Testing the Finals

Cityview is central Iowa' independent newsmagazine. Cityview holds a food contest to see who serves the ultimate version of a popular food item each fall. As you can see from the August cover, 2021 was the year for the chicken wing contest. 

The contest started with 64 entries, winnowed that number to 32, and then moved to the "Final 8." (If you're curious, Sakari Sushi Lounge won.) 

I think this question should be, "Where are Des Moines' Ultimate Wings?"

I like this list of eight businesses because it feels like they are solid endorsements from people who know what they are talking about. People take pride in their favorite spots for food, and most won't make these remommendations lightly. I've been using this list to help Daphne and me find some new places to test out. We haven't been disappointed with any of their wings.

Wednesdays are Wisco days for us because Char has confirmation from 6 -7:30 pm. Wisco Grub & Pub is only three minutes from our church, so we can drop off Char (who had dinner earlier) and have a leisurely dinner of wings, ruben rolls, and Wheel of Fortune. We go with their in-house made medium sauce.

I typically only take Charlotte to Gameday so she can play in the arcade, but we stopped by on Saturday for a late lunch. That's buffalo sauce on the left and Asian sauce on the right. 

ShortE's BBQ is a fun Saturday spot, too. These wings have Texas sauce and honey buffalo sauce. Our go-to side is the bacon jalapeño wontons. 

Jethro's BBQ wings aren't in the final eight this year, but they smoke their wings before they fry them, and they are always impressive. The sweet sauce of the month on the left wasn't doing much for me, but it turned out to be a great compliment to the hot Sriracha dry rub on the right.

Side bar: Taco Bell sold Crispy Chicken Wings for one week, and I actually put that in my Google calendar so I wouldn't forget. I wasn't disappointed with these wings because I didn't expect them to be good. They were okay, but they're never going to be in anyone's Final 8.

Cactus Bob's BBQ Corral is less than two miles from our house, so their wings are next on our list to try. But part of me (and I don't mean my waist) thinks I should maybe stop ordering wings for awhile. 

My dad's depression forced him into repeptitions where he'd only want to eat the same meal over and over again. I sometimes worry about falling into similar ruts, but I think I'm okay.

Char has book club for an hour tonight at the library, and when Daphne asked if I wanted to change our plans and go to Catctus Bob's instead of Flame, I said, "Are you kidding? I'm not missing dinner at Flame." I order something different everytime we're there. It's all good.