Buffalo's Top 40 Wings (2019)

Every Monday, six of us get together for MNW (Monday Night Wings).  We try to hit random dive bars and places that don't normally make people's best-of lists.  The hope is always to find new-to-us spots that have the best wings in Buffalo.  Although with six of us, we inevitably end up at some well known places as someone in the group hasn't been.

We've found quite a few places with wings that shocked us they were so good.  The reverse also true.

And one thing we've learned - six is really a max for a wing group otherwise some of the smaller places get overwhelmed when we all order wings at once lol.

Here's my current top 40 list of some of the wing places I've been in order best to good (I left the bad off entirely - maybe a future post someday).  Got some surrounding places included on the list too as Rochester & Niagara Falls, ON are easy drives from Buffalo.

I base the ranking on medium crispy wings.  But of course that doesn't stop me from trying the other sauces too.

1:  Dwyer's (North Tonawanda) - My #1 wings.  I love this place and they always get the wings right every time.  Chili Lime my current favorite, but there's so many great varieties to choose from.  And the way they do their fries is perfect!  The pic is of the food carnage after we ate.  Our group's top wing lists vary dramatically, but this is the one place in the top 5 for each of us.  (Shoutout to Murray, our honorary Australian 7th MNW member, who had wings with us here.)

2:  Grill At The Dome (Tonawanda) - It's practically a tie for 1st thanks to the perfectly cooked wings.  If you're a fan of crispy or extra crispy wings, this is the place.  Medium my usual sauce here.

3:  MT Pockets (Buffalo) - This is a recent add to the list.  I usually get the Italian Sausage sandwich but finally tried the wings.  Wow!  Super tasty & crispy.

4:  Kelly's Korner (Buffalo) - This was my #1 for quite a while and they're still some of the best wings you'll get in Buffalo.  The place itself awesome.  It dropped just a bit down the list because the wings have been sporadic lately - sometimes great, sometimes just really good.  But overall, a can't miss for wing fans.

5:  Gene's Junkyard (Tonawanda) - The Tonawanda area might just be the epicenter of awesome wings.  I love Wednesday night 50-cent wings here (as I write this it continues on - can't guarantee that'll last forever).  Their Honey Garlic wing (pictured) is my current obsession.

6:  Bada Bing (Buffalo):  I always knew their pizza was good but never expected the wings to actually be better than the pizza.  This was a shock surprise to all in our group.  Perfect pizza & wing combo place.

7:  Jeremiah's (Rochester):  Their Bee Sting wings are a thing of culinary beauty.  And the regular ones equally as good.  Yeah it's not Buffalo, but they 100% deserve to be on a Buffalo best wings list because of how good they are.  It's not really that bad of a drive.

8:  Wingnutz (Buffalo):  Another new addition to the list.  There's been tons of rave reviews for the wings online, so I went in expecting the worst (I rarely believe too much online praise).  But the wings lived up to the praise.  The place itself kinda strange - like eating in a 3rd grade classroom.  But there's a bar right upstairs and they're all good with you bringing the wings in.  I actually prefer the mild wings here (this is the only place where that's the case).  Don't go late though because they sometimes sell out of wings.

9:  Dalmatia Hotel (Buffalo):  Good luck making up your mind what wing to order here - there's like 60 choices.  Taco is my favorite.  But it's closely followed by a bunch of the other sauces - so many great choices here!  They hyped up the Lavender wing but gotta admit I was not a fan of that one (tasted like fancy bathroom soap).  Just a really cool hangout place too.

10:  Stadium Dome (Tonawanda):  I tell people about how good the wings are here and they always get confused because no one ever mentions this place.  But man do they know how to cook wings right.  And they also have an all-you-can-eat spaghetti deal on Mondays (as I write this) - yes, it's good too.  But the wings are the star.

11:  Gabriel's Gate (Buffalo) - The only reason this isn't in the top 10 is because the wings have been hit or miss with crispiness the last 3 or so visits.  But when they're good, they're near perfect so it's worth the chance.

12:  Nine Eleven Tavern (Buffalo) - Amazing wings and they probably come in #1 for presentation (not gonna spoil it with the pic - you have to see for yourself).  Every time I go, they move up the list a little further.

13:  Manor Lanes (Tonawanda) - This is the Grand Island Blvd location.  Chef Dave is a culinary genius.  The regular wings are great, but my latest fave is the "fried chicken" wings (pictured) - it's like mini fried chicken but with less chicken and so much crispy awesomeness.  I can't get enough of them.  Also a huge fan of the Monster Burger with a tiny substitution - instead of buns, I surround mine with grilled cheese sandwiches (of course can't do that too often).

14:  Say Cheese Pizza Co. / Comic Book Cafe (Grand Island) - The pizza here is incredible, the place itself so cool & the wings are awesome too.  I don't think they know how to make food that's anything less than top notch.

