I Tried Wings From 10 Popular Chain Restaurants—These Are the Ones I’ll Actually Order Again

 Wings and sports bars. Sports bars and wings. In my opinion, these two are properly married. If I’m craving wings, I’m finding a place with a lot of televisions...or a brewery. I’m certainly not going through a drive-thru. But after tearing through box after box of chicken wings in my car (which I don’t recommend by the way) like a cavewoman fearing it might be her last meal, I actually might. This little investigation challenged a lot of previous beliefs; some old standbys couldn’t hide behind a 65” screen, and some standouts followed the phrase “please drive around.” 

How I Judged the Wings

Before we compare flat to flat or drum to drum, let’s lay out the details. First, the bone-in vs boneless debate. For this foray, we’re going au natural, baby. Boneless wings are too similar to a sauce-slathered chicken nugget (because they basically are). 

 Second, the flavor options for ordering wings are vast and downright daunting in some cases (I’m looking at you, Buffalo Wild Wings). I believe in keeping a control in these experiments, so comparison is as fair as possible. The people need to know who has the best wing, not the best sauce selection, so in an effort to keep distraction to a minimum I went with a classic available at any establishment worth its salt: Buffalo. (And, yes, I know none of these are real buffalo wings, so If you live in New York, don’t come at me.) Once in my possession, I tasted each order on its own and dipped in ranch for consistency. 

So, which wing was truly wet nap-worthy? Let’s find out. 

The Best Chain Restaurant Wings, Ranked

 10. Domino’s Hot Buffalo Wings

There are fried wings and there are baked wings and then there are whatever Dominos has created. The wings are placed on the same heating conveyor belt as the pizza, transferred to a box, and drizzled–literally–with sauce from a squeeze bottle. There were visible back and forth lines of it across the wings, meaning many parts don’t receive sauce at all and the sides touching the box are completely out of luck. To make matters worse, the texture was like biting into a damp sponge. I suppose if the goal was to create easy inebriation-friendly fare, the folks behind the red and blue game piece have done it, but even without your full faculties, I wouldn’t recommend bone-in. Order the boneless wings instead—which are essentially overly saucy nuggets—cover them in ranch, and call it a night. Or, simply stick to pizza (which for chain delivery is actually good).  

9. Pizza Hut Medium Buffalo Wings

I understand that pizza and wings make good friends, but sometimes it’s best to stick to one thing and do it well, especially if you’re a take-out chain and not a sports bar. Pizza Hut is another such place determined not to follow this advice and the result is a greasy, soggy wing, more sweet than spicy, with a bit of a sour note. The wings are added to a domed plastic takeaway container holding a thin sauce and shaken to coat. This technique guarantees the oil from the sauce, desperate for an escape route, will make its way out of the seams as you make your way out of the store and the remainder will await you in a pool underneath the chicken. These wings were an improvement in that I was able to swallow the bite I took, but not so much so that I was keen to take another one. 

8. Zaxby’s Tongue Torch Wings

I’ve been known to order some boneless wings and fries from the home of the Zax Sauce from time to time to scratch a very specific itch, but I’ve never gone the classic route. I picked up my order of wings right away, yet they still managed to be cold, and the chicken tasted old. The closest I could get to buffalo was the Tongue Torch sauce and it was…odd. It’s like a BBQ/hot sauce hybrid attempt, but was more like if you took the liquid from a can of Bush’s baked beans and mixed it with Frank’s red hot. Tongue torch it is not, more like tongue peppered, and for a sauce that has the word “tongue” in the name, it manages to bypass it entirely, sitting instead in the back of your throat and hanging out well past when you’re finished, desperate to not let you forget you ate it. This might be ok on a chicken sandwich with lettuce and tomato, but on wings? No thank you. 

7. Chili’s Medium Buffalo Wings

The wings at the baby back jingle capital weren’t much to sing about. I got the medium sauce, and the wings, though some of the largest of all I sampled, weren’t spicy, but rather sweet and only lightly coated, with just a whisper of heat at the end. They really needed to be fried longer, too. (They were cooked through, just limp.) Eating these, I was reminded why my trips here were punctuated by queso dip and honey chipotle chicken crispers rather than wings and I longed for those crispier days. 

