We could not possibly have had better weather for the 7th Annual Kickin Chicken Wingfest. Another record breaking year and a couple “Best” upsets this year.
A sunny day, mild breeze, low humidity, free music, and chicken wings resulted in another record breaking year for the Miami Valley Restaurant Association's Kickin’ Chicken Wingfest 2017. New to the judges panel this year was Sheriff Phil Plummer. Hundreds of people stopped to say hello, thank him for doing a good job, and shake his hand and he graciously greeted every one of them.
At least twelve local restaurants competed, bringing a variety of flavors, styles, rubs, sauces, and sides. It takes about three hours to complete the judging in all the categories. Hard working volunteers make their way to each vendor at least 5 times. Each vendor can only submit one entry in each of the 5 tasting categories. The judges blindly taste submissions in each category, make notes, choose favorites, tally our votes, give the winning “number” to the organizer, and they tell us who the winning restaurant is.
The Best Wings in Dayton 2017 Winners:
Best Wing: Pies & Pints These simply seasoned and grilled wings earned the top spot for a 4th consecutive year.
Best Sauce: Giovanni’s Yes, you heard right! The well known Italian & Pizza Restaurant from Fairborn submitted a Creamy Lemon Pepper sauced wing that was declared the undivided champ.
Best Boneless: Basil’s on Market - Dayton Their lightly breaded dry-rubbed boneless wing emerged victorious for a second straight year.
Best Side: Roost The Roasted Corn & Poblano Salad was the hands down winner. The refreshing cool salad contained poblano peppers, red onion, and cilantro with a light dressing.
Hottest Wing: Basils on Market - Dayton Another repeat win for Basil’s. If not’s broke, don’t fix it, right?! We were all glad this wing didn't send us screaming into the Fraze fountains.
Best Decorated Booth: The Dock These folks obviously take great pride in displaying their festive spirit and have won this category for the last 4 years.
Peoples Choice for Best Damn Wing: Nick’s To date, Nick’s is the undefeated fan favorite. Romer’s & Nick’s tied in 2015 and both received the recognition.
