The Forvm

Have been here for a few events now. Typically the event does not begin as scheduled and things seem to be haphazardly planned. Food is okay, service depends on the crowd size, drinks are pretty on point. Wouldn’t go out of the way for it but I will likely return for future events.

I like this place. I go here and have both seen and played shows here. It’s a pretty good time with a very, very large space. The drinks are competitively priced and are made competently. Beer selection is a bit misleading since you can also grab some pints from the library next door. I don’t dislike coming here, I like it. So, you should come here to. Also, the food is very good with an interesting take on wings.

so this place is interesting. i guess it has three different sections called the forvm, the library and the iris. i didnt’ see the iris and i peaked into the library. the library actually looked cool for being a bar. its just a narrow room with the bar to the right and a seating area in the back with the walls lined with books. it looked pretty cool and a place i would probably go to drink. the location of the place is odd though so the only time i would go here is if there was another concert. its located in a plaza next to a movie theater. i think its meant for the buffalo colleges.
i went to see one of my favorite local bands who did a charity event at the Forvm. the layout is funny. here there is a kitchen so you can order food, i didn’t eat but from what i could see from other people it is bar food and looked good. the bar area is kinda small but the main purpose for this room is the dance floor, eating area, and stage. almost looks like weddings and other events are held here. the stage is in the back corner so you have to be careful where you sit especially because there is a pole separating the dance floor from the stage. the sound is good and the floor is big.
i would probably come here again if a group of friends wanted to or if tehre was another big event

Odd venue for a show. It is 3 places (The Forvm, Iris, and The Library) that are connected. They appear to be in the middle of construction. The wall between The Forvm and Iris has been removed to make a bigger venue. Will be interesting to see it completed.
The food was ok. Nothing as terrible as the other reviews, so maybe they are getting better. Ordered hummus plate. Was obviously store-​bought plain hummus so nothing special. They did warm the pita which was nice. Husband ordered Mediterranean salad and said it was good but a little saltier than expected even with feta. I had pizza logs. Nothing special, but hot without 3^rd degree burn cheese in the middle.
Beer seems to be what they specialize in. We aren’t beer drinkers but I know ppl who like good beer and the draft selection looked good. Dogfish head 90min on draft! I prefer wine and they are pretty limited. House red was drinkable.
Service was decent. Not speedy but nothing like the other reviews. We got here when the doors opened along with a bunch of other ppl so I expect the kitchen was flooded with orders. Napkins and flatware were provided without having to ask :)
Overall, good with potential.

I found it difficult to give this place a # of *‘s as I need to separate the «forvm as a bar/​venue» from «the forvm as a restaurant.» the bulk of this is gonna be about the food though so if you dont care about that you can stop reading after the 2^nd paragraph. this place recently started booking some great underground metal shows, and as a result i’ve been there twice in the past few months. it is confusingly part of «maple entertainment complex» which includes 3 seperate names for things that are basically in the same space.
the good: excellent beer selection available from a small connected bar («the library») next door (you can go back and forth between them at your leisure, and the bartenders in the forvm will also go in there to get your beer for you if you dont feel like walking 30 feet), friendly staff, and its huge in there so if you want to chill out sitting at a table there will almost certainly be one available.
the bad: the food. the forvm has a tempting looking menu with options including burgers and a couple nods towards trendier things like spicy mac & cheese and potstickers. this tricked me into thinking that the food might be prepared with some level of care, unfortunately was incredibly disappointed with what i tried.
first: the burger — i ordered «the beowulf» ($ 8, fries included) which the menu says is a bacon cheeseburger with glazed onions. for some reason what i actually got was a totally unadorned burger with just a slice of unmelted american cheese, and nothing else. i asked for it medium rare, and what came out was medium-​well, but i’m almost thankful they overcooked it since the meat was garbage. the patty had an off-​putting mushy texture, usually a sign that it arrived on the premises frozen, lacked any trace of salt or seasoning. it also lacked the fat content to maintain any level of juicyness — even if it had been cooked properly it still would have been dry. the bun was a too-​dense and bready roll that only exacerbated the problems with the meat.
the fries that come standard were not terrible, but were nothing special. they were also clearly from-​frozen and contained a very high ratio of tiny annoying-​to-​eat bits to actual fries.
the mac & cheese (listed as «dante’s inferno» on the menu) was just as big of a disappointment. the only redeeming qualities of the otherwise high-​school cafeteria-​level dish were a pinch of heat (sriracha, i’m told) and a thin skin on top from being put under a broiler. unfortunately these were far overshadowed by the bulk of the dish, which was soupy and flavorless.
server (one of the bartenders) was helpful and great, and all my interactions with the staff were pleasant.
the forvm is a cool place to have some good beer and see a show, but if you’re hungry you are better off walking over to the taco bell in the same strip mall.

This place is great. Awesome sound system — very convenient location… Great place for live music and great beer selection!