Sweet Lucy's

Sweet Lucy's
7500 State Rd
Philadelphia, PA 19136
(215) 331-3112
www.sweetlucys.com

Sweet Lucy’s on State Rd in Northeast Philadelphia is arguably the best BBQ joint in the city and anyone who has eaten there would have a hard time saying otherwise.  They have everything that you would expect from a BBQ place; pulled pork, kielbasa, beef brisket, ribs, rotisserie chicken, and more, all hickory-smoked and slow cooked to tender perfection with all sorts of sides and fixin’s to choose from.  And if you can bring yourself to stop drooling over the aforementioned menu items, they also have Hot wings. 

                This being the southern-style BBQ smokehouse, Sweet Lucy’s does wings a little bit differently than most people are used to.  Instead of being deep fried, Sweet Lucy’s wings are slow cooked just like all the other meats.  An order of wings comes with a note attached letting you know that even though the wings are a little pink on the inside due to being smoked, they’re cooked and completely safe to eat.  I would probably have eaten them without the note, but some people are a little more cautious than I when it comes to potential food poisoning, which is to say that it’s a thoughtful gesture on Sweet Lucy’s end.

                The wings are served whole, drumsticks and flats attached to one another just as God had intended.  All you need to do is rip them apart and eat.  The meat is retardedly juicy and tender from the slow cooking and it basically falls right off of the bone.  However, there isn’t much of a sauce to speak of.  My theory is that the wings are coated with a Hot rub and then slow cooked, allowing the juices and the rub to mix and make a sort of natural sauce.  The flavor is there, but it is lacking.  When you order Hot wings, you expect them to be a certain way, you know, like hot or something…  But these wings just kind of have a salt-and-pepper-sometimes-a-twinge-of-Hot-spice flavor that left us wanted more spice.

                As for the price, a dozen wings will run you $14.95 and a half-dozen is $8.50.  Keep in mind the fact that these are “whole” wings and you really get double what you’ve ordered.  So at this price point, the wings are worth checking out if you haven’t already tried the rest of the menu.  Otherwise just keep going to Sweet Lucy’s, working your way down the menu until you hit the Hot wings.  Or if you come in to Sweet Lucy’s on a Monday, they have a buffet of all their awesome menu items for around $20, and trust us, it’s worth every penny.

Wing -  6.75

Sauce – 5

Price – 6

Overall – 5.9




Review by Tom Kaericher

Wings-To-Go Quick Quest

                For lunch today, I decided to go to Wings-to-Go.  This happened for a lot of reasons (there’s one by my work, its quick, and you can order online ahead of time (I also really wanted wings and it seemed like the easiest option)).  Most people have visited a Wings-to-Go and tried the wings.  This was actually my inaugural trip to the franchise and I have to say, to my own surprise (as I was ready to shit all over this place for being all corporate, or whatever…), that I was kind of impressed.  Not super impressed, but impressed nonetheless, and to those that know me, I don’t be impressed easily.

                The selection of sauces alone at any Wings-to-Go is dizzying.  They have all the colors of the hot sauce rainbow, from Mild to Homicide, as well as some of the classic understated sauces like Buffalo Garlic, Garlic Parmesan, Lemon Pepper, etc.  And they also have some rarities like Curry, Caribbean Jerk, and Sweet N Sour.  I’m kind of on a Buffalo Garlic kick myself, so that’s what I opted for.

The wing quality was much better than expected; average size and cooked fairly well.  An order of wings… to go come with a bundle of celery and a neat little foil-sealed tub of bleu cheese, extra of either will cost you $.65.  And speaking of cost… Wings-to-Go trudges the line between being not too expensive or too expensive depending on who you ask, but they break the wing denominations down to satisfy any customer; 5 for $4.50, 10 for $7.49, 15 for $10.75, 20 for $13.99, all the way up to 300(!) for an even $150.  To me the prices seem okay, like ‘meh’ okay.  I’ve paid more for less and vice versa so the price point isn’t an issue for me.   All-in-all I’d give Wings-to-Go one and a half thumbs up (we’re doing thumbs up, right?).  It’s quick, you can order online, there’s a location pretty much near everyone, and there’s a lot of choices (I know how you kids love options), and it’s not that expensive.  Kay, bye.

- Tom Kaericher

Sorry for the delay, we still love you all.

       Hey all, sorry for the delay in between Quests.  I’m sure you can understand that it’s not always easy to get a group of people together every week, and conflicting schedules have been a huge part of why there haven’t been any updates to this blog recently.  But do not fear, we have not given up and still recognize it as our duty to continue eating wings, rating them, and talking shit about them for everyone in Philly and the surrounding areas who care about us eating wings, rating them, and talking shit about them.  I know I still care, and I gotta say, my life has been pretty empty without wings to talk shit on.

Double Quest: The Jug Handle/Whistler's Inn

This past Saturday, the WQ boys and I, ventured into the great state of New Jersey for wings. We understand that our tagline says something about finding Philly’s best wings, but Jersey is close enough to us that we can justify going there. And on top of that we decided to visit not one, but two different wing spots; The Jug Handle Inn located at the intersection of Route 73 and Forklanding Road, and Whistler’s Inn at 901 Rt. 130 in Cinnaminson.


The first place we went to was The Jug Handle, a huge bar that ironically enough does not require the use of a jug handle for getting into. First impressions of the Jug Handle were pretty great because they had chickens running around in the parking lot and who doesn’t love chickens running around stuff? So after about an hour or so of playing with the chickens, we decided to go in and order some wings. The Jug Handle has a really good selection of wings at a moderate price point. You can get Mild, Medium, or Hot wings at $6.95 for 10/$12.90 for 20, or you can get Garlic, BBQ, Honey, Honey BBQ, Hot Honey, Extra Hot, Buffalo Garlic, or Bald Eagle wings at $7.60 for 10/$14.20 for 20. One thing I’d like to point out here is that none of these wings come with celery or bleu cheese. You have to pay an extra $.55 for either one, so it’d be $1.10 for both celery and bleu cheese, which I think is stupid, plus you only get four pieces of celery and a really dinky cup of bleu cheese. But anyway, so Sean ordered the Hot, Nick ordered the Buffalo Garlic, our buddy Jim got the Hot Honey, and I ordered the Bald Eagle wings, which upon ordering, our waitress asked me if I’d ever had them before, and I said no. She then proceeded to tell me that they were extremely hot, but being the know-it-all type guy I am, I figured that she was exaggerating and I went ahead with my order.


