The Wing Authority, Author at The Wing Authority.com

Atomic Wings at “Best Wings USA” – Quaker Steak & Lube (Erie, PA)

Back in Erie for a family wedding. This region of Pennsylvania is known for its Buffalo wings, and this region is home to one of the best and biggest wing spots: Quaker Steak & Lube. To Buffalo wing fanatics, Quaker Steak & Lube (often referred to affectionately as “the Lube”) needs no introduction. This restaurant powerhouse started in Sharon, Pennsylvania and is now famous for its list of sauces and its speedway atmosphere. The staff at every single Lube location I’ve visited has been nice and professional, the restaurants are always clean and running efficiently – like a well-oiled machine, one might say. I had my first experience at the Lube during college, when Tuesdays were All-You-Can-Eat Night. In those days, Tuesday night wing-night could go on for hours and I easily wolfed down a few dozen wings of varying sauces.

One of the Lube’s landmark sauces is the Atomic sauce. It’s a habanero hot sauce that actually deserves the waiver some locations still ask their patrons to sign before they can try Atomic wings. The Wing Authority actually finds it quite tasty. An Atomic wing experience is deliciously, frightfully intense – the wing-lover’s rollercoaster.

Atomic wings are no lightweight endeavor.

This time, as I turned to seat myself at the bar, I came upon the face of the Atomic challenge itself. One of the walls sported the “ATOMIC WALL OF FLAME“.

There was no question that I’d have to satisfy my craving on this trip back to northwestern PA and get a quick fix of Atomic sauce, but this day was no day for a full-scale challenge. We were simply having an appetizer for the road because dinner was later. Sometimes it’s time to get sweaty, panting, bloodshot eyes bulging and sucking your own fingers, and sometimes it isn’t.

The Wing Authority saddled up to the bar and ordered a couple of sample sizes. These wings are super hot. They’ve got that unique, smoky, habanero flavor, peppery and rich, and the wings are always layered with this thick sauce. Naturally, celery and blue cheese help keep things relatively under control, but beginners are going to want a glass of milk for this ride.

One might point out that Atomic sauce, along with many other flavors appearing on the Quaker Steak menu are not Buffalo. It’s true. Atomic and other habanero sauces really walk a fine line between being Buffalo or not Buffalo. It depends on the recipe. Many habanero sauces will include some red hot sauce and some butter in order to round out the bitter taste some habanero sauces can have. Even the Louisiana Lickers, while presenting a strong barbecue flavor, brings plenty of Buffalo flavor and that sauce is therefore totally Buffalo.

Those are Louisiana Lickers on the right, another of Quaker Steak's brilliant creations. — Those are Louisiana Lickers on the right, another of Quaker Steak’s brilliant creations.

Needless to say, after just a few Atomic wings, we had a bit of panting and sweating going on. But, man – it’s always worth it! Long live the Atomic wing!

Ruby Tuesday – tasty, spicy Buffalo

Just a quick note: there is no apostrophe in this restaurant's name. — Just a quick note: there is no apostrophe in this restaurant’s name.

My last time eating at Ruby Tuesday was years ago and – as you know – this restaurant can be found in every big city and little town across America. My memory was that this was a place that paid some attention to its chicken wings. I especially recalled the jalapeno slices sitting on top of the wings, covered by a thick, spicy Buffalo sauce. Due to those factors, it was obvious that The Wing Authority was going to have to refresh his memory.

On this sunny Sunday, my wings were served by a cheerful female server with blue cheese and celery and with the jalapeno slices that I remembered so distinctly. According to the menu, these were to “cool the palate.” Have no fear. The Wing Authority can tell you these wings will not make you pant and run for the nearest glass of milk.

These wings are tasty! As you can see, they’re tossed generously in that perfectly viscous sauce and plated beautifully. They were crispy (maybe fried even slightly TOO crispy), juicy, and a good size.

Ruby Tuesday’s wings are well-known. While eating Buffalo wings next door to the Macy’s in your local shopping mall might not be the first choice for true Buffalo wing fanatics, it’s a good fall-back choice when stuck in an unfamiliar town and the craving hits, or when you’re forced to spend an afternoon in a shopping mall and need something to look forward to.

The fact is, Ruby Tuesday’s wings are definitely Buffalo.

“Italian-spiced Wings”

This one is quick. The Wing Authority stopped by a restaurant in Hilton Head for some pizza and – you guessed it – couldn’t help from ordering the wings. These “Italian-spiced” wings were really flavorful, smelled heavenly, and were served with some bad ass marinara sauce. Tasty stuff.

However, that’s not the question here. The Wing Authority is here to observe and preserve the Buffalo wing tradition. To be fair, the menu doesn’t offer Buffalo wings and doesn’t claim these are Buffalo. But it’s worth going on the record and I need to do my job here, lest there be any confusion about what is and what is not Buffalo.

Therefore, while these wings are delicious they are totally NOT BUFFALO.

Experimenting with exotic cooking

Hey, friends! Check out this combination of sauces from today’s batch of baked wings:

Valentina Extra Hot sauce is simply delicious and has a thicker texture with a dark red color and a bright, vibrant flavor. El Yucateco Chile Habanero sauce is one you may find on your table at a local Mexican restaurant. This sauce has serious kick! Its Christmas shade of red suggests exactly the way your eyes will light up after a few tablespoons of this stuff.

