Questions from an LSU fan headed to Syracuse for the game

[cuseinchina]

First of all, congratulations to Syracuse on their 3-0 start. I do not know all that much about the northern ACC teams and Syracuse football (At the risk of giving my age away I certainly remember Larry Csonka, Floyd Little and Jim Brown). I see where you guys have a great schedule this year with teams like Clemson, Florida State, Virginia and LSU on it.

I am headed up for the game on Thursday and will be staying with my wife and another couple at Turning Stone casino. The four of us made the trip of a few years back to West Virginia, but flew in and out the same day so did not get to see much of the area. I get to NYC a good bit but have seen little of upstate NY, having been to Buffalo once for a short business trip. Ant recommendations on places to go or restaurants to try? I think we will probably rent a car and might play a round of golf at the casino course. The girls want to see Niagra Falls but I don't know how doable that is. We are headed back on Sunday.

I can answer most questions anyone has about LSU football. The formula most teams that have beaten LSU in the past couple of years use is very basic. Bring a safety or two up into the box to stop the run and make LSU beat you with the pass. LSU has a young and talented qb, but he did not throw much in the first two games and missed a few throws badly in the Auburn game. LSU actually has two or three receivers who will play in the NFL, but cannot seem to get the ball to them. LSU has been fortunate thus far that even against eight man fronts they have run the ball well. Fournette is drawing comparisons to a lot of great college backs and is a load. Guice is a freshman running back who is very good as well. Stopping LSU is not rocket science. I would commit as much as I could to stopping the run and take my chances with LSU's passing game.

LSU's defense is still a bit of a mystery, both Auburn and Mississippi State moved the ball well against LSU in the second half. There is a lot of speed on the defense everywhere. They play a 4-2-5 base defense and all five defensive back starters I think will probably get drafted. LSU is thin depth wise with their front seven and do not rotate defensive linemen as much as they did in the past. You could see the front seven run out of gas in the fourth quarter against Mississippi State. LSU fans are excited but not sure if their 2-0 start is because LSU is improved or that Mississippi State and Auburn are just not that good.

We are really looking forward to seeing a new area and enjoying the cooler weather. We make a couple away games a year and for the most part the fans at other venues have been great. I think maybe the roughest crowd we ran into, which was a bit surprising, was at West Virginia. I still liked it better than going to Tuscaloosa. Auburn and Ole Miss have great venues for college football.

Let me know if you have any suggestions for places to go and food to eat. We prefer the local haunts to the tourist places, and definitely like trying out local cuisine, so please do not send us to a Cajun restaurant. Lol. Hoping for a good football game Saturday. Orange is not my favorite color, but Syracuse orange is way better than Tennessee's neon orange or Texas burnt orange. I guess when your team is purple and gold though(a mardi gras story is behind that), you can't be too critical of any shade of orange. Laissez les bon temps rouler.

Skaneateles - Rosalie's and the Sherwood. I've never had a bad time at either, and the lake is beautiful in the fall. You may see a Clinton though, so beware if you take issue with that.

 

[Macky44]

Skaneateles - Rosalie's and the Sherwood. I've never had a bad time at either, and the lake is beautiful in the fall. You may see a Clinton though, so beware if you take issue with that.

Or Ryan Gosling, Derek Jeter , or George Clooney. Noone wants to see them anyways though.

 

[Macky44]

Do not, I repeat do not do dinner at Stella's. Dicey at night, and while stellar for breakfast it's not great dinner food. Other than that Stellar plan (lots of Stellars in there!). Enjoy and safe travels!

Stellar reply.

 

[kuethstheman]

If you like bourbon, you can get a 2 ounce pour of Pappy Van Winkle 20 year at the Scotch and Sirloin for $36. Cheapest pour in America and a great bourbon list. Great steaks too.

No way! Great deal! Next time I'm in Syracuse, I'm there.

 

[OttoMets]

Hope I'm not too late, but a couple follow-ups after reading the thread:

Regarding bringing in booze, the Dome staff wands everyone at the gates these days. So it's not as easy as it once was to bring in liquor.

The Finger Lakes are awesome. So are Cooperstown and Niagara Falls. But I'd second the Thousand Islands suggestion - a (quick) boat ride and meal up there might be more memorable than the other options. Really nice area of the country.

