By Jae Tomlinson and Jamal Richards
Bengal News West Reporters
Bengal News West Reporters
A really
hungry person could voyage 6,303 miles across the Pacific Ocean to Japan and
enjoy Funazushi for lunch or go 8,299 miles in the other direction to Burma and
enjoy Lahpet for dinner.
There is no longer an ocean that
separates people from experiencing the cuisine of other countries. Now people
can step through a doorway to one of the many restaurants that fill the West Side
with diversity
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| Diners enjoy Asian cuisine at the West Side Bazaar |
As Buffalo continues to grow in
immigrant populations one of the most apparent changes to come out of this
growth is the diversity and cultural experimentation that has taken over the
West Side. The different groups of people moving into the West Side brought
with them a taste of their native countries.
SATO, a
Japanese restaurant at 739 Elmwood Ave., is one example of how new cultures
have affected the residents of the West Side and their taste in food. SATO specializes in both modern and traditional
Japanese cuisine.
Satomi and
Joshua Smith opened the restaurant in 2014, bringing together her native
Japanese culture and their shared world travels and experience in restaurant
ownership.
“We figured that we could bring something
authentic to the west side and Buffalo in general,” Joshua Smith said.
A few blocks away at 25 Grant St.,
another cultural hub of food is packed into a building with enough different
kinds of food to take people on an extensive journey.
“It’s like traveling,” West Side Bazaar
Manager Michelle Holler said.
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| International palates are catered to at the West Side Bazaar |
Representing Ethiopian, Loatian, Thai, Jamaican and Halal cuisines,
the West Side Bazaar caters to the traditional taste of the many immigrant and
refugee groups on the West Side while encouraging others to join in the
adventure. A lot of traditional handmade merchandise is made and put on
display. Clothing, wooden sculptures and jewelry grab the eyes of customers as
they sift though all the unique clothes and decorations from other countries.
The food is only the result of a
much larger trend that begins with the people. The rise in population from
immigrants originating from other regions of the world has created a demand for
foods from those countries, according to Cindi Thomason, senior advisor at the Small Business Development Center
at SUNY Buffalo State.
“The West Side restaurants have a
client base, they have built a demand for the comfort foods that people like,” she
said. “Based on what I see in my office, there is a demand for food products of
other countries and they wish to share it with their countrymen and others.”
She also
noted that the development of this built-in market has greatly contributed to
the revitalization and growth of small businesses on the West Side. The
development of international restaurants on the West Side shows no signs of
slowing down and for all who live there, the experience of another country’s
culture is right around the corner.