Our wings come out and they are big and meaty looking; the flats still having their lil wing tips attached. Though slightly breaded, these wings are in no way soggy, in fact, these were unanimously voted as the best cooked wings we’ve had so far on the quest. They’re a super crispy, golden brown on the outside and way juicy and tender on the inside; you don’t know wing perfection until you’ve tried the Jug Handle’s wings. That being said, let’s move on to the sauces. Sean’s Hot wings were anything but. Having little to no heat, but an alright altogether flavor, the Hot wings left Sean mildly unimpressed. Nick’s Buffalo Garlic wings were a step up in flavor as they were dripping with buttery-garlic goodness that really complimented the quality of the wings. And though there wasn’t any taste resembling Buffalo to be found, these were still really great. Jim’s Hot Honey wings followed the trend of things claiming to be hot and then not being hot at all, but still being retardedly tasty. Not too sweet, and not too rich or overwhelming, the Hot Honey wings were arguably the table favorites.

Hot and Buffalo Garlic

The Bald Eagle wings, my new arch-nemesis, were the fucking hottest things I’ve ever put in or around my mouth. Covered in a fiery red habanero and death sauce, the Bald Eagle wings are a force to be reckoned with. After eating only one of them, I had to take a short break to recuperate and cool down. The heat comes on after a few seconds of delay at such a severe curve that you go from “Oh these wings aren’t that bad”, to “Holy shit, let me gargle some bleu cheese” (something I actually did) in a matter of seconds. In the interim of me cooling down after the first wing, I tried some of the other wings, but the jerk-off Bald Eagle sauce scorched my mouth so much that even something of room temperature would’ve tasted like licking Satan’s butthole. They were so hot, I got dizzy from eating them. All-in-all, I wound up only eating four of them, an accomplishment that won’t seem all that great until you’ve actually tried them for yourself. Everyone at our table will attest to that fact as I insisted that they all try to eat one as well. I believe Nick put it best when he said, “[The] Bald Eagle will give me a bald asshole and colon.”

Bald Eagle

So, with a fair price point and wings cooked so well as to make up for any shortcomings that the sauces may have, we were all extremely impressed with the Jug Handle’s wings. Next time we go, however, I will definitely order something that doesn’t cause extreme mouth pain.

Me trying not to cry.

Wing – 9.5
Sauce – 7.75
Price – 7.63
Overall – 8.3






***************************************************************************




The next stop on our wing tour of New Jersey was at Whistler’s Inn, a large bar/restaurant with no chickens running around and whose menu was essentially the same as the Jug Handle’s, with good reason. We learned from our waitress that Whistler’s used to own the Jug Handle, hence the similarities in their wing options. For some reason though, Whistler’s wings were more pricey. Mild, Medium, and Hot were 10 for $7.45/20 for $13.45 and Garlic, BBQ, Honey, Extra Hot, and Bald Eagle were 10 for $7.95/20 for $14.45. A tiny tub of bleu cheese will set you back an extra $.50, and if you want celery, carrots, and bleu cheese, you’re looking
at another $2.00 (!?). I was so upset about this that I actually asked the waitress why they charged so much, and she said that when they included the celery and bleu cheese that people would sometimes not eat them and they would go to waste, to which I replied something like, “Well those assholes should just ask for no celery and bleu cheese.” I wasn’t altogether worried about having spit in my food, but it did cross my mind.


So we order our food, Sean the BBQ, Nick the Garlic, Jim the Honey, and I the Hot. Our food comes to us served on Styrofoam plates, a style foreign to all of us, but to which Jim referred to as “Hospital” style. We were also brought regular plates for our bones, or as I so dumbly called them, our “used wings” (it was a long day, give me a break), which doesn’t make much sense considering most people find it way more pleasant to eat off of a plate like a human being than a Styrofoam rectangle. The wings being almost the same style as the Jug Handle’s, came out extremely overcooked. Sean’s BBQ wings seemed to be the only ones that were
cooked okay. The BBQ had a nice tang to it according to Sean and he seemed to enjoy them just fine. The Hot wings were terrible and had little flavor and zero heat. They tasted like they were just covered in their own fat juices with maybe, just maybe, a drop of Frank’s added. The Garlic wings were just “ehh” according to Nick who said that the sauce tasted like old butter with some garlic sprinkled in. Jim said that his Honey wings were sweet, but had an overall greasy consistency.


Overpriced and overcooked, these wings just could not hack it. The sauces were too bland and the wings could not carry them. In the case of Whistler’s Inn, the student (Jug Handle), has exceeded the teacher in almost every way.


Wing – 5.875
Sauce – 5.875
Price – 5.25
Overall – 5.6


Reviews by Tom Kaericher

Las Margaritas QQ

Ever had Las Margaritas 8-for-$9-beer-battered-unsauced-but-comes-with-bowl-of-hot-sauce-for-dipping-your-wings-into wings?  No? Good, save your money.

Risque Quickquest

So a couple weeks ago, Nick, myself and our old friend Graz went to Club Risque. It is a Cinco De Mayo tradition of ours to just get together at our favorite gentlemen's club. We decided to kill two birds with one stone and do a quickquest in between lapdances. It really did take me a long time to find the right words but here I go.


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So there ya go. By far my favorite QQ thus far and it will be HARD to top...heh.

Miller's Ale House

The building that currently exists as Miller’s Ale House, located on the BLVD in Northeast Philadelphia, is something of a Boulevard staple, but only in the sense that over the years, that same building has housed, in all its incarnations, many a failed restaurant. The fact that Miller’s has lasted for the few years it has is something to be admired, though it’s not necessarily something I’d chalk up to the actual merit of the establishment. Miller’s has the same hokey corporate feel shared by the likes of a TGI Fridays or Applebee’s. Kitschy shit on the walls, colorful menus, and snappy buzz names for their appetizers (see: Zingers). Not that any of the above make a restaurant inherently bad (Fado is a corporate franchise and they have some of the best wings we’ve eaten so far), but I mention these things to give a point of reference as to the kind of place we’re dealing with.


First off, Miller’s offers a good amount of sauces for their wings; there’s Mild, Hot, Mt. St. Helens, Honey Mustard, Sweet Thai Chili, Garlic, and BBQ. Their wings are priced at 10 for $8 or 20 for $14. Nick, feeling not as hungry as Sean and myself, ordered ten of the Garlic. Sean ordered twenty, but broke up his order in two and got ten Mt. St. Helens and ten Honey Mustard. I pulled a Sean, but got ten Mt St. Helens and ten Sweet Thai Chili.


