Conflicting Histories of the Hot Wing
As is the case with most legendary tales, the origin of today's hot wing is a bit cloudy. One fact is for sure. They were first introduced in Buffalo, New York in 1964, hence the popular name "buffalo wings." In the 1960's, the chicken wing was considered the least desirable part of the bird, and if it wasn't automatically thrown in the trash, it was generally only used for stock. The rest of the history is up for debate.
- The most popular origin stories revolve around Teressa Bellissimo, a Buffalo, New York restaurant owner. One account chalks the appetizer creation up to a mistake. She and her husband Frank were expecting a delivery of necks, which they used to make spaghetti sauce for their establishment, the Anchor Bar. Frank convinced her to get creative rather than waste the shipment. Teressa chose to deep-fry the naked wings, toss them in some hot sauce, and serve them up with bleu cheese dressing and celery sticks.
- Their son, Dominic, remembers the story a little differently. He says that his mother created the wings after he asked her to make up something special late on a Friday night. Most of their customers were Catholic and weren't eating meat on Fridays. Since they had been spending lots of money in the bar that evening, Dominic wanted to offer them a special treat at midnight as a thank you for their patronage.
- One last twist on this particular tale was that Teressa came up with her amazing wings one night when Dominic and his friends from college came in hungry. The one thing that all of these stories has in common is Teressa and her creative use of a throw-away meat.
- There is one story that does not involve Mrs. Bellissimo. John Young says that he grew up eating chicken wings, and he created a special "Mambo Sauce" to go with them. His wings were breaded before they were deep-fried, and the drummies and flats were not separated before cooking. He registered the name of his restaurant, Wings 'n' Things, in the mid-60's before he left Buffalo in 1970.
The Boot's Very Own Wobbly Wings
Regardless of the true origin, the appetizer gained popularity throughout the 1970's, first in Buffalo, then across the entire state of New York. Today, it's rare to find a restaurant in the country that doesn't serve some version of this incredible food.
Our family restaurant in Des Moines takes pride in our of version of this classic. First, we coat jumbo chicken wings in a very special house dry rub, and then we slow roast them over hickory. This ensures that you end up with the most flavorful, juiciest wings possible.
Now, if we only served them up plain, we don't believe there would be a complaint in the house. They are incredible on their own! We couldn't stop there, though. In addition to our "naked" smoked wings, you can also order them covered in one of five unbelievable wing sauces.
- Teriyaki
- Our own house made sweet & sticky glaze... DELICIOUS!!!
- Hot Dijon Sauce
- A little hot mustard + buffalo sauce + some sweet = Delish!
- Jalapeno Garlic
- Minced jalapenos combined with garlic in a butter sauce... Great Flavor Mix!
- Chipotle Buffalo
- Buffalo sauce infused with chipotle peppers making a buttery, smoky buffalo sauce.
- Bar-B-Que
- Our own homemade in-house BBQ sauce, a perfect addition to any wing!
What are you waiting for? Get on over to Wobbly Boots Roadhouse and order up a plate full of our savory wings. They come in orders of 5, 10, 20, or even 30 if you're sharing, or really really hungry! You can also order them along with 4 baby back ribs from our appetizer menu. After you try our Wobbly Wings, we're confident that you're going to agree we have the best hot wings in Des Moines!
Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!
New Second Location - Same Incredible BBQ!
Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!
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Wobbly Boots Roadhouse
1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325
Clive IA 50325
(515) 223-5700
