Buffalo wings. The very sound of the word brings stomachs to grumbling and minds to craving.

Always saucy, sometimes sweet, sometimes spicy goodness that is a wing, ever since their inception in Buffalo, NY in the 1960’s has become a staple in American food culture.

Wings are so ingrained in the American psyche that they even have their own day on the calendar, July 29. According to the website for National Chicken Wing Day, Americans consume more than 27 billion wings per year and just under a billion and a quarter are eaten during the Superbowl alone.

The North Shore of Chicago boasts a few wing joints of their own. However, which of these reign supreme? This is the question that Charlie Clarke and I set out to answer: Who has the best wings on the North Shore?

We visited four wing joints: Buffalo Wild Wings, Buffalo Joes, Wingstop, and Wings Over Evanston. We ranked each on the sauciness of the sauce (we sampled the BBQ, mild and hot sauces from each), meatiness of the wing and the number of wings per order.

Each received a score out of ten and the average of the scores was found to determine the overall score. These are the results in order from worst to first.

4. Wingstop:

The quality of the sauce and amount of sauce on each wing was okay to poor. There was almost no sauce on the hot and mild wings while the BBQ wings were smothered in sauce. Each of the sauces we tried were nothing special. The wings were by far the smallest we had out of the four restaurants. There was good meat on the wings for its small size but it doesn’t make up for how small the wings are. Wingstop offers a good deal on wings (ten for only $7.99) and you are allowed to combine sauces as well.

However, there were no carrots or celery given with the orders of wings, and that is always a disappointment.

Overall, Wingstop was disappointing given their small wings and the little amount of sauce on the wings. But Wingstop did offer good fries and great ranch sauce.

Sauce: 5/10

Meatiness: 5/10

Number of Wings per Order: 8/10

Total Score (Average of All Subscores): 6/10

3. Buffalo Wild Wings:

The quality of the sauce and amount of sauce on each wing was decent. The mild and BBQ sauce were smothered in rich, thick sauce, but the “Wild” option was devoid of much sauce.

The wings were a good size (larger than Wingstop’s) and there was good meat on the wings as well, making for a good meal or snack.

BWW offered many sizes of orders, ranging from snack sized, small, medium, and large.

The wings were all reasonably priced and were offered in many kinds of sauces and dry rubs. The carrots were very good, firm and delicious as well as the celery.

The almost overwhelming number of sauces, combined with the solid size makes Buffalo Wild Wings a good wing place. Also, BWW has plenty of TVs showing sports, making it a perfect destination for hanging out with friends.

Sauce: 7/10

Meatiness: 7/10

Number of Wings per Order: 7/10

Total: 7/10

2. Wings Over Evanston:

Wings Over Evanston has a great selection of sauces. The buffalo sauces are airplane themed (along with the size of boneless wings) with names such as Afterburner and Jet Fuel.

The BBQ was slightly sweet, but not any less tangy, while the mild wings carried a bit more spice than the usual mild wing. The hot wings were also good, and while not all wings were smothered in sauce, the large size of the wings would have made lots of sauce overwhelming.

The wings themselves were absolutely huge, easily the biggest wings I have ever eaten. Hot and juicy right out of the kitchen, an order of wings is a sight to behold. Wings Over Evanston offers 10 wings in a single order for $7.99 and a double order for $12.99; the enormity of the wings makes for a great deal. On a low note, no carrots or celery came with the order of wings. The size of the wings and the many choices of sauces put Wings Over Evanston towards the top.

Sauce: 7.5/10

Meatiness: 10/10

Number of Wings per Order: 8/10

Total: 8.5/10

1. Buffalo Joes:

The quality of the sauce was incredible. This BBQ made me enjoy BBQ for the first time in a long time. The Suicide Wings (the spicy sauce topped with jalapenos) were a good combination of spicy but not too spicy. When smothered in ranch dressing, the wings became delectable. All wings were thoroughly smothered in their respective sauces. When it came to the meat, the wings were very good sized. The meat was hot, juicy, and easy to tear off the bone.

Buff Joe’s offers 10-15 wings in a single order for $6.49 and a double order for $12.99. The quality of the wings and sauce, when combined with the number of wings, makes for a fantastic bargain. The celery was firm, fresh, and slightly chilled. The vegetables functioned as a solid way to escape the heat of the Suicide Wings when paired with the ranch dipping sauce.

An obvious favorite by many, Buff Joes takes the crown as the best wings on the North Shore.

Sauce: 9/10

Meatiness: 9/10

Number of Wings per Order: 9/10

Total: 9/10