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    Hoak's Restaurant

    3.4 (284 reviews)
    ModerateSeafood, American
    Closed 11:30 am - 9:00 pm

    Hoak's Restaurant Photos

    Business Info

    HOAK'S RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Outdoor seating
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Hoak's Restaurant

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    Menu
    Dorothy L.

    Met friends for lunch on a Tuesday. Were seated at the window with great views of the frozen lake and it was clear enough to see the windmills in Lackawanna. Had to move to a larger table as more people showed up than were expected, still able to see the great view. Their daily specials are on a chalk board on the wall. I opted for one of the specials, it was a chicken Caesar wrap. Loaded with chicken and very tasty. Only took a pic of my food, too hard to make everyone wait when you go around a large table to take pics of everyone's food. Their choices included French onion soup, cheeseburger, fish fry, grilled chicken, buffalo chicken and chicken florentine. Everyone enjoyed their food. If you enjoy a Manhattan this is one of the few places that still serves them in the shaker. It is the favorite drink to order there by me and several friends.

    Bruce R.

    Warm summer Friday night so we headed to the lake for a fish fry. Hoak's on the patio. Wife had the Cod and I went with yellow pike. Both were delicious. Had the stuffed banana pepper appetizer and it was fantastic.

    Great place for fish.
    Jim G.

    My family had a great experience here. The menu has a variety of fish which can be prepared in a variety of ways. Lake perch is on the menu! We all enjoyed the food and surroundings. Our waitress was excellent.

    Hoak's Restaurant Menu
    Denise H.

    They offer ouside patio by the water or indoor seating .A nice size bar area to grab a cocktail. With fast and friendly service I received my order. I got the classic turkey club with frys.It was huge and had bacon,cheese,lettuce, tomato, mayo on your choice of bread and was delish.Plenty of parking on their premise.

    Hoak's Restaurant Menu
    Diane H.

    With speedy service and a smile I received my classic turkey club.It included lettuce, tomato, mayo, cheese and bacon and came with frys.Its was tasty. Nice atmosphere by the water with indoor or outdoor seating. A bar area if you just want drinks and plenty of on site parking.

    10/10 spot to grab a sunset. Service is FANTASTIC. Charlie out on the deck gave us a great time, awesome conversation and delicious food. I would recommend coming here any time you are in town! Love it.

    Tim W.

    Amazing place for grabbing a bite to eat while enjoying the lake. Last Thursday was a beautiful day and I was looking for a casual place on the lake to take my better half for lunch. We stopped at Hoak's and were seated on the outdoor patio overlooking the lake. We ordered lunch and a round of drinks and were relaxing and watching small boats transit the lake. The food was delicious and plentiful and the wait staff was attentive to our needs. The patio vibe was great with a clean and modern look and the prices were very affordable.

    Hoaks view

    Giving two stars because of the view. The food was horrendous. I used to come here as a kid and fully expected greasy bar food. But what I got wasn't even edible. My husband and kids got burgers which were fine. I got the "famous" fish sandwich and clam chowder. The chowder was gelatinous. It tasted like flour with chunks or carrot and celery. No clam to be found. I couldn't even eat it. The fish was a plain piece of fried fish on bread. Nothing else on it! In my picture, I cut the fish in half because most of it was just spreading and I was trying to find the actual fish. But you can see there's literally nothing else on it! My family's burgers had a cheese, lettuce and tomato. When I said something to the server, she said I could've added that to my sandwich, but there was an up charge. I wish she would've told me when I ordered that there was nothing on it. I probably would have paid the up charge for it to be edible. The fish wasn't even good. There was hardly any cod and it was all greasy breading. The server was kind, the high top table outside was high quality and comfy, and of course you can't beat the view. But I wouldn't eat here again.

    View from the back deck

    Back patio is the best place to dine. Beautiful sitting outside with the water right there. The outside bar was a great place to grab a drink and wait for our table. Great fish fry, wonderful service

    Pizza logs
    Doriann L.

    I brought my in-laws for lunch over Thanksgiving and loved their char-grilled chicken sandwich so much I had to come back. A large piece of perfectly charred chicken on a roll - but here's the magic: the honey mustard! It's definitely homemade and absolutely divine! My fiance had the buffalo chicken sandwich and was equally impressed. I didn't get a photo of it because I was so in to my sandwich. The service is also great!

