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Ate: November 13, 2005 Published: November 20, 2005 $ Whenever somebody gives a half-hearted performance, people usually say that they "phoned it in." Well, that's pretty much what the two of us did this week. We phoned it in and they delivered. I will let you, our readers, determine whether or not this review comes off as half-hearted, but in advance I would like to plead sickness as our defense. I had a bad cold that kept me in bed for a day and sapped my strength for a few more, so we really didn't feel like going out. Besides, what's the matter with a little delivery now and then? From the exhausted local who is knocking off after a long day of work to the tourist who has spent an equally exhausting day with the wife and kids, everybody can benefit from having dinner delivered occasionally. We decided that instead of pizza, we would order from a restaurant in Socastee called Wing Kings. Based on the name, I'm sure it's not too difficult to guess what their specialty is. The restaurant may deliver, but they also have a dining room. They don't put on any airs at all. Wing Kings is exactly what it appears to be - a casual, unassuming local bar and grill. Everyone there is very friendly and they're always happy to welcome tourists in with the locals. The walls are decorated with a combination of Socastee Braves (the local high school) and Pittsburgh Steelers paraphernalia. Speaking of Pittsburgh, it's pretty clear that this is where the proprietor hails from. They have another restaurant in Cranberry Township, PA, a few miles north of Pittsburgh, and they let it be known that they proudly serve Iron City Beer. As you enter, there is a bar on the left with plenty of seats. If you'd rather sit at a table, there are a few of them in the dining room along with several wooden booths along the walls. Without a doubt, my favorite piece of the décor is an original 1981 Galaga stand-up video game console, and it's still only a quarter per game! Memories of a wasted youth come flooding back to me every time I put a quarter in. One of the reasons we eat at Wing Kings is because of the different wings they offer. Everybody has the standard mild, medium and hot wings. But how many places serve up flavors like mango habanero or lemon pepper? Wing Kings offers twenty-two different flavors of wings. If you order six or twelve wings you can only pick one flavor, but orders of eighteen or twenty-five wings let you pick two of them. Their price list goes all the way up to an order of five hundred wings, but we we've never had need of that many at any one time. For this meal, we ordered a whole chicken parmesan sub and eighteen wings. For our flavors, we went with honey mustard and "garmesan," a mixture of garlic and parmesan cheese (they also have a mixture of parmesan and teriyaki that they call "parmeyaki"). When we made the phone call, they told us that it was going to be about forty-five minutes for delivery and that turned out to be pretty accurate. A kind, affable young lady delivered our food, which was already smelling good even through the styrofoam containers. Their specialty is wings, but Wing Kings makes some pretty good subs and burgers too. The chicken in our sub was firm, juicy and accompanied by crisp green peppers and grilled onions. Our wings were big, meaty ones with a generous coating of sauce. The honey mustard sauce was thick, sticky, sweet, tangy, and everything else that a good honey mustard should be. Their garmesan wings are not for the faint of heart. The garlic in the sauce comes through very clearly. The garmesan flavor is one-of-a-kind, the garlic and the parmesan cheese play off one another in a salty blend that is just wonderful. I should give you a word of warning, though. While there is nothing wrong with Wing Kings as a first date restaurant, garmesan wings are not a recommended first date food. Save them for a third or fourth date. Over the last couple of years, my wife and I have tried several of their different wing flavors, and none of them have been bad at all. But like anyone else, we have some flavors that we like better than others. As you could probably guess from this review, our favorite is the garmesan. For the unadventurous of you, their regular ol' hot and medium wings are better than those of a certain large franchise that shall remain nameless. Their medium wing sauce also makes for an excellent chicken tender sub as well. Contrary to what you might think, the mango habanero wings are actually rather mild. The mango gives the sauce a good fruity tang and a small hint of habanero adds just a bit of zest. These are safe for all but the most heat-phobic. For those folks, the mild, creamy ranch style wings might be more to their liking. Probably the most intriguing wing flavor they offer that I have yet to try is their peanut sauce. It sounds good, now if I could just get the wife interested in it. . . My wife was enthusiastic about reviewing Wing Kings, but I have to admit that I was a bit reticent. This place is one of our favorites, and I'm selfish and don't like to share. If we tell our readers about it, then you all might actually go, enjoy yourselves and make the place so busy that we can't get a seat. Besides their restaurant in Socastee, they have another one on Highway 701 south in Conway. For the moment, Wing Kings is the best-kept secret in Horry County for wings. Let the golfers and the college kids go to that other large franchise. You go to Wing Kings instead. |
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