According to the National Chicken Council, 2014 marked the 50th Anniversary of the “Buffalo Wing” being sauced and tossed at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York.
Fast forward one year later and on the opposite coast, North Hollywood to be exact. We catch up with New York native, Phillip Loriguere, creator of ‘Doc’s Wings.
We were first introduced to Phillip in Santa Monica California, at a high end food boutique. Phillip handcrafted a designer cold cut sandwich that was out of this world. I figured his culinary skills and talents surpassed that of his cold cut.
On a hot Southern California weekend, as I approached his North Hollywood street corner, light smoke was billowing into the air. Fresh chicken wings were being deep fried and tossed in several vats of homemade sauce.
“I’m going to make one hot, one Bar-B-Que, one Honey Mustard and one Orange Citrus. All of the sauces are made from scratch. My hot doesn’t taste like any hot you’ve ever had before.”
According to Phillip, the secret to successful hot wings is the sauce. “Most wing sauce the hot is butter and vinegar. I don’t use any kind of hot sauce. I start out with my peppers, butter and garlic. Fresh ingredients. That’s why my wings have a unique taste. It’s subtle and it’s not going to burn your lips off. But it has a nice flavor.”
Although his customers have favorite sauces, Phillip finds it difficult to identify his favorite. “For me to choose between the four sauces, it’s like picking between your kids. I love them all. And they all have the same amount of love.”
An outside mobile cooking station played host to Doc’s Wings. Two baskets were being used for deep frying chicken wings and french fries. The grill kept the sauces made from scratch, hot.
A steady flow of new and return customers made for an eventful afternoon at Doc’s Wings. One faithful female customer placed her order in via cell. “I got the honey mustard wings and fries. All of the sauces are good but these are my favorite. It’s definitely the sauce, and he’s sweet too. That’s makes it nice.”
Doc’s Wings is the recipient of word of mouth advertising, social media influence and terrific foot and mobile traffic. “Social media is a big part of what I do at Doc’s wings. We started off on the streets, the buzz is really what carried us. For me right now, Instagram is doing the most for us.”
Phillip, a chef turned entrepreneur is passionate about his craft and his wings. “I love wings, coming from New York. I’ve had a lot of hot wings… I was tired of eating the same wing sauces over and over again. I decided to create my own. Now you have Doc’s Wings!”
