After coming home from school last spring, I was disappointed to be leaving Philly and all the amazing food it has to offer. I was especially upset about leaving my favorite wing place behind. This summer, I was on a mission to find the best wings of suburban Philadelphia.
I rounded up my 3 best wing experts (my dad, Tom, his fiancé, Missy, and my boyfriend Dave) and we hit the road, looking for local places that gave us incredible wings.
To rate the wings, we rated the wings based on the tastiness of the wings, the amount of meat on the wings, the amount of sauce on the wings and the tastiness of the sauce, each on a four-point scale and calculated and overall average to find the best suburban wings. We split ourselves up into two taste-testing teams based on sauce preferences. Missy and I stuck to barbecue sauce and Dave and Tom always went with the typical buffalo wings.
We took note of the restaurant atmosphere, the price per wing, the restaurant atmosphere, the service and the celery. While there was one crowned winner, all of the wings and restaurants had certain aspects about them that made them stand out.
Disclaimer: These ratings are based on a one-time visit to each restaurant. We are not professional or qualified food critics, just wing enthusiasts.
Chaps: 3.7
Chaps was our clear winner through Wing Tour 2016, earning at least a 3.5 in each category. They were the biggest wings of the tour, ranking a 3.9 in the amount of meat on the wings, and were extremely tasty, with a rating of 3.7. The amount of sauce on the wings and tastiness of the sauce came in at a 3.5. The restaurant was covered with televisions, covering tons of sports games, and the service was quick and phenomenal! Congrats, Chaps!
Located: 2509 W. Main Street, Jeffersonville
TopKats: 3.6
Coming in second place of Wing Tour was TopKats Pub and Grille. TopKats was our first stop and definitely a great start to the summer of wings. The sauce paired with these wings was incredible, scoring a 3.8 in tastiness and a 3.7 in the amount of sauce on the wings. The wings were very tasty themselves, ranking a 3.6 in tastiness and a 3.3 in the amount of meat on the wings. The restaurant was clean, the service was quick and everyone was very nice!
Located: 2800 Swede Road, East Norriton
UNO's: 3.2
There was a three-way tie for third place, Uno's being one of them! Uno's closed Wing Tour and did not disappoint. The wings tasted amazing, racking in a rating of 3.4, and a score of 3.0 of the amount of meat on the wings. The barbecue sauce here was to die for, individually receiving a rating of 3.6, making it hard to accept them as a third place constant. Uno's earned overall rating of 3.0 for the amount of sauce on the wings.
Located: 1009 Ridge Pike, Conshohocken
PJ Whelihans: 3.2
A wing stop wasn't complete without Missy reminding us that "PJ's is still [her] favorite!" Being our second restaurant tied for third, PJ's provided excellent service and wings. Missy's favorite part about PJ's wings was the taste of the sauce, which earned an overall score of a 3.2. The wings also tasted great, earning a rating of 3.4. The wings were fairly big, earning a rating of 3.3 for the amount of meat on the wings. The amount of sauce on the wings earned a rating of 2.9, as it slid off the wings onto the plate, but it was perfect for dipping the wings in!
Spoon Tip: Make sure to check on PJ's on Tuesdays for Wing Night for half-pried wings!
Located: 799 Dekalb Pike, Blue Bell
Nippers: 3.2
Nippers was our final third place contestant. First of all, the restaurant was super cool, they had a giant fish tank with gigantic fish in it, it almost distracted me from the nice plate of wings in front of me. Nippers had pretty big wings, earning a rating of 3.7. The categories of taste of the sauce and taste of the wings both received ratings of 3.0, and the taste of the sauce received a score of 3.1.
Located: 2452 W. Main Street, Jeffersonville
Guppy's: 2.6
And our final restaurant of Wing Tour 2016 was Guppy's Good Times. We did have a good time, but did have to drop our wing ratings slightly. A huge plus to Guppy's was that we received fresh, hot wings, which tasted great, earning a rating of 2.7. The barbecue sauce was sweet and different from any barbecue sauce I have ever tasted, it was really good! It was also lathered on my wings, making them even better. The overall scores for the taste of the sauces dropped due to the taste of the mild sauce, and earned a rating of 2.3. The amount of sauce on the wings also dropped due to the mild wings, receiving a rating of 2.8. The category judging amount of meat on the wings earned a rating of 2.5, as they were big, but not very meaty.
Located: 148 W. Germantown Pike, East Norriton