Shannon Wilson was a Wegman’s chef for a decade before teaching herself to bake.
Now her skills are drawing morning crowds at Artigiana, 935 Seneca St., on the eastern side of Larkinville. Savory danishes, croissants, rustic loaves of bread, and sandwiches of Italian meats and cheeses on fresh focaccia are some of the main draws.
If you want the best Artigiana has to offer, you have to get there early. By 10 a.m., many of the trays in the case are empty. Customers fill the tables, or climb the stairs to the dining loft overlooking the bakery’s main floor.
Wilson had plenty of professional experience cooking, but baking takes another range of skills. Viennoiserie, the school of many-layered treats like croissants and danishes, is doctorate-level baking. But Wilson was determined to climb that mountain, and she did.
“If you would have told me a couple years ago, ‘You’re gonna make a croissant,’ I would be like, ‘What?’ ” Wilson said. Now she’s teaching others at Artigiana the way of the sheeter, used to process layers of thin dough.
She’s also following her own path in choosing items to offer. “Our number one item right now is that provolone cream and tomato danish, more savory types of pastry,” said Wilson. “We did one with coppa and Asiago with sesame seeds on the outside.”
Artigiana’s Nona pizza has been a bestseller, too, sold by the slice from the Artigiana case. “I’m not doing cup-and-char pepperoni and sauce,” said Wilson. “Not that they’re not good, because I do love those things, trust me. I just wanted to stay in my own lane and adhere to our ingredients. So if we have a chunk of prosciutto parma or excess soppressata, some provolone cream, we can go in different directions and be creative with that.”
935 Seneca St., Buffalo NY, artigiana716.com
Hours: 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 7:30 a.m.-noon Sunday. Closed Monday, Tuesday.
REVIEW: Colombian specialties like the meat celebration known as bandeja paisa have arrived in Amherst, with Dulce Hogar Bakery opening its second location at Niagara Falls Boulevard at Sheridan Drive, formerly El Palenque. Fluffy arepa corncakes, crispy pork belly, empanadas with chewy corn shells, and sweet treats like guava and cheese pastelillos are just the beginning. (Coming Thursday, for patrons.)
GET THE GUIDE: The first Four Bites book is on sale now. Order here to have the 195-restaurant volume delivered before Christmas.
Four Bites’ Where to Eat in Buffalo 2026 spotlights 195 locally-owned restaurants, bakeries, and food stores that make Buffalo one of the best eating cities, dollar for dollar, in America.
Taverns and diners for everyday eating, but also restaurants to trust with your big night out. From bakeries to pasta makers to the astounding international diversity of Buffalo’s current menu, you’ll find it here.
It’s the distilled result of Galarneau’s 15 years on the food beat, built on the help of about 100 tastespotters. They dime out new restaurants with a quickness, because they know how Four Bites works: Tipsters get fed, so we can all find what makes Buffalo so damn tasty.
$13.99, 178 pages, 6×4 perfect bound softcover. ISBN: 978-1-970895-00-1.
Here’s where you can find me signing books:
Dec. 7, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Read It & Eat Bookshop, 2929 Main St.
Dec. 12, 5 p.m.-6 p.m., Talking Leaves, 951 Elmwood Ave.
Dec. 18, 6 p.m.-8 p.m. Lock City Books, 8 Market St., Lockport, with food by Jessica Dittly.
If you’re interested in having me show up, talk food, and sign books, please email andrew@fourbites.net.
ASK THE CRITIC
Q: Are there any Lebanese restaurants around? I’m looking for manakish or kofta or really really good shawarma.
A: Three part answer: my favorite shawarma is at Falafel Bar. Second best: Shawarma House, Welland, Ont. For manakish I’d hit the new location of Cheezatar in Kenmore. Kofta, Almaza Grill on Transit, or Falafel Bar, or Shawarma House.
More reading from Michael Chelus of Nittany Epicurean:
- Andrew told us the “Love Machine” at the Lexington Co-op on Hertel Avenue [Four Bites]
- Megan put together a Tom & Jerry guide including favorites like The Place, Schwabl’s and more [Step Out Buffalo]
- Andrew also gave us the first in a series of Four Bites travel stories exploring Mexico [Four Bites]
- Here’s a recipe for an easy lemon cake for the holidays [Buffalo Scoop]
- Habitat for Humanity 2026 Craft Brew Tour Cards are now available [Buffalo Beer Leauge]
- Brian’s Buffalo Beer Buzz told us about the first anniversary for Other Half’s downtown Buffalo location, the launch of the 5 Golden Rings Challenge from Steel Leaf Brewing and more [Buffalo Beer League]
- Andrew is cooking dinner at This Little Pig on 1/15 – get your tickets now! [Four Bites]
- Francesca wrote about Mira [Buffalo News]
- Brett wrote about Blue Eyed Baker’s second location in Hamburg [Step Out Buffalo]
- Buffalo Olde Brewery and Three Chord Bourbon will release a Belgian Tripel – Tripel Akkoord [Buffalo Beer League]
- Mr. Galarneau told why Taqueria Los Mayas remains his favorite Mexican restaurant in Buffalo since it opened eight years ago [Four Bites]
- Francesca also put together a list of 26 local restaurants serving Tom & Jerrys including Cole’s, The Delaware and more [Buffalo News]
- Watch Hydraulic Hearth bar manager Danny Dispo make an evolved Tom & Jerry [Buffalo News]
- The Tom & Jerry tour is becoming a local tradition [Buffalo News]
- The Buffalo Zoo is continuing its tradition of Breakfast with Santa [Buffalo Scoop]
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