Adolf's Old First Ward Tavern

Don’t let the location or name spook you - this is proper local cuisine. A few buddies and I were in town for the Bills game, and we walked from downtown to here (coincidentally, we Ubered back). By the time we arrived, thirst was high, appetites were soaring, and this place met every expectation. Canadian I may be, but I drank a local amber, feasted on hot wings and a mesquite dry rub, and was well taken care of by the lovely waitstaff. A note on the wings - the flats were absurdly crispy and the drumsticks slightly meatier. This is more a crispy wing than a juicy. The blue cheese was thick, gently flavoured, and wonderfully cooling. And the fries were honestly amazing, a bit floppy just how I like ‘em. Amazing spot.

One of our many stops for wings while in Buffalo. Food was fantastic, we order medium wing with garlic parmesean. While the food was great, talking to the bar tender Joe better. If you want to truly know Buffalo get off the beaten path and explore places like this!!

My wife and I visited here recently for lunch with family. There were 6 of us altogether, and we sat in a table in the upper portion. I had a steak burger medium well with American cheese, mushrooms and bacon served with fries. My wife had chicken fingers with chips with the homemade bleu cheese. The burger was very delicious, and one of the best burgers I have had. My wife enjoyed her chicken fingers, although the homemade dressing wasn't creamy enough and was stiff. Table service was a bit long, but it was understandable due to the crowd and the time of day it was (lunchtime). Nice friendly pub atmosphere. Parking is a bit of a problem. Not many spots on South Park and you cannot park in the parking lot across the street at Carbones.

Wings don't get much better than this. I got 10 hot and 10 of Sully's salt & vinegar- both absolutely perfect. The homemade blue cheese sauce was incredible. Friendly quick service, a real homey vibe. Top shelf!

Despite coming in right before the kitchen closed, we were seated and served right away with great professionalism and kindness, and I couldn’t be more grateful! Was my first time at Adolfs and their wings are hands down some of the best in Buffalo! Highly recommend and cannot wait to go back!

We were looking to get some grear wings and Adolfs delivered, we had the medium and the lemon-pepoer, great crisp and size, the hot sauce flavor was different than other wing places, a 4 out 5. Of course, had to have a Guinness, with the clover and great head! Fun place and wait staff was very attentive.

Decides to give this place a try after a few recommendations, and I'm glad we did! It is a little bit on the smaller side, and you will have a wait, but the wings were outstanding and the waitresses were friendly too! Ordered medium and hot, and the sauce was amazing and the hot was definitely up there in the hot scale. The wings came out crispy, and their homemade blue cheese was perfect! Give this place a shot, the unsung hero of the wing scene in Buffalo!

Adolf’s is the perfect place to go and experience the First Ward vibe in Buffalo! Food is great, cooked perfectly, large servings and reasonably priced. We got Buffalo style wings to start with their home made Blue Cheese. Yum!! Two of us had the Maryland Crab BLT which was excellent! I had the Beef on Weck which was piled high with tender roast beef and an au jus dip. Joanne waited on us and was very nice making sure we had what we needed!

Food was absolutely amazing. From the outside the place looks like a biker bar in a kind of sketchy looking part of town, but don't let that stop you. The inside bleeds old time historic bar room, and was warm and friendly. Irish beer on tap (my favorite). Shepard's pie was excellent. Wings were excellent. Six in our party & no one had a bad meal. Prices were very reasonable. On my go to list now for every trip to Buffalo.

More than food, it's an experience, so many Great things to try. All made on premises right on order, simple Buffalo food for decades. Ambiance is dark, dusky, and worn to time. It's has a feel of a place that's been here forever. We started here on our chicken wing run, it led the pack till the end, many restaurants and wings later.

Great comfort food in a classic Buffalo establishment. The beef on weck is excellent, a generous serving, too.

We hadn't been here in a while but heard they had $.75 wings on Mondays. We ordered Barbecue wings and Salt and Vinegar wings. We didn't like the Salt and Vinegar wings , they were very small,too crispy and little flavor. The barbecue wings were also very small with way too much barbecue sauce. The Beef on Weck was very dry tough and under seasoned. Service was good. Very nice bar with a lot of character.

