My how things change! Oh sure, I made my fair share of "scratch" meals back when our two kids were youngsters; but well before they left elementary school, they were much more enthusiastic about a burger from Mickey D's or a burger at the long-since gone Silver Nugget in Niles than anything Mom could conjure up. And inexplicably, somewhere along the way, potato skins and chicken wings became delicacies for which just about everyone is willing to pay -- and a pretty penny at that.
We adults, of course, learned to adapt as well (and I admit it I never really missed all that kitchen duty very much). But while I've never quite warmed up to potato
skins unless they're covered with so much "stuff" that the skins are well camouflaged, I have learned to love chicken wings. So it was that when Buffalo Wild Wings hit downtown Youngstown within easy walking distance of the building in which I worked, I was delighted. And when we got "our own" in the Great East Plaza in Niles, both my husband Jack and I did the Chicken Dance.Over all these many years, the name has changed at least three times; once it was Buffalo Wild Wings and Weck (the "Weck" being a type of bun, if I recall correctly). All that got truncated to a more reasonable BW-3 for a while, and today the 600 company owned and franchised restaurants in 41 states are known as Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar (or B-Dubs, as many of the regulars call it). We've hit quite a few, from Toledo to Erie, Pa., to Columbus, Ohio.
Service has changed as well. Originally, customers placed their orders at a counter, then grabbed a seat until their names were called and they returned to the counter to pick up the goodies. Much later, a few locations did sort of a half-and-half maneuver, with servers on call to help out here and there and take orders for people who preferred that option. These days, a hostess or server will lead you to a table, take your order and deliver it, just like in any other sit-down restaurant. As in most bar-restaurants, there's a side close to the bar that's well stocked with high tables and chairs and another section or two with very large booths and tables for those who prefer to dine less out in the open.
The whole thing got started, by the way, by two men who moved from Buffalo, N.Y., to Kent, Ohio. They loved and missed their New York-style Buffalo wings when they couldn't find them around here. So, they started their own place, and the rest, as they say, is history. Buffalo Wild Wings, now headquartered in Minneapolis, is one of the 10 fastest growing restaurant chains in the country, according to corporate reports.
As the number of locations increases, though some things haven't changed much at all. Buffalo Wild Wings started as a fun and very casual eatery with a large bar, lots of beer, big-screen TV sets tuned to various sports events and interactive trivia games that pitted local players with players at other locations throughout the country. That's true to this day. And from the beginning, the focus was on chicken wings -- and although the menu has plenty of other goodies to offer, those wings are still flying high.
The choice of sauces, too, has grown -- to 14 at last count. They range from very mild (Sweet BBQ) to very hot (Blazin'); somewhere in between is the big reason I've loved B-Dubs right from the start -- Spicy Garlic. This thick, bright orange delicacy with a definite kick of heat is absolutely delicious; except for sampling a few other sauces when someone else offers me a taste, I've never ordered anything else. Many of the sauces are for sale in bottles, too, and I'll testify that they make terrific gifts.
Somewhat surprisingly, though, I rarely get that sauce on the regular wings (when I do, I ask for it on the side). As I said, it's very thick and spicy, and a little goes a very long way. Rather, my chicken of choice is the chicken tenders -- fairly
heavily breaded and crispy, but juicy and tender white meat on the inside (there's a non-breaded "naked" version as well). You can get four for $7.59 and eight for $8.99, and the latter always seems like a better deal (besides, then I have some left over to bring home). At one time, everything purchased here was a la carte, which I always thought made eating here a rather expensive proposition unless all you wanted was wings. But now they've "packaged" baskets together so the tenders come in a basket with a choice of potato -- either the Buffalo chips or potato wedges. My preference is the former, and I love to dip them in that Spicy Garlic sauce.Jack, who eschews anything that bites him back even a little bit, prefers the Teriyaki sauce; it's dark and rich and a bit tangy but packs minimal heat. He loves it with the breaded peppercorn-garlic popcorn shrimp -- half a pound for $7.79 with the same choice of potatoes. You can, by the way, swap out the potato side for a salad or onion rings for an additional 99 cents; last time we ordered our favorites -- in Oregon, Ohio, where we were staying while we attended the Toledo Harbor Lighthouse Festival at nearby Maumee Bay State Park -- that's exactly what we did. He chose his favorite thousand island dressing and I had bleu cheese, and I'm here to tell you those salads aren't exactly small. We also noticed, by the way, that the chicken tenders at this location were substantially larger than those served up at the back-home restaurants. I'm not sure what to make of that, but I figure it's worth mentioning. It's not worth driving three hours to get fatter tenders, of course, but knowing there's a difference means we might be willing to stray a bit farther from home to get more bang for our bucks.
Wings may be top dog at B-Dubs, but diners have plenty of other choices as well. On a recent visit to Austintown, Jack ordered another of his favorites, the chicken quesadilla. These grilled four tortillas stuffed with Cajun-flavored grille
d chicken, pico de gallo and assorted cheeses makes a great, if a bit lighter, meal ($6.99). Besides that, the burgers here are terrific; my pick of the litter is the Black & Bleu, seasoned with Cajun spices and topped with (what else??) bleu cheese dressing.Much newer to the menu are the Wild Flatbreads, sort of pizza-like concoctions ranging from a steak-and-potato flip (steak and mozzarella cheese topped with French fries, Southwestern Ranch dressing and Honey BBQ sauce sandwiched between the flatbread crust ($8.79). I admit I haven't tried this one yet, but I plan to do it soon: The Buffalo Chicken, which is topped with a blend of my favorite Spicy Garlic sauce and bleu cheese dressing with chicken, celery bits and mozzarella cheese ($7.99).
If you like wraps, you'll find several here as well. I'm not a big fan, but Jack has tried and liked a couple, including the Grilled Chicken, which wraps up the chicken plus several cheeses, lettuce and tomato with his favorite sauce ($7.49). We've also sampled some sandwiches -- I'm partial to the hickory-smoked pulled pork, which is tossed in the sauce of your choice (in this instance, I prefer the Honey or Sweet BBQ). If you're very hungry, you might try one of the "combo" meals, such as ribs with chicken tenders, popcorn shrimp or wings.
As I mentioned back in the beginning, the "Bar" part of the B-Dubs name isn't for nothing; you'll find a vast array of both draft and on-tap beer here. Sometimes, you get really lucky; at the Oregon location, for instance, we learned that 16-ounce drafts of Dos Equis -- definitely high on both our Top 5 beer lists -- were going for $3, so of course we took advantage of that opportunity several times over. Since you asked, we share the No. 1 preference as well, Yuengling, which (alas!) isn't sold in Ohio. Thank goodness we live within 15 minutes or so from a Pennsylvania drive-thru (and not all that far from that B-Dubs in Erie)!
If you go: Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar
950 Great East Plaza
Niles, Ohio 44446
330-505-2999
Open for lunch and dinner seven days a week
http://www.buffalowildwings.com
Open for lunch and dinner seven days a week; check the Web site for other locations including Youngstown, Austintown and Boardman.
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