History Of The Chicken Wing
(Source: National Chicken Council)
Deep-fried
chicken wings have long been a staple of Southern cooking. But the
concept of cooking wings in peppery hot sauce was born in 1964 at the
Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, when co-owner Teressa Bellissimo cooked
leftover wings in hot sauce as a late-night snack for her son and his
friends. The boys liked them so much that the Bellissimos put them on
the menu the next day. Served with celery slices and bleu cheese sauce,
“Buffalo Wings” were an instant hit. Dick Winger, who sold hot sauce to
the bar, went on the road with Dominic Bellissimo, the owners’ son, to
promote the item and sell hot sauce, and the item gradually caught on
with restaurant operators around the country. The concept hit the big
time in 1990, when McDonald’s began selling Mighty Wings at some of its
restaurants. KFC rolled out Hot Wings a year later, and Domino’s Pizza
introduced its own wings in 1994. They’ve remained hot ever since.