When our orders arrived, Nick got his one plate of Garlic, I received two separate plates containing my orders respectively, and Sean got one big plate of wings. Somehow, our server was under the impression that Sean wanted his two sauces to be combined into one disgusting Frankenstein sauce, but managed to separate my order which was identical to his. So Sean now had the pleasure of reviewing a new specialty wing sauce, The Mt. St. Helen’s Honey Mustard Good Feeling Jamboree. Order them just like that if you’re man enough… Also, to our surprise, Miller’s wings are breaded; a big gross, albeit matter-of-opinion, no-no for us Wing Questers. The breading soaks up all the sauce, making for a soggy and altogether unpleasant texture for the wings. It just seems like an unnecessary culinary add-on to something that is already perfect in its simplicity.


Texture aside, the sauces themselves were pretty unimpressive. You could tell that some of the sauces were straight out of the bottle and not a whole lot of effort went into them. Nick’s Garlic wings were good as far as Garlic wings go and were the only wings that benefitted from the breading, as the bread soaked up all the butter and garlic (usually the sauce drips right off of the wings and there’s barely any flavor left). But, at the same time, the Garlic wings absorption of all the butter and spices made them too rich in flavor and difficult to consume all ten of them. The Mt. St. Helens sauce is touted as being “OMG hot” by our server, which intrigued me. However, these wings were more LOL than OMG. Get it? The Mt. St. Helens wings, though spicy, didn't have enough flavor within the spice to make them enjoyable, and we’ve definitely had hotter wings than these on the Quest so far.

MT. St. Helens

The Sweet Thai Chili wings were probably the best on the table, though the sauce seemed to be straight out of a store-bought bottle. The Sweet Thai shined through mainly because the sauce itself was so thick that the breaded wings couldn't absorb it, leaving the wings crispy. Sean’s sauce-combo’d wings were by far the worst. I don’t really feel the need to explain to you what a mixture of Honey Mustard and Hot sauce tastes like, let alone the effects of having to consume twenty wings coated in said sauce. My heart went out to Sean that night.

Thai Chili

Overall the wings were big, meaty, and cooked well despite the breading, which I’m sure, some people actually like. It’s the texture of the soggy breading and the lackluster sauces that killed Miller’s for us, not to mention the screw up with Sean’s wings. It’s interesting to me that Sean even said, before we entered Miller’s, that every time he’d been in there, his order got messed up, and he just happened to be the only one who had his ordered misinterpreted. I think it’s only fair that I mention his nickname for Miller’s Ale House; “Miller’s Fail House”. All things considered, I think it’s pretty fitting of our time there.

Sean says "Try the combo sauce, it's finger drippin' good!"

Wing: 5.3


Sauce: 5.5


Price: 6.5


Overall: 5.7


Review by Tom Kaericher

Sweeney's Saloon

The decision to go to Sweeney’s, located at the intersection of Buselton and Philmont in the far Northeast across from the Whiskey Tango, was a hasty one. We had some intel that led us to believe that Sweeney’s Saloon had vinegar and feta cheese wings, which we think sound pretty tasty. Upon arriving at Sweeney’s, seeing that the menu contained no such wing, then asking the bartender if they existed and being told that, no, they did not exist and never have, we were all kind of bummed out, but we decided to stay and try out their wings anyway.


Their menu touts their wings as being “Famous”, by whom we do not know, but they offer an impressive eight different sauces to choose from , including Hot & Honey, BBQ, Cajun, Mild, Garlic, Oriental, Honey BBQ, and Hot. Their prices, compared to other “Famous” wing joints we’ve been to, are really fair and encourage you to order more wings than you probably can handle. The pricing breaks down like this: a small order of six wings runs you $5.50, while the bump to double that order to twelve wings is only $1.25 more at $6.75, and caps off at $24.50 for fifty wings. If I wanted to, I could get 24 wings for $13.50. Not too shabby, right? So, being that the Sweeney’s quest consisted of just myself and Sean, we ordered two different flavors each, which the bartender taking our order allowed us to do in just one regular order at $6.75 (which a lot of places won’t let you do because they want your money). I ordered the Hot, like always, and the Garlic, in hopes that might be something more than just butter with chopped garlic on top, and Sean ordered the Hot & Honey as well as the Oriental.

Hot + Garlic

Our wings came out with a nice big tub of bleu cheese, celery, and carrots (nice touch). The hot sauce was the typical affair, and lo and behold, the garlic wings were just butter with chopped garlic on top. Would it be possible to add some spices to the garlic wings? Even some pepper and parmesan cheese would do the trick. Every bar that has garlic wings, listen up, plain old butter and chopped garlic is boring, it barely tastes like anything. Heed my words, please. Sean’s Hot & Honey wings were a nice mix of what their name implies and were pretty tasty. The oriental wings threw us both for a loop because they looked like every other Asian-inspired wings we’ve had in the past, but when we bit into them expecting to taste that sweet General Tso’s-esque type sweetness, we found none. The oriental sauce seemed to be based more on the soy sauce element, and I really enjoyed that change.

Hot & Honey + Oriental

In general, all the sauces we tried were good, but pretty stock or “meh” in their tastes. I’d say that what gives these wings their “it” factor is how they’re cooked, which is to say really well, or at least well enough to carry the various sauces and their respective shortcomings. The wings are of average build, and suit the bar setting nicely. These were solid bar wings at a great price and there’s nothing wrong with that. Plus, given the option of being at the Whiskey Tango or Sweeney’s, I’d take Sweeney’s any day.

Good Dog Bar

Good Dog Bar
224 South 15th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 985-9600

An awesome bar/restaurant located at 224 South 15 th Street, Good Dog spans three floors, has a spectacular draught list, and a food menu that is out of this world. Their Good Dog burger and fries are a contender for the best in the city, to say the least. Each of us Wing Questers have been to Good Dog multiple times, and each of us were already familiar with the quality of their food and drink, except for their wings. Needless to say, our hopes were high and we were more than willing to go down to Good Dog and do our next Quest there.


One thing about Good Dog is that it is usually pretty packed, and while it does have three floors, the building itself is slim, and only two of the floors are dedicated to dining. So waiting at least a half hour to get a table is an almost unavoidable part of the Good Dog experience. We didn’t really mind waiting all that much though as the third floor has a pool table which Nick and myself took full advantage of. When our table was ready, we sat down and ordered.


