This week, we tackled one of the big “wing-chains” (not to be confuse with “wang-chun”). The WingHouse. The reviews:

“I had very high hopes for Ker’s Winghouse Lakeland since they are a large chain and because their name implies that wings are their specialty. I was let down. I ordered 10 breaded hot wings with their “WingHouse House on Fire® Sauce”. Winghouse’s heat scale goes like this: mild, medium, hot, house on fire, eXXXtreme. Give me a break. My 4-year old could have eaten the house on fire wings. If I go back, I’m ordering the extreme sauce. But that’s a big IF. Here’s why. Out of 10 wings, I bet five of them had broken bones. This does two things. First, it makes the wings difficult to eat because there are splintered bone fragments to contend with. Second, it makes me feel bad for the poor chickens and who needs that guilt? I want my chickens living a happy life just prior to being fried in boiling hot oil. It also occurred to me that maybe the restaurant’s focus is more on their service by the famous Winghouse girls. Service was average at best. The atmosphere is cool, if you don’t mind a restaurant where the patrons are 98% male. To quote Randy Jackson of American Idol fame, “It was just ayaught for me dog.”
–Steve

“To be honest, my entire review can be summed up in one word: “Ehh”

First off, the ordering here is just complicated. Even the menu agrees with that – it gives a detailed step-by-step “Instruction Manual” on the proper way to order your wings. Any food that requires more than one step to order correctly is just cumbersome.

The “House On Fire” Hot Wings (rated Four Fireballs out of Five by WingHouse) were just… sissy. I don’t even know if that word applies to food, but that’s the best way to describe them. This second-hottest wing on their menu was milder than most establishment’s “medium” wings.

The portion size also left something to be desired. Those who ordered “naked” wings – without the breading – were left with tiny piles of sticks… and that was before they were eaten. Additionally, the wings themselves were full of broken bones. I believe WingHouse orders their chickens directly from a Paraplegic Chicken Rescue Farm. (editor’s note: I don’t think this is offensive, so I left it in here. If it offends you, let me know)

“Value” is not a term I would associate with WingHouse. For around $12.00 (including tip) I received 10 measly wings and a soda. Want anything additional and it would cost you – 1.50 for all drummies, .79 cents for bleu cheese/ranch, and .99 cents for dressing AND celery. Listen. Don’t nickel and dime me, scantily-clad waitress.

I’m not even going to get into how much of a Hooter’s knock-off this place is.

The only semi-redeeming quality of WingHouse was the [over-]enthusiastic staff. We were greeted by the hostess upon entering, our waitress was attentive, the manager asked how our meal was partway through, and both the hostess and manager opened the doors, asked us again how the meal was, and wished us a pleasant day. Oh, and the blackened wings were tasty, despite their miniscule size.

Overall – 2 stars.”
–Scott

“Expectations were high today as we were going to WingHouse a place that is known for, well, their wings, as well as a few other things. I can sum up the entire experience in one word “Average”. The staff was friendly (attractive), the restaurant was clean and well laid out, and the food arrived in what seemed record time. I ordered 10 wings blackened (naked), all drumsticks which is a nice option. They tasted OK but the cook went a little overboard on the spices and I’m pretty sure I got my daily intake of sodium in the first bite. The drumsticks were also a little small in comparison but were cooked to a good consistent texture. I wasn’t impressed at all with the “House on Fire” wings that I sampled as they were a little soggy and didn’t pack much of a punch. In summary nothing really stood out about the whole experience so I give it 3 out of 5 stars.”
–Shawn

Sounds pretty mundane to me. I actually was the only one to sample the Dallas/Hot combination that another guy ordered - really good, although, I have to agree with the other guys on the brittle/size points. All in all, it wasn’t that it was bad, more that it wasn’t awesome.

That’s it for this week. Until next week, Follow our favorite fast food establishment’s slogan and Eat More Chicken!

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March 5, 2008

We start off this week with some reader animadversion - “Why are your posts so long?” from Anonymous in Polk County. Well anonymous, we’re just trying to bring the best, most accurate reviews of wing establishments that we possibly can. As such, we’ve decided to empower our reviewers with the freedom we feel may be missing should parameters such as “length” or “content” be in place. I’ve asked our reviewers to become more concise; that said, they are both funny and talented writers, and no one put Picasso in a box (which is the last time you will see Wingsday and Picasso in the same sentence). Moreover, it’s one post a week. Yes, it’s a long one. Deal with it. On to the wings!

