Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Santora's Pizza and Pub in Williamsville

I love how so many businesses in Buffalo are family owned and operated, and have been passed down from generation to generation. One of these businesses, Santora’s Pizza, Pub & Grill, has a rich history in the Buffalo area for over 80 years!

The Santora family has been selling pizza since 1927, when the founder sold slices in his homemade ice cream shop. In 1947, the first Santora'a Napoli Pizzeria was opened and the family has continued to grow and expand the business, and keep the tradition alive, while updating the concept as the times changed.

Currently there are two locations, one on Transit Road in Williamsville (across from the Eastern Hills Mall) and the other on Millersport Highway (across from The Marriott Hotel). 

I started my own tradition a few years ago, picking a locally owned restaurant for my birthday festivities with my family. This year, I chose to go to the location on Main Street, and in total, there were 14 of us celebrating my birthday on Sunday April 1st.

Before I even get to the food, I have to talk about the service. Service and atmosphere at any restaurant are almost as important as the food quality, and the service here was absolutely outstanding. Getting a table of 14 cannot be easy to serve for any waiter/waitress, but our waiter, Chris was great! He kept my, how shall I say it, “unique” family happy!

A few of the people at our tables ordered appetizers, including myself, and I had the coconut shrimp (one of my favorite appetizers in general). They were great! Perfectly cooked and crispy, and the sauce that went with it was tasty. The nachos and chicken wing dip were also ordered and they were good too!  

I won’t bore you with all the dinner orders at our table, but they included wrapinis, burgers, the all you can eat pizza buffet, chicken fingers, and subs. As I looked around the table when our food finally came (I will admit that it did take a really long time for our orders to come out, but I guess with 14 people I can understand that), everything looked good and presented well. I asked everyone how their food was, and everyone enjoyed their meals. I hardly noticed how long it took for food to come out because there were so many people to talk with, but a few people did comment on how long it was taking. 

I ordered the veggie Panini sandwich, and it was really good, although the one side of my bread was slightly burned. I tried a little bit of the pizza and while I wouldn’t say it was the best I ever had, it was really good. I liked the dough and the sauce was tasty.

The prices are reasonable and on par with other pub and grills in the area. They really do have a wide range of menu options and something for everyone!

The restaurant itself has a very fun atmosphere with ample seating, game area, and many tv’s to watch sporting events! They offer great drink specials for Happy Hour from 4pm – 7pm everyday, and they offer take out, delivery and also catering for your next party.

If you are looking for a new place to try, check out one of these locations. I can't speak to the service and atmosphere at the Millersport location, but based on what I saw on Main Street, I'm sure it's just as great!

For more reviews on Santora's, click below:
Santora's Pizza Pub & Grill on Urbanspoon

3 comments:

  1. To have lasted all this time, they're obviously doing all the right things. It almost makes me wonder what secret ingredients and spices they use.

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  2. It isn't on main its on transit road.

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  3. Pubs are always attractive to patrons especially if their food tastes great among competitors. Even small businesses can be relied on catering, you know.

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