First things first, Good Dog only offers one kind of wing, the “Wings” wing. Yes, neither Hot nor BBQ, nor any other sort of indicator as to what you’re in store for when you order; just “Wings”. The wings are boasted as being “jumbo” and for the price tag of $11(!) for ten(!?!?), we gave Good Dog the benefit of the doubt and assumed that the wings would be really big. And when the wings finally did come out, celery and bleu cheese in tote, we took note of their size. On average, Good Dog’s jumbo wings are definitely larger than your average wing, but not by any crazy amount and I personally had the displeasure of having at least two wings in my order that were completely average sized and utterly unimpressive. But to be fair, the wings are really meaty and that's definitely a plus.


The wings come “smothered in Good Dog’s very own wing sauce” which is probably the weirdest sauce we’ve ever had to review. The vague nature of the wings just being called “wings” was made clear to us after the first bite. The sauce has a flavor that just can’t really be placed. The Good Dog “Wings” experience is as follows: first, a sort of sweet BBQ pummeled with tomato sauce, then a smoky, almost chipotle flavor, and finished off with a wee lil kick of heat. It wasn't an unpleasant experience, but none of us could really get into the sauce. It was almost like the sauce just didn’t know what it wanted to be, and the chef’s indecisiveness in crafting this sauce really bogged the wings down. But the light at the end of the tunnel, as there always is one, was the bleu cheese and celery. The bleu cheese had a thick, almost whipped, consistency and tasted super fresh which made for great dipping with the chunks of celery.

"Wings"

One thing we discussed last night after we had finished our meal was how bars and restaurants that have amazing food, always seem to treat wings as an afterthought, like “Eh, who gives a shit? They’re just wings.” Nick recently ran into this in his Quick Quest for Plush; great food otherwise, shitty wings. Our Good Dog experience was the same way, only it was made worse by the fact that these wings come at such a hefty price. And it makes me really angry that I had a couple wings that weren’t jumbo at all, but I still paid $1.10 for each wing. So with wings that are generally above average in size, a forgettable, amorphous sauce, and a ludicrous price tag attached to the whole thing, all of us here at Wing Quest would recommend getting anything else but the wings because Good Dog really does have some of the best food in the city otherwise.

Wing: 6.83
Sauce: 5.16
Price: 1.3


Overall: 4.4


Review by Tom Kaericher

Quick Quest - Plush Restaurant and Nightclub

     About a week or two ago I decided that I, Nick, would embark on my very own quick quest. Me and my friend Graz went out to grab a beer and some food, and I realized that it was my civic duty to get and review the wings from whichever place we chose. We decided to go to Plush Restaurant in Glenside on Keswick Ave, because it's a cool ass bar. While i've eaten here many, many, many, times over the years, I had never ordered their wings. Probably due to the fact that their cheese burger is one of the best I've had anywhere, and i've eaten alot of cheeseburgers (i even have the gut to prove it). So after almost ordering the aforementioned burger (it's a habit), I remembered why I was there and got wings. Plush's wings come in 3 varieties, Cajun, Asian BBQ (i was told it's a sort of General Tso's ripoff), and Hot. I went with the hot, because well...hot wings are awesome. Now here is where everything went downhill, priced at $9 for 9 wings, I was mad before they even got to the plate. They came served with some spring mix, and random piece or 2 of celery and something they passed off as bleu cheese. The wings looked really good but as soon as I bit into them I immediately regretted it. They tasted like Tyson frozen hot wings that had been baked, deep fried, forgotten about for a week, and then microwaved and served. That might be a bit harsh, but the wings sucked, flat out. I give 'em a 2. While Plush has  an amazing menu, solid tap selection, and killer martini list; if it was a choice between eating the wings and starve to death, i'd probably be dead.


-Nick

Wrestlemania Quick Quest

Over the weekend, I had the pleasure of hanging out with some great people while watching this years Wrestlemania. For this event, we almost ALWAYS order from Larry's Famous Pizza, located at 6400 Rising Sun Avenue in the Northeast. Even when my old band was still around, we would go to Larry's almost every week. So needles to say, I've had PLENTY of experience at this joint, to the point when they know us by name and they even named a sandwich after said old band. I've had their buffalo cheesesteaks as  well as the buffalo chicken pizza, both of which are very good.
Unfortunately, I had never had their wings and wish I didn't decide to try them last night. They were truly some of the worst wings I've ever had. The chicken was dry, overcooked, flavorless and stuck to the bone.
The sauce was just gross. It had a lot of spice to it but also had this very odd sweet tang to it which just wasn't very pleasant. It's been over 12 hours since I ate them and I still have a bad taste in my mouth. The only redeeming factor was price. $5 for 10 wings. But even when so cheap, it's just not worth it. I really hate bad mouthing the wings because of the relationship I had with this place but I have to do my job, which isn't always pretty. I will definitely avoid the wings at all cost but I certainly will continue going there and I suggest you do the same.

- Sean Ward

Quick Quest(s)

This week, while not too heavy on official WQ business, was definitely a record breaker on the Quick Quest front. On Friday, March 25 th , I went down to the Adobe Cafe on Passyunk in South Philly for a celebratory dinner/gathering. Generally regarded as a “Mexican” restaurant, Adobe Cafe received mixed reviews on the various sites I researched before heading down there, none of which made mention of their wings. What I learned from the reviews was that this is the type of place people either love or hate and after visiting the Adobe Cafe, I can see why. The place has only one real kind of wing, Texas Ranchero. They also offer Texas Ranchero Seitan (some vegan crap) wings, which whatever; I like vegan/vegetarian food, but I really don't understand how a vegan wing is supposed to work. Is there like a paper mache bone inside of the fake chicken goop? Whatever. Apparently, they were running a special on their wings that night for $.30 a wing, normally they’re $7 an order. Not really knowing what to expect from a “Texas Ranchero” wing, I just blindly ordered a shit ton of them cause I was hungry. The wings themselves are coated in a dark brown glaze and served with ranch dressing, which I guess explains the “ranchero” bit. One might get the impression from the brown glaze that they’d be in for some sort of BBQ sauce, but that's not necessarily the case. In fact, I’m not really sure what the hell I would describe the sauce as. It was a sticky glaze that had some semblance of sweetness but was instantly demolished by a surge of cayenne pepper which, if you know cayenne pepper, doesn't really have a taste, just a burn. So what you taste is pretty much nothing or maybe that's just what brown tastes like, I don’t know. And trying to save them by dipping them in ranch dressing is an even bigger mistake because just thinking about the combo of brown and ranch is making me sick to my stomach. The wings themselves were of moderate size, lots of crispy basket hangers and whatnot, but nothing resembling a saving grace could be found in these wings other than the $.30 price tag which, after eating the wings, even seems a bit steep. So overall I give these wings a rating of 3 because they were cheap, but unappetizing.

