One of the hottest new restaurants in Buffalo is the Beacon Grille. It opened up in the popular Allentown district. I was lucky enough to be able to get a reservation on New Years Eve. It was crowded, but the food was outstanding and the service phenomenal.
The Beacon Grille is the creation of husband and wife team of Bruce and and Amanda Wieszala, both of whom have years of experience in the restaurant business. Bruce is the chef and Amanda handles the management and overseas the service area. The couple have been dreaming about this restaurant for 15 years. Their vision is for a place where people feel at home but can get high quality food. The Beacon Grille is located on Allen Street in downtown Buffalo in a storefront that had been vacant for over two decades. It opened in late June of 2024.
New Year’s Eve Menu
The Beacon Grille is a farm to table restaurant and the offerings change with the seasons. My experience was on New Years Eve 2024, so I’ll be describing that. There may have been a special menu that night, as it differed slightly from what was on the web site.
The menu is divided in sections: Shared, Small Plates, and Large Plates. We did not get anything from the Shared section of the menu. It consists of bread, cured meat, and/or cheese plates. Apparently, cured meats is one of Chef Bruce’s specialties.
Small Plates
The Small Plates section consisted of: Charred Octopus, Wood Oven Roasted Carrots, Roasted Bone Marrow, and a Wedge Salad. We ordered two items: the carrots and the bone marrow.
The roasted carrots were divine! Roasted until tender, they were crispy and slightly sweet. The dish has several types of carrots, which gives it a variety of tastes. The flavors were perfectly counterbalanced by the whipped ricotta cheese that is an accompanionment.
The roasted bone marrow was a bit more involved than a bone with marrow. The was topped with provolone cheese and “french onion”, which I gathered is braised onions with seasoning. The bread, found underneath the bone, was buttered and grilled. The flavors are exquisite, but I found it hard to scoop out the marrow. This made it a bit of a chore to eat. I’m glad I tried it, but I’m not sure I would order it again. One cool option for this dish is a “chaser” shot. Using the bone as a luge, you pour a shot of bourbon down the center of the bone, collecting any remaining juices, into your mouth. It was fun.
Large Plates
The large plate section included Bone-In Ribeye, Sablefish, Wood Oven Half Chicken, Smoked Duck Breast, and a Seasonal Vegetable Plate. I ordered a Wagyu NY Strip Steak while my companion ordered Lobster Tagliatelle.
The strip steak was amazing! It had a crunchy exterior, seasoned with a mocha seasoned crust on the outside that provided a unique flavor. And the inside was a perfect medium rare, tender and delicious. The steak was worth every penny. My companion thought her lobster was excellent. I had a small taste, and found it tender and juicy. The pasta and sauce had a mild flavor, pairing well with the delicate lobster.
Dessert
There were four choices of dessert: Chocolate Hazelnut Torte, Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta, Almond Cake, and Pavlova. I had the chocolate torte, while my companion had the Panna Cotta.
The torte was closer to a cream pie than a cake. But it was delicious. The chocolate was rich and creamy and the crust provided a nice crunch that gave the dish some texture. A great dessert.
The Panna Cotta was served with a crumble with a roasted pear. The Panna Cotta was smooth and creamy, with the crumble counterbalancing that with a crunch. The pear was more of a sauce, and not sliced whole pear as I was expecting. Not bad, but I am used to fresh fruit on Panna Cotta. I wonder how this dessert would be prepared during the summer.
Cocktails
The Beacon Grille has a good sized cocktail item with names like Keep Calm and Carrot On and Nothin’ But a Tea Thang. There were 8 cocktails on the menu. There are also draft and canned beers and some non-alcoholic cocktails. The draft beer features mostly New York craft beers, but one IPA came from Maine.
I had the Smoked Manhattan, which is their signature drink. As advertised, it had a strong, smokey flavor. I loved it. My companion had a cocktail called Sweater Weather. This is a bourbon based drink with syrup, egg whites, and bitters.
By mistake, our waitress accidentally gave us a Winter Margarita instead of the Sweater Weather. We tasted it before realizing the mistake, and I have to say it was a great Margarita. One of the best I’ve had outside of the Southwest.
August 2024 Menu
My companion had previously been to Beacon Grille over the summer. I will briefly go over what they ordered and how the menu.
From the Snacks section, they ordered a bread, Wood Oven Focaccia. It is served with koji cultured butter. And from the Small Plates, they ordered Charred Octopus, Crispy Sunchokes, and Flat 12 Mushrooms. The last dish they ordered was from the Large Plates section, Calabrian Sausage. The Focaccia and the Octopus were on the winter menu; the rest were only on the summer menu.
My friend liked every single one of these dishes. What she appreciated the most was the variety of flavors. Everything had different flavors and textures but they all complimented each other well.
Atmosphere
I feel like the Beacon Grille is an upscale restaurant. Yet it maintains a cozy, but not quite rustic vibe. They have an open kitchen, so customers can see the cooks working and the wood oven blazing. The wood oven forms the heart of the restaurant, an integral component for most of the dishes. Since I was seated at the other end of the room, I did not get to appreciate that aspect of the restaurant.
Our waitress was fantastic. She described the menu with enthusiasm, given us good recommendations. She visited often, asking if we needed anything. One of the owners, Amanda, also stopped by and talked with us, giving the restaurant a warm, welcoming feel. Beacon Grille has amazing food in a friendly environment. It is the perfect place for a special occasion.
Jim's Dining Guides 