    A gorgeous view ! & NY strip steak broiled shrimp fries & extra lemons for my Aguaaaa

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    2 months ago

    They no longer sell steamed clams. They mainly have bar food, albeit a little better bar food, like every other restaurant in Buffalo

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    1 month ago

    Fish fry is the best wny and service is fast and the view of the lake brings us back every week during the summer months

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    10 months ago

    Excellent service and location. Menu full of great options, food was excellent. Very friend environment.

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    Lucia's On The Lake

    Lucia's On The Lake

    4.2
    (484 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    $$$

    Lucia's is hands down one of our favorite places to eat in all of Buffalo. The staff is always…read moreincredibly friendly (though the older dude we had last time was a little too customer service-y no matter how much we tried to just talk real) and the place has a close quarters but still calm and collected vibe. The food and drink are always exceptional. Whether you order off the regular menu or grab one of the specials, it's always exceptional. We've been several times now and gotten the cajun pasta, meatballs, fish of various sorts, crab rangoon appetizer, etc. Everything always comes out in a reasonable amount of time - never too fast or too slow - and is always solid. The cocktails are also on point with both the classics and a couple modern takes here and there. If I had to pick on anything (aside from trying to sell A5 Wagyu for $160 and claim it's breaking even), is the menu they put on their own website. Someone took a grainy cell photo and put it up there. Come on guys, some has the digital original. Just copy/paste. All in all, fabulous place that I can't say enough good things about. Make sure to get a reservation well in advance or you won't get in, especially on a busy night!

    I made my reservation months in advance for a birthday dinner with my mom and sister after hearing…read moreso many great things about Lucia's on the Lake. I was really excited to finally try it. The restaurant itself is beautiful with a great atmosphere. We did get quite a few stares from other patrons throughout the night, which made us feel a little out of place, but the owner was incredibly kind and welcoming and that didn't go unnoticed. My sister and I both ordered the steak, while my mom got the braised short ribs. I added lump crab to my steak, which I honestly could've done without. It came with a butter sauce, but the crab itself was dry and pretty lackluster. The steak was good, though my green beans were a bit too undercooked for my liking. The real star of the table was my mom's braised short ribs. They tasted like pure comfort food, almost like a really good pot roast. The gravy and mashed potatoes together were perfect. Overall, it was a good meal, but I think my expectations were just a little too high going in. I'd come back, but next time I'd be ordering the short ribs. 7.7/10

    Photos
    Lucia's On The Lake
    Lucia's On The Lake
    Lucia's On The Lake
    Lucia's On The Lake
    Lucia's On The Lake

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    Lucia's On The Lake
    Johnson’s Landing

    Johnson’s Landing

    3.8
    (189 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    $$

    The service was wonderful. Our young waitress was polite, attentive, and on top of everything…read morethroughout our visit. The restaurant was clean and well-maintained, and the hostess was friendly and welcoming. I ordered the Bourbon BBQ Burger, cooked medium-well, and it was absolutely delicious. Honestly, it was one of the best burgers I've had in months. My only hesitation was the price--$23 for a hamburger is a little steep. I also ordered an Old Fashioned, which was very well made and tasted great. However, I was a little disappointed that it was served in a plastic cup. I understand we were sitting outside, but since it was during the afternoon and the restaurant wasn't particularly busy, I would have preferred it in a proper glass. It would have made the drink feel a little more special. Overall, I had a very enjoyable experience. The food was excellent, the service was great, and I would definitely return. Next time, I'll just request a glass for my Old Fashioned!

    The venue itself is of course still very new, clean and modern. That can often mean high noise…read morelevels as others have noted, modern restaurant construction seems to put acoustics at the bottom of the priority list. That said, I did not find it overly loud, just loud enough where you had to raise your voice slightly. Enough about that. Johnson's Landing has a Lenten fish fry special, $20 for a full fish fry with sides, and this includes one of their specialty beers. This is a good deal to get a craft beer included with your fish fry. I actually ordered it to go and enjoyed the beer while waiting for the fish to take out. It was a very solid fish dinner, the batter was crispy, not oily. The fish was fresh, all of the sides were good, even the rye bread was a nice hearty thick cut of rye. The mac salad featured tuna, which I do like. And the fries were hot and tasty. The fish itself was not huge but was big enough for us. Every component of the fish fry dinner was on point. The barmaid was efficient and friendly, I did not have to wait. My only complaint is that they do not list beer prices on their menu, which was fine this time since it was included with the meal, but would prevent me from enjoying a stop on the way home for a beer or two. I think it is a sneaky practice, but strangely I do note prices on their website, and guess what? All draft beers are $8 including Labatt Blue Light, unless the website is now outdated. ($8 for Labatt's!! Holy Moly!) I can see why it is not on the printed menu. I really don't like when there is not full price transparency, thus four stars instead of five. However I wholeheartedly endorse the value and quality of the Lenten fish fry special.

