very interesting set up, there are about 6 different «food» vendors that sell dim sum, thai food, ethiopian food, indian food, and bubble tea. i tried the coconut chicken noodle, shu mai, and beef samosa. All were quite tasty but nothing really stood out.
The prices were very fair. Would consider coming back in the future. It isn’t in the nicest neighborhood so I recommend not coming while it’s late /​dark out.

Lots of food options and friendly vendors at the Westside Bazaar. Tried Thai, Burmese and Chinese dishes and all were fresh and very good. The highlight was actually the strawberry /​banana smoothie — it took 10mins to make but ended up being more than worth it.
Looking forward to going back and trying the rest of the vendors.
I’m more about the food but the retail side of the bazaar had some interesting African /​Asian items and uniques inexpensive clothing — a lot of it hand made.

West Side Bazaar is a sweet gem in Buffalo. The set up is unique and reminds me of what I have seen in Hong Kong’s «dai pie dong» set up, where you pay for your food at the numerous cuisines available (each spot has a condensed posted menu) and you pick a table to be seated. The food is then either brought to you on a tray or you pick it up from the counter. The set up provides flexibility for you to pick and choose what you want to eat from various spots. I have been here a few times trying various cuisines. Some of my favorites include Shan noodles, samosas, bubble tea and the variety pack from the Ethiopian station. At my last visit, I also stopped by the new dim sum spot for some cha siew bap «steamed buns stuffed with marinated bbq pork».
Overall, everything is very affordable here and comes in amazing portion sizes. The steam buns were a bit expensive compared to typical dim sum prices, but overall, I would come here every day. If you are down for a quick lunch in an establishment with quality and authentic food and you do not care too much about ambience and décor, this is the spot to hit up! Highly recommended!

Everyone is really nice here. I got a Crêpe here which was super good. I also got bubble tea twice but I didn’t like it. They use powder and it doesn’t taste really good. If you’re having trouble on flavors, the worker is happy to ‘surprise you’. By surprise I mean that she’ll pick out flavors for you. :)

The West Side Bazaar is the tastiest food court I’ve ever been to! Why couldn’t shopping malls have food courts like this?!?
This place was nothing like I expected it to be. It’s found in a strip mall and even has a branded logo to it. It’s a small location (a little to cramped for my liking) and is split into two parts, shopping and food. My friend and I found it easiest to take a seat at a table and scan the menu that highlights foods from each of the restaurants to determine what we had a taste for. We started with Indian beef samosas which were quite flavorful. I ended up having Indian butter chicken (which was fantastic) and she had Burmese vegetable fried rice with soup (which was delicious as well). We finished with Ethiopian coffee.
The food was great and I can’t wait to go back and try different foods! I’ll likely go at an off time of the day to avoid the crowds due to its size.

Recently, while driving to work, I heard a journalist on NPR talking about Refugee Resettlement and the cool things happening in Buffalo, NY at the West Side Bazaar. What intrigued me the most about what I heard was the fact that cuisine and different goods from many different countries and cultures are all represented under one roof. I thought to myself after hearing the entire story that I would love to visit that place. Fortunately for me, my husband and I have the opportunity of visiting Buffalo this week and were able to visit. We brought our son and his daughter with us and they were just as delighted as we were.
We first took some time after arriving to peruse the various different vendors – I bought several scarves from a lovely lady who had so many more items I wanted. But what we really wanted to do when we got there was eat. We made our way to the food vendor section and there was so much to choose from! So many cuisines including Ethiopian, Thai, Burmese, Japanese, Jamaican, Indian and Halal, etc… so many different amazing foods. Our son and his girlfriend tried a couple of the Burmese dishes – Mohinga Soup and a delicious noodle dish. My husband and I ordered the Ethiopian vegetarian platter and it was fantastic – injera bread with amazing scoops of potato, beets, spicy lentils, creamy corn, greens, and salad. The injera bread was fabulous and so much fun to eat with. We also grabbed some bubble tea from another kind lady and it was so good. Please head to the West Side Bazaar and try all the foods there. If we lived in Buffalo, I would not be satisfied until trying food from every vendor. Buffalo — you’re pretty lucky!