I personally LOVE using these peppery, flavorful Mexican hot sauces on Buffalo wings. The taste is distinctly different but still totally Buffalo, all the same. It’s just one of a million different ways to experiment with sauces, yet remain authentically and totally Buffalo. Now, I don’t know what blend of cayenne and other peppers constitute these delicious items, but they make bright red wings that satisfy the craving for red-hot, zesty Buffalo wings with a unique color and texture. This combination can result in a thick but runny sauce, and no amount of butter is going to keep it from running all over your fingers. So get ready to get messy.

You also see Frank’s Original Red Hot in there. It’s such a classic, reliable choice of hot sauce and with all the other flavor experimentation going on here, I obviously couldn’t help myself.

But what’s that…? Sriracha by Texas Pete? Texas Pete is a well-known distributor of tasty hot sauces, and Sriracha has quickly achieved legendary status and a cult following. Texas Pete’s CHA! is a tangy, sweeter version of thick Asian chili sauces.

This is a great sauce combo that is experimental, extra-spicy, and TOTALLY BUFFALO. Check it out!

Alfee’s in Erie – this is how it’s done.

Alfee’s has long been one of my favorite locations for picking up spicy, flavorful, authentic Buffalo wings. Standing proudly on the corner of Glenwood Park Avenue, this place has a reputation for a reliably well-executed pizza & wings combo. I fell in love with my first Alfee’s wings almost twenty years ago. This place is so Buffalo it’s actually in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Alfee’s specializes in pizza & wings combos that the blue collar people of Erie rely upon for reliable delivery services on game day, for parties, and those dark winter nights with the kind of snow and wind that suffocates most continental souls. In other words, when you want some Buffalo wings in Erie and you want them right, Alfee’s is a top choice.

I stopped by this spring after a couple of years of not having had the opportunity, and I was not disappointed. The aesthetic, energy level, menu, and even the prices all declared that Alfee’s is STILL perfectly Buffalo.

I order up a few different flavors: hot, suicide, and honey mustard. I’ve got so many good memories about this place it’s hard to decide where to start. On one particular occasion years ago, a friend of mine was so overtaken by the suicide wings and the pre-dinner happy hour that he put his head down on the table and remained that way through most of dinner. Delightful.

I’m hungry just looking at these saucy specimens. Alfee’s serves up crispy wings, fast and furious, with blue cheese and celery – as they should be. I just love seeing a Buffalo wing institution like Alfee’s running at full capacity, and this last visit was no exception – phones ringing, delivery drivers coming & going, and my order coming out promptly and perfect.

I’ll tell you what I will point out: the hot sauce is leaning a little toward the syrupy side. But it coats the wings much better than runnier versions of Buffalo sauce that I’ve come across. The chicken was tasty, the sauces were zesty, and they coated the wings with a really satisfying Buffalo sauce.

I love Alfee’s and after all its years of faithful service to Buffalo wing fanatics like myself, The Wing Authority will be just as faithful in declaring Alfee’s to be so damn TOTALLY BUFFALO.

520 WINGS in Savannah – Southern Buffalo strikes again

520 Wings is a busy local joint in Savannah that offers a menu of wings, fries, and other munchies. It’s a take-out restaurant that offers friendly service and big portions at good prices. I’m a fan.

I’ve been to 520 Wings numerous times and it never fails to satisfy. The “Hot” flavor is real, delicious, buttery Buffalo that’s bright and red and a perfect level of heat. And you can’t beat these prices in today’s chicken wings market.

Looking good. The styrofoam and aluminum foil keep the heat in for the ride home, and you’re greeted with a steamy waft of cayenne and hot chicken when you lift the lid.

I’m very happy we’ve got such a reliable wings spot in Savannah. More to come on this friendly, affordable Buffalo oasis.

McDonald’s Mighty Wings – they’re real wings (who knew?)

A friend of mine told me that McDonald’s attempt at Buffalo wings were good if you really need a fix of hot wings. I immediately scoffed.

They’re called Mighty Wings, in an obvious effort to overcompensate for the lack of originality in the product itself. When I first saw the signage outside a corner Mickey D’s advertising them, I assumed they would be some kind of enlarged nugget served with hot sauce. BUT IT TURNS OUT – Mighty Wings are, in fact, real bone-in chicken wings. To my surprise, the wings are real, they’re fried, and you’ve got a selection of sauces to eat them with.

My experience ordering the Mighty Wings was typical McDonald’s. If you’ve ever ordered food at McDonald’s and found yourself greeted by the most disinterested eyes ever seen standing on that side of a cash register, you know what I mean. Fortunately, my expectations concerning ambiance and customer service were low to begin. I was informed at the counter that the hot flavored sauce wasn’t available. I was ready to give up at this point, but sheer inertia overcame me. I took the honey mustard variety instead, often my second choice of wing sauce (after exhausting all variations of Buffalo sauce, of course).

The breading forms a thick, breaded crust over the entire wing from tip to tip, leaving you with a crispy but shapeless piece of chicken that you have to tinker with if you’re going to avoid chipping a tooth on the bone you can’t detect using sight alone. This much breading is basically a disqualifying factor from the start. NOT BUFFALO.

But after all, who doesn’t love fried chicken? As fried chicken goes, I was satisfied. The seasoning on the wings, perfectly designed to not offend but yet remain enticingly zesty, makes them potentially the most flavorful item on the menu, in the opinion of The Wing Authority. They were plump, juicy, and filled the little box they came in.

These were tasty pieces of extra crispy fried chicken, but fried chicken alone does not a Buffalo wing make. Look at these fried titans!

Problem is, these wings are not tossed in sauce, wear way too much breading, and blue cheese is nowhere to be found. While these wings might compete side by side against a fried chicken food chain (more on that later), The Wing Authority is done here. NOT BUFFALO.