Saturday, March 26 th however, was a much better day to be me on a Quick Quest. I had stopped by the Great American Pub and Restaurant on Street road in Bensalem for a business meeting, and while I waited, I ordered some wings. The Great American has two kinds of wings, hot and BBQ. I ordered the hot wings, which at $7 or $8, I can’t remember, for twelve wings isn’t so bad. The hot sauce is totally a Frank’s and butter mix and is very lightly applied to the wings, almost as if the wings are coated in the sauce first, then baked. The wings are pretty large and really meaty. Served with bleu cheese and celery, these wings really hit the spot for me. I’m willing to go so far as to say that these could potentially be one of the better bar wings I’ve had, not as a contender in the official Quest, but if I was drunk and wanted wings, this is where I’d want to be. Overall, I’d give these wings a solid 7.

Reviews by Tom Kaericher

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Memphis Taproom

2331 East Cumberland Street
Philadelphia, PA 19125
(215) 425-4460

Aside from maintaining an already positive reputation for being a rad bar and restaurant in Philly, Memphis Taproom, located at 2331 E Cumberland St, has recently gained a lot of notoriety and publicity with the help of Mr. Guy Fieri on a little show called Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.  The episode, which admittedly I have not seen, aired sometime in January if I’m not mistaken, and has since boosted the Taproom’s profile around town.  Memphis Taproom serves a wide variety of delicious food fares and has a great list of brews on rotation.  With so many good things floating around on their menu, it was hard to focus on our primary goal of just ordering wings, and while I managed to stay strong, others were seduced into straying from the path of wing righteousness, throwing in orders of fried pickles and pulled pork sandwiches.

The Memphis Taproom only offers one kind of wing, the Pilsner-brined Hot wings.  These fancy sounding wings are, as their name implies, brined in Pilser, fried, then tossed in their special blend of hot sauce.  The resulting wings are pretty impressive.  The wing quality was really good, maintaining a fair balance of crispy and juicy, though we encountered a number of wings with brittle bones that snap off in your mouth as you bite into them.  The sauce too was really good, a nice smoky flavor on top of the sting and burn.  Neither too tangy nor spicy, these wings had a good slow burn to them and you could definitely taste the pilsner brine if you got a wing that had extra sauce on it.  Thankfully this was not another Frank’s and butter mix, but rather a hot sauce that’s a couple notches better than Frank’s mixed with butter.  The real standout when it comes to the Memphis Taproom’s wings is the bleu cheese they serve with their wings.  Apparently homemade, this bleu cheese resonates with an awesome garlicky flavor and compliments the wings perfectly.  I’d imagine I could dip anything into that bleu cheese and have it come out tasting like magic.  Sean actually found the bleu cheese to be a bit of a turn off, while Nick and guest judge Graz really liked it.  As far as price is concerned, you can get ten wings for $8 or twenty for $15.  The price, when paired with the quality, makes sense and isn’t that bad at all. 

Pilsner-brined Hot Wings

With all relatively positive reviews, you’d think we’d be gushing about these wings, but the fact of the matter is that the wings, while good and filling, just didn’t stand out that much to us.  Definitely better than the average wing, we found ourselves getting bored with them after about five or six and with no other option than the Pilsner-brined Hot, there wasn’t anywhere else for our taste buds to turn to as far as the wings are concerned.  Though the bleu cheese makes a valiant effort to keep the wings fresh and exciting, it falls just short of doing so.  Overall, the wings were good bordering on very good, but just couldn't make it over the hump to greatness and I feel like with all the other menu options to choose from, next time I’m at Memphis Taproom, I’d most likely order something else.

Wing: 7.5

Sauce: 7.45

Price: 7.25

Overall: 7.4

Review by Tom Kaericher

Prohibition Taproom

Prohibition Taproom
501 N 13th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19123
(215) 238-1818

This week’s Quest saw our crew whittled down to just two of the three Wing Kings, Sean and myself (Tom), accompanied by repeat guest judges Mike (Fado) and Chris (Grey Lodge).  Luckily for us, the need to eat wings, drink beer, get drunk, make poop jokes, then later romanticize the whole affair on this blog, doesn’t require any great number of people.  Hell, I could do it by myself, but that probably wouldn't be as much fun and I’d probably be escorted out of any respectable establishment for drunkenly yelling poop jokes at myself.  Anyway, this week’s quest took place at one of my favorite bars in Philly, Prohibition Taproom.  Located at 501 N. 13^thStreet in Philadelphia, Prohibition is a cozy bar/restaurant serving up some of the best food and beer in the city.  The quality and selection from both the beer and food menus is incredible, and with ever rotating daily specials, there’s something for everyone.  And as far as wings go, Prohibition offers two different sauces for their wings; Hoisin BBQ and Hot Chile. Naturally we ordered both styles in mass quantities.

Hot Chile was up first, and I was greeted with a steaming plate of wings covered in a bright red sauce, speckled with (presumably) chile peppers.  The wings themselves are larger than average and really meaty.  Usually when wings are this big, they’re the weird genetically altered ones that are really fatty and leave you feeling ashamed of yourself for putting them in your body; not the case at Prohibition.  They were also really well cooked, ranking amongst the best of best on the Quest so far.  The Hot Chile sauce itself was great and packed a lot of flavor in each bite.  It had a solid citrusy base which lowered the sting of the peppers to a level that made eating them a hugely enjoyable experience.  They provided the burn you want in a Hot wing, but left out the aftermath of having your mouth on fire all night.  I didn’t need to eat the celery and bleu cheese that came with them, but I did anyway because this is America. 

Half-eaten Hot Chile

The Hoisin BBQ was next and pretty much took the table by storm.  Easily the favorite of the two, these Asian-inspired wings had everyone wanting more.  Glazed in what could best be described as a more sophisticated General Tso’s sauce and reminiscent of dim sum, the wings were topped with shaved scallions and black and white sesame seeds. Also, the wings were accompanied not by celery and bleu cheese, but by long slivers of daikon radish that complimented the Hoisin BBQ sauce quite well.  Everyone agreed that the Hoisin BBQ was a welcomed change up to the typical BBQ sauce.  We’ve had Thai-sesame wings and the like before, but Prohibition’s take on them was hands down the best we’ve had.  The sauce isn’t too sweet or spicy, nor too overpowering.  Prohibition managed to find the perfect balance when they created the Hoisin BBQ sauce, and when coupled with their well-cooked wings, it’s a tough wing to beat.

