Wingston spent a lot of time figuring out what makes a good chicken wing and we have built our review system on those findings. Wingston rates the chicken wing experience on 5 key criteria; flavour, texture, size, heat retention, and the restaurant experience.
At the end of a wing night each Wingston member submits their own independent review. The criteria totals you see are the average of each members experience, and the overall review rating is an average of all 5 categories.
How we define the review criteria
1 – Flavour
When it comes to flavour we think of the seasoning of the wings. Whether it be a dry rub or sauce, the flavour comes down to what the wing is coated with. Restaurants that use pre-bottled sauces and seasonings don’t typically stand out. Those who go the extra mile to create their own wing sauces do get notice, and when it’s good, you’ll be sure to hear about it here.
2 – Texture
Texture criteria covers the breading or skin of the chicken wing as well as the meat. We look at crispiness vs. sogginess, cooked through vs. under-cooked, dry vs. moist, fatty vs. lean, etc. The texture can make or break a wing. It’s not just about the sauces.
3 – Size
This is a very simple rating system. We simply think of the biggest wings we’ve ever had and the smallest wings we’ve ever had and where do these wings fit in on that scale
4 – Heat Retention
Heat retention is a very important aspect of eating wings. No one likes it when you’re half way through your meal and the food is cold. We’ve realized that some wings hold heat better than others. We rate this by gauging the warmth of the last wing in the first pound / serving. If it’s cold, it gets a poor rating, if it’s nice and warm, it rates well.
5 – Restaurant Experience
This last criteria is controversial but there’s no arguing that if you’ve had a terrible experience at a restaurant, the food can seem tainted as a result and becomes hard to enjoy. This is why we have this as part of our system. After all, what good are delicious wings if you can’t stand the place that serves them. When we think about the restaurant experience, we look at things like cleanliness, atmosphere, comfort, how customers are treated, and of course, the performance of the serving staff.