Consumer Reports rates buffalo wings you can buy at the store

CLEVELAND - Tell us who is "King of Wings" in Northeast Ohio. Text message "wing" to 46988 on your mobile phone to get instructions on how to vote for your favorite. You could win a free gift card to enjoy a wing dinnner.

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Buffalo wings and football make a great team. If you don't have a favorite recipe, maybe this Super Bowl Sunday you can punt serving frozen wings. We put seven to the test.

[ WEB EXTRA: Scroll down for the local favorites of NewsChannel5 anchors and reporters ]

Buffalo Wings are a specialty at the Candlelight Inn restaurant. Owner John Traci serves up plenty at game time.

"Football and finger food, it's as simple as that. On Super Bowl days, just that day alone, we sell over 8,000 pounds," said Traci.

But if you don't have a favorite wing joint for game time, how good are frozen buffalo wings? Consumer Reports just tested seven.

There were good ones from Tyson, T.G.I. Fridays and even some from the drugstore Walgreens. Testers sampled more than 800 to find the best.

"You want moist, tender chicken with crispy coating and you want spiciness but not so much that it overpowers the wings," said Adam Kaplan with Consumer Reports said.

In its tests, Consumer Reports said some of the wings came up a little short.

Kaplan said the crispy fried impression you get in a restaurant quality wing just wasn't there. And some didn't taste that great, either. He said the Weaver Buffalo Wings had a fake butter flavor. The Great Value Buffalo Wings from Walmart had a chewy chicken and rubbery skin.

But there was a clear winner, Bell and Evans Buffalo Style Chicken Wings.

"The Bell and Evans had a nice browned impression. They tasted roasted and they had a good heat and some cumin flavors that really came through," said Kaplan.

They go for about $7 for a 16-ounce box. So if you don't have a restaurant favorite, Consumer Reports said give them a try.

For a little less money, Consumer Reports said the Walgreens Cafe W. Wings are worth a try. They were not quite as tasty as the Bell and Evans chicken wings, but testers said they were very good overall, with a slight vinegar, paprika and red pepper flavor. A 10-ounce bag costs about $3.

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Here are the NewsChannel5 local favorites:

ANDY BASKIN
Wing Warehouse (4165 Wyoga Lake Rd., Cuyahoga Falls) -- "They have the best wings. All the sauces are good, but, they have a wing called 'wet ranch' that is awesome. They also don't use frozen wings. When the bone is black that means it’s been frozen. The wings always taste great and have meat on them. The wings remind me of when BW3 started in Columbus on Woodruff, before they became a chain. They were really good back then. Also walking down wing memory lane, nobody had better wings that the old 'Stuffed Mushroom' in Kent in the late '80s."

DANITA HARRIS
Imperial Dragon Restaurant (8310 Tyler Blvd., Mentor) -- "This restaurant serves the best 'Thai Wings' ever! The flavor is sweet but tangy with a little pop! The wings are never on a diet because they’re nice and plump and cooked to perfection. It's totally delicious."

JOHN KOSICH
"As someone who lived in Buffalo and was a regular at the Anchor Bar (where Teressa Bellissimo invented the 'Buffalo wing' in 1964) I've chowed down on a lot of Northeast Ohio wings. At the end of the day, I most often can be found downing a plate at the Winking Lizard on Coventry, they've got a great selection to appeal to different tastes. Hot, Caribbean or Cajun are usually my choices. You also can't go wrong with the selections at Buffalo Wild Wings, a franchise started years ago by a couple of Buffalo guys who found they couldn't get wings outside of Buffalo."

TRACY CARLOSS
Applebees (17771 Southpark Ctr., Strongsville) -- "I love the BBQ boneless wings! Perfect sauce."

PAUL KISKA
Rocky River Brewing Co. (21290 Center Ridge Road, Rocky River) -- "OK, it makes me hungry just writing about this. The garlic wings at the Rocky River Brewing Company, well, they rock! They're called garlic wings for a reason and it's a brewing company, so that's a pretty tasty combination if you ask me. Enjoy!"

KIMBERLY GILL
Harry Buffalo (5596 Highland Road, Highland Heights) -- "I love the wings at The Harry Buffalo in Highland. They’re cooked to perfection… not too soft, not too crispy and their sauces are tasty."

LEON BIBB
Rascal House (2064 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland) -- "I like both pizza and wings -- and this place, which is located close to Channel 5, offers the best of both worlds."

ALICIA BOOTH
Cowboy Food and Drink (8586 Washington St., Chagrin Falls) -- "I don't eat wings ( I am the health reporter, you know) but my husband and stepson are wild about the Smoked Wings with Crybaby Sauce!!! They say It will make you cry like a baby!  Cowboy is great for other food too and a great place for kids."

PETE KENWORTHY
Buffalo Wild Wings (227 Franklin Avenue, Kent) -- "My friends in Buffalo would kill me for picking a chain but I live close to the BW3's in Kent. I'm