2015 Holiday Happenings: New Year’s Eve in Buffalo-Niagara

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Whether you’re into music, food, large crowds or intimate gatherings, New Year’s Eve in the Buffalo-Niagara region has something for everyone: celebrate a new year in Niagara Falls, downtown Buffalo or the suburbs on Thursday, December 31.

Hard Rock Café New Year’s Eve Party – the Hard Rock Café Niagara Falls, located at 333 Prospect St., will feature the band Joyryde from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. – call 716-282-0007 for reservations. Find out more at the HRC Niagara Falls website.

First Night Buffalo – 5 to 10 p.m. at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center, 153 Franklin St. in downtown Buffalo. For the 27^th year, Buffalo’s biggest drug- and alcohol-free New Year’s Eve celebration will feature family activities throughout the evening. Parking for the event is free at the Main Place Mall and Fernbach Ramps only; there will also be extended Metro Rail service until 2 a.m. Tickets are $10 pre-sale and available at Wegmans; tickets at the door will be $12 – find the complete First Night schedule at www.firstnightbuffalo.org.

Old Falls Street’s Family Fun New Year’s Eve – from 6 to 10 p.m. at The Conference & Event Center Niagara Falls, 101 Old Falls St. in Niagara Falls. This family-friendly event will feature a dance floor, inflatable obstacle courses, face painters, balloon artists, movies, costumed characters and more. Admission is $6 per person and is payable at the door. Find out more at fallsstreet.com.

Statler City Ice Ball – doors open at 6 p.m. at Statler City, 107 Delaware Ave. (entrance will be on Franklin and Genesee Sts.) in downtown Buffalo. The event will feature live music – including Boys of Summer and Jeremy Hoyle and the Strictly Hip – hot and cold food stations plus a dinner buffet and much more. Ice Ball tickets includes five hours of premium open bar, food, a champagne toast and seating for all guests. There will also be free parking at the Turner Ramp next to City Hall and free coat check at the Statler. Tickets are still available for the Golden Ballroom (single seats only) and the Terrace Room – celebrate with a “nightclub experience” at the Niagara Room (does not include Ice Ball access). Tickets can be purchased and more information can be found at www.statlercity.com/iceball.

Banchetti By Rizzo’s – celebrate New Year’s Eve with Nerds Gone Wild and more at Banchetti, located at 550 N. French Rd. in Amherst. The party begins at 7:30 p.m. with five hours open bar, includes champagne at midnight and food stations throughout the night. Joining the Nerds (performing in the Michelangelo Room) are the Buffalo 5 Band in the Rose Room and Bryan Berhalter in the café. Reservations are $90 per person – call 716-691-4045 for reservations, and visit www.banchetti.com for more information.

**More parties and activities are listed in Step Out Buffalo’s “Best New Year’s Eve Parties to Ring in 2016.”

2015 Holiday Happenings: The Aquarium of Niagara, Holiday Market at the Foundry and M&T Music Under the Dome

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The Aquarium of Niagara, located at 701 Whirlpool St. in Niagara Falls, is hosting Breakfast with Santa on Sunday, December 13 and Saturday, December 19. In addition to a visit from Santa, there will be prizes, crafts, a special sea lion show and other surprises. Admission is $7 for adult members – children of members are free of charge – or $14 for adult non-members and $11 for children. Get more information at www.aquariumofniagara.org.

On Saturdays, December 12 and 19, knock a few gifts off your list at the Holiday Market at The Foundry, 298 Northampton St. in Buffalo. Expect 20-30 local artisans to join current permanent residents, with products like repurposed furniture, metal work, jewelry, wood work and more.

M&T Bank’s Holiday Music Under the Dome kicked off this week, featuring high school groups from the Buffalo area beginning at noon on weekdays. On the upcoming schedule:

• Friday, December 11 – St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute Swing Choir
• Monday, December 14 – Canisius High School Ensembles
• Tuesday, December 15 – Mount Mercy Academy “Pure Magic” Show Choir
• Wednesday, December 16 – Bishop Timon-St. Jude High School Men’s Chorus
• Thursday, December 17 – Iroquois High School Choirs
• Friday, December 18 – St. Francis High School Senior Schola Cantorum

In addition, on Saturday, December 12, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra will perform at 1 p.m. All concerts are free and open to the public at M&T’s One Fountain Plaza branch in downtown Buffalo.

BfloGirlWorld: Gift ideas from the heart of Buffalo

Loganberry from Gridlock Lacquer
credit: paulathompsonfreelance.com

A few last-minute holiday gift ideas and some places to get them for the Buffa-lover on your gift list.

Gridlock Lacquer – I’m a nail polish junkie, and I LOOOOOOVE this brand – not just because it’s made right here in Buffalo, either! My favorites so far are Loganberry and Nickel City, but I’m hoping to find The French Connection soon!

Buffalo Bites Food Tours – take a food and walking historical tour through the Elmwood Village or East Aurora. Purchase a gift certificate for a tour ($49 per person), which run Thursdays through Sundays, April through December at 11:30 a.m. in the Village and Fridays and Saturdays, April through November at noon in East Aurora.

BFLO Gallery and Gift Shop – looking for just about ANYTHING Buffalo related? This is one of the best places to go! Photos, memorabilia, things for the kitchen, Gridlock Lacquer nail polish (see above), books, t-shirts…so much Buffalo in one place!

