5 places to crow about for National Chicken Wing Day

It was a case of necessity being the mother of invention.

Almost six decades ago, Teressa Bellissimo tossed some chicken in a mix of butter and hot sauce at her Anchor Bar restaurant and gave us Buffalo wings, named for the city of their creation.

That was 1964, and we are still in pursuit of the perfect wing.

And with National Chicken Wing Day upon us on July 29, it’s time to celebrate with a dozen, or two, at Chesapeake area restaurants.

We don’t mean to ruffle any feathers, but we’ve come up with five places that we think have wings worth crowing about, at least at the moment.

In my defense, I’ve been a judge at numerous chicken wing contests over the decades and in my career as a food journalist during the past quarter-plus century, I’ve hunted and pecked for the best yardbird near and far.

Our picks come from places we’ve enjoyed and which have really stood out.

No doubt there are other great wings out there, but here are some that tempted my tastebuds; perhaps they will yours as well. If you have a favorite that’s not listed here, email and let me know at [email protected].

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Bad Habits Wing & Oyster Bar has wings right in their name, and I’ve enjoyed dining here throughout the years.

Bone-in and boneless wings are available. Don’t get me started on boneless wings; I’m a traditionalist. A baker’s dozen sauces from wing phenom Lendy’s are options to coat your order, available in increments of six, starting with a half-dozen. Celery sticks and housemade ranch or blue cheese are de rigueur.

I picked Garlic-Parmesan, Old Bay, and Wasabi-Teriyaki. Each wing was crispy and hot, and each had a good coating of their respective sauce.

I enjoyed all three, but the Garlic-Parmesan was the standout. A buttery sauce was the conduit for a pronounced, but not over done, garlic profile, and the wing was coated in a good amount of nutty, grated parmesan cheese. All of the elements worked perfectly together.

The Old Bay was a very close second. These wings are purely dry rub, and while the Old Bay flavor is forward on the palate, it’s not overwhelming. The familiar tang was pleasant, and the saltiness lip-smacking satisfying.

Although third in my picks, the Wasabi-Teriyaki was also a very tasty wing. The can’t-put-your-finger-on-it umami-ness of the teriyaki sauce was prevalent, with a slight green heat essence on the back end.

Bad Habits is at 1464 Mount Pleasant Road. Call 757-842-6565 or visit https://www.facebook.com/badhabitswingandoysterbar.

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The menu at Big Woody’s offers a huge variety of wings, including the ability to get all drums or all flats, and with 17 sauces and rubs available. My partner Doug and I ordered two dozen, and mixed-and-matched the offerings.

My first bite was with the mild variety, to establish a baseline of flavor. There was a pleasant crispness to the skin, but without being overdone. It yielded nicely to a generous amount of moist, flavorful meat inside.

The sauce for the wing was indeed mild; for my own palate I may get the hot next time. Still the sauce was very flavorful, with lots of notes of butter and a subtle bit of heat coming through.

Our Jack Daniels wings had an underlying sweetness, and a layered savoriness that resonated with the whiskey flavor. Think of a dense barbecue sauce with bourbon undertones.

The Caribbean Citrus had a great tropical, fruity flavor, but was offset with some moderate heat. It was sweet, it had heat, it was delicious.

My favorite, however, had to be the Kickin’ Hickory. Just the right amount of spice mixed with a barbecue sauce amped up with some great hickory smokiness that made me chew on the bone just a little bit longer than the others.

Big Woody’s is located in Great Bridge, 123 N. Battlefield Blvd., Chesapeake; call 757-436-1919, and also at Chesapeake Square, 4200 Portsmouth Blvd., Chesapeake; call 757-966-2656. Visit https://bigwoodys.net/.

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Some say it ain’t nothing but a chicken wing. They’ve obviously not had the chicken wings at The Spot, a small, unadorned eatery in the Mount Pleasant Village shopping center in Chesapeake.

Forget what you think of wings, which most folks know as a mix of drums and flats. Yes, they are delicious and great for a meal or snack. But these pieces are just part of the poultry picture.