Kau Kau is the very definition of a dive bar a quaint little establishment off of Main Street in Lakeland. Although I feared for my life  I couldn’t see due to the lack of lights  I couldn’t breathe due to the pollution of the oxygen the seating wasn’t plentiful, we were able to (literally) belly up to the bar to enjoy our lunch. The reviews:

“Ah, the Koner. My old college haunt. I’ve had the Wings and Cubans here on quite a few occasions, but the last time I truly dined here was several years back. I was a little worried that the delicious food I had consumed here previously was either:

A. Going to be different because of a new chef/recipe/etc. OR
B. Was never really that good; I was just really hungry and/or had the equivalent of “beer goggles” for my taste buds on when I had been here before.

Luckily for us, neither was the case. First off, Kau’s is truly a bar. You don’t eat at a table… you sit at a bar. Your food is served at the bar. You sit on barstools. You’re served by a barmaid (who was very friendly by the way)… But I kind of like that about the place. However, the ambience left something to be desired – even in daylight hours its still a dimly-lit college dive. But it was MY college dive.

And the wings… incredible. Saucy and dripping with goodness. Kau’s is very generous with the sauce, but it’s not overpowering. There’s plenty to spare on each wing, almost too much – but sometimes I enjoy a wing that makes me have to wipe my entire face after each bite. The sauce is no cover-up, either. There’s a ton of good flavor in the skin and meat of the wing – which balances the sauce nicely.

And finally, a “Hot” wing with some kick. A touch of vinegar-y smell/taste, but not overdone. These will have your mouth burning for a few minutes afterwards – and I like that in a wing.

The ONLY complaint I could find to say about Kau’s is the wing-to-drum ratio. Probably 70% Wings to 30% Drummies. Oh, and that we didn’t order the ButterGarlic wings. But we’ll save that for another time.

For me, it doesn’t get much better than Kau-Kau Koner. Moist, tender, flavorful wings. Thus far, they are my personal leader for Wing Of The Year.”
–Scott

“I might have been warned to go and get a tetanus shot before visiting this particular wingsday establishment (Kau Kau’s) however since it has the reputation of being a popular college hangout I figured it couldn’t be that bad, I was wrong! Steve, Travis, and I spoke about leaving a little early so that we could get a seat. Come to find out there was little to worry about since we were basically the only vehicle in the parking lot. After looking around a bit and trying to decide whether we really wanted to sit down we all hiked up to the bar and joked about a possible plan B.

Everyone seemed friendly and we quickly placed our order for 60 hot wings. Once the wings arrived I may have forgotten about everything else. The wings were cooked to a nice crispy texture and smothered in a hot buffalo sauce. They were quite excellent to say the least and this was situation where hot means hot. The sauce wasn’t too hot for most of us (names withheld to protect the girly men of the bunch) but was hot enough to bring some beads of sweat to the forehead. Food wise I believe Kau Kau’s holds a strong second to Decision’s (I would rate the wings an 8.5 out of 10, maybe a 9) however as previously stated there is a lot to be desired when it comes to the surroundings (I would rate the surroundings a 1 out 10 it was true dump).”
–Shawn

“Today for lunch the wingmen went to my old college stompin’ ground. It was very nostalgic walking into the worn down, dimly lit, non air conditioned bar. At first, we were the only ones in there. About 10 minutes into our lunch a group of college students arrived to begin their beer drinking venture…at least it was officially the afternoon at this point. I couldn’t say whether they were of age or not. With Journey on the juke box the memories flooded in. But enough of that, you came for the wing review. Between the 5 of us we split several dozen hot wings. I must say that I was very pleased with the caliber of the wing. Although not quite as large as Decisions, the wing itself had much potential. One key thing that I loved about them was that they were dripping with sauce. These hot wings packed a significant punch that I think the majority of us had been searching for over the past few weeks. They were delicious. I would also be willing to say that Kau’s is a close runner up for Decisions thus far in out quest. i will even go as far to say that the hot wings here are better than Decisions (but that still doesn’t put them in the #1 spot.)