Great ethnic food in and around Syracuse. If you end up in the Finger Lakes, check out Dano's (Austrian food) on the east shore of Seneca Lake. Good stuff in Skaneateles, too - the solid burger and fish joints (previously mentioned here), also Moro's Kitchen, a block up Jordan Street from the other two, for eclectic Italian. Check out Little Italy in Syracuse for dinner or dessert; can't go wrong with food at any of the restaurants. Best to research and call ahead for reservations - also, double-check that restaurants, especially in and around downtown, are serving full menus. It's Parents Weekend at SU and that leads to uneven experiences at a lot of restaurants.

EDIT: since downtown might be a mess, I'd also agree with the Shifty's suggestions - diverse and welcoming bar outside of downtown (near Eastwood) with excellent food.

 

[4evaOrange]

A stop in CNY is never complete without a visit to a Wegmans, and specifically the one in Dewitt near Lyndon Corners.


Also, you have some good pizza suggestions, but I will suggest NICKS Pizza on Thompson road in syracuse, amazing pizza. My favorite, followed by twin tress north syracuse, then lil macs.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

 

[Shark58]

The new Krebs doesn't close for the season anymore.

 

[rocklloyd]

You will love Dino BBQ. I have never had a bad meal there and the atmosphere is awesome. Just understand that it can be a 45+ minute wait at times. That place is hugely popular, so enjoy a few cocktails while you wait.

Any of the Turning Stone courses are amazing, but my favorite is Kaluhyat. Super challenging. Here's the link:
http://www.turningstone.com/golf/kaluhyat

I agree that any of the pizza places are awesome. Kitty Hoynes, Coleman's and Blarney Stone are all good bars and within 7 minutes of downtown Syracuse.

Turning Stone is a great place. They've really turned into an experience versus just a blackjack/bingo hall. The poker room is great. Amenities are good if you stay in the Lodge.

Finger Lakes is another good option. There are so many wineries on Cayuga and Seneca Lakes. Just take your pick. I would download the Foursquare app because that helps with reviews at any of the places up this way. Not sure how much it is used in your neck of the woods.

Good luck, pretty bad ass you LSU fans are coming in droves 1400 miles to the north.

Fournette is a beast, but he will get a dose of Zaire Franklin and Steven Clark.

Wow. Kaluhyat. Really? I like that one the least. For me, Atuynote is the best. Certainly one of the best in New York.

 

[kuethstheman]

Wow. Kaluhyat. Really? I like that one the least. For me, Atuynote is the best. Certainly one of the best in New York.

Agree, although my favorite of all might be the par 3 course. A hidden gem.

 

[rocklloyd]

Agree, although my favorite of all might be the par 3 course. A hidden gem.

Yes manicured exactly the same as the rest of the courses. For $25, it's a steal.

 

[General20]

Shenexon, our foursome travels to a couple away games a year. If LSU plays a fun out of conference team like Oregon or Syracuse, we will go there. Next year we will go to Lambeau filed to watch LSU play Wisconsin. We also make it to at least one away SEC game with the goal of going to all the SEC venues at some point. We have to get to Missouri and Texas A&M now that they are in the SEC.

For the most part I find the fans kind of the same for the different places. The majority of fans almost everywhere we go are great. In each fan base there is that 10 to 20% of them that just dont get it. LSU has their fair share for sure. The worst I have seen is at Florida and Georgia, but that was just the bad luck of sitting next to the wrong guy. SEC fans from different schools like to rag on each others fan base, but truth be told the demographics are about the same from school to school with some slight cultural differences.

There is some difference in how serious people take their football. I found Southern Cal fans to be laid back compared to going to a game at Auburn or Florida.

As you say, LSU fans do travel well. Its a long way to Syracuse but there will be a lot of purple and gold. The segment of the LSU fan base that will actually travel that far is usually composed of a pretty good group of folks. It is a party crowd for sure and all the ones I know going are excited to go to a part of the country many LSU people have never been.

Culturally Louisiana is very different depending on where folks come from. South Louisiana, where we are from, is very cajun, Catholic and laid back. North Louisiana tends to be more bible belt and more like Alabama and Mississippi (although they might not like the comparison). The duck dynasty guys are from North La.

I am going to call and make some dinner reservations based on the great recommendations made in this thread. Thanks again to all who made suggestions. I was not expecting so many responses.