Hoisin BBQ

Our only complaint with the Prohibition Taproom’s wings was the price.  For $7 you can get six wings, or pay $13 for twelve.  Some people may have a difficult time justifying the price, (I’d gladly fork over the cash for more) but the fact of the matter is, these wings could be less expensive.  Don’t get me wrong, the quality is there, and the next time I’m at Prohibition you best believe I’m going to get more wings, but it does put a strain on the wallet for the quantity of wings you receive.  As a small side note to the price, every Sunday at Prohibition is BYOV (Bring Your Own Vinyl), where you can bring in any vinyl record you want and not only will they play it, you’ll also receive %20 off of your tab for the night.  So that's definitely something to consider if you want to defer some of the cost of their delicious food and drink.

Overall, Prohibition’s wings come highly recommended from all of us.  They rank in the top three on our list and if it weren’t for the price tag, they probably would’ve ranked even higher.  But if you’re really running low on cash, come in on a Sunday, bring a record, drink some tasty beers, get down on some of the best wings this city has to offer, and enjoy a %20 discount on everything.  Sundays probably don’t get any better than that.

Wing: 8.4

Sauce: 8.7

Price: 6.5

Overall: 7.9

Review by Tom Kaericher

Oh Bryon's Saloonery

While Oh Bryon’s was never suggested to us by anyone for having outstanding hot wings, it’s a place that we felt we needed to review.  For those who didn’t already know, Oh Bryon’s is the birthplace of Wing Quest.  It was here that Sean, Nick, and myself sat at a table one night, ordered wings, tasted said wings, and decided that it would be an awesome experience for all of us to go out and try to find the best hot wings in Philadelphia.  Perhaps more importantly, a year or so before that first unofficial quest was when Sean, Nick, and myself met for the first time at that very bar.  So Oh Bryon’s is not just another wing spot for us, it’s our bar.  We’ve all spent countless hours there, hanging out, drinking, and having some awesome times.  All of our friends go there, some even work there, and it’s because of that, this quest was one of great, if only sentimental, importance to all of us.  But if you’ve been keeping up with the Quest, you know that sentiment has zero bearing on our reviews and we went into this quest with no bias whatsoever.

Arriving at Oh Bryon’s, we all took our usual seats at the bar, greeted the regulars, and hassled our bartender gal pals Rachel and Caitlin before ordering our feast of wings.  According to the menu, there are two different sauces, Hot and BBQ, but apparently, as I learned that night, there are at least three more sauces/styles of wings to be had.  On top of the Hot and BBQ, there’s the Cajun, Garlic/Butter, and Old Bay.  Naturally, we ordered ten of each. Our wings arrived in a timely manner and we got down to doing what we do best.

Hot sauce

The Hot sauce was confirmed to be nothing more than a Frank’s and butter mix.  Now, we know that when we say, “just Frank’s and butter”, it sounds like we disapprove of that simple recipe and that's not the case.  We love Frank’s hot sauce and we love butter, who doesn’t?  When the two come together it’s like there’s a mildly fun party in my mouth and whilst everyone was invited, only a couple of my relatives showed up.  It’s a classic combo and you always know what you’re in for when you eat a Frank’s and butter hot wing.  The BBQ sauce, much like the Hot sauce, was of average quality.  Deemed a bit too sweet, the BBQ wings tasted like someone was a little heavy-handed with the brown sugar, though not to the point of being inedible.  The Cajun and Old Bay seasoned wings could be lumped together in one salty, dry rubbed category.  We didn’t dislike them, but we definitely don’t harvest a lot of joy from eating things that are comprised mainly of sodium. 

Look at all dem wings!

The Garlic/Butter wings were by far the most interesting of the wing selection.  These were drenched in an ocean of butter and topped with chopped garlic cloves.  Upon the first tasting, the wings had a really nice flavor, but as we ventured on, we noticed the wings had a really sweet flavor that eventually became too much for some of us to handle.  The sweetness of the wings, as hypothesized by Dan the karaoke man, is attributed to the fact that the bulk-sized jar of garlic has had a lot of time to sit and ferment, allowing the garlic to take on this sort of sweet flavor.  Perhaps some fresh garlic could revive these wings, though Sean seemed to really dig them as they were.

Garlic and Butter

The quality of the wings themselves was okay.  Oh Bryon’s bakes their wings first before throwing them into the fryer so they’re not a juicy as they could be, but they’re not that terribly dry either.  The wings are of average build and we didn't get any basket hangers or weird misshapen freak of nature wings.  The price of the wings is a bit of a downfall for Oh Bryon’s.  At $7.95 for ten, or $14.95 for twenty, the quality of the wings just isn’t enough to justify the price.  

Overall the wings were average; just some good old fashioned bar food.  But as stated before, the importance of this review is based more so on the fact that Oh Bryon’s is where all of this started and we felt the need to pay them this respect.  While the wings aren’t top notch, they were a lot better this time than they were the night we decided to start Wing Quest.  So, even though the wings are in need of improvement, we still like Oh Bryon’s and that's never going to change.  With its laid back atmosphere and friendly yet snarky bartenders, Oh Bryon’s is definitely a great place to go relax, have a beer, enjoy some good bar food, and more importantly, enjoy the good people and good times.     

Bosom Buddies Caitlin & Rachel

Bosom Buddies Sean & Tom

                                                                                          

Wing: 7

Sauce: 6

Price: 6

Overall: 6.3

Review by Tom Kaericher

Green Rock Tavern Quick Quest

For the next installment of Quick Quest, I, Sean, decided to indulge in some wingage at the Green Rock Tavern located at 2546 East Lehigh Avenue. The reason for my being at this bar wasn't for the wings. My friends band was playing a free show and I wanted to support my fellow musicians. Though I have been here many times and have enjoyed their food (fries and pierogies are incredible), I never had the wings. I decided today is the day!
The Green Rock offers only hot wings, priced at $8 for 10 wings.
I put in my order and about 15 minutes later, I received my wings with ample amounts of blue cheese (nice and thick) and a few pieces of lovely looking celery. The wings were good. There in lies the problem. They were just your average wing, which is why I had to give it an average score of 6. The chicken is cooked well but the skin was a bit soggy. The sogginess unfortunately was due to the sauce itself. The sauce seemed like a Franks and butter/vinegar mixture but was definitely watered down. When you picked up a wing, the sauce would just run right off it and right into the pool at the bottom of the plate.
While I wouldn't go out of my way to get the wings, I would eat them if placed in front of me. Maybe stick with the delicious burgers and pierogies if stopping by.


PS - I truly hate writing and that's why I leave it up to Tom!