6. Applebee’s Double Crunch Classic Buffalo Wings

I’m quite familiar with Applebee’s from my youth, so the expectations walking in were pretty high. And claiming the prize of the most expensive of the lot, my wallet had high expectations, too. The wings were a good size, and the sauce was thick and tasty like a standard buffalo sauce should be. They were well-tossed and the sauce clung on to each wing nicely with the bonus of extra flavor poured on top. But alas, double crunch they were not. I was struggling to find a single crispy bite. Everyone around me had the boneless variety and there is clearly a reason. We were close to greatness in the neighborhood but fell just short. 

5. Twin Peaks The Classic Wings

The wings at Twin Peaks were a little smaller, with a brighter sauce and noticeable pepper in the fairly crispy breading. I was pleased with them overall, the heat offering up a soft burn and a nice flavor, and the takeout box outfitted with celery as a companion (that’s a pro move, Twin Peaks). I can’t say I’ll be rearranging my schedule any time soon to plan my return visit, but if you find yourself near one and in the mood for wings, you could do much worse. 

4. Buffalo Wild Wings Original Buffalo Wings

With its famous claim of 26 signature sauces and dry rubs,there’s a lot to choose from at B-dubs, but at least it’s an exciting choice to make in a world where we could use more of those. But let’s face it—here it really is all about the sauce. No matter what you’re putting it on, that’s what you’re there for, and for me it’s usually some sort of breaded chicken wrap, not traditional wings. 

 That said, it’s a solid showing. The sauce was as it should be, lighter in color like a Frank’s, but full of spice and nice and thick, really grabbing hold of the wings and staying there. It was a bit harsh, building a good bit after more than one bite and with a healthy amount of vinegar, so ranch or blue cheese is truly your friend here. But if I’m eating hot wings, I appreciate when my palate takes a bit to reset. I think that’s part of the enjoyment. In terms of crispy-cooked, B-dubs wins it, but there were others that were better all around. 

3. Slim Chickens Buffalo Wings

Holy moly did these smell incredible when they exited the tiny drive through window and entered my vehicle. Inside the box, the wings were small, yet mighty, with an excellent bite to them and a juicy interior. The freshness these wings exuded was truly a surprise from a drive-thru wing joint.

2. Hooters Original Style Medium Wings

Honestly, I can’t say I had high hopes. But what arrived was a very unique experience. These wings were the most breaded of this whole bunch and awkward to pick up due to that fact and the sheer size of the behemoths. The first bite masqueraded as soggy, but the texture was incredibly complex and one I have never experienced on a wing. I first described it as enjoyably off-putting, but not only do you get used to it, you start to crave it. (My mouth is watering as I’m recalling it.) The breading itself is damp, yet full of buttery flavor and chock full of crispy bits, almost rice crispy-like. The chicken is hearty and beefy and I detected a note of hickory, before finding out that Hooters smokes its wings over hickory wood (man, I love being right). 

 The only two reasons these didn’t take the top spot is because they needed to be tossed in the sauce more, and they could stand to be cooked a little longer. I may try the “extra crispy” option they present for my next order—if they don’t arrive tasting scorched, that may take them over the top. Besides the winner, these were the only wings I polished off when I returned home.  

1. Wing Stop Original Hot Wings

The epitome of picking something and doing it well, Wing Stop is pulling out all the stops on wings. The chain’s original hot sauce is labeled “the first sauce we tossed, full of heat and tang” and it’s exactly that with excellent vinegar notes. That thick, luscious sauce covers the wings perfectly—the folks at Wing Stop have mastered the toss—and it really clings to the exterior instead of running right off or forcing the chicken to wallow in soup. The outside was firm, allowing a substantial bite and the inside was juicy and cooked nicely. Once that wing craving gets too big to manage, I recommend popping in to a Wing Stop to feed it.