15:  Klimek's Tavern (North Tonawanda) - A small bar with great wings.  This is what Buffalo is all about.

16:  Brownie's (North Tonawanda) - This place recently opened.  I've only been once but the medium crispy wings were done just the way I like them so they made it high on the list - but I'll have to go again to see if they can continue to stay there.

17:  Elmo's (Getzville) - It's been awhile since I've been here but the wings are done really well - I need to go back soon.

18:  Adolf's (Buffalo) - Another recent surprise for me - I bit into the wing and was like ahhh another Buffalo classic wing done right.

19:  Station House (CLOSED) (Buffalo) - This one makes me sad.  They recently closed, but keeping them on the list for now in honor of what a cool place it was.  And the many varieties of wings were all done right.  I mourn the loss of these wings (and their fries too).

20:  Lenox Grill (Buffalo) - This is where our wing group started and it got off to a great start with excellent wings.

21:  Odie's (Tonawanda) - Another small bar with amazing wings.  Don't know what else to say other than def worth a visit.

22:  GFY (Tonawanda) - So the chicken fingers are my favorite here.  It's near where I work so I go a lot for them.  But the wings have also been so good lately - GFY keeps moving up my list.  The place, the people, and the food - all awesome.

23:  Crazy Jakes (North Tonawanda) - The wings here are as good as their incredible banana pepper soup (which is sooo yummy - and this is from someone who usually doesn't like soup).

24:  Brunner's Tavern (Buffalo) - The wings were so good and I absolutely gotta go back soon - it's a nice spot and has a cool feel to it.  Just look at those wings - I want them now.  Yeah, the more I go, the more they'll move up.

25:  Ryan's (North Tonawanda) - The rest of the group won't agree with me - they're already ripping on me for this choice - but I really liked the wings here (the garlic parm was the only one I wasn't a fan of).  But I felt they cooked my wings just right.

26:  DBGB's (Buffalo) - Great wings!  That's all that needs to be said to get me somewhere.  I'm normally not a fan of Smoked BBQ wings, but theirs was excellent.

27:  Bar Bill (East Aurora) - It's always making top wing lists.  And they deserve that - I liked them.

28:  Swannie House (Buffalo) - People rave about the fries but I like the wings better.  Although, it's been hit or miss with the wings lately.  But even miss, they're still good wings.  Just not always as crispy as I like.

29:  Vinny's (West Seneca / Cheektowaga) - They're #1 for chicken fingers and fries in Buffalo.  And the place itself is awesome (they even have a huge barrel of free peanuts).  The wings are good too but I can't stop myself from ordering the chicken fingers every time I go.  And for a while, I was going there a lot (I become obsessed with somewhere when the food is so good).

30:  North End (Buffalo) - The wings were really good.  Also saw some great Italian food go by me while I was eating so gotta go there to try that next time.

31:  Route 78 Street Bar (Depew) - I love this place.  The wings are good and the plain pizza is amazing (and like only $8).  I love being able to eat good wings while playing Tap TV Trivia there (free trivia on the TV but you compete individually from your phone).

32:  Buffalo Roadhouse (Tonawanda) - They upset me bad by getting rid of the free peanuts, so I don't go here much anymore.  But the wings are worth it.

33:  Mallwitz's Island Lanes (Grand Island) - Another bowling alley with good wings.

34:  Flying Saucer (Niagara Falls, ON) - This place has my #1 burger on the planet - The Saucer Burger (or the Great Canadian Burger if I'm super hungry).  Best tasting burger ever.  One time I managed to pull myself away from ordering the burger and tried the wings - they were also good (not surprised).  Might be one of the coolest looking restaurants ever - it's a flying saucer!

35:  Hot Mama's Canteen (Buffalo) - Next time I stick with just the wings.  The Mama Bomb was interesting but too much rice and way too filling - I want more stomach room for wings.

36:  Duff's (Amherst) - Amazingly I've only been here for wings once and I was told I ordered wrong (I think I ended up with Medium Light).  I'll go again soon & pretty confident they'll be moving up.  Had to steal Shawn's snap for this.

37:  Grover's (East Amherst) - Burger, burger, burger all I ever hear about this place.  But the wings deserve to be talked about too!  Although, that burger is tough to beat (on this side of the border at least).

38:  Audubon North (Amherst) - I think this place is gonna move up the list after my next visit - possibly a lot.  I'm hearing very good things about their wings lately - already liked them, but I sense they've gotten even better.

39:  Judi's Lounge (Niagara Falls, NY) - One of my friends posted a message asking for the best wings in Buffalo and this place was named A LOT.  The wings are good - it's a solid spot if you're in the Niagara Falls area.

40:  Amherst Pizza & Ale House (Getzville) - Another one that might move up the list after my next visit.  I liked the wings but one of our group has it in their top 5 so that makes me want to try again.