I guess for Buffalo this would be considered a gem due to the lack of «exotic» cuisines and junk jewelry anywhere else. We heard so much about this place from locals so decided to check it out. We literally walked into a place that averages a size of a living room, hoping there would be some back corridors that would lead us to somewhere more magical. Alas, we just walked around the four walls and were back at the door. There are 4 – 5 different options in the ‘food court’, that was average priced. Lots of shawls around $ 25-​$ 30. We didn’t get anything but were very amused with this place.

One of the culinary gems of the West Side, with a huge selection of authentic dishes from across the globe – currently Burma, Ethiopia, India, Pakistan, Thailand, China, Jamaica. I’ve visited quite a few times and still have a long list of dishes to try ‘next time.’ Several of the restaurants have one or more dishes that are vegetarian – a personal favorite is the vegetarian combo plate from the Ethiopian place – amazing!
Prices are fair, and in some cases downright cheap. The seating area gets crowded during peak times, but the friendliness of the vendors and the quality of the food more than make up for that.
Of course there are stalls selling clothing and craft item. Sometimes you wish the whole space was dedicated to the restaurants, but considering the fact that it’s a small business incubator, having a variety of different vendors adds to the charm and the overall bazaar atmosphere.

We had dinner there last night for the first time. I had the Burmese butterbean curry, which was a fine variation on beans & rice, which is almost a universal, nutritious combination.
Dessert was a steamed black bean bun, previously available only in Toronto’s Chinatown, as far as I know.
At the next table was an older Italian-​American guy, 60ish, in a Bills jacket, probably grew up in the neighborhood. Dining with him was a young man, perhaps his son.
After finishing their meal, the older guy went up to the Burmese counter and starting chatting up the chef about food, specifically lasagna.
It was a splendid Buffalo moment.

This place makes me feel like as soon as I walk in the door I get transported to an exotic place, not in the states. The aromas and colors are from distant lands not near Buffalo.
I have only tried Abyssinia Ethiopian Cuisine so far. Love their Rice with tibs now trying the Abyssinia Combination plate. Everything was delicious. I loved the textures, colors and having to eat with your hands.
Love the fact that there are so many different cuisines you can try in one location. The shopping alternatives look pretty cool too. I’ll have to take a closer look next time I’m in.
I can’t wait to go back and try EVERYTHING!

The most amazing «food court» you will ever experience. Indian, Burmese, Thai, Ehiopian, Jamaican, Japanese, and more! Not only do they have food, but they also have clothing, gifts, and novelties from around the globe.
There are eight food stands inside that you can choose from. Everything is good. Literally everything. If I had to pick a favorite I’d say go with some Thai Noodle Soup from Family Thai or a Buffalo Roll from Rakhapura Mutee and Sushi.
It’s a beautiful thing to have so many different cultures come together like they do here.

ONE OF MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITES IN THIS CITY. I am a huge fan of trying new things — things different from my every day. WSB does not disappoint. The mission of WSB is amazing and the people willing to share the cuisine of their home countries make this place a MUST. Bring me more WSB — leave no stone unturned.

A hidden gem in Buffalo for ethnic cuisine! This place has a store and a food court, where one can purchase food from the various cuisines, and which include Ethiopian, Burmese, Jamaican, Indian, Japanese and Korean. The food was delicious, cheap, and the people were friendly!

