By Kate Bartlett
This Labor Day weekend, Saturday August 31 and Sunday September 1 marks the 23rd annual Buffalo Wing Fest. As tradition, the festival will be held at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, NY, and offers the opportunity to come hang out on an NFL Field indulging in some of the best wings from across the country.
This year, 25 local, national and international eateries will showcase over 120 types of wings, including spicy, savory and everything in between. With live entertainment and the much-anticipated wing eating competition, it’s sure to be a fun, quintessential Buffalo weekend. Participating restaurants are challenged every year to create tantalizing new wing flavors as they compete for national awards. This year 63 new wing recipes will be featured. Some new flavors include: Maple Bacon Jalapeno, French Toast, Cajun Rum Butter Whiskey Apple Bourbon, Hot Dill Pickle, Hawaiian BBQ Pineapple Rum, Garlic Alfredo, Smoked Bourbon and Spicy Loganberry.
Drew Cerza, also known as the Wing King, is the festival founder and has been running the festival since its inception. The idea was inspired by a scene in the movie Osmosis Jones. “In the movie, Bill Murry’s character talks about going to WingFest, when I realized that at that time there was no such festival. It seemed crazy to me that the city known for its Buffalo Wings didn’t have a WingFest, so I decided to start one.”
House of Wings Restaurant from Reykjavik, Iceland is returning for their second year to showcase their wings. The restaurant has won awards for Best Bite at the 2020 European Street Food Awards and has over 45 different sauces today; last year they won the Best of Show Award at Wing Fest. Owner and Erie PA native Justin Shouse will be traveling the 2,640 miles from Iceland to participate again in the National Wing Fest here in Buffalo.
Last year, the festival attracted around 23,000 attendees from 46 states and 24 countries. “We’re proud to attract such a large crowd from around the globe,” says Drew. “It’s a celebration of our wing-culture here in Buffalo, and it’s great to share this with all the attendees, whether they come from near or far.”
Entertainment includes live music on three stages, a baby wing pageant, amateur and Hot Wing Eating contests, a sauce-off competition, bobbing for wings, and the much-anticipated Wing It On Wing Eating Championship. Wings will be voted on during a blind taste test in several categories (including hot, BBQ, creative, XX hot and more) and announced on Saturday. Best of Show award will be decided on Sunday by a panel of local media celebrities, and new this year, guests can vote on their favorite wing using a QR code to determine the People’s Choice Award.
This year, guests will find a different, more convenient layout. The entire festival will be set up on the top concourse of Highmark Stadium with the football field open for the crowds’ enjoyment and insta-worthy photos. Not only will it allow festival goers to have full access to the field, but it will make the festival footprint easier to navigate.
The festival will again offer a VIP Craft Beer Tasting Fundraiser sponsored by DiMarco Body Sculpting. On Saturday, local craft breweries will be featured from 2-7PM in the air-conditioned Pepsi Club. Proceeds will benefit Hope Rises, supporting those affected by pediatric cancer, and Mafia Babes local charitable efforts. Tickets are $75 and include festival admission, 5 hours of tasting, 10 wings as well as a souvenir plate/cup.
Drew’s favorite thing about the event is the energy of the restaurants and the people. “It’s incredible to bring all these restaurants together in celebration of our food here in Buffalo. The energy is great. I love meeting people from all over the country, even internationally and hearing stories of their travels to come to our great city.”
Drew invites everyone to come out and experience the festival that celebrates the food indigenous to Buffalo on Labor Day weekend, Saturday 12-9, Sunday 12-7. $20 per person/per day, children 8 and under free. Cash and credit cards accepted, presale and tickets sold at the gate. Free parking. For more information visit https://buffalowing.com/ and follow on social media.