Six of us ladies met here for lunch, and were disappointed to find the upstairs dining area filled with a private party. But we're a pretty flexible bunch, so we accepted sitting at two bistro tables pushed together by the windows in the front of the barroom. I was looking forward to pierogi, but no such luck. I don't know if they no longer serve them, or if they were just out, but that line on the menu was taped over. We had several issues. Hamburger ordered medium rare came well done. (It was taken off her bill.) Very, very long waits for drinks and food. Cole slaw on my reuben (strange), which was also overly browned. There were other problems, but forgive me for not being able to recall them at the moment. So after all that, why did I give five stars? Because this place is iconic. It's a must visit for anyone who wants to experience a true Buffalo dive bar. The slow service was not our server JoAnn's fault. She was hustling, obviously doing her best, and was super nice and apologetic. They have my favorite beer - Rohrbach's Scotch Ale - on tap. That alone is worth a couple stars.

Overall I'm still giving this spot 5 stars after our first visit. We had a bit of a wait which I'll explain below, but overall still an awesome spot. The reason this is still five stars is because of the cheapest drinks I've ever seen, delicious food, and the nice staff that completely made up for the wait! They even gave us tokens for free drinks next time we come back since it was a long wait. So we can't wait to come back and try their wings on a less busy night. Fun spot! Just a huge heads up, on any night with a game or event downtown on a Friday during lent you may want to find somewhere else so you're not waiting an extremely long time (or late to your event). We made this mistake this Friday before a bandits game, our reservation was at 5:30 and we didn't get our food until 7. To be fair, they did have big takeout orders and large parties, but this was still a long time to wait for food.

Best wings I have ever had. Blue Cheese is crazy good. Tried the french onion soup and it was amazing.

Came in from out of town and this was such a good find. A true hole-in-the-wall neighborhood bar with amazing food and great prices. We started with a Caesar salad which was large enough for 2-3 people and came out within minutes. Fresh lettuce and homemade Caesar dressing and croutons - simple and delicious. The wings were huge and crispy. We ordered the medium buffalo and garlic parm varieties. As far as wings go, these were hands down the best we've ever had. We ended up taking half of them home with us and they were still just as good the next day. Tip - get extra bleu cheese dressing on the side! I'm not even a bleu cheese fan, but this stuff was OUT OF THIS WORLD! The beef on weck was also huge and the horseradish that came on the side was a perfect complement to the beef and salted, caraway seasoned roll. If we pass through town again, we will definitely be sure to stop by!

5 stars? Sure! This is the definition of a hole in the wall local pub restaurant. Amazing food low prices. We ate like Kings. Everything was really good. Their homemade blue cheese might be second to none. Delicious wings. My in laws would say it's the best fish fry in the city. I liked it. Not sure it blew me away. It was a lot of food. It did the trick. The fish itself was a little thin. I like thicker fish fry's. Where I can really taste fish and not just breading. But I really liked this place. The food, atmosphere, service. All winners.

Went here on Friday during lent for fish. If you're looking for the Buffalo 1st ward experience, this is it. Over 100 years old, great people, great layout. Bar is in the front at street level, then you walk up stairs to the back to eat. I had the fish fry, outstanding. Very well cooked, cole slaw was terrific. Aimee had the fried shrimp special; this was overcooked on our visit, but the waitress recognized that and took it off the bill. When the Sabres game let out that night, all the ushers stormed in for dinner and drinks together. Highly recommend!

Service was excellent. There was never a moment waiting for service. Ordered the wings, because of course, and they were amazing. Wish my stomach was bigger so I could enjoy more dishes. Homemade blue cheese was a perfect compliment to the hot wings.

Heard good things about the wings and wanted to try them out. The medium wings were very good and so was the blue cheese. Lots of other options on the menu too that looked good. I was there mid-afternoon but the bar was somewhat busy with regulars. Service was efficient and the ambiance was corner neighborhood bar. The banter between the bartender and the regulars added to the experience. Looking forward to my next visit.

