Chicken Wings

I followed the "best wings" contest this summer http://www.buffalowing.com/ with great interest. It brought back a lot of memories.

I don't know anymore where the best wings are in Buffalo since I've only eaten wings there exactly twice in the last 19 years: once at the Anchor bar on a business tip in '92 and once during our big trip to Buffalo last May.

But I do remember that Sals in Lancaster had the best wings back in my days in Buffalo. Plump, fat, juicy, and nuclear hot. And very consistent.

When I was at Marine Midland Bank (1983-89), we often went out to lunch as a group to have wings. Once at the Rathskeller on Elmwood (one of my favorite places - is it still there?) in 1984 we had about a dozen people for lunch when one of our new-hires, a nice young lady, decided to brave the hottest wings they had to prove her mettle. Those not only left her crying, they also left her frightened because they were so hot and she couldn't figure out how to make the pain go away!

My own secret method to eating wings was swirling Coke Classic to dissolved the sauce. Call me a wimp, but with both an ulcer and acid reflux, I shouldn't have been eating those anyway. But I did, and I loved them. Those were the days...

The wing situation is pretty bad outside of Buffalo. As a general rule of thumb, if they are referred to on the menu as "Buffalo Wings", they aren't any good. I remain convinced that you can't find great wings anywhere but in Buffalo. You can also say the same thing about roast beef on weck, and probably about pizza as well.

-Jeff Fisher