Did you happen to see this yet?
http://www.syracuse.com/entertainme...l?hootPostID=21d672b8d2c5568bd45c8fcd6b764f7a
http://www.syracuse.com/entertainme...l?hootPostID=21d672b8d2c5568bd45c8fcd6b764f7a

#15 will be fantastic on Sunday

There are plenty of other options too depending on what your interests are. Im more of a Symphony guy but I doubt too many besides me will go from the game to the Symphony in the same day. Some guy from Saturday Night Live doing stand up, the WWE is in town, the World Lacrosse Championships are pretty sweet if you're into lacrosse, a Fall Festival, an outdoorsmen's day (fishing and shooting, etc.), a movie premiere party, and a lot more!

 

[Melancer46]

Paper Cat, do you have a message board you'd recommend for Syracuse fans that are hoping to travel down to LSU next year? I've been looking for an excuse to go see New Orleans/see a football game at one of the best college atmospheres and next year seems like a good chance to kill two birds with one stone by coming down for the game and making the drive to New Orleans while I'm there.

 

[orangefan13]

Whats that fish fry in east Syracuse used to be Dougs ?
Place was great for a light lunch.

 

[shandeezy7]

Whats that fish fry in east Syracuse used to be Dougs ?
Place was great for a light lunch.

I believe it's JD's

 

[sutomcat]

If you like fishing, the salmon are just beginning to run about 25 miles north of Syracuse.

Linkage

 

[SUOrange44]

First of all, congratulations to Syracuse on their 3-0 start. I do not know all that much about the northern ACC teams and Syracuse football (At the risk of giving my age away I certainly remember Larry Csonka, Floyd Little and Jim Brown). I see where you guys have a great schedule this year with teams like Clemson, Florida State, Virginia and LSU on it.

I am headed up for the game on Thursday and will be staying with my wife and another couple at Turning Stone casino. The four of us made the trip of a few years back to West Virginia, but flew in and out the same day so did not get to see much of the area. I get to NYC a good bit but have seen little of upstate NY, having been to Buffalo once for a short business trip. Ant recommendations on places to go or restaurants to try? I think we will probably rent a car and might play a round of golf at the casino course. The girls want to see Niagra Falls but I don't know how doable that is. We are headed back on Sunday.

I can answer most questions anyone has about LSU football. The formula most teams that have beaten LSU in the past couple of years use is very basic. Bring a safety or two up into the box to stop the run and make LSU beat you with the pass. LSU has a young and talented qb, but he did not throw much in the first two games and missed a few throws badly in the Auburn game. LSU actually has two or three receivers who will play in the NFL, but cannot seem to get the ball to them. LSU has been fortunate thus far that even against eight man fronts they have run the ball well. Fournette is drawing comparisons to a lot of great college backs and is a load. Guice is a freshman running back who is very good as well. Stopping LSU is not rocket science. I would commit as much as I could to stopping the run and take my chances with LSU's passing game.

LSU's defense is still a bit of a mystery, both Auburn and Mississippi State moved the ball well against LSU in the second half. There is a lot of speed on the defense everywhere. They play a 4-2-5 base defense and all five defensive back starters I think will probably get drafted. LSU is thin depth wise with their front seven and do not rotate defensive linemen as much as they did in the past. You could see the front seven run out of gas in the fourth quarter against Mississippi State. LSU fans are excited but not sure if their 2-0 start is because LSU is improved or that Mississippi State and Auburn are just not that good.

We are really looking forward to seeing a new area and enjoying the cooler weather. We make a couple away games a year and for the most part the fans at other venues have been great. I think maybe the roughest crowd we ran into, which was a bit surprising, was at West Virginia. I still liked it better than going to Tuscaloosa. Auburn and Ole Miss have great venues for college football.

Let me know if you have any suggestions for places to go and food to eat. We prefer the local haunts to the tourist places, and definitely like trying out local cuisine, so please do not send us to a Cajun restaurant. Lol. Hoping for a good football game Saturday. Orange is not my favorite color, but Syracuse orange is way better than Tennessee's neon orange or Texas burnt orange. I guess when your team is purple and gold though(a mardi gras story is behind that), you can't be too critical of any shade of orange. Laissez les bon temps rouler.