Adolph's Old First Ward Tavern We've really been looking forward to this one... how could a place named Adolf's be anything but great, right? Location: 3 / 5 Another trip to South Buffalo where apparently there are two wing restaurants for every resident. The décor could use a little TLC and the back room was pretty sterile but not atypical of the local wing scene. The Guinness was delightful but outside of that, be aware this bar only offers your dad's beer selection. Presentation: 3 / 5 A valiant effort on the custom bleu cheese but it missed the mark on flavor. Good to see celery and carrots but those who read our reviews will recognize that it is a bad omen when we start complimenting the vegetable garnishes. Meat: 2 / 5 Flats, drums and now, elbows. And WTF happened to these chickens' skin? Were they sand blasted and calloused before their final trip to the processing facility? Hard to tell what was worse; the boney cartilage or elephant skin. In hindsight, a score of two was generous. Cook: 6 / 10 Crispy is always a good quality but the rest of the cook was really difficult to score... due to the aforementioned thick skin... and the soon-to-be-mentioned flavor. Standard medium: 8 / 15 We always order 4 or 5 flavors and we all go around the horn once carefully and silently trying each flavor so as not to sway opinions before everyone has sampled each flavor. Sometime an adjective is thrown in the heat of passionate tasting. At Adolph's, the adjectives were flying and the only positive one, targeting the medium wings, was "tolerable". Specialty: 0 / 10 Yes, that score is correct. We couldn't believe it either. The BBQ wings were reminiscent of Hunts Manwich sauce, which was ridiculously overapplied to the point they stained our fingers. Salt and vinegar had so much salt on them it resembled icing sugar... yet it was not even the most salted wing of the evening. The Medium Old Bay welcomed us to clove town and while they should have been the worst wing of the night, the Hot Lemon Pepper wing said "hold my beer". Imagine several packets of salt, poured straight down your gullet. In a spark of genius, we ordered a Fried Bologna Sandwich (I know, shame on us) to wash it down. That it was the highlight of the night says much more about the wings than the fried bologna. Overall: 22 / 50

The food here is fabulous! We ordered wings and had onion rings and chicken wing soup and poutine style tots. Everything was delicious. If you've forgotten what real onion rings are-try these! They're life changing! The wings we ordered were medium and hot BBQ! Perfectly cooked and sauced! The service here is always excellent. We've never had a bad experience here. Ambiance is old school classic tavern! Great bar!

Went for .49 cent wings, it was busy, but staff was accommodating. Would recommend if you're looking for a chill South Buffalo vibe.

Love this bar located in South Buffalo. The bar has a friendly, cozy atmosphere.The food and drink prices were excellent and good quality ingredients. We had 3 drinks total and a fish sandwich that came with a good size portion of tots and mac salad for under $30. The fish was crisp and fresh on a Costanzo roll with tomatoes and lettuce on the side. I loved every bite and can't wait to go back and try more.

Adolf's was such an experience. I heard about it on Reddit of all places, and we were very skeptical when we went in. No AC, fans everywhere, crowded, waited a long time for food, but when we got it, omg. The wings? Holy Moses! There's a good reason wings are called Buffalo wings. They were the best I've ever had. We had pirogies, potato skins, and pretzels for appetizers; two roast beef sandwiches, chicken fingers, and wings, 2 glasses of wine, and a Pepsi for under $120. It was the cheapest, best meal we had the whole trip to the Niagara/Buffalo area. I'm glad we didn't chicken out when we got there and learned there was no AC. It was tremendous! I wish we could take the cook home with us!

Some of the best wings in Buffalo. Always come out crispy and steaming hot. Really good potato skins too. On the smaller side but a classic Irish bar

We just arrived to the Buffalo area and we stopped by Adolf's Old World Tavern with my husband and teenage sons. It was late afternoon and turned out a great place to visit with so many culinary surprises and great hospitality. We split 40 wings of different seasonings and the staff threw in additional 10 for us to try. The soup special was banana pepper soup and had never heard of it being from Kansas. It was absolutely tremendous. The staff was so friendly and gave us some tips on seeing Niagara Falls. We got to meet the chef Robert Duvall and he shared with us the crab cakes. So incredible. He is originally from Maryland and ended up in Buffalo and brings some of that Maryland tradition to the restaurant. My for teenage boys loved the place and couldn't get enough of the wings. Such a great experience after getting off a long plane ride. Definitely recommend.

Great wings and coldest bottle beer in all of Buffalo! The service was great and can't wait to go back to try others.

Great neighborhood bar. The best wings I've ever had and the house made blue cheese was subtle and delicious. Cold beer, friendly service and great wings!

