You'll hear me often say, one of the huge advantages of living in Buffalo is the proximity to cool things. I've written about my fun day trips in a couple blogs including driving to Toronto for Harry Potter food and tiki drinks, Toronto for Guillermo del Toro, Rochester for a Creepy Garage Sale and beer and this past weekend Andrew and I took a day trip to Hamilton, Ontario. It's about an hour and 10 minute drive from Buffalo, NY and you pass it on your way to Toronto, but this time we stopped. What's in Hamilton you ask? Well there's an event called the Bazaar of the Bizarre.
The Bazaar of the Bizarre is a one day event held three times a year and it usually takes place in Toronto. It's put on by Toronto goth / alternative clothing designers Plastik Wrap. They've been around for a long time and are pretty well known as some of the best gothic clothing designers in our area.
So back to the bazaar, I wasn't sure what to expect and mainly went because I'm nosy. It's a craft show for people into weird and creepy. Ok, to call it a "craft show" sounds lame, like everything is hokey jewelry and handmade scrunchies, but this display was impressive! It had a quality grouping of vendors that varied from booth to booth, and if I didn't know any better I'd say it was a juried show. There was everything from clothing, leather goods, photography, taxidermy, tea, books, and more! Of course I found the homemade mulled wine "Blood Harvest" preserves from Ritual and Revival, and they had to come home with me.
The location for the bazaar was the Spice Factory. It has plenty of free street parking and very cheap parking lots nearby. The venue hosts music and art events, weddings, corporate gatherings, and workshops. The Bizarre took up two floors and they even had a cash bar, a food counter, and DJs on hand creating a comfortable atmosphere. I only was able to take one picture of the inside since it was SO crowded! (As it should be.)
We grabbed lunch only a couple blocks away at Merit Brewing. It is a big open restaurant with a very casual ambiance. They serve in-house made sausage along with some vegetarian options. I ordered the Buffalo Chicken Sausage and it was really good, BUT I have to say the fries were even better. Fresh cut, crunchy outside, lightly salted, I could have eaten a GIANT tub of them ~ I highly recommend.
The beer was ok. I had a tough time choosing because their menu described some of them as having lactose. That leaves me out since I'm lactose intolerant. (Side note, so are cats, you can read my blog about it here.) I went with the Chanan. It was a little too hoppy for me. I should have known better. That's my fault. Anyway their branding of the place is something to write about, I mean look at these glasses!
The beer was ok. I had a tough time choosing because their menu described some of them as having lactose. That leaves me out since I'm lactose intolerant. (Side note, so are cats, you can read my blog about it here.) I went with the Chanan. It was a little too hoppy for me. I should have known better. That's my fault. Anyway their branding of the place is something to write about, I mean look at these glasses!
Overall it was a fun day trip to Hamilton. Kudos to everyone involved in the Bazaar of the Bizarre looking forward to the next one, and this time I'll save up some spending money!
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