The gift of membership – give some culture with a membership to one of Buffalo’s cultural icons – the Buffalo Zoo, the Botanical Gardens, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery and the Buffalo Museum of Science are just a few ideas.

2015 Holiday Happenings: It WAS A Wonderful Life and the Rich-Twinn Octagon House

Rich-Twinn Octagon House
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Take a trip through history during Forest Lawn Cemetery’s production of “It WAS A Wonderful Life,” taking place in the Forest Lawn chapel at 1411 Delaware Ave. in Buffalo on weekends through Sunday, December 27. Join narrator “John Lay,” the first person to be interred in Forest Lawn in 1850, as he introduces you to the “friends” he’s made over the years. Tickets are $25 per person, and seating is limited for each performance, so reservations are required – call 716-885-1600 for reservations. Find out more at www.forest-lawn.com.

Check out some of the area’s historical architecture in full Victorian holiday regalia with a trip to the Rich-Twinn Octagon House, located at 145 Main St. in Akron. Sunday afternoon tours are available December 13 and 20 between 1 and 3 p.m. – admission is $5 for adults and $2 for children 6-10. Find out more about the Octagon House at www.newsteadhistoricalsociety.org. 

BfloGirlSports: Gift ideas for the Buffalo sports fan

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Looking for a last-minute gift for the Buffalo sports fan on your holiday list? Check out these affordable options from some of the area’s top teams.

Buffalo Bandits – affordable season tickets in pro sports? Absolutely – with all the action you would want to see as well. Season tickets for the National Lacrosse League Bandits start at just $108 per seat for a nine-game schedule that begins on January 9. Don’t want to commit to a full season? Individual tickets start at only $21 per game; all tickets go on sale December 5. One game to keep in mind: on Friday, March 11, Buffalo’s other No. 11 – John Tavares – gets his jersey hoisted into the rafters. Find out more at www.bandits.com.

Buffalo Sabres – the Sabres offer Hat Trick Pack, including two 300-level II tickets for selected Sabres games (see the list here) and a Sabres hat for $99. Visit sabres.nhl.com for more information.

Buffalo Bisons – the Bisons offer three Holiday Packs for the 2016 season, each including two tickets to the home opener at Coca Cola Field on Thursday, April 14. Pack No. 1 also includes two flex tickets, a Bisons ornament and Bisons Flag for $42; Pack No. 2 includes four flex tickets, a Bisons ornament and a Bisons polo shirt for $62; and Pack No. 3 includes six flex tickets, a Bisons ornament and a Bisons duffel bag for $82. Get more information here, and find out about other ticket packages and specials at the Bisons’ website.

2015 Holiday Happenings: Larkin Square and the Buffalo Zoo

Celebrate the season at "Larkinville" on Friday
credit: paulathompsonfreelance.com

Get into the holiday swing this weekend at Larkin Square, or get the kids to the Buffalo Zoo for an upcoming event.

Holiday Live at Larkin – Friday, December 4 from 5 to 8 p.m. at Larkin Square, 745 Seneca St. in Buffalo. The fourth annual event will feature music from Robot Holiday, a holiday marketplace, and food from some of Buffalo’s favorite food trucks. Earlier in the day, check out the Indoor Holiday Market featuring over 30 local craft and food vendors from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Get more details at www.larkinsquare.com.

Buffalo Zoo Tree Lighting – Saturday, December 5 at 5:15 p.m. at the Buffalo Zoo, 300 Parkside Ave. in Buffalo. Zoo admission will be just $5 per person beginning at 3 p.m., and the gates will remain pen until 5 p.m.; the tree will be located near the new Arctic Edge exhibit. Find out more at www.buffalozoo.org.

Breakfast with Santa – Saturday and Sunday, December 12-13 and December 19-20 at the Zoo. Santa and his elves will visit kids for two seatings, 9 and 11 a.m., each day; featuring a breakfast buffet from CJ’s Catering. Pre-paid, non-refundable tickets are $17 for adults and $14 for children (members receive $5 discount per ticket); visit www.buffalozoo.org for tickets and more information or call 716-995-6133.

BfloGirlBakes: Baking fun with Sift and Bake From Scratch

**Check out the new section of BfloGirlWorld - BfloGirlBakes!


The older I get, the magazines I like – especially the food ones – get prettier. Two of my favorites right now are Sift from King Arthur Flour and Hoffman Media’s Bake From Scratch – pretty pictures, great tips and delish recipes.

Sift’s holiday issue is the third edition of the new magazine, and if there’s one drawback, it’s that the recipes eventually end up on the KAF website (which is one of my favorites for baking). There is, however, so much more to the magazine – articles on bakers and bakeries around the country, tips, gift ideas…oh yeah, and pretty pictures. I’m really a sucker for the photographs, and wish I could master that end of photography like I have flowers and auto racing.

While I was looking for the holiday issue of Sift (available at local supermarkets and the KAF website) in one of the local supermarkets, I came upon the premiere issue of Bake From Scratch, which is actually a very similar style of magazine to Sift – pretty pictures, limited ads (which is nice, but drives up the price of both mags – around $13 each), lots of recipes that you will want to start making immediately, tips, tricks, baking-related articles. The upside – haven’t found these recipes online yet.

If you’re looking for a new magazine and don’t mind spending a little extra, I would recommend either of these. And once the holidays are done, I’m definitely trying something from these mags – I’ll let you know how things turn out!

photos: paulathompsonfreelance.com