The staff was very friendly, probably due to the lax environment. I liked how the cooking staff, and even the owner, came out to us to make sure we enjoyed our lunch. I think this would be a great place to eat, as long as you don’t mind a slightly dirty bar atmosphere. I will say, however, you can’t bring the kids here.”
–Mike

“The parking lot was vacant. The building looked as though it may have been as well. The front door was propped wide open so we entered a completely dark cavern of a bar. I couldn’t see a solitary thing for about two minutes. Then, once my eyes compensated from the absence of lumens I was finally able to see two figures. One guy working the bar and one man probably in his sixties playing some kind of video poker machine. I held closely the notion that we could bail out and find lunch elsewhere. We proceeded despite the stench of bowling shoe + cigarette smoke. We sat at the bar. That was the only choice frankly — there are no tables and chairs. Upon inquiry we were handed the menu. Let me qualify that. When I say the menu, I don’t mean a menu as if there were more than one. It was the menu, for the entire Kau to share. We ordered 60 hot wings. I was advised not to bother using the facilities to wash up before lunch. I took a don’t ask, don’t tell approach to that news. I ordered a Coke mostly because I was afraid of their tap water. (Yes, I know where Coke comes from. I have faith in the magic syrup and carbonation.) The wings - decent size, excellent flavor, heavy on the sauce, very good heat. I paused several wings in to look around to find three out of 5 men in a sweat. No kidding. I don’t think they were that hot, but I’d say some folks might even have a use for the medium at this establishment. We probably used an entire roll of paper towels. Saucy. Would I go back? Sure. The wings were good - if you can get past the ambiance of this hole-in-the-wall bar (where I’m certain Florida clean air act rules don’t apply). Not bar & grill. Just bar. That’s it, I’m off to go take a shower.”
–Steve

The overall consensus seemed to be, 1) the place is an absolute dive, and 2) they cook a pretty good wing. I’d say they’d be a no brainer for to-go orders. As far as dining in, it wasn’t a bad place for lunch, although that’s mostly due to it being spring break (read: not filled with college kids). I don’t know how soon I’ll want to go back, but I can’t complain about the wings at all.

That’s it for this week! See you next Wingsday!

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February 20, 2008

Okay.  Through a confluence of fluky events, we weren’t sure we’d have a full cadre of reviewers today.  Concerned with making sure we provide you, the reader, with a well rounded perspective, we decided to take our “skeleton” crew to Decisions again.  Decisions was the early leader in Wingsday, so what better place to regroup.  Plus, we can see if the first visit was a fluke.  It wasn’t.  Bring on the reviews:

“Upon hearing my Wingsday Debut would be at Decisions, I couldn’t help but feel apprehensive. I’ve driven past this place more times than I care to count, and never gave it a second thought. However, my preconceived notions were all put aside when I arrived; greeted by friendly wait staff and entering a clean, well-lit “Bar & Grill” whose lunchtime ambience was pleasant and inviting. Aside from the typical bar paraphernalia adorning the walls, once I was seated and eating, Decisions bared more of a resemblance (in daylight hours) to a mom-and-pop diner than a true Bar.

Overall, the wings were very tasty; cooked through, crispy, and with just enough sauce to keep the meat tender and moist, without being a sloppy, dripping, suck-your-chicken-through-a-straw, sopping mess.

The Raspberry Wings had me torn. As much as I was (unsurprisingly) not impressed with my first bite, they were like a bad accident; I just had to keep going back. The sweet berry taste made a pleasant “palate cleanser” in between garlicy or spicy wings. I still stand indifferent on this particular flavor. If offered, I would gladly chow down on a few in between Hot Wings… however, ordering a plate solely comprised of these wings may leave you asking for the peanut butter and white bread – and asking your mommy to cut the crusts off your PB&Wing Sandwich. 2 Stars.

The Cajun Garlic Wings were very good. A dryer wing – but in a good way – enough flavor without having to drench the chicken in gallons of sauce. More “garlic” and less “Cajun” however; lacking the kick that I had expected. Overall, a definite re-order for me. 4 Stars.

The traditional Hot Wing served up by Decisions was excellent. Enough spice for a little kick – but not so much spice that eating them dulls your taste buds. There’s plenty of underlying flavor that does not compete with the spiciness of the sauce, making an overall great choice. I’d return for this wing alone. 5 Stars.

The Teriyaki Wing is the only place that I feel Decisions faltered. Not that they were BAD, but they just really didn’t do anything for me. Again, the wings themselves were cooked well, crispy, and eye-pleasing; but the flavor was just not enough to get me going. If you like sweet or Asian-style, these may suit you just fine. 1.5 Stars.

