Highest-rated chicken wings in New Haven by diners

A staple of backyard parties, family gatherings, and watch parties, chicken wings have brought family and friends together for decades with their hot sauces, sweet coatings, and ever-so-satisfying bites.

These days, if you do a search for chicken wings in restaurants, you're likely to come up with a choice of sports bars, sandwich shops, food trucks, Korean restaurants, and Southern shops. It's clear that the wings have transcended cultural barriers, which is why when we talk about origins, there are many to investigate.

Buffalo wings are the first to come to mind. This popular chicken wing style was born (where else?) in the city of Buffalo, New York. The prevalent story is that Italian-born Frank and Teressa Bellissimo first served these sauce-smothered avian parts to their son in 1964 and eventually in their restaurant, Anchor Bar. But another story says that John Young, a Black Buffalonian, was there serving wings on a busy Jefferson Avenue way before then. Young's wings were served with a mombo sauce that Buffalo councilman James Pitts called the "lip-smacking, liver-quivering sauce (that) titillated our taste buds down to our toes."

Korean fried chicken is another style that's captured the hearts of many with midnight cravings. Crispy, messy, and perfect with a glass of beer, these chicken wings are the stuff of dreams that got their start thanks to the popularity of cheap cooking oil in Korea and a sweet and spicy yangnyeom seasoning. Chain stores like KyoChon and Bonchon serving these delectable wings quickly opened, introducing innovations like soy fried chicken, garlic chicken, and even curried fried chicken. As these shops have made their way overseas and onto our plates, they've also inspired local chefs to elevate the humble bird on a plate.

So, where should you go to find the perfect finger-licking bite? Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated restaurants for chicken wings in the New Haven area using data from Yelp. The rankings factor in the average rating and number of reviews. Read on to see where you can satisfy your next craving.

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Empire Pizza

1 / 16

#16. Empire Pizza

- Rating: 2.5/5 (30 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 16 Whalley Ave. New Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Pizza, Salad, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

Wing Madness New Haven

2 / 16

#15. Wing Madness New Haven

- Rating: 2.7/5 (63 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 716 Dixwell Ave. New Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Chicken Wings, American
- Read more on Yelp

Branford Pizza

3 / 16

#14. Branford Pizza

- Rating: 2.7/5 (39 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 66 North Main St. Branford, Connecticut
- Categories: Pizza, Chicken Wings, Sandwiches
- Read more on Yelp

The Sandpiper Restaurant

4 / 16

#13. The Sandpiper Restaurant

- Rating: 3.3/5 (236 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 161 Cosey Beach Ave. East Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Seafood, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

Nicky's Place Bar and Pizza

5 / 16

#12. Nicky's Place Bar and Pizza

- Rating: 3.4/5 (37 reviews)
- Address: 400 Coe Ave. East Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Pizza, Sports Bars, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

Southern Wings Express

6 / 16

#11. Southern Wings Express

- Rating: 3.4/5 (57 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 128 Elm St. West Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

Mainport Fish & Chips

7 / 16

#10. Mainport Fish & Chips

- Rating: 3.5/5 (27 reviews)
- Address: 56 Boston Post Road West Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Fish & Chips, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

Archie Moores NH

8 / 16

#9. Archie Moores NH

- Rating: 3.5/5 (229 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 188 Willow St. New Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Dive Bars, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

bb.q Chicken New Haven

9 / 16

#8. bb.q Chicken New Haven

- Rating: 3.5/5 (113 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 56 Whitney Ave. New Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Korean, Chicken Wings, Chicken Shop
- Read more on Yelp

Seaside Pizza

10 / 16

#7. Seaside Pizza

- Rating: 3.6/5 (22 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 126 Elm St. West Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Pizza, Chicken Wings, Wraps
- Read more on Yelp

Archie Moore's

11 / 16

#6. Archie Moore's

- Rating: 3.8/5 (46 reviews)
- Address: 988 Main St. Branford, Connecticut
- Categories: Dive Bars, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

Jordan's Hot Dogs & Mac

12 / 16

#5. Jordan's Hot Dogs & Mac

- Rating: 4.0/5 (158 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 970 State St. New Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Hot Dogs, Burgers, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

Woody's Wings

13 / 16

#4. Woody's Wings

- Rating: 4.0/5 (32 reviews)
- Address: 91 Church St. New Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

Clementes Pizza & Grill

14 / 16

#3. Clementes Pizza & Grill

- Rating: 4.3/5 (23 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1302 Whalley Ave. New Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Chicken Wings, Pizza, Mexican
- Read more on Yelp

Sandra's Next Generation

15 / 16

#2. Sandra's Next Generation

- Rating: 4.6/5 (660 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 636 Congress Ave. New Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Soul Food, Southern, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

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Pho Delicious

16 / 16

#1. Pho Delicious

- Rating: 4.7/5 (29 reviews)
- Address: 200 Captain Thomas Blvd. Unit 228 West Haven, Connecticut
- Categories: Vietnamese, Juice Bars & Smoothies, Chicken Wings
- Read more on Yelp

This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 223 metros.