Currans Irish Inn

Currans Irish Inn, located on 6900 State road in the Tacony section of Philadelphia, is one of those places that you always see, most likely from driving south on I-95, and think about going to, but never get around to actually going there.  I had only been there once in my 25 years of existing in the Northeast and had a fairly awful experience, what with all the regulars staring daggers at my friends and I, and being served the nastiest Guinness draught of my life.  So we were all a little surprised when it showed up numerous times on the list of suggestions from fellow wing eaters.  We had heard such great things about their generally middle-aged clientele as well as their awesomely overpriced cover bands, but the praise for their wings was so outstanding we had to go check them out.  And indeed we did.

For starters, Currans has a pretty impressive list of wing flavors.  There’s Hot, Mild, Medium, Cajun, Garlic, Plain, and BBQ.  So, with seven different styles/sauces, we were all pretty stoked on the things to come. Currans, in their infinite wisdom, also offers the option to try out three different sauces in one 15 wing order, for a separate fee of course.  But, regardless of the extra charge, we appreciate this kind of thoughtfulness since they have so many sauces to choose from.  Altogether we ordered the Hot, Cajun, Garlic, and BBQ, respectively.  While we waited for our orders to arrive, we had the pleasure of watching some basketball game that nobody cared about, playing on about fifty different televisions.  Our orders came out fairly quick, thank God, and we dug right in.

Right to left: Garlic, Hot, Cajun

First up, were the Garlic wings, though to be more specific, these were more like Butter Garlic Parmesan wings, and that's not a complaint.  The Garlic wings were glazed lightly with a garlic butter sauce and topped with parmesan cheese crumbly bits.  They had a nice flavor, though the BGP combo was really salty and dried out our mouths quite a bit (which is pretty much how the rest of the wings went). Next were the Cajun wings; they were coated in a typical dry rub of Cajun spices, though they mainly just tasted like black pepper wings that left our mouths dry, again.  Enter the Hot wings; nothing fancy, slathered in Franks, butter, and apparently a shit ton of vinegar because that's all we could taste, slight expected burn, etc.  Oh yeah, they dried out our mouths too.  Finally we had the BBQ wings, and these were the most surprising of them all, not because they were so delicious, but because they tasted like candy.  The BBQ formula that Currans uses (educated guess) is as follows: one part hickory BBQ sauce and five parts brown sugar.  They were just too sweet to be enjoyable on any serious level, but did not leave our mouths dry (win?). 

Now, when we rate the price of an establishment’s wings, we don’t do it right away like, “oh, these are too expensive…”, we wait until after we’ve eaten.  A place could have wings that dirt cheap, but if they taste like garbage the cost doesn't mean shit, and the same goes for expensive wings.  We would gladly pay exuberant prices if we knew we were getting the best of the best, ya dig?  Currans’ wing prices were too high for the product that they’re selling.  Ten wings for $7.95 or if you want to do the three sauce sampler, you’re looking at 15 wings for $12.95.  And while we have paid eight bucks for wings before, Currans’ wings just aren’t worth it.  Not to mention the fact that they really skimp on the celery and bleu cheese.  If you run out of either and find yourself wanting more, you’re looking at an extra $.50 per celery or bleu cheese (retarded).  That kind of price gouging is something that we here at Wing Quest don’t take kindly to.

The one saving grace of the Wing Quest Currans experience was their wing quality.  While it was nothing spectacular, the wings were cooked really well.  They’re super crispy on the outside and really juicy on the inside, possibly to compensate for how salty and mouth-drying their sauces are.  The wings are also a fair size, and none of us had any that were overcooked or bottom of the basket.

So, if salty, overpriced wings are something you’re into, Currans is the place to be.  While they’re wing quality is okay, their sauces and prices were not.  We were all sort of disappointed with how our trip to Currans wound up since so many people pointed us in its direction.  Maybe if they ever decide to lower their prices or lay off the sodium we would be willing to give them another shot, but until that happens, we won’t be returning to Currans for their wings.  The cover bands and cougars however… that's a different story.

Wing: 7.2

Sauce: 5.7

Price: 4.8

Overall: 5.9

Review by Tom Kaericher

Thrillist

Big thanks to Nick @ Thrillist.com for the kind words and publicity that four dudes eating wings naturally deserve.

Check out the sweet article @ http://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/wing-quest-2011_comfort-food_websites

Thanks!
- WQ

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Quick Quests

Quick Quests is a new segment for the site that allows us Questers to do little write-ups for restaurants and bars that serve hot wings, but didn't quite make the cut for our final list (which is laminated, so we can’t change it). See, even when we’re not working hard at finding the best wings in Philadelphia, we still really enjoy eating hot wings and just want to share our experiences with you (because we’re nice, dammit (also to up our blog content a bit)). So just sit back, relax, and get ready for even more hot wing talk to be shoved in your face (with love).

For the inaugural Quick Quest, I went to Kitchen Bar in Abington. This was more so for a celebration with my girlfriend, but come on… wings! And what says “I love you”, better than sharing a plate of delicious hot wings? Nothing. Just kidding, everyone knows I don't share my wings. Anyway, Kitchen Bar offers two different sauces for their wings, traditional “Buffalo” and “Kentucky Bourbon”, each served with celery and bleu cheese. While, in retrospect, I should’ve gotten the Kentucky Bourbon, since it sounds so delicious as I’m writing this, I was craving the slow burn of the Buffalo. The Buffalo wings were pretty awesome, nothing too fancy, but definitely not average. The wings were of medium size, solid, and meaty. The sauce had a nice burn and a good flavor. Again, nothing too fancy, but they definitely hit the spot. My only complaint is that the price tag just didn't match the quality, and that's an issue with all of us here at Wing Quest. At $7.95 for ten wings, I would probably pass on the Buffalo again, but if I ever make it back to Kitchen Bar, I’d give the Kentucky Bourbon a shot for sure. And there you have it, a Quick Quest. Thank you and goodnight.

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Lord of the Wing

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Benny the Bum's

Benny the Bum's Crabhouse
 9991 Bustleton Avenue
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 673-3000
www.bennythebums.com

Well, it finally happened.  We all knew this day would eventually come, we just didn’t think it would come so soon.  On Friday, February 4^th, Wing Quest’s journey to find the most average, non-exceptional hot wings in the Philadelphia area had come to an end… wait, that’s not what we’re doing, is it?  No, we’re looking for the best hot wings, right?  Okay, just checking. 

