Buffalo Wings

[Rich Pawlak]

I've been to the branch of UJ near Reading, called Union Jack's on the Manatawny, actually between Boyertown and Reading in the countryside off Rte 73. Seriously good Belgian and microbrew tap and bottle selection, and yes, crazy good wings, really nearly as good as the wings at McMenamin's Tavern in Mt Airy. Those are some wings you should also try, Tim.

Edited August 24, 2007 by Rich Pawlak (log)

[kretch]

My go to wing place has always been La Creole on Front near Fitzwater, bit of a dive to be kind but their wings are incredible, as a bonus they frequently had Blackened Voodoo (pre Katrina) to wash them down.

←

I heard someone RAVE about this place three years ago, and I meant to explore. Never did. Forgot about it until I read this post. But like, this girl found religion in La Creole's wings.

[Andrew Fenton]

My go to wing place has always been La Creole on Front near Fitzwater, bit of a dive to be kind but their wings are incredible, as a bonus they frequently had Blackened Voodoo (pre Katrina) to wash them down.

←

I heard someone RAVE about this place three years ago, and I meant to explore. Never did. Forgot about it until I read this post. But like, this girl found religion in La Creole's wings.

←

La Creole is a place I've walked by for years without going in, but these two raves drew me in last night. Unfortunately, even after the wings, I'm still an agnostic. They were definitely crispy, but on the small side, and with a sauce that wasn't as spicy as I'd like. Not bad, but on the rare occasion when I'm in the mood for buffalo wings (basically, while drinking a whole lot of beer), I'll stick with Moriarty's.

[Alcibiades]

I had wings at Moriarty's last week, deciding to give them another shot after reading this topic. They were cripsy and tasty (though a bit dry in the sauce department, I thought) but I just can't get past the fact they don't cut the wings. As a Buffalonian it seems weird. Maybe I felt the same way a Philadelphian would if she went to Buffalo, ordered a cheesesteak and got an 8-ounce ribeye stuffed in a roll with slices of provolone.

Anywhere else I should be thinking about that still exists?

[rlibkind]

Just to close the loop since I started this thread, I satisfied my craving at a neighborhood spot, London Grill. The wings, separated, were large and, best of all, the classic: fried plain then served with a suitably peppery oil- (butter?) based sauce. Not at all dry, but not soupy, either. Only fault: they were parsimonious with the celery for dipping into the blue cheese dressing. Go figure, celery is cheap. For $7, it was a satisfying portion.

[Alcibiades]

R, thanks for the suggestion. I'm on my way to LG.

[cwdonald]

Just to close the loop since I started this thread, I satisfied my craving at a neighborhood spot, London Grill. The wings, separated, were large and, best of all, the classic: fried plain then served with a suitably peppery oil- (butter?) based sauce. Not at all dry, but not soupy, either. Only fault: they were parsimonious with the celery for dipping into the blue cheese dressing. Go figure, celery is cheap. For $7, it was a satisfying portion.

←

Do they do them dry sauce on the side? I prefer mine that way, so the sauce can be applied in the amount I want...

[KatieLoeb]

I've eaten a whole mess of LG wings in my time. They're very good. Not too sloppy, but with a good bite and a good amount of sauce and blue cheese to dip in on the side. Never had a problem with the amount of celery proferred to me, but YMMV. I'm sure if you asked for extra celery it'd be provided with a smile.

[rlibkind]

Do they do them dry sauce on the side? I prefer mine that way, so the sauce can be applied in the amount I want...

←

Like Katie says, they're pretty obliging. I'm sure if you asked you'd get it that way. Not my preference, though.

[KatieLoeb]

I actually had a very reasonable dinner at London Grill just tonight. I availed myself of the great $3 Happy Hour specials on food and drink. Two glasses of wine, a mini Duck Quesadilla and a mini Fish 'n Chips runs $12 ($3 per item) from 4-7PM. Mondays is "Meatball Monday" and my dining companion and I shared three pork and chile meatballs that were really outstanding. There were about six different meatball choices to be had at $6 per plate. Good stuff! Who doesn't like meatballs? Especially in creative flavors. Next time I'll try the Moroccan Beef meatballs. Those looked pretty good too...

A plate of those delicious wings came to the fellow sitting just a few bar seats away. They smelled great, but we were full by then.

[Tim Dolan]

I've been to the branch of UJ near Reading, called Union Jack's on the Manatawny, actually between Boyertown and Reading in the countryside off Rte 73.  Seriously good Belgian and microbrew tap and bottle selection, and yes, crazy good wings, really nearly as good as the wings at McMenamin's Tavern in Mt Airy.  Those are some wings you should also try, Tim.

