PHOTOS
Gina Tomaine
Some men and women are born loving hot wings, and some have wing-loving thrust upon them. If you are one of those naturals who pours extra hot sauce on your already dangerously spiced wings, who forsakes the frivolous celery and blue cheese until after the serious eating is finished, and who refuses to use a napkin to wipe your greasy fingers until the battle is over and only the bones remain on your abandoned plate, then finally a day of dining redemption has arrived, and it goes by the name of "Wingfest."
The Wingfest, a renewal of the 570's popular wing-off tradition, will be held on Saturday from 2 to 7 p.m. outside the resort's main lodge. This Rock 107 and Sno Cove (that's Sno Mountain without the snow) event will kick off the summer right as 15 area restaurants compete to take home the title in categories of "People's Choice," "Most Creative," "Hottest," and the coveted "Best of Fest."
For those hungry patrons attending Wingfest, there will be plenty of juicy chicken-filled events. Throughout the day there will be a wing-eating contest, bobbing for wings, as well as a wing toss. (Looks like things could get a bit messy, but that's the fun part.) While the admission fee is $10 for adults and $5 for kids, kids ages 5 and under get in free. This price includes all day entertainment, continuous scenic lift rides, as well as