The final selection was recommended by our pleasant, talkative, attentive waitress. The Hot/Honey/Teriyaki concoction was a bit much at first bite. Rather than melding together, I felt the flavors almost competing in my mouth; as if it were an Immunity Challenge in Survivor: Tongue Island. [Alternate Joke: “as if Officer Krupke was breaking up a rumble between the Jets and the Sharks in the alley behind my lips.”] Both my first and second attempts at enjoying these wings were squelched by the flavor Battle-Royale which ensued. However, while talking with my fellow Wingmen, I realized that I had been instinctively eating these continually without a second thought – so I must have enjoyed them on some level. 2.5 Stars.”
–Scottie

“I originally was told we were going to Champs, which made me very excited. About 20 minutes before I left to meet the guys I was informed that we were going to Decisions Bar instead. I’ll be honest…I was a little disappointed when I heard the news because I haven’t been to
Champs in years and was ready to have a little rendezvous. Alas, I showed up to Decisions and was surprised that the atmosphere was relatively clean and smokeless, contrary to the gossip I had heard. As always, I was late due to a meeting at work, but the guys had already ordered and started in. We split something like 60 or 70 wings between us. Here is the official breakdown -
Hot: good flavor, not tangy (thats a positive statement), not enough sauce
Teriyaki: not going to lie, these sucked
Cajun garlic: I have a good benchmark on these due to Bedrock’s last week. These were much better.
Raspberry: This is a very interesting concept. Fry the wing. Coat it with Smucker’s…or something like that. Not great but also not awful. Maybe a good dessert wing.
Hot honey teriyaki: I actually liked these the more I ate them. Due, however, to the teriyaki not being that great, I think these would have been better if they were hot honey garlic. That way you have a spice, sweet, and savory flavor.

The wings at Decisions were nice and crispy. They were cooked really well. They told us that due to the Daytona 500 they ran out of their usual wings and were using something else until they restocked. I guess they were a little smaller, so they gave us more than we ordered, but I
have nothing to base that against. The server was very good. She wasn’t your typical suck up kind of server you find in a Chili’s or something. She actually had a personality…and could put up with all of are crap. As of yet, Decisions is headlining this Polk County tour
for wings. Why are we only in Polk County? Central Florida here we come!”
–Mike

“The discerning tastes of Wingsday.com reviewers was called into question indirectly by some “pro” food critic at The Ledger in the Timeout’s dining section Thursday, February 7th. We at Wingsday take offence and would like to set the record straight here. Allow me to rebuff one Lenore Devore’s review.

Decisions Bar & Grill remains top-of-the-heap in the Lakeland area for chicken wings. The fresh aroma delights the senses as soon as you walk in the door. The only thing smokin in Decisions are the hot wings and serving staff. They could not be more accommodating and friendly. The wings are made fresh, so each order takes a full 20 minutes to prepare. If you get them any quicker — send them back, you can never be too careful. Decisions offers many tantalizing flavors including raspberry, Cajun garlic, honey bbq, and teriyaki. The standard hot are the best in town, but the raspberry and Cajun garlic deserve honorable mention. Service always comes with a smile at Decisions, and I assure you that you’ll leave with one too. Vince and Sheila, to you we tip our hat. 14 stars.

Lenore, I’m not saying I don’t trust you, and I’m not saying I do. But I don’t.”
–Steve

I can’t help but think how happy I’d be if you showed up at my house with ANY of the wings Decision’s served us. Hot, fresh, flavorful; and different in a creative way (as far as their take on “hot” or “cajun garlic”). I have not had better wings than we had here. The competition will have to be pretty good to top this.

That’s it for this week! See you next Wingsday!

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February 13, 2008Today’s adventure took us to the Bedrock Cafe on South Florida Avenue, about a quarter-mile south of Edgewood Drive.  Here are some of the reviews:

“I have been to this establishment a number of times, so today I decided to try something new. I went with the Garlic Cajun wing instead of the traditional buffalo. I was a little apprehensive when they were first brought out because they were covered with chunks of garlic. However, I found that with a gentle tap against the plate the garlic shook right off, leaving the wonderful flavor behind without the unnecessary chunkiness. The wings were very substantial in size and lacked a thick breading you may find on competitors wings, which was a plus for my taste. Overall, I was very satisfied. I will say, however, that the name may be a little misleading because one might expect a Cajun wing to be spicy – I found them rather mild. I would give this plate a 4 out of 5 rating.

The restaurant itself was very clean, and I liked the open atmosphere. Our server was prompt with service, but stayed away when she wasn’t needed, which made for a better dining experience. I hate when servers are constantly at the table asking if everything is ok and what I need. Trust me, if something is wrong or I need something I will let you know. I can confidently recommend Bedrock Café to anyone interested in eating a good chicken wing. I will return soon.”
– Mike

“I ordered the same flavor combo that I do every chance I get - Teriyaki & Garlic. In this case the garlic was, specifically “Cajun Garlic”, although it didn’t seem very cajun-y to me. Overall the wings were good. They had a lot of meat on them, even though some were a little tough. Maybe the strangest part was that after eating 10 wings I was still hungry (insert fat joke here).”
– Timm

