Not far from our Buffalo.com offices, Laughlin’s is a Buffalo bistro located at the corner of Franklin and Tupper.

The Buffalo.com crew of S.J., Ben T., Katie and I were looking for a Local Restaurant Week option in Buffalo to grab lunch and hopefully take advantage of a “two for $20.12” deal. Surprisingly, not many restaurants offered a lunch option, but Laughlin’s was right up our alley. Not only did they have more than four sandwiches to choose from, but appetizers were included as well.

Here is the lunch deal breakdown from Laughlin’s:

The lunch option at Laughlin’s included one appetizer and two sandwiches for $20.12. We started off the meal with the crab cakes and the fried calamari to split.

The main plates came with a salad or fries and I opted for the stuffed banana pepper sandwich. A fan of spicy foods, I was pleasantly surprised at the heat the peppers had, mixed with some great cheese that was filled to the brim. A lot of food just for lunch, I ate the peppers without the roll and was plenty full afterwards.

Ben T. chose the grilled chicken sandwich with lettuce and tomato which seemed to be a little bland, as he asked for sauce and condiment recommendations from the waiter. The pros, though, were that there was a healthy choice on the Local Restaurant Week menu, and the chicken had those delightful charred marks (see photo). While it wasn’t the world’s juiciest chicken, hot sauce added flavor and quickly turned into more of a “Buffalo chicken” sandwich.

Katie was intrigued by the slow roasted roast beef on kaiser roll. She decided against the local favorite Kummelweck bun to avoid eating an abundance of salt. Although she felt the flavor of the roast beef was a bit bland, the size of the sandwich was plenty for Katie’s tiny tummy so she left as a happy camper.

S.J. went with the caprese panini, which was exactly what she wanted: fancy grilled cheese. Overall, the sandwich was good, but it needed a little kick of flavor to spice up the fresh mozzarella and tomato. Perhaps some fresh basil—like a caprese salad should have—or even a little salt.

Overall, we had a very filling lunch and there were still options on the menu that we didn’t have a chance to try including the Laughlin’s cheeseburger, chicken wings and medium tomato and fresh mozzarella. For more information on Laughlin’s and what they are offering for Local Restaurant Week, check out their website.