One of the most unique places I’ve ever been to in Buffalo.
I don’t usually get to certain places in Buffalo because I live in the ‘burbs so everything outside of my little section of town is often overlooked. So much of the culture I had previously been exposed to in my travels has long since dissipated from my mind.
Somehow, my senses that had been on overload in South America were at work here. This little section of town, in general, reminds me of South America. The closeness of the buildings, the bright yellows, long strings of conversation in Spanish, the smell of cooking food. Before I even entered the building, the extravagant colorful words on the front of the building sent me back to my past.
On the inside, even still, it was like a replica of any market you may want to go to in South America, minus the stray dogs walking around and lack of safety/​health regulations. The cafeteria-​like area with a few small sets of tables was similar to that idea. The closeness of the tables and each eatery reminded me of coming across different stands in Peru. In the opposite side of the store, the stands were just as close together, but selling jewelry.
I’ve heard from around town that many places that are here end up moving out and creating their own restaurant in town. At least that’s what I heard about Global Villages and Pure Peru (when it was around.) I’ll have to remember to come back here to check out the jewelry for Christmas gifts; it was pretty cool.
I tried Abyssinia Ethiopian while I was here (review to come) and the staff was extremely pleasant. You order at the window and somehow, they will hunt you down (this seems pretty similar to every little spot in the Bazaar). They have such a good memory, I don’t think I’d be able to remember who ordered what. And yet, the nice woman stepped out of her spot in the kitchen to come wave me over. Awww.
I didn’t have the opportunity to try any other place because my plate was super huge so I was pretty full after that, but each menu seemed pretty extensive. I hope that when business gets good enough, the places that «boom» here day after day decide to try bigger and better things. While it’s super cool and great that consistent customers come in, I think growing outside of the Bazaar is just as cool and great (and I’d review them at their new location!) and would help with new individuals bringing in different foods from different cultures.
I don’t know if that’s how that works, or whether that undertaking is actually possible, but I’d love to see a rotation of business after awhile, especially since Buffalo is integrated with so many different cultures, that you just don’t see all these food choices. They either need to expand the Bazaar to make the cafeteria bigger or promote these small businesses to grow outside of this location so new ones can get their feet on the ground. Just my thoughts…
Other than my personal thoughts, this place is definitely one that needs to be supported and experienced because it’s like no other place in Buffalo.

Still so incredible. I’ve been trying to diversify. I can’t seem to stray from the AMAZING chicken coconut noodle soup from the Burmese stand and if I could, I would eat it on my death bed. Today I tried the mohinga soup as well. It’s got a fishy broth, rice noodles, and these delicious little fried bits and cilantro for texture and color. Top notch.
From the Ethiopian stand, they serve a mean veggie combo. It’s absolutely HUGE and I believe it costs around $ 8 – 9. My mom always gets their chicken and rice. The Japanese Crêpe stand was recently replaced by a guy who sells Jamaican patties. They’re nice and crispy on the outside, with great flavor and spice. You can even buy some frozen patties to take home.
I finally had some bubble tea from the Laos stand. I also tried these fried sesame cookies she had, which are very tasty and the perfect treat for someone who likes their dessert without a ton of sugar.
I will forever be devoted to this place and I can’t wait to eat my way through every menu.

A cultural delight for the ethnic foodie! Discovering that this place offers a variety of Asian and African dishes, it was all the more reason to check this place out. My sister goes to school here and she always raves that this is her go to spot with friends especially when they’re all looking to be happily satisfied without spending too much.
We parked in Rite Aid across the street, beware there are signs disallowing this but we were there on a week day after 5pm for about an hour and were totally fine. My sister says everyone does it… but that doesn’t mean maybe sometime an unfortunate person might get towed? I walked in and noticed that it was definitely low maintenance and not a shiny mall center. The tables around were barely wiped down and I witnessed this family eat their trays of food and leave without discarding any of it! Maybe some people are confused? I’m pretty sure it’s a clean up after yourself cafeteria place. Anyway, I would suggest to giving this place a chance despite its appearance, and attractiveness. Its always great supporting local businesses!
I got a $ 3 bubble tea at the front desk and the lady was kind and greeted us nicely. The drink was okay. It was your average sweetened papaya milk tea, which I definitely recommend by the way, it is a great flavor. I had to try the infamous Abyssinia combo, $ 10 from the Abyssinia window (Ethiopian) which was wonderful and full of flavor! My sister showed me how to eat it with my hands and I much rather prefer it that way:) I also got their chicken and rice dinner for $ 8. The rice was flavorful and soft, no complaints and chicken was nicely seasoned and not dry. Overall the food is of great authentic flavor and quality for the price you are getting. My sister ate chicken pad thai from the Thai window and it was your average, somewhat too oily pad thai with bean sprouts and green onion. It was $ 6 so we contently scarfed all the food down.
The only downside is that it closes so early! 7 and 8pm are the closing times and it sucks when you want some really good cultural options but the West Side Bazaar is closed. I find myself in this situation some sad nights when I’m craving delicious traditional, authentic food. If you like these types of foods, you will surely not be disappointed by this place!

