Phantom Gourmet: Wicked Wing Company In Worcester
WORCESTER - Whether you like your chicken wings wicked crispy, wicked juicy, or wicked spicy, you should come ready at Wicked Wing Company in Worcester.
The wicked creative duo behind this culinary concept is Nick Norton and Andy Norton, a couple of brothers who combined their lifelong sports obsessions with everybody's favorite game day food.
"Wicked Wing Company is a modern sports bar with a rustic industrial feel to it. A lot of wood, a lot of industrial lighting, but plenty of TVs so you can watch any game and don't miss any of the action," Nick said.
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"We serve a lot of wings. Bone-in and boneless are our specialty. We also have sides, salads, sandwiches, smoked items such as ribs, and smoked wings as well. Our beer selection, we try to go with as many craft beers as we can, local.
"We're huge sports fans, have been since we were kids. There's nothing better than having some wings, beers, it's just perfect. It goes hand in hand."
The entire menu was designed to be eaten with your hands. There are Wicked Nachos overloaded with housemade queso, jalapenos, and smoked chicken; a Crispy Chicken Sandwich drenched in sticky sriracha; awesome Burgers dripping in their Wicked Secret Sauce; even a Grilled Bacon Mac and Cheese sandwich stuffed with creamy, cheesy pasta.
There are also Maple Bacon Chicken Skewers, a hearty plate of Chicken and Waffles, and racks of slow-cooked, dry-rubbed, applewood-smoked, fall off the bone Ribs. But let's be honest, at Wicked Wing Company, wings are the thing.
"For bone-in wings, we offer three different styles," Nick explained. "Our naked, which is just with the skin; we have dressed, which is battered; and we actually have smoked wings as well. We have 22 total sauces, 15 wet, seven dry. Pretty much there's gonna be something that everybody's gonna like."
"What makes a good wing to me is something that's real juicy inside, with a crispy exterior. I think with the use of the pressure fryer we have, that really captures that," Andy said.
A wing can only be as good as its sauce. So Wicked Wing Company has come up with some doozies, including the signature Maple Bourbon Bacon Barbecue.
"The Maple Bacon Bourbon Barbeque is our most popular flavor out of all 22 that we have," Nick confirmed. "Once the wings come out we toss it in the sauce, and then once we go to plate it we sprinkle diced bacon on top of it as a garnish. Once you bite into it with the bacon on top of it, it just all infuses together. It's just unbelievable how good it is."
For a more traditional sauce experience, there is the Wicked Buffalo.
"My favorite flavor is the Buffalo," Andy confirmed. "I've always been a Buffalo guy. I do the Wicked Buffalo, which is our mildest one and that's enough for me."
For a taste of the tropics, check out the Mango Habanero wings.
"Mango habanero is a good option for people that want a little bit of spice, but also want a little bit of sweet," Nick described. "The habanero obviously is a hotter pepper, but it's very mild in the sauce. You will get a little bit of kick on your tongue from the heat. We actually put some mangoes on the top of it too, to give you a little bit of extra fruit flavor to it when you bite into the wing."
You can also order up some Smoked Wings, which have a completely different flavor and texture than anything you can get out of a deep fryer. Or check out the Buffalo Chicken Dip, made with a blend of three cheeses, cream cheese, lots of chunks of chicken, and fresh fried tortilla chips for dipping.
Whether you like bone-in or boneless, spicy or mild, you are guaranteed to have an experience that's gonna be wicked good.
"We really wanted it to have that feel that if you came in, you were at home," Nick said. "It's clean, but very simple."
"Just a comfortable environment," Andy added. "I think when we were building this, that's really what we focused on, a place they could come feel comfortable and want to stay for the whole game."
You can find Wicked Wing Company at 321 West Boylston Street in Worcester, 136 Pleasant Street in Ware, and online at wickedwingco.com.
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