March Madness has come and gone, and my hopes of putting together a winning bracket were dashed again. I tore up this year’s bracket after round one on Friday – a new record. As it turns out, loyalty is not always the best policy. But even though my craving for a winning bracket wasn’t satisfied, another annual craving that usually coincides with March Madness was more than satisfied: the craving for chicken wings.
Chicken wings are the perfect food for game day. But, like most seemingly simple foods, Madison offers a wide variety of chicken wing offerings. I’ve had good wings and bad wings, and everyone seems to have opinions about the proper way to cook them. Some people dredge their wings in flour before frying while some people don’t. Some people twice fry them while others fry them only once. I’ve even heard people argue about the proper technique for applying sauces.
However, I believe that these subtleties matter less than the ingredients used because I’ve had great wings that were prepared many different ways. So, instead of offering my opinions on cooking techniques, I’m going to stick to a few easy to agree upon characteristics. The perfect chicken wing should be big – there’s nothing more disappointing than a small wing. It should also be tender, not over-cooked, and it should have a slightly crispy skin. Those are my only criteria, and the following are restaurants that meet all of them.
Wings Over Madison
This relatively new addition to University Avenue tops my list because of its wing size. These are the biggest wings I’ve had in Madison, edging out The Great Dane Pub’s wings and Quaker Steak and Lube’s wings. Their wings are well-cooked, with a crispy skin, tender meat and offered in a plethora of sauces. Other than buffalo, I like honey barbecue and garlic parmesan. Be careful of any sauce with “Cajun” in the name, though, they’re seriously spicy.
The Great Dane Pub & Brewing Company
With four locations in the city, The Great Dane has become a Madison landmark. Their Great Dane Pub wings earned them a spot on my list. A “twelve-pack” of these large wings is always enough to make me uncomfortably full. Unlike Wings Over Madison, The Great Dane seems to prefer quality over quantity when it comes to sauce choices because they only offer five: Asian barbecue, three-alarm (their offering most similar to a buffalo sauce), Jamaican Jerk, Szechuan honey and habanero hellfire. I like all of them except the habanero hellfire, which made my mouth numb for a day or two. If you like spice, go for it, but keep in mind: You’ve been warned.
Quaker Steak & Lube
Most nationwide chains sacrifice some quality for consistency, but Quaker Steak manages to serve some seriously good wings. They are big, moist, tender and come in a large enough variety of sauces to please anyone. My go-to sauce at Quaker Steak is golden garlic. Other favorites include Arizona ranch and Thai ‘R’ Cracker. Like The Great Dane, they offer some intensely spicy options as well. Their spiciest is triple atomic, which even requires the signing of a waiver to buy.
The Library Cafe and Bar
Rounding out my list of great wings in Madison is The Library Cafe and Bar. The Library isn’t a chain but a small restaurant and bar located on the west side of University of Wisconsin’s campus. They do away with all the choices and only offer one variety of their wings tossed in a classic Buffalo sauce. Although the wings at The Library are smaller than the others on my list, they manage to make theirs with a perfectly crispy skin. If you’re craving a classic buffalo-style chicken wing, The Library won’t disappoint.
That concludes the rundown of my favorite chicken wings in Madison. They may be prepared using different techniques, but they are all big, served with great sauces, and are tender with a crispy skin. Next time you have the urge for a good chicken wing in Madison, you’re probably closer to an excellent place to get them than you think.
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Let me know at [email protected]
