Why did the chicken cross the road?...

…because they can’t fly on account of their tiny wings. Because of this size, the chicken wing (or Buffalo Wing for those outside of Western NY) makes an excellent snack or appetizer. Women consider this a valid fact.
Guys on the other hand, look at wings as a statistic on which to hang ones hat. 5714 strikeouts in a career, 1406 stolen bases in a career, 212 pinch hits in a career, 75 wings for lunch yesterday. Take a seat at the local chicken wing establishment. 83% of the people eating there are guys. Why? Well, the best wings are sloppy. Guys have zero issues with sloppy. Sure, there are women who love wings. However, they usually order them to go, so they can be consumed in privacy. The brave women who are willing to eat wings in public do so with extreme care. Choosing the drummette (the other part is taboo for women to eat) holding the wing as if CSI will try to lift a print off the bone. They take one tiny bite, being careful not to get too much sauce on the lips, then immediately following with the wipeage. A sip of the drink then repeat. At this rate, one can only eat 6-8 wings during a lunch hour.
Guys on the other hand…Order enough to fill them up. Stacks the amount of napkins needed for the entire meal as to not soil the remaining napkins in the container. They eat several wings at a time before the wipeage. The best posture for this is to lean over the plate, looking down, until the need for wipeage. Clean the face then straighten up and make eye-contact with your lunch mate and continue the conversation so that the other guy can lean and get his fill. From a distance, this see-saw action can seem awkward, but it’s truly the best way for to guys to throw down some wings for lunch. Now, when the chicken wing was invented in 1964 (Anchor Bar, 1047 Main St. Buffalo, NY, www.anchorbar.com) history says the sides of raw carrots and celery came in handy to ‘cool off’ the mouth while eating the wings. But I have developed an additional use. Since I am not averse to using food for wipeage. (Bread comes to the minds of my family) Take a close look and the veggies on how they’re sliced. ‘Julienned’ for the culinary arts student. I call it squeegeeeque. You get the picture? Why waste the wonderful sauce? This is why you walked into the wing joint in the first place. You can get most of the sauce cleanly off the face where one can save the wet-nap for the fingers, hands and elbows. Of course, facial hair dramatically reduces this effect and may require additional wipeage. So take a trip to your local wing emporium, have a seat, order a bucket and a cold one and enjoy the wonderful differences of the genders. And special thanks to the Anchor Bar, for giving the chicken wing a permanent, honored status in the GuyFood Hall of Fame.

Beef on Weck

Since we're talking about where I grew up, I can't go on without mentioning a local sandwich that should be, in my opnion, as popular as the chicken wing (Buffalo wing for you out-of-towners). It's the Beef on Weck. A savory hot sandwich where simplicity reigns. Let's break it down shall we?
First, 'beef'. 'Nuff said?
Slow-roasted, thick sliced beef with plenty of au jus and grated horseradish and an onion. Some can do without the horseradish, but it ain't the same. That's it for the guts of the sandwich.
Second, 'on Weck'. That's the kicker
A hard crusted kaiser roll with pretzel salt and caraway seeds on top. It's usually the size of your everyday hamburger bun, but it has to be able to tall and sturdy enough for the top to be dipped in the au jus and remain holdable.
Here's a little history. HT: What's cooking America and The Courier Express

1901 - The following family history of the origin of the Beef on Weck sandwich was shared with me by John Guenther, great grandson of Joe Gohn, originator of the Beef on Weck Sandwich. Some of the information also comes from the Buffalo Courier Express newspaper, April 6, 1980:
Just before the start of the 1901 Pan American Exposition in Buffalo, NY, Joe Gohn (1862-1949) purchased a small saloon which he called the Delaware house, located at Delaware and Delavan Streets. The Delaware House was located on the northwest corner across the street from one of the exposition’s main entrances. He enlarged the house to offer hotel-style rooms for the exposition travelers. It was never called a hotel, but in order to have a whiskey license, he had to have ten bedrooms and provide sitting rooms for his customers.
According to family history, street trolleys loaded with people headed for the exposition were let off near the veranda of the John Gohn’s Delaware House. Since Joe had turned his house into a hotel and tavern to house and feed the hungry people, he decided that a roast beef sandwich and a cold beer would taste good to these travelers. Joe had a German baker working for him who was already making the rolls for the Delaware House. This baker, name unknown, suggested adding the caraway seeds and salt to the top of the rolls as they did in Germany. In Germany, this type of roll was called a kummelweck with nickname of weck. These sandwiches soon became very popular, and of course, the kummelweck helped to create extra thirsty patrons for selling a lot of beer.
The original Delaware House was purchased by the Standard Oil Company in 1931. It was later razed and a has a gas station on the site. Joe Gohn then purchased the building next door and converted it into a tavern, called Gohn’s Tavern. He continued serving his now famous Beef on Weck sandwiches. In later years, he sold the tavern and it became Meyer’s Tavern, which for many years continued selling the Beef on Weck sandwich with great popularity.
It is commonly believed by some historians that William Wahr, a German baker, brought the kummelweck to Buffalo from the Black Forest. There is no historical evidence to back this claim up, but could this be the name of the baker who worked for Joe Gohn at the Delaware House?
This delicacy is for true sandwich pros. It's wet, drippy & slippery. The true pro picks it up and eats it in total without putting it down. This prevents the sandwich from getting too soaked and the eater from getting too embarrased for wearing his lunch. Not much is said when 2 guys sit at the bar with these and their favorite cold beverage. But after the plate is cleaned and the spent napkins are gathered, the satisfaction generated could be compared winning a big game. Now, plan your next trip to Western New York and include a local tavern with these on the menu.