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Elmwood Market: What It Is And What It Isn’t

The grande opening (March 17th) for the Elmwood Market & Grill was a success; everything (mostly, save for the beer and some organics, the credit/EBT system was yet to be activated) in place and ready for the steady stream of customers wishing them success and of course, buying things. I was there Monday morning, and seeing as I live accross the street, I’ll be there every day no doubt. The atmosphere is a whole lot more inviting than Wilson farms, and less of a chore than Walgreens. I also had a chance to chat a bit with the owners: Dale, Alex, and Tony. The guys are very excited to be on Elmwood and are eager to fit in with the community, asking for suggestions to stock (organics and conventional) and basically trying to get a feel for the area.

Since Latina’s closed last spring, the community has been longing for a new place to shop. Unfulfilled talks of Dash’s, Tops, and Whole Food’s filling the void that Latina’s left put despair in the area. No one wants to be let with a crummy Wilson Farms; the added burden has had a negative effect on the store, overcrowding at times and leaving the store more haggard than it has been in years. Thus, the Elmwood Market has many shoes to fill… have they picked the right ones to tackle? We’ll see.

Read on for my initial assessment of the store and its role for the community.

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Sai One: Valentine’s Day Contest

With February now amongst us, that means that Valentine’s Day is in just two short weeks. With that said, Angel has a drawing over at his store for a V-day bundle worth about $125!

The rules:

1. Head down to Sai One (818 Elmwood, across from the Lexington Co-op), and take a gander at the glass jar full of Hershey Kisses.
2. Guess the amount of Kisses in the jar and write the number down on a slip of paper with: your name and your phone or email address, which ever gets a hold of you first. Slip it in an envelope and go about your business.
3. On February 13th, Angel will pick the entry with the closest (or exact) number to the actual count of the Kisses without going over. In case of a tie, a random draw will decide the winning slip. You’ll get a ring or a ping, and you can pick up your prize.

The prize:

1. One-of-A-Kind Spring handbag, made especially for the contest.
2. Angel’s custom Chocolate body line: lotion, body wash, and bath salts; all infused with the rich and lucsious scent of chocolate.
3. A Sai One red Ladie’s Tank/Panty set.

No purchase necessary, just head over and take a guess. Since the drawing is on the 13th, that gives you the opportunity to gift this as well if you win, making you look super special with your lady and possibly securing third base.

• SaiOne (818 Elmwood, Buffalo, NY) - Blog

SaiOne: My Narcissistic Daily Dose

 
[Brooklyn Industries, left. and Jib Hunt, lower right] 

Angel is my left nut. Kinda sweet and endearing of me eh?  We hang out every day, either at my office or his store, Sai One. Since he moved shop to the 800 block on Elmwood, it’s never been so much fun. The amount of hot guys (bears too!) walking in and out have tripled, and with more merch moving, there’s more stuff getting shipped in from NYC. That being said, I get the loverly privelage of trying on all the smedium fitting items. yea, it’s smedium. Higher end lines have been whittling down the standard sizes a lot more lately: small is extra small, medium is a smedium or regular small, and large is a medium allovasudden.  When I try everything on, Angel tells me I’m growing a belly (LIES!!!) and that I’m getting huge, because the mediums are fitting nicely now. He’s just yealous of mah sexiness. All things aside, the stuff at Sai One you won’t find anywhere but NYC, and only if you know how to get places. And you can also rest assured that Angel and his biz partner try to only stock one of each, no copy cats around herr.

You can click below for a flickr set with a lot more photos of yours truly looking dapper and smug in some new arrivals… I’ll warn you that if you like something you saw on me, you should come get it before I get paid. Game on Bitches.

• P.S. - Angel has a website coming soon for the store, so we took a whole lot of merchandise pictures, like the pillows, and purses, shoes, and candles. He stocks a lot more than skinny boy clothes, but I can’t wear a cocktail dress or a candlestick now can I?

• Saione @ 818 Elmwood ave, Blog
• I wanna be a supermodel [flickrset]

Pier 1 demolished, Bank of America coming soon.

[click the pic to embiggen via flickr]

They ripped down the vacant Pier 1 on Wednesday, and in its spot will soon be a shiny new Bank of America, relocated from the Utica street. A slight bit of irony is that last August, Warren Buffet bought some Bank of America and sold his Pier 1 ownings.