I'm realizing that I haven't done my review since covid has been over and I'm well overdue for an update. I'm a regular here now and I love it. The owners love their bar and their customers. The staff is great and so is the food. They have full bar service with a variety of liquor, seltzer, and beer options. They even have a small selection of wine. Food is back and i highly recommend it. The specials are dine in only so get ready to sit at the bar, come with friends and sit at a table at the top of the stairs, or take advantage of the patio when weather permits it. Mondays are 75c cent wing nights, Tuesday is taco Tuesday where you get 3 tacos or 1 burrito, and on Thursdays they have a burger special. Fridays they have an array of seafood options from fish fry to peal and eat shrimp (don't worry, you can get these to go). They also have other great items on their menu worth trying. Visit my favorite Irish pub in the Old First Ward and let them know I sent you. Maybe I'll see you there.

The wings are excellent! Crispy and saucy! We ordered some other apps too. All really good. They also have every type of beer you can think of so you'll find something you like. Cool spot.

The best wings I've ever had! I was in town with family for our reunion and visited on the way back from the falls....after days of research, we decided we needed to have buffalo wings while we were in the area and Adolf's was highly recommended. I agree with that recommendation..... I am already thinking of coming back before I fly back to Alabama

Our brunch club went here on a Saturday with eight people. The staff was happy to reconfigure the tables to accommodate us. The bar and restaurant exhibit an authentic ambiance that many chain restaurants try to emulate but this is the real deal. This also means that not every area was handicap accessible and that the restrooms are old. The staff was friendly and courteous, our waitress took our drink orders promptly. I ordered a Sullivan's draft stout, which was great. I went with the Irish banger platter, which was promptly served. The platter was reasonably priced and generous in portion. The bangers were fantastic as were the spiced green beans that accompanied them. The mashed potatoes were also very nice. My wife had the comfort platter with turkey, top notch and a generous portion also. Home cooked meals from scratch all the way around. Each of the eight attendees raved about their food and drinks. This place is a real gem, as are the staff. Can't wait to return as there are a number of other offerings I would love to try.

This was my second time here. Both times food and service very good. This was probably the best rueben I have ever had!!

Fun first ward experience. Was there during a football game. Wings, Beef on Weck, upcharged mashed potatoes on the side, and fingers were all good.

Old school spot on the outskirts of downtown. went to try the wings and weck, both were top notch. Home made onion rings were perfection. Next time I want to try some of the Irish specialties, which sounded amazing too! Definitely a divey vibe, but we like that sort of thing.

My friend and her husband come here often and I keep listening to her talking about Adolf's. My mom and I were in the area last night and I suggested this place and Gene McCarthy's. We decided on Adolf's and I am so happy we picked this place. I have been to Gene McCarthy's and like it there, but Adolf's has more space, which I love. When you first enter, there is a great bar area and some seating. Walk up a couple stairs and you are in the main dining area where there is ample space to sit and eat and also a dart board. The lights in the back are made out of Guinness pint glasses and there are Guinness banners hung around the perimeter of the dining room. I looked over at the table next to us and saw they ordered wings. They looked delicious and I need to go back and try them especially with the various flavors they offer. I had a tequila, club soda and lime and it was $4 and served in a pint glass. My mom had a bourbon Manhattan and it was $8. She enjoyed it and the drink was filled to the top. We started with the perky pickles. They were fried pickles with salt and vinegar seasoning and served with a sriracha ranch sauce. That salt and vinegar seasoning was everything. We really enjoyed the flavoring. My mom and I decided to split our meals. She got the French melt and I went with the crab and beef sandwich. Each was served on a Costanzo roll and included melted cheese. I liked the roast beef and crab combo. It is something I would never think to pair together. The French melt was also delicious and served with a large bowl of au jus to dip. It tasted like a French onion soup sandwich with beef. The beef was tender. Both sandwiches were served with chips and a pickle. The waitress was ridiculously friendly and kind. Actually, the entire staff was friendly, kind and welcoming. The cook even came out at one point and asked us if we were enjoying the meal. Touches like that really elevate the experience. There is parking on the street.

Had some hot wings. They were great . The wait wad a bit longer than usual but it seemed everyone came in one after the other. It was a little busy. Overall great place.