Hey paper cat...Sorry I am late to the game. these are my favorite type of threads as I really appreciate seeing the suggestions from everyone.

Make sure you give us an update after you get home regarding what you did, what you saw, what you liked and did not like from football, campus, food, lodging, etc. I think it is always important to get feedback so we can make suggestions in the future.

A few quick ones from me:

Dinosaur BBQ
lemongrass. (great Thai food in armory Square)
Justin's on Carrier Circle
Riley's in Syracuse (extremely underrated and a great changing menu)
kitty Hoynes
Pastabilities
funk n Waffles

Foods to find with local flair

salt potatoes
chicken Riggies
Utica greens
half Moon cookies

Check out Destiny USA mall...one of the biggest in the country. If you go, for a fun time if there are four or more of you, go to 5-wits there. Adventure, puzzle solving rooms with special effects that is really a blast. Only other one in the country is in Foxboro at Patriots place though they are building another.

Have a great time. go Orange!!!!

 

[Macky44]

Hey paper cat...Sorry I am late to the game. these are my favorite type of threads as I really appreciate seeing the suggestions from everyone.

Make sure you give us an update after you get home regarding what you did, what you saw, what you liked and did not like from football, campus, food, lodging, etc. I think it is always important to get feedback so we can make suggestions in the future.

A few quick ones from me:

Dinosaur BBQ
lemongrass. (great Thai food in armory Square)
Justin's on Carrier Circle
Riley's in Syracuse (extremely underrated and a great changing menu)
kitty Hoynes
Pastabilities
funk n Waffles

Foods to find with local flair

salt potatoes
chicken Riggies
Utica greens
half Moon cookies

Check out Destiny USA mall...one of the biggest in the country. If you go, for a fun time if there are four or more of you, go to 5-wits there. Adventure, puzzle solving rooms with special effects that is really a blast. Only other one in the country is in Foxboro at Patriots place though they are building another.

Have a great time. go Orange!!!!

RILEY'S is a fantastic suggestion. I never think of suggesting it because of it's random location inside Sedgwick neighborhood, but the food there is always amazing.

 

[Macky44]

I always take for granted how well we have it in Syracuse as far as italian restaurants goes too. I just never get excited about Italian because ive eaten so much of it in my lifetime haha. I will say though that we can go pound for pound with ANY city in America with Italian establishments.. I lived in Boston and frequented the North End often, but never thought it was a step above Syracuse at all..and the north end is considered the premiere italian restaurant spot in the U.S.. Syracuse truly has a ton of amazing non-chain restaurants of all cuisine interests and we are very lucky.

 

[Macky44]

If you like fishing, the salmon are just beginning to run about 25 miles north of Syracuse.

Linkage

Id love to get a catch like that. The fish looks good too.

 

[Pyle]

We're packing our own Pat O's Hurricanes and Tropical Isle Hand Grenades. Much more efficient than beer for that noon kickoff.

You're not drinking the right beer...

 

[Melancer46]

I always take for granted how well we have it in Syracuse as far as italian restaurants goes too. I just never get excited about Italian because ive eaten so much of it in my lifetime haha. I will say though that we can go pound for pound with ANY city in America with Italian establishments.. I lived in Boston and frequented the North End often, but never thought it was a step above Syracuse at all..and the north end is considered the premiere italian restaurant spot in the U.S.. Syracuse truly has a ton of amazing non-chain restaurants of all cuisine interests and we are very lucky.

The Daily Catch in the North End is probably my favorite restaurant I've ever been to.

 

[Macky44]

The Daily Catch in the North End is probably my favorite restaurant I've ever been to.

Great spot no doubt! The calamari is top notch.

 

[Macky44]

You're not drinking the right beer...

I also recommend a SEASONAL drink for the northeast to our Tiger fans... local hard cider with fireball or jack daniels fire. Half and half for measurements. QUALITY drink with alot of flavor. If it isnt strong enough for you..add some bacardi 151 or white lightning to it which i do from time to time.

 

[Pyle]

I also recommend a SEASONAL drink for the northeast to our Tiger fans... local hard cider with fireball or jack daniels fire. Half and half for measurements. QUALITY drink with alot of flavor. If it isnt strong enough for you..add some bacardi 151 or white lightning to it which i do from time to time.

Beer is seasonal. I drink it all 4 seasons.