Anyways, The Elmwood village dug their claws into this one –per usual– and the new plans are for a faux two story building with 4 bike spots, a greenspace and OMGPARKING! Miraculously, everything was approved and we should start to see some new construction start soon.

On a latter Elmwood note:

• Astoria is closed for good. -New Years eve was the last night. This is partly do to Elmwood (the EVA and the people) ignoring the Bryant section, and adds to the sad trend of closing stores and turnovers on that block. Solid Ground closed because the owner was a bitch and the food sucked, and Angel moved his store (Sai One) to the 800 block, as did Atelier. Astoria had some of the best food on the strip and no one appreciated that enough. Mythos is the closest equivalent, but its still not the same.

The Sai One Custom Hoodie

Rock. Star.

Angel made me this Hoodie over the weekend. By hand, fit for me. I feel like a big ol’ homo wearing custom made threads. Ok, a warm big ol’ homo cause this sucker is toasty!

This was a prototype and I think Angel has plans to make a few more in different variations. If you want one, stop by his store on 818 Elmwood and let him know, or email him. Just remember, its Sai One; meaning this is the only piece in this style he’ll make.

Check out the flickrset with larger shots of the hoodie

Podawhaffacast #2

Offishally called the Podawhaffacast, I’m back and mumbley as ever, but now I have a co-host cohort, Angel. There were a lot of technical difficulties with this one, mainly audio tracking and the camera popped a bit out of frame, and its a huge file because I couldn’t edit it with the camera we used… regardless, Its a pretty tight show.

I think we covered too much information, the next episodes will be about 5-10 minutes long. Below you can check out the links and information we mentioned from the show. Thanks for watching! and give us some feedback as what to put in the next one… coming in the next couple weeks.

From the Show

• Nicole Giordano: Trunk Sale @ Sai One, on Dec 1st. All Day.
  www.nicolegiordano.com
• Sai One: Clothing and Accessories straight from NYC. 818 Elmwood.
  www.saione.blogspot.com
• Buffawhat’s Map: pinpoint locations and info on my favorite places on elmwood to shop
  Shop Local {Google Maps Mashup}
• Hero Design: 13th Month Anniversary @Hero on Nov 30th. 93 Allen. 7-10.
  www.heroandsound.com
• FireBrand: Boots Shoes Bags! 715 Elmwood.
  www.firebrandfootwear.com
• “Indian Blood:” December 4-30th @ Studio Arena. 710 Main St.
  www.studioarena.org
• Diary of a Freak Dancer Resurrection: dj Xotec’ newest mixset. download from my site or his.
  www.djxotec.com
• The Autobots: November 3oth, at Club Marcella. 12-4am. 622 Main St.
  www.theautobots.com

Snap! - Sexy shirt numma 2

Snap! - Sexy shirt numma 2

Originally uploaded by Buffawhat. Taken 16 Mar ‘07, 9.48pm AST PST.

Another awesome shirt from Sai One… I may be gay… But this girl is hawt!

Sai One Brings White Boy to Buffalo

[fa:p:t=angelshouse,id=422748126,,s=m,l=p]

Not this whiteboy, I’m already old goods here… but the shirt… oh the shirt. Everybody loves a big cock. A pure word-of-mouth line,

White Boy is all about the wearer’s style and attitude. What people think is the last thing on his mind. White Boy is not about color it is about standing out in whatever you do, pushing the limits, and taking matters into your own hands.

Worn and repped by stars such as Tommy Lee, Jessica Alba, Chester from Linkin Park, Good Charlotte, White Boy now has the unique opportunity to make its mark on a city thats full of its own attitude.

Angel brought in more than just White Boy, peep the pics below and check out his store on Elmwood and Bryant, next to Solid Grounds.

[fa:p:t=saione,id=422750216,j=l,s=sq,l=p][fa:p:t=saione,id=422750060,j=l,s=sq,l=p][fa:p:t=saione,id=422750117,j=l,s=sq,l=p]

Check the Linkage

Sai One

WhiteBoy

Fairy Face

DSC00192

Originally uploaded by Buffawhat. Taken 9 Feb ‘07, 9.59pm AST PST.

I tend to submit myself to “photo shoots” when I drink a little bit… I was just at Casa da Pizza with Angel of Sai One on Elmwood… He had his camera.. I had a few Flying Bison Pints… and well.. ya know…

Sai One Private Line for Buffawhat

Here’s an example of just how much custom love Angel over a SAI One (on the 400 block of Elmwood) puts into his wares:

That’s right… my very own branded messenger bag.