DUFF’S FAMOUS WINGS
ADDRESS: 3651 Sheridan Drive, Amherst, NY 14226
Two weekends ago, I took a roadtrip up to the Niagara Falls region with my two high school friends Bryan and Katie. The last time that I had been up there was probably over 10 years ago, so it’s been a little while since I’ve been back. During the course of the trip we stayed in Buffalo and drove out each day for sightseeing; on our first night, we decided to find a near-by spot to score some Buffalo wings. It’d certainly be a shame if we were in the area and didn’t get some wings.
After reading some reviews of places online, we found Duff’s Famous Wings came highly rated on multiple restaurant sites. It also helped the fact that the restaurant was less than 5 minutes from our hotel. Two turns and a short drive later, we had parked in the restaurant’s lot and were walking inside the restaurant.
Duff’s has several locations in the area, but the spot that we went to was the original, right on Sheridan Drive, opened in 1946. The menu is pretty concise: wings, sandwiches, wraps, and sides. Featuring the wings as their signature item, Duff’s lets you order those in quantities of 10, 20, or even 50 at a time. Between the three of us, we got a nice mix of the bone-in and boneless wings, ranging from their mild to medium light hot sauce. From the sound of their spice levels, “medium” is considered pretty hot and “hot” means you should probably be ready to call the fire department in case smoke starts billowing from your mouth.
Tables are scattered around one large dining area that opens up on the left when you walk in, and we were seated closer to the back of the restaurant. I’m not sure if it was the close proximity that the tables were set up or just the acoustics of the place, but it seemed at times it was difficult to hear my friends from across the table because other groups were talking a bit loud. The restaurant seemed like it was ready for our order; it was only a short while later that the main event arrived: the wings.
My plate of bone-in wings had that radioactive orange glow characteristic of Buffalo sauce, and also looked and smelled amazing. The scent from the wings was actually so intense that several times the vapors shot straight up my nostrils and left me coughing for a little bit. But smelling the wings could only go so far: it was time to dig in. When you first take a bite, the wings have a nice, crunchy exterior and weren’t dried out at all on the inside. I felt the medium light Buffalo sauce the wings were tossed in gave it the flavor it needed without making them overwhelmingly spicy. After eating all ten wings, however, the spiciness certainly started to catch up with me.
Even now, over a week after eating there, I’m still thinking about how good those wings were. The whole experience was a fun one, and in the end I’m glad that we made a point to find some Buffalo wings during our weekend stay in the area. Is there a way that Duff’s could possibly mail some more wings to my apartment in southern Maryland?
Let’s now take a look at the Duff’s Famous Wings Dish Spotlight. Asterisks (*) below mark my recommended dishes.
** Duff’s Famous Bone-In Wings **
Wings and drumsticks fried crispy and tossed in their signature sauce.
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And finally, here are my rankings for Duff’s Famous Wings:
Food: 5 / 5
The wings were on point: crisp, moist, and packed with flavor. Even with a limited number of options on the menu, wings are certainly what Duff’s does well.
Atmosphere: 4.25 / 5
Despite having small windows around the building, the entire dining area was pretty well lit. However, with the poor room acoustics, it occasionally made it difficult to have a conversation right at the table.
Service: 4.5 / 5
Even with a fairly packed restaurant, the kitchen staff was able to crank out our set of wings in a very reasonable amount of time. Our waitress came back around several times to get us drink refills.
Price: 4.5 / 5
It certainly doesn’t break the bank to grab some wings. Any larger order of wings will start to drive the cost below the $1 / wing threshold.
Overall:
18.25 / 20
(91%)
Categories: New York, Restaurants
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