Nine Eleven Tavern (6 mile) 11 Bloomfield Ave, Buffalo, NY 14220 | (716) 825-9939
This is my (Donnie) personal favorite. This small South Buffalo
Bar has a dedicated group of regulars that fill up the dining
room and bar for their unique chicken wings. Unlike the majority
of restaurants on this list, Nine Eleven has a secret, ‘from
scratch’ sauce recipe that doesn’t taste like anything
else you’ve ever had. The wings are coated in a sauce that
has flakes of garlic and a sweet and tangy flavor that wing purists
will either love or hate. The restaurant only has one person
in the kitchen (the owner), so be prepared to wait patiently
for your food. Hidden on a side street in a residential area,
this is a true chicken wing gem. Like Bar Bill Tavern, make sure
you stop by an ATM before you’re visit because they also
only take cash.
Doc Sullivan’s (6 mile) 474 Abbott Rd, Buffalo, NY 14220 | (716) 436-3302
You might not know this, but Buffalo has so many places serving
wings that we even have regional specialties within Buffalo.
South Buffalo in particular was/is known for ‘Smitty’
style Wings, generally a dry spice rubbed chicken wing (usually
nutmeg shows up) with a little sauce. There aren’t many
places serving these around town (Potter’s Field is the
only other South Buffalo bar that serves them that we can think
of) and Doc’s is old school South Buffalo bar. In recent
years, an ownership change has cleaned up the place and updated
the facade and interior but they still have the pub food classics.
Our Tip: Order a Guiness with some Smitty wings and sit at the
bar.
La Nova (3 mile) 371
West Ferry St, Buffalo, NY 14213 | (716) 881-3303
I know, this Buffalo pizzeria is legendary for their pizza and
t-shirts that were the unofficial jersey of 1990’s Bills
tailgating. That said, if we were going to recommend any pizzeria
chicken wings, this is the one. Their standard flavors are on
point but their BBQ wings are where it’s at. They are deep
fried, and then liberally sauced and char-grilled, which caramelizes
all of the bits and pieces of the wings… and it’s just
delicious. While plenty of places have replicated this process
over the years, La Nova is still our favorite. They are also
one of the few venues that makes their own Blue Cheese dressing
from scratch instead of scooping it from big gallon jugs. They
have a small, takeout only location in Williamsville but there’s
something special about that West Side location that you need
to experience in person. I mean, if it’s good enough for
Paula Deen it’s probably good enough for you. Our Tip: Order
the BBQ Wings and a large Cheese and Pepperoni Pizza and watch
the magic that is the delivery guys/kitchen staff at the West
Ferry location. Blue Cheese on the side for crust dipping.
Anchor Bar (1 mile) 1047
Main St, Buffalo, NY 14209 | (716) 886 – 8920
First things first, there are several Anchor Bar restaurants
in Buffalo (plus Canada and Texas!) but there are only two locations
worth visiting: The original at 1047 Main Street and the Airport
location (if you really have no time). The original Anchor Bar
on Main Street in the City of Buffalo is without a doubt, the
most popular restaurant in Buffalo. You will be hard pressed
to find a local eating at Anchor Bar, and the restaurant has
become primarily a tourist destination… and it feels like
it. But if you want to see the original home of chicken wings,
where Bobby Flay battled the Wing King, where Jamika Pessoa (yes,
that Jamike Pessoa) of the Chew visited and where the short lived
Food Wars debuted their series, well… there’s no other
place. Are they the best wings in Buffalo? No. Are they important?
Sure. Our Tip: Sit at the bar and grab a Genny Cream Ale on draft
and stick to the basics (Mild-Medium-Hot)