Wings at The Spot are the whole wing: the tip, jointed to the flat, jointed to the drum. They are large, very large; you are getting three pieces in one. So know this going into the meal as not to get your feathers ruffled.

I picked the Wing Dinner, which comes with three whole wings and two side dishes. Side dishes are subject to availability, and during this visit I enjoyed green beans and candied yams. I also added a side of Momma Sauce to make the wing ding complete.

The wings, cooked to order, came out piping hot. I worked on disjointing them first, separating them each. A perfect, crispy exterior gave way to moist, delicious meat underneath. The coating was simply and wonderfully seasoned with salt and pepper, allowing for the full flavor to shine. The meat was succulent, and I pulled off bits and dunked it in the Momma Sauce, a piquant, vinegary-slightly sweet barbecue style offering.

The Spot is at 1457 Mount Pleasant Road. Call 757-546-3463 or visit https://www.facebook.com/thespotfamilyrestaurant1/.

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There’s a delicious selection of wings at Tossed and Sauced; perfect for celebrating National Chicken Wing Day.

Choose from an order ranging from six to 48 and then selecting traditional, boneless, or vegan. There’s heat levels to consider across the spectrum of sweet and spicy, barbecue, dry rubs, and others like Strawberry Sriracha, Peach Pineapple Pepper, and PBJ. Yes, PBJ.

We love the Dr Pepper BBQ, an addictive, messy, wet sauce thickly coating perfectly cooked wings. The sauce had just a hint of its namesake soda, with a complexity and richness that paired wonderfully with the white meat chicken underneath.

This was a highly addictive offering, and we’ll be back for more.

Wings are fresh, never frozen, and sauces are made daily, which is evident in each bite.

Tossed & Sauced is at 200 N. Battlefield Blvd., Chesapeake. Call 757-548-4243 or visit www.TossedAndSauced.com.

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One of the most natural combinations in the culinary world is that of chicken wings and pizza. But we have found that while most pizza places carry wings, only some give as much attention to the poultry parts as they do their pies.

That’s not the case at Windy City Pizza, one of our favorite places to grab a pizza. We love their Chicago-style deep dish pie, but we also love their wings, large portions with a tasty slathering of sauce.

From the four styles offered, we picked the Sweet Red Chili. It was a very nice balance of sweet and heat, and neither of too much either way. A glossy sheen provided a first taste of sweetness, with some of the chili coming up on the finish to make you sweat just a little bit.

You can get as few as five pieces, something we recommend if you are also ordering one of the classic pies.

Windy City Pizza also has a location in Virginia Beach.

Windy City Pizza is at 480 Kempsville Road, Chesapeake. Call 757-410-5550 or visit www.WindyCityVB.com.

Of note: we are still thinking about wonderful wings we’ve also had at The Dirty Buffalo, Pho 79, and Redbone’s Raw Bar Seafood Grill.

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On a wing and a prayer

So what is a chicken wing?

Culinarily, it can refer to one of three specific parts.

First: the drumette, which is one of the more recognizable pieces, looks like a small drumstick, and has an abundance of white meat.

Second: the flat, which is an oblong piece with white meat inside to parallel bones.

Third: the tip, a small bony end, sometimes attached to the flat, but usually discarded.

A note on boneless wings; they just aren’t our thing. We feel a wing without a bone is just a glorified chicken nugget.

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Cooking wings at home, or bringing back some from a restaurant? We eschew dipping in ranch for the first wing condiment conceived all those years ago in Buffalo: a rich, tangy blue cheese dip.

Make mine at home; it’s quick and easy, and can be used for wings, crudités like carrots and celery, or chips.

Here’s how to make my Blue Cheese Dip:In a medium bowl, add 1 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup plain Greek your, 1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles, 1/2 cup milk, 1 tablespoon garlic powder, 1 tablespoons dried onion flakes, 1 teaspoon parsley flakes, and a dash each of celery seed, paprika and ground black pepper. Stir until well blended, cover, and chill at least two hours before serving. Add more milk if dip is too thick.

Patrick Evans-Hylton, [email protected]

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