Agreed. Many great restaurants Brickyard for BBQ / craft beer; Stone house to hang out for drinks; Silo for hot dogs; Griffon for gastropub, Hibbards for custard, Gallo for woodfired pizza, Cask & Cow for burgers.
Best places to stay are downtown. I'd recommend the Doubletree.
Judi's has very good wings and steak and cheese. My favorite steak and cheese is Mariposa's. The restaurant closed, but they've kept it alive as a food truck.
La Hacienda is under new ownership, but the pizza is still great as always and is the best in the city.
An underappreciated gem for a restaurant is Savor. It's a teaching kitchen/restaurant from local Niagara County Community College, run by students under professional supervision. 5 star quality food, at a fraction of the price. I dress casual when I go there.
Off the beaten path is F-Bites. Celebrity chef Bobby Anderson (from Hell's Kitchen) runs it to teach young kids the restaurant business. It's non-profit and very inexpensive. AMAZING southern cooking. It's not in the best neighborhood, but it's fine for lunch.
If you want an amazing burger experience, check out Rock Burger; they do these awesome stuffed burgers.