Ok, so this is very off brand for Kinda Boring Travel. I know it, this is not a food blog. Anyway, I have been traveling into and out of Buffalo NY a good amount lately and so I wanted to try out two classics, Duffs and Anchor Bar. legend is that Anchor Bar is the originator of the Buffalo Wing. Duffs doesn’t claim to be the inventor, but they do say they have the best wings.
On a recent trip through Buffalo I had about 4 hours to kill before going to the airport so I decided to do a Tour De Chicken. I first went to Anchor Bar downtown Buffalo then went to Duffs in Amherst. These are both the original locations of their respective brands.
Bottom Line: Both Anchor Bar and Duffs have great wings. Anchor Bar is a legit bar, Duffs is more like a diner. I think I like the wings at Duffs better, they are hot and crispy. Anchor Bar has more bar drinks and ambiance if that’s your goal. Either way, you cannot go wrong, but I think I like Duffs more.
Anchor Bar
I went to the original Anchor Bar location downtown Buffalo. They lean pretty hard into the “Original Buffalo Wing” lore.
The story of inventing the Buffalo Wing. I was a little worried at first that this was a tourist trap and the wings wouldn’t live up to the hype.
I sat at the bar when I visited Anchor Bar. I’m here at lunch time so it’s pretty quiet. Anchor Bar is divided into two parts, there’s a bar area and restaurant area. Classic old school bar vibes but a little touristy.
I ordered a single order of traditional wings medium. This is their original and I wanted to keep it classic. I’m usually more of a “hot” or “extra hot” kinda person.
The main event. 10 wings, original medium, blue cheese dressing, celery, and a Guinness.
Ok, my honest opinion is these are great wings. They are crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. They also come out steaming hot. These are not sitting around getting cold before I got them. The sauce is a little mild, but then again I did order the medium.
My fears of Anchor Bar Wings not living up to the hype was unfounded. Anchor Bar makes great wings. I finished my wings and my beer. I was impressed that while touristy, Anchor Bar makes a good wing.
Duffs
About 20 minutes away from Anchor Bar, in Amherst there is Duffs. It’s a kinda unassuming building in a relatively suburban part of town. This is still somewhat of a tourist destination, but less so than Anchor Bar.
Inside duffs, I was kinda expecting a bar, but it’s not really. More like a diner or casual lunch spot. When I went at lunch it was certainly more busy than Anchor Bar I had just left.
Nice simple menu. Obviously they focus on wings, but they have plenty of other solid options for lunch. This is still a full restaurant with classics like Beef on Weck. I went for the ten wings with original medium. Duffs claims the “medium is Hot” so we’ll see.
So first glance is good. 10 large wings, celery, carrots, blue cheese, and a Labatt to wash it down.
Duffs has great wings, super crispy again and steaming hot. Literally steam coming off of them when they got to my table. I will say the sizes of the wings were a little less consistent than at Anchor bar. The medium wasn’t very hot, but was a little hotter than Anchor(I think, really it’s hard to tell). The sauce was good though, I also liked the Blue Cheese here at Duffs better than Anchor Bar.
All in, Duffs makes a great wing. I think their saying of “Medium is Hot” is a bit of a lie, but that’s ok, they make hotter sauces. I’ve tried those on subsequent visits and can recommend the “hot” and “super hot” both are very solid.
Duffs vs Anchor Bar Final Thoughts
Both Duffs and Anchor Bar make great wings. Anchor Bar certainly has a convincing story about being the originator of Buffalo Wings and their wings do live up to the hype. It’s a great bar environment too, you can belly up to the rail and enjoy some wings, beers, and watch a game here.
Duffs is more of a diner(not Dinner) or lunch spot, they still serve beer, but it’s not really a bar. Duffs wings are just a little bit better and I like their blue cheese dressing a more than Anchor Bar.
You should go to both, maybe not eat 20 wings and 3 beers in less than 2 hours like I did, but go to both Duffs and Anchor if you have the opportunity.