You wouldn’t know it by my last name, but I am mostly Italian. I grew up on Italian food--pasta and meatballs every Sunday. So I take my Italian food very seriously. Over the years I’ve driven by Santasiero’s countless times. But it was only a few weeks ago that I tried Santasiero’s for the first time.
I went for takeout and ordered eggplant parmigiana, one of my favorite Italian dishes. I also wanted to try their meatballs and sausage, so I asked for two of each in a container of sauce--a request that a friendly employee was happy to accommodate. The eggplant parmigiana was tasty. The sausage was the best I had eaten in a long time, and contained just the right amount of kick. The meatballs, dare I say, were just like grandma used to make. As for the sauce, I would rate it as being very good.
In order to try a few more dishes, my wife and I dropped in on a Saturday evening. I tried the Pasta Santanesca, a heaping dish of penne, tomatoes, black olives, onions, and garlic. The waitress warned me there would be a lot of garlic, and she wasn’t kidding. How much garlic? I’ll put it this way: Garlic is supposedly good for the heart and if that’s true, my ticker is in great shape. I really liked this dish, and definitely recommend it.
The bill came to $24.75--the Pasta Santanesca, the goulash that my wife enjoyed, and a half carafe of Lambrusco (I know, not exactly a wine drinker’s wine. I’ll never be mistaken for a wine connoisseur). There was plenty of food leftover, which we enjoyed the following evening. I added artichokes to the Pasta Santanesca, which give it a nice twist the second time around.
Much to my chagrin, we live in a world filled with chain establishments (perhaps you’re familiar with the quasi-Italian one that offers unlimited soup, salad, and breadsticks, along with unlimited forced ambience). Places like Santasiero’s seem fewer and farther between these days. I’m glad that I am now a customer of Santasiero’s, a no frills place with an interesting family history (check out www.santasieros.com to read about it). Overall, I’d say that Santasiero’s has charm, character, history, and most importantly, good Italian food. My kind of place.
Santasiero’s
1329 Niagara Street, Buffalo, 14213
716.886.9197