←

Well, I made it to McMenamin's for the first time last night, which is kinda sad because I live all about 10 minutes from there. I completely agree with Rich, those wings are awesome. The are the epitome of what a good order of wings at a bar should be, nice and crispy with an adult-style burn to them. They're not hot enough to put you in pain, but just spicy enough to make you want to grab your beer to douse the flames. Good stuff.

And the place was mobbed last night. Everything from couples, to people getting off work, to families, to guys watching the game. Great neighborhood place. 3 bartenders and a busser run the whole joint, from working the bar to serving the tables, so it was a bit hectic. But given the food and beer they serve it was easy to see why there was a constant 20 minute wait for a table the whole time I was there. Had a few bites of their burger as well, which was also quite tasty. This place is right up my alley, and I can't wait to bring some more friends there.

[Rich Pawlak]

Larry Melissen, head chef at McMenamin's is one HELL of a chef, and his daily menu of specials is eye-opening, with dishes you might not expect at a beer bar. THAT's why there's a wait for tables every night of the week. And the wings don't hurt either; still, in my opinion, the standard against which others should be judghed.

[RonV]

Rediscovered La Creole (755 Front St.) Friday night, and it was a nice reminder of how good their wings are. There is nothing fancy about the place (small bar, 3 tables along the wall) but the wings are fantastic. They serve them two ways - one's a traditional buffalo style hot sauce they call their cajun sauce. They also server them dry, with a creole seasoning sprinkled on and htey'll give you the cajun sauce on the side.

The dry version is OK and remains incredibly crispy, but we didn't find a lot of flavor in the creole seasoning and ended up tossing them in cajun sauce anyway. I'm a huge fan of places that manage to keep the wings crisp even after saucing and these are dead on in that area. The flavor is very nice, it's more flavorful than a typical buffalo sauce but i'd be making it up if I tried to describe what's in it. Hot, but not overwhelming, and fresh celery (isn't it amazing how many places struggle with this?) and good blue cheese dip.

I can't wait to go back, but their kitchen hours are a bit limited - 6-10ish (sundays only while Eagles are playing), according to the bartender/waiter Billy, who I assume is the owner. He was correct in noting that it's hard to get people in the door. It looks like a dive/neighborhood bar from the street, but it's hard to imagine that neighborhood is exactly looking for that sort of establishment (it's wonderful, my gf was daydreaming looking at the for sale signs on a few of the homes). It's also not exactly cheap. We had two orders of wings, two dinner salads and two drinks for $50 before tip. Not bad, but certainly not the "steal" you might imagine from the look of the place. Friday at 7:30 and there were about 6 people in there. Billy indicated that's about right lately.

Can someone from the biz explain how a place can make the rent with crowds like that? I hate to jump to conclusions after just two visits, and maybe they're doing a booming happy hour business or something, but it seems to me that it's got to be a very tough go.

[mrbigjas]

la creole's been that way for at least the 6-7 years since i've known it's existed. in fact, i hadn't been in a couple years and was recently wondering if it was still there, but hadn't gotten down there to check. thanks for the report.

[fischmart]

for a while tony luke's beef and beer had excellent wings but the last two orders were mediocre...had good wings at the artful dodger last weekend, crispy but the sauce was half buffalo and half barbecue. had great wings at mad for mex tonight, perfectly cooked and sauced, and the bleu cheese dressing was first rate.

[MarketStEl]

la creole's been that way for at least the 6-7 years since i've known it's existed.  in fact, i hadn't been in a couple years and was recently wondering if it was still there, but hadn't gotten down there to check.  thanks for the report.

←

FWIW, La Creole was the only place that matched Moriarty's back in Metro's cook's tour of Philly wings a few summers ago.

Had more wings at Moriarty's this past Sunday. I must make my way to La Creole to compare, for Moriarty's are still all that and a side order of Brew City fries (sorry, you can't get a bag of chips there).

[SouthPhillyFoodie]

The wings at Tangier restaurant at 18th and Lombard are my fave. The wings are on the smaller side, which I prefer, crispy - hot - and just, well, delicious.

One thing though, you must make sure that Chef Quan is in the kitchen, because he is the secret ingredient

[Andrew Fenton]

One thing though, you must make sure that Chef Quan is in the kitchen, because he is the secret ingredient

the wings! they're made of... SOYLENT GREEN!

[Carlson1105]

Had the boneless wings at Smith's the other day, they were excellent. On 19th St. next to Matyson. Also had an order of bone-in wings at The New Wave over the weekend, and they were very good,

[KatieLoeb]

I had some wings at New Wave on Super Bowl Sunday (part of an excellent $5 food menu they were serving that day) and they were delicious. Chef Todd Bergman is doing a great job with the food at New Wave now that Ben McNamara has moved on to St. Stephen's Green.

[percyn]

If you are looking for something a bit atypical, Supper does a pretty good rendition of boneless Moroccan wings.