SmokeEaters Hot Wings — Restaurant in Santa Clara

I have eaten a lot of wings from a lot of places and these are among the very best. First of all, they are smothered in dressing. There is no chance of running out or having to ration yourself. The wings were swimming in it. Despite being so smothered, the chicken was still amazingly crispy not soggy at all. Also, the dressing is top notch. I got the honey sriacha and garlic parmesan. A lot of places when they say honey dressing, they mean one drop of honey and the rest sugar/corn syrup since honey is so much more expensive. This dressing was loaded with honey. Sriacha is a strong flavor that could easily overpower the honey if there wasn't a lot of it, but that honey flavor came through strong. It was amazing. Then I tried the garlic parmesan and I was a fan for life. They obviously used whole garlic instead of just garlic powder and a lot of it. The flavor was strong and complimented the parmesan well.

Quality chicken and quality sauce with no skimping on the sauce. I'm in love! But then their beer selection pushes it over the top. They have a huge wall of beers (maybe 40 on tap), most of which I had never heard of. I looked a few of them up, and they were all super local. The furthest one I found was a microbrewery in the North Bay. It's cool because any beer I liked, I could conceivably visit the brewery for. The biggest section of their beer menu was IPAs and pale ales, but they had several good ciders, wheat beers, and lagers for those who prefer less bitter beers.

Atmosphere is loud sports bar, order at the front and seat yourself (unless you sit at the bar then overworked but still very nice bar tender takes your order). It was pretty crowded when I went but it was also an NBA playoff game so maybe expected. I felt lucky to get a seat, we snagged one of the last ones. Despite slightly stressful seating arrangements, I will definitely return for their...

Tips and tricks (from a regular customer): Boneless only. The traditional bone-in wings here are mediocre and overpriced. One boneless wing is comparable to a chicken breast cut in half. Come on Thursday for discounted boneless wings. ($8 for 3 wings) Sensitive stomach? Get the sauce on the side. This place will drench your wings in sauce. If you have a sensitive stomach or a meeting after lunch, get the sauce in the side. Don't use the hard plastic cups for water. Use the disposable cups. The hard plastic cups for water taste like the wash rag or sponge they were cleaned with. Avoid ruining your delicious meal by selecting a disposable plastic cup. Look at the beer selection. There is always a great selection of beers on tap. Don't order before looking at the beer selection or you might end up waiting in line twice. 3 is all you need. If you have an average of slightly over average appetite, 3 boneless wings is right for you. Like previously mentioned, the boneless tenders are the equivalent of a chicken breast cut in half the hot dog way. Validate your parking. If you park in the parking garage near the place they will validate your parking. If you're not sure what parking garage, ask someone who works there.

Pretty sure this all...

I came in here an hour before closing, we where hungry and really craved wings and expected mediocre service because of how late it was, but to my surprise the service as well as the food was PERFECT! It was really ‘dead’ when we came in, and the employee that served us was young and full of energy, she let us taste the beers on tap and even brought the food out to us when we forgot the buzzer at the counter! There where two others working with her, a young male and female, and their playful attitude as well as there professional demeanor really made the food a hundred times better! We only got 10 wings traditional buffalo style and a side of fries and wow it was just what we needed, the fries were perfectly crisp and golden and the wings left us with fire on our breath! I’ll definitely be back here the next time I get a late night...