    Photos
    Blood orange margarita - thank me later.
    Blood orange margarita - thank me later.
    2nd floor
    2nd floor
    Johnson’s Landing

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    The Cowboy On The Lake

    The Cowboy On The Lake

    2.7
    (27 reviews)
    0.8 mi

    The location, food, and ambiance are all great. They have live music and discounted chicken wing…read moredays. The outdoor patio looks over the lake for great sun sets. The problem is the staff. Very unorganized and def not friendly. Almost as if they're being bothered. I've been back several times and each time it's been basically empty (Sundays). Sometimes we don't even see a waitress and have to ask for one. One time the dishwasher came out to greet us, lol. The bartenders are more interested in scrolling on Snapchat than attending to customers. I only go back because of the scenery and chicken wing deals. The staff all need to be retrained or this place will close like the last ownership.

    I was surprised to see such low reviews . While this place didn't blow me away and I'll always…read moreconsider it the old "Dock at the Bay", I didn't find it half bad . Beautiful spot to grab a cocktail and the sunset. (or in my case midget wrestling lol ) We decided to eat some dinner after the show . I got a scallop po-boy (which I never see , why not use scallops instead of the typical shrimp or catfish? ) with a side of baked beans while my cousin got chicken Alfredo . Both entrees were a decent portion and tasty . I won't give this place 5 stars only because the bathrooms needed some tidying up and our server went MIA when it came time to settle the bill and get takeout containers (we had another server hunt her down ) . With that being said, I would come back , especially in the summer for the view and a decent meal .

    Photos
    Mother Clucker with onion rings
    Mother Clucker with onion rings
    The Cowboy On The Lake
    Stage

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    Stage
    The Public House on the Lake

    The Public House on the Lake

    2.8
    (322 reviews)
    2.4 mi
    $$

    Ok, this review is hard. I kept going back and forth between three and four stars. The view? Oh my…read moregod! Both the view and the service deserve five stars! We sat at the outdoor bar and enjoyed a light meal here last weekend. The view of the water was fantastic. The gentleman at the outdoor bar was amazing and never missed a beat with bite checks and drink refills. The food though...my boyfriend did not like the fish tacos. He said he can tell it's old fryer oil just by looking at it. I got the seared tuna with noodles on the side. The seared tuna was good, but the noodles on the side were undercooked. I would definitely come back again for the view and friendly service.

    Nice patio space right in the lake, although there's a ton of spider webs all over…read more Drunken clams 8/10 Good flavor. Tasted like garlic and beer. Could have used some a few more slices of chorizo though, that would definitely bring it up to a 10. Truffled spinach dip 10/10 Absolutely delicious! I could eat this all day! Warm, cheesy, and truffley. I don't notice the spinach much and there's some artichoke in there too. The sautéed onions in there were great. Love the pita that comes with it for dipping too. Fish fry 9/10 Good cook on the fish. Nice and crispy, though it does get a little soft pretty quick. Homemade tartar sauce was good. Dill flavor came through the most for me. French fries 10/10 Good fries! Mac salad 2/10 Spicy. Not a fan at all. Kyle loved it though. Coleslaw 9/10 Traditional sweet mayo based coleslaw. Could just use some more flavor, salt maybe.

    Photos
    View from the outdoor bar
    View from the outdoor bar
    Mediterranean plate with a side of grilled chicken. This was from the specials menu and was reallyyyyy good!
    Mediterranean plate with a side of grilled chicken. This was from the specials menu and was reallyyyyy good!
    Clam linguine and white wine

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    Clam linguine and white wine

    Hoak's Restaurant - seafood - Updated August 2026

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