Housed inside the West Side Bazaar, the Read It & Eat bookshop will be a haven for book lovers and foodies alike.
When the new West Side Bazaar opens, it’s going to have a lot of the things that people have come to love, and expect. At the same time, there are going to be some enhanced offerings that will help to elevate the Bazaar to an entirely new level. I’m not just talking about the expanded space, and the added number of restaurants and retailers, I’m talking about some special surprises that will significantly contribute to the assortment of amenities.
Take, for example, the addition of the Read It and Eat bookshop. In a BR article in 2022, Kimberly Behzadi (owner of Bookmarks & Breadsticks) was just getting ready to launch her Read It & Eat book club – a book club focused on food that involves not only books but guest speakers in the community. At the time, she said, “I believe in reconnecting people to food.”
What better place could there be to reconnect people to food, than at the reimagined and reinvigorated West Side Bazaar? When the doors to the Bazaar open on October 31, Read It and Eat will have its first brick and mortar location within the building.
The Read It & Eat Bookshop will focus on:
Food-related books, including cookbooks, chef memoirs, and other food stories
There will also be an array of artisanal goods including baking kits, sauces, spices, and more
A portion of all proceeds will be donated to fight hunger in Buffalo
“The West Side Bazaar is the perfect place to launch our culinary bookstore,” said Behzadi. “I am excited to be inspired by the other businesses and restaurants here in the West Side Bazaar. I hope to learn more about their cuisines and favorite cookbooks and incorporate those recommendations into the store.”
Earlier this year, Read It & Eat hosted the inaugural Read It & Eat Book Fair and Market on Independent Bookstore Day in the Seneca One Tower. Book and gourmet food lovers met over 30 artisan food businesses and local book vendors at the event. The book fair was also a stop on the Buffalo Bookstore Passport celebrating Independent Bookstore Day.
The overwhelming experience proved to Behzadi that this city is hungry for this type of pop-up, which could readily be transitioned into a full-fledge undertaking. By teaming up with the Bazaar, Behzadi will be able to tap into a steady stream of customers who will be looking for added food-related interactions within the building. She will also have a permanent location to seamlessly interact with her contemporaries within Buffalo’s literature and culinary world, many of whom she has connected with via her Read It & Eat box business.
“The bookshop is the next evolution of my Read It & Eat box business,” said Behzadi. “Buffalo is a city full of culinary adventurers and I believe the community will love having a selection of curated cookbooks and goods at their fingertips. My goal is to also add cooking classes and collaborations with other businesses in the community.”
The bookstore’s soft opening will be Friday, October 20th. The West Side Bazaar grand opening week is October 31st – November 4th.
The Read It & Eat Bookshop will be open for limited hours to start but is working on expanding hours after ramping up: Thursday, 5 – 8pm, Friday, 1pm – 8pm, and Saturday 11am – 8pm.
For more information about the West Side Bazaar, click here.
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