Regardless, Friday saw the Quest heading to Benny the Bum’s in Northeast Philadelphia.  Benny’s, located on the corner of Busleton and Red Lion, is generally known for their seafood, and rightfully so.  Their crab bisque is baller, they really know their way around a tuna, and crab fries? Hell yeah, they do them right.  But again, and we can’t say it enough, this is Wing Quest and we have to rock these spots with one goal in mind.

For starters, Benny’s offers only one sauce, Hot.  And while this made it easier for us to make up our minds about what we wanted to order, come on, only one sauce?  We would’ve liked to have seen at least a BBQ sauce or maybe even Crab wings, though we probably just made those up.  Anyway, one thing Benny’s has working to their advantage is the price to portion ratio, for about eight bucks you get a dozen wings and that's not a bad deal considering the size of the wings.  Benny’s wings are really meaty and served with a vat of bleu cheese and a ton of celery.  To be completely honest, not a single one of us finished our entire plates, and there’s definitely something to be said for that.  The hot sauce tastes like a basic Frank’s hot sauce and butter, which really brought the wings down to a lower echelon.  The sauce had an okay burn that built on itself with each wing, but again, the flavor of the sauce didn’t do much for any of us.

Hot Wings

So while Benny the Bum’s seafood stands out and on its own, their wings are dull.  We can only describe them as completely average.  The wings’ only saving grace was their price tag.  And while we didn’t hate the wings, next time we’re at Benny’s, we’ll probably just sample what they do best, their seafood.

Wing – 6.6

Sauce – 5.6

Price – 6.7

Overall – 6.3

Review by Tom Kaericher

Fado Irish Pub

Fado Irish Pub
1500 Locust St
Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 893-9700
http://www.fadoirishpub.com/philadelphia/

We here at Wing Quest heard of Fado the same way that we hear of many of our wing locations, by word of mouth. Having never heard of it before, we were set to file this one away into the “wait until we have nowhere else to go” file, but two simple words grabbed our attention and forced us to show Fado some love; “Pumpkin Wings”.  Sounds interesting, right?  Though it would be criminal of us to continue without making one thing brutally clear.  Pumpkin wings, seasonal items that they are, are no longer at Fado and will not be coming back until next Fall or Winter.  But don’t let that deter you from reading on, because Fado, located at 15^th and Locust offers some tasty wings that you can check out any month of the year.

Accompanying the usual players (Sean, Tom, and Vodka Ross), were two new friends of the Quest, Joe and Mike, who agreed to serve as guest judges.  Being that it was Friday night and packed, we couldn't find any seating when we walked in. We wound up placing our orders at the bar and feared that our wing experience would be marred by the simple fact that we couldn't even sit down to enjoy our food, not to mention that the only place we could stand put us directly in the way of all the other customers as well as the hardworking servers.  Needless to say, we were kind of uncomfortable, but all hope was not lost.  Just as we were starting to receive our wing orders, a table opened up and we basically ran to it and claimed it in the name of Wing Quest.  Finally seated, we were all ready to get down on some wings.

Fado offers two different kinds of wings on their every day menu, the stock Hot and the mouth watering Guinness BBQ.  Though most of us had ordered the Pumpkin Spice Wings, Vodka Ross decided to try out the Hot, and we got an order of the Guinness BBQ for the table.  First up were Vodka Ross’s Hot wings.  There were coated in a bright red sauce and topped with some chives with bleu cheese and celery on the side.  Fado’s Hot sauce is awesome in that, not only does it bring the heat, but has that great classic peppery flavor.  Another thing that we liked about the Hot wings was that the heat that they brought was more of a stinging sensation than just a flat out scorching of the mouth.  Next up, we had Fado’s Guinness BBQ wings.  These came coated in a thick, dark brown sauce that closely resembled the color of their namesake and were served with celery and bleu cheese.  Though Guinness itself has a fairly mild flavor, these wings did not.  The Guinness BBQ sauce was packed with exactly the kind of flavor you want in a BBQ wing, super smoky with just the right amount of sweet.  And though not everyone could taste it, there were a few of us who could distinctly make out the flavor of the Guinness in the sauce.

Hot Wings

Finally, we had the Pumpkin Spice wings.  The wings were coated in sticky golden glaze, topped with sesame seeds and chives, no bleu cheese or celery necessary.  The first thing you’re hit with when you bite into one is this wonderful, buttery, salty sweetness that is really reminiscent of how a corn dog tastes, though it’s not overly sweet.  All the notes of autumn are there, hints of cinnamon, nutmeg, and of course, pumpkin.  Though, for being billed as Pumpkin Wings, the pumpkin taste is one of the lesser things your taste buds can sense, but you will know it’s there.  And amazingly enough, for all its sweetness and Fall flavors, these wings finish with a surprising sting of heat.  Nothing that will set your mouth on fire, but it really rounds out the wings as a whole.  Sean described them as “a nice change of pace from fire mouth and booty fire”.  Bottom line, eating Fado’s Pumpkin Spice wings is like being on the receiving end of a really sweet chest bump. 

Pumpkin Wings <3

Also, the one thing that really sealed the deal for Fado’s wings being so damn tasty was the quality of the wings.  Everyone agreed that, with all the sauces, the wing really shined through.  They were cooked to perfection. Perfection!  The meat just kind of slipped right off of the bone and the crispiness, oh the crispiness! All of it was just incredible and hands down the best cooked wings on the Quest so far.  Another thing to note about Fado’s wings is the price.  You get a dozen for $9.25, or a half dozen for $5.95.  Not a great price for ordinary wings, but definitely worth it for Fado’s, so don’t let the price scare you.

All in all, Fado is not really your typical Irish pub.  Sure, there’s the selection of primarily Irish beer and liquor, and sure, the name and decor are extremely reminiscent of a place you might stumble into, drunk off your ass, on St. Patty’s day.  But Fado just feels different. It feels a little more mature than its boisterous counterparts, and a little less “bro-y” too, although we were assured that the clientele generally does bro out later in the night.  So, even though we were greeted at the door by some drunk lady giving out high fives, we still kind of feel that Fado rises above, if only slightly, the sour reputation that comes along with what an Irish Pub is supposed to be in the city.  And besides, who doesn’t want a high five? Answer: communists.  So, while the Pumpkin Spice wings are gone for now, the flavors of the Hot and Guinness BBQ are still more than enough to get us to come back, and if you want to try some really awesome, quality wings, we suggest you stop by Fado Irish Pub.  And come next Fall, be sure to stop by and try out the Pumpkin Spice wings.  We’ll be camping out in a tent, waiting for their return.

Wing – 9.2

Sauce – 8.6

Price – 6.2

Overall – 8.0



Review by Tom Kaericher