Review: At Dog & Pony Saloon, South Buffalo gets a menu for modern times

Chimichurri potato salad, Korean brussels sprouts helps broaden appeal after covering basics

Chicken francese at The Dog & Pony Saloon

People don’t go out as much as they did before the pandemic. That’s the consensus among restaurant customers and restaurant owners I’ve interviewed. How big the drop was depends on who’s guessing, but it’s universal, across all ages and genders.

The Buffalo tavern was already an endangered species, threatened by rent increases, changing tastes, and demolition-minded developers. In a time of shrinking audiences, standing out from the crowd is more important than ever.

Near Cazenovia Park, in the heart of South Buffalo, The Dog & Pony Saloon is making a strong bid to build a Buffalo tavern for the modern era.

Strategically placed flatscreen televisions make it a gameday bar. A stage and performance space in the rear dining area allows for entertainment, like live music and comedy nights. A patio on the side of the building offers al fresco seating in clement weather.

Wings, burgers, loaded fries, and such are ably represented. A menu of expected comforts with a flip side of upscale scratch cooking lets the restaurant welcome parties out on the town for all sorts of missions.

Duck confit poutine ($16) of confited duck, duck herb gravy, house-cut fries, and cheddar cheese curds, was closer to my platonic ideal poutine than most versions round these parts, second on my poutine depth chart after Winfield’s Pub. I’d consider them a must at both places.

Korean fried Brussels sprouts ($12) is frizzle-fried halved mini-cabbage tossed in vinaigrette on a bed of gochujang sauce, made with the Korean fermented chile paste for funk plus heat. Togarishi, dried rice seasoning, and matchsticked fresh radish added welcome contrasts to an intense dish that gets finished first.

Korean fried brussels sprouts at The Dog & Pony Saloon

The Dog & Pony tries harder than your average tavern to welcome customers trying to avoid gluten. Most bars with fryers have one. Here there are two fryers, one reserved for gluten-free eats. The Bourdain ($14), fried mortadella, Swiss-American cheese, and dijonaise, can arrive on toasted brioche, or a gluten-free format.

Tri-tip, a cut of beef from the bottom sirloin more popular on the West Coast, makes a heartfelt steak sandwich. The sliced beef was rosy at the middle of the tri-tip Oscar sandwich ($19), with crabmeat bearnaise instead of mayonnaise, a pronounced improvement. Another Korean adventure is the bulgogi cheesesteak, shaved ribeye marinated in garlicky sweet soy and griddled, dressed with housemade kimchi, candied jalapenos, and gochujang aioli.

Tri-tip Oscar sandwich at The Dog & Pony Saloon

Sandwiches come with house-cut fries or chimichurri potato salad. Which you should order, I submit. While properly cooked house-cut fries do have life-sustaining properties, Buffalo eaters can get that medicine from a variety of dispensers.

Whereas chimichurri potato salad, with lively parsley-garlic-vinegar jazz played across the silence of boiled potatoes, is found nowhere else in my jurisdiction. If I’m wrong, please do let me know. As someone who will inevitably eat potato salad just because it’s on my plate, a spiffy new-to-me version is especially refreshing.

Beef short ribs, smoked blue cheese mashed potatoes at The Dog & Pony Saloon

The braised beef short ribs ($32), a heaping helping of wine-savory cow, came close to meeting my tenderness wishes. Its faithful spud companion got an upgrade as well, with smoked blue cheese in the mash adding a luxe moment.

Chicken francese ($23), breast paillards dipped in eggy batter, panfried, and finished in lemon-butter-wine sauce, were tender and moist, the sauce bright and lively. Whipped garlic mashed potatoes and grilled broccolini made appropriate companions.

If this was a truly upgraded menu, I decided, fish would have something to say. Without being beer-battered or panko-coated, that is. To the specials card.

Pan-seared halibut ($27) with confit potatoes and leeks, and miso caramel? Big if true, I thought, reading the menu description.

Pan-seared halibut, miso caramel, confit leeks and potatoes, The Dog & Pony Saloon

Pleasantly surprised, I was. Lightly crusted yet moist at heart, bites swept through the sweet-salty savory caramel kept me coming back for more. Confiting the vegetables, braising them in fat, gave the leeks a melty aspect and made potatoes creamier, ending up like a vegetable chutney.

Next time, I’d choose between the lamb shepherd’s pie ($33) or the bolognese pappardelle, with a ragu of venison, beef, and pork with San Marzano tomatoes.

Ooey gooey cake at The Dog & Pony Saloon

Desserts ($8) from Sweet Pea Bakery were offered in two hard-to-resist flavors: carrot cake and ooey gooey cake. Finding palpable carrots and walnuts in cake always makes me feel better about my nutrition profile. Ooey gooey, on the other hand, is a straight-up flight of hedonism, made from butter, sugar, flour, and who cares what else.

Noise was not painful in the back room at my visit, but that could change dramatically during events or televised games. I would note that our valiant server needed reinforcements, but did a splendid job considering the circumstances.

A “dog and pony show” is when people try to sell something by using flummery and big talk to distract from its flaws. The Dog & Pony Saloon does the opposite: Under the disguise of a mild-mannered Buffalo tavern, a lowkey culinary movement is under way.