The Nickel Plate — a unique restaurant, bar and gift shop located in Buffalo’s historic Niagara Frontier Food Terminal that shines the light on locally made artwork, food and beverages — recently earned a prestigious award from the Buffalo Public Schools.
The Outstanding Community Partner recognition was presented to owners Ty Reynolds and Nick Smith, former owners of the legendary Mazurek’s Bakery in Buffalo, for their dedication to providing real-life job training opportunities to students through the New York State Alternately Assessed (NYSSA) program.
“Most people are not aware that we work with the school district to provide job training and enriched educational opportunities to students, through the NYSSA program, as a vocational training facility,” said Reynolds, who opened The Nickel Plate with Smith just one year ago.
“In 2020 we sold Mazurek’s to OLV Human Services to enhance their Work Appreciation for Youth (WAY) Program that provides opportunities, experiences and employment for youth and adults,” Reynolds added. “We agreed to stay for three months to teach program participants how to do the baking, and that turned into three years. When Nick and I were finally able to build this business, we wanted to create a program for kids with disabilities to come in and learn to cook, work as cashiers or work on our retail displays. We’ve been working with Buffalo Public Schools since last August and it’s been a great experience. In fact, we recently hired one of the program participants to work in our kitchen.”
The Nickel Plate offers kitchen and bar service seven days a week at their 1500 Clinton St. location. The business shines a spotlight daily on local products made by more than 100 Western New York artisan vendors and 75-plus New York State breweries, meaderies and wineries. They also try to use as much local produce and as many local food products as possible in their restaurant offerings.
The owners, who live in nearby Lackawanna, would also like to expand their business to include a small ice cream parlor and live music in the near future, and hope to grow their commitment to the school district as well by offering additional training opportunities for students.
“The Nickel Plate has generously opened its doors to New York State Alternately Assessed program students as a vocational training facility,” noted a representative of the program. “They have allowed our students to come in to complete work-based learning in the store and restaurant, training students in various tasks. They have also allowed students to fundraise at their establishment during events they hold. Giving Buffalo Public Schools priority as a vocational training group, they continue to offer new opportunities and additional time to our students. Establishments such as these are crucial to NYSAA students as it provides them the opportunities to gain employability skills, train and build confidence, socialize, and most importantly, build on their self-esteem, self-worth and see the future they can hold beyond the Buffalo Public Schools.”
The Buffalo Public Schools Summit Award Ceremony took place on June 3 at West Hertel Academy.
In addition to their work with the school district, Reynolds and Smith also work closely with two local nonprofit organizations, Community Services for Every1 and Pixie Mamas Rescue. The dog rescue hosts a monthly Sip, Savor & Adopt event at The Nickel Plate.
For more information on The Nickel Plate, please call (716) 939-2039, visit tnpbuffalo.com or follow the business on Facebook for frequent updates.
