Visit Your Favorite Places In Buffalo Now!

We’re approaching the end of the year—probably faster than we’d like to admit, or maybe not fast enough, depending how the past 10 months and change have treated you—and soon the invitations for holiday parties and drinks with friends will start to pour in. Thanksgiving arrives in a little more than two weeks, with Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa less than a month later.

Maybe you have out-of-town friends coming in for the holidays, and the conversations are already starting: Where do you want to go for dinner? Where do you want to get a drink, maybe to get together, possibly to watch a game (congrats to the Sabres and the Bills for winning this weekend)?

But here’s the sad truth about it: There are at least two Buffalo institutions that cannot be the gathering place for your friends this year. And we’re about to feel those losses of space in a very real way.

On Friday, October 25, Timothy Wiles passed away. The owner of the legendary Swannie House on Ohio Street had been a fixture in his bar for decades, but with the passing of Tim and the passing of his second wife, Debbie Wiles-Fetterman, last year, the family has decided to close the bar and sell the property.

“If our dad has taught us anything, it is the importance of putting your family first,” Maria Wiles Bell said in a letter. “His children have established roots and live out of state, and it would be a disservice to our young babies and families to change their lives as well as our own. It would especially be a disservice to our dad’s legacy if we did not have the ability to pour everything into the business he loved. The future is unknown, but we wish to find someone who can do just that as well as preserve its long, storied history.“

The Wileses were the beloved host at the bar for more than 30 years, welcoming friends and strangers alike (though strangers might have received a bit of a skeptical glance, especially if they didn’t know the bar’s cash only policy in advance). The loss of Wiles and the Swannie House—at least for a little while—will loom large over Buffalo this holiday season.

And we all know the loss this community felt deeply earlier this summer, when the Pink burned down in what turned out to be an act of arson by an aggrieved and aggravated man who is now receiving treatment for his mental health.

In the days that followed the mid-June fire, just after the Allentown Art Festival, people gathered to mourn together at a place where they had been celebrating just hours before. There was a community-wide sense of grief.

Places like the Pink and the Swannie aren’t just places to have a beer or get some food. They’re not just brick-and-mortar establishments. They’re not just places to send tourists when they’re looking for a local place to get good food late into the night.

The places we gather with friends are sacred. The ability to be together is powerful.

So. To turn these sad thoughts around:

When your friend calls and asks to meet up for a drink or dinner, think about a place that matters to you.

Think about the coffee shops you love, especially the small independent ones like Caffe Aroma or the new-this-year Raha Coffee House. These are inherently welcoming places where people can sit and talk in a cozy, warm environment, enjoying each other’s company.

Think about the restaurants that have the best food. Small places like Gabriel’s Gate or Cole's—even places like Chef's—are important locally for a reason. These are filled with shared memories and those little moments that make us feel connected and like we’re at home.

Anything can be lost in a moment. This holiday season, spend time in the places that matter with the people that matter. Take a moment to take a deep breath and be grateful for the gems in our community and the people who make them special. Tell your friends you love them. Tip your bartenders.