This place has been around forever but recently started popping up on a lot of people's best chicken wings in the area lists and they were often considered elite. Being a chicken wing connoisseur I decided to stop down and see for myself. The menu says that their wings are always served crispy and they certainly were and you could see the steam rising from them. I grade all of the chicken wing places by their homemade hot sauce and this one did not disappoint. Very tasty, not over powering but definitely a notch or 2 hotter than most. The sauce is light so it's essential to dip it in a side of their homemade hot sauce for full effect. Homemade bleu cheese is an added bonus. Service is extra friendly. Ambiance is that of your favorite local establishment. The verdict is in: welcome to the ELITE chicken wings list Adolf's! I'll be back soon and often to check out some of your other flavors. Try some TODAY!

Went for dinner, was a private party in back. Not one staff member even acknowledged my existence. Won't be back. For business owners who complain you always have yourself to blame.

Came here after softball with the team for good and drinks. Everyone was happy with their orders. I had the chicken fingers. They actually have their own homemade blue cheese and Ken's. I was scared to risk it so I stuck with Ken's. We sat outside which was nice. I played cornhole out there. Staff is nice!

Service was awesome. Food lived up to its name. I would go again and make it our pre Bandits dinner

Some of the best wings I have ever had. Unlike other wing places in the city, the hot is actually hot. Great ambiance and fast, efficient service.

Wings are the best, service was great and inside was clean. Never disappoint it when I go. Food is always served hot. The beer is always cold. If you haven't been there, I highly recommend it.

Nice place to stop and grab a bite and a drink. I find myself in the neighborhood on a Tuesday usually which is Taco Tuesday! $10 for three beef, chicken or steak tacos (mix & match too).They also give you some chips with salsa and cheese. The fingers seem to be hand breaded and the fries are fresh cut. The wings are good too! They offer regular or homemade blue cheese for for wings and fingers. I suggest you try the homemade. I want to try the entire menu. So far so good! I appreciate these local diamonds in the rough so much. The fried pickles are on my radar for my next trip.

Menu was very diverse. Plenty of delicious items. Stuffed peppers excellent. Reagan excellent. Reuben excellent routine excellent. Waitress beautiful and very attentive. Must try

I went to Adolf's off a coworker's recommendation while in town for a wedding. We had medium wings with their homemade bleu cheese. Honestly, the best wings I've ever had. The flavor was incredible. I then had a side salad which was good and their special which was a crab cake. The crab cake was a fantastic flavor and probably the best crab cake I've also had. My husband had the roast beef on wex. He raved about it and I tried it and thought it was great as well. We never had something "on wex" but would recommend. The staff was extremely friendly and it was an overall great experience. Would definitely come back and recommend!

Wings were way too salty. Complaint was given and nothing was done about it. Didn't even offer to redo the order or try them for themselves.

Amazing service and excellent food., Great choices on the menu. The clientele are friendly which make it a great atmosphere. Love this place

They serve a stuffed fish on Friday that's out of this world!!! The Irish potato's are also amazing!

Fun retro bar in buffalo NY. Hit it for lunch on business trip. Place goes back many years 1930s or so. Good food. Had the roast beef on seeded bun.

Today, we tried the roast beef on weck with a side of fries. That roast beef was piled (and I mean piled) on! It was lean and so tender.... no grisly pieces or fatty pieces. No one does French Fries better than Adolphs! Make good choices and go to Adolphs for that roast beef!!

I already thought Adolfs was amazing... But after I learned the bartenders last name was also amazing I couldn't help but write a review. Come here for good food, times and Minnie ginnies!!

Amazing wings. Amazing service. Would say this is a top 3 wing in Buffalo. Went to Gabriel's gate, Bar Bill, and Adolf's. Can't miss places for wings.

Went here for lunch. The wings were the best I've had in decades. Guiness on tap. The staff was awesome. The smell and atmosphere brings me back to my younger days. My go to since Hemmingways closed.

Super friendly staff and cheap drinks! The food is actually really solid, not a bad price for wings or fingers and the fries are tasty. Would recommend their loaded tots too!

Good was great service ok but the building needs work it's very old and had a sour smell But recommend the tater tots cooked in Guinness beer and roast beef sandwich