This isn’t a five-​star restaurant, but I always have a five-​star culinary experience! The Westside Bazaar features several different cuisines. It’s like a market that sells food and other merchandise from different cultures. You’ll find Thai food, Burmese food, Ethiopian food, just to name a few. I rarely go to the same restaurants over and over, but this one never disappoints. When newcomers come to town, I love to take them here so that they can experience foods from the various cultures under the same roof. My ideal meal there comes from 3 different stands, starting with samosas from one of the Burmese stands, an Abyssinia combo from Abyssinia and papaya salad from Royal Sein.
Ultimately, if you enjoy ethnic food, you can’t go wrong in this place.

A multicultural riot for your senses. Vendors and food from Senegal, Burma, Peru, Rwanda, Ethiopia &c.
Lovely jewelrey, cloth, wood carvings never before seen under one roof in Buffalo. Shopping to the left, food stalls to the right. And oh, the food.

Someone recently referred to this place as the «West Side Bizarre.» I thought that was hilarious, but not as hilarious as a clown that accidentally makes all young children cry while attempting to make them laugh.
If you haven’t been here, and you live in Buffalo, and you are even remotely cultured and enjoy atypical, exotic experiences, then you are really, really, really, really, really, really, really missing out. This place is amaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazing.
When I pulled up, I thought to myself… nah… this is going to be a let down, isn’t it? I mean it had all the makings of a let down. People talked it up as if it were the WSM in CLE or Pike’s Place, as if it were Quincy Market in the BOS or STL market in T-​Dot, as if it were the RTM in PHI or the C-​Bus market. See, I know my market terminologies, yo. I mean it just looked like a charity shop from the outside, and a rather small one at that. Surely this couldn’t be as good as all it’s cracked up to be?
Well yes it very well could be and don’t call me Shirley.
Inside, are all these stalls (by all these, I mean maybe 8 tops) with all these cool things on sale from various faraway cultures around the world (South American, African, Asian and Aboriginal, only I lied about the Aboriginal). But that’s only the half of it.
The other half (the half of the Bazaar not near the door) is where s*** gets really good. Because oh my goodness, it’s a bunch of exotic foods, the likes of which you will be hard pressed to find in any American city, let alone Italian Irish American German B-​Lo Ny.
So you’ve got Ethiopian, Thai, Burmese, Japanese (Crepes from Japan!), Soul Food (which is served by South Sudanese folks along with fresh fruit drinks and South Sudanese specialties), and Peruvian (although the Peruvian isn’t around at the moment). I may be missing a few of these.
So far I’ve only tried the fruit drink from the Sudanese, and a sample platter of the Ethiopian, but my goodness… it was (a) one of the best fruit drinks I have ever had… and I know my fruit drinks… Ashker’s eat your heart out… and (b) the best Ethiopian food I’ve ever had, bar none. It’s utterly amazing. Every dish on the sample platter is divine. You must get it.
So run, do not walk, to Grant Street… bypass La Nova and all your old haunts, you ghost, you… and get inside the WSB and GSF* and WID** and then TML***. TMI? Or TMA****?
*Get Some Food
**Wolf It Down (like LDC*****)
***Thank Me Later
****Too Much Acronyms******
*****Leonardo CiCaprio
******Grammatically speaking, should be Too Many rather than Too Much, but I wanted to parody TMI.