“Finally, hot wings with some heat. Bedrock’s hot wings were hearty and well cooked. Finally, after weeks of searching, these wings showed some promise in the heat department. It was almost more of a cayenne pepper sauce than buffalo wing sauce flavor. They were not the best flavor in town, however, I’d eat there again just to enjoy the heat. I’m really enjoying this job. I think if my current gig doesn’t work out perhaps I could be a foodie. I can’t wait until next week to do it again.”
– Steve

“I must have driven by Bedrock Cafe (on S. Florida Ave in Lakeland) several hundred times over the years but never stopped in to consume any food. To tell you the truth I was excited to try something new, which would surprise my wife as I don’t like to try new things. I ordered 10 wings and split the order between hot and blackened, again it was great that they allowed my to do this and they didn’t charge me anything extra. The wings were quite large which was great because I was quite hungry. The first wings that I sampled was the hot and to be honest I was a bit disappointed not by the wing itself which had a great consistency but by the hot sauce. It had a decent kick to it (more medium than hot) but the sauce was sweet and didn’t taste anything like what I would expect from a hot wing. And no I didn’t have to consume large amounts of water as Travis may lead you to believe. It tasted more like Tabasco sauce than anything else and I wasn’t impressed at all. Next I sampled the blackened wings which were well seasoned but I wouldn’t have considered them blackened. In fact at first glance I thought I had been given the wrong wings. Regardless of my initial impression they were really good and I found myself wishing I would have ordered all 10 of them in this style. Bedrock Cafe was decent and the service itself was good but there was nothing that really made it stand out and it lacked some things when compared to some of the other wingsday day establishments that we’ve reviewed in the past weeks (I.E. Decisions, Beef’s). As big as the wings were, I was still left with a void in my gut. That was easily satisfied with a large chocolate milkshake from Checkers. In conclusion I give Bedrock 25 (oop’s I mean 2 and a half stars).”
– Shawn

As for me, I went with 10 of the Aloha Black, a blackened wing with some kind of pineapple-y sauce. They were really good, except for the fact that the ones on top weren’t as flavorful as the ones on the bottom (sitting in a pool of pineapple juice). I’d go to Bedrock’s again, based just on the service and portion sides; the wings were good, just not the best.

By the way, if you’re following us through an RSS feed, make sure to make the jump to see our new header (thanks Mike)!

That’s it for today. See you next week!

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Today’s order:

• 10 Hot
• 8 Extra Hot
• 8 Sweet Jalapeño
• 8 Chipotle Lime
• 8 Parmesan
• 1 Basket of Curly Fries

Beef ‘O’ Brady’s is to chicken wings as McDonald’s is to french fries. They are perfectly consistent. They’re so well known for the quality of their wings that they to me are the standard baseline from which all other wings can be judged. Today was no exception. I passed on the hot, since I’ve had them many times before and opted for extra hot as my staple today. The heat was a welcome change from the milder wings of past weeks. The sweet jalapeño wings also very pleasantly surprised me. These might be my new Beef’s favorites — a must try. Chipotle lime was decent, but a little too tangy to eat a whole basket**. I would pass on the parmesan. Don’t know what they were thinking here, eeewh.

** Travis bet me $20 that I couldn’t eat 16 chipotle lime wings without taking a drink. I accept. Look for the review of that soon I hope. What do you think I should do with my twenty bucks???

– steve

 I thought that Beef’s had the best wings I’ve had SO FAR . . . That’s not to take anything away from the other wing establishments - it’s just to say that Beef’s was on their game.  Today.  My favorite were the Sweet Jalapeno and the Chipolte Lime; although, the sauce was a little heavy on the Chipolte Lime. Still, some of the best wings I’ve had. Oh, and to counteract Steve a little bit, the Parmesan Garlic were fine with me - they were crispy (not doused in sauce), and tasted as though someone dipped fried chicken in garlic butter. That’ll bless your heart.

At this juncture, it’s also important to note that we have very high standards here at Wingsday.com.  For instance, occassionally, one of our reviewers will be tardy with his or her review submission.  This will almost assuredly lead to untold ridicule for him/her.  As I know you, the fans, are dillegently waiting for our reviews, I’ve decided that the untold ridicule will come in the form of my writing the review for the absent reviewer.  I submit, for your reading pleasure, Shawn’s review:

“Beef O’ Brady’s was relly good.  I like them wings goodly.  Accept they burned my mouth because I are not very tough.  Even the mild ones.  Even the water.  Beef O’ Brady’s gets 19 stars.”
– Shawn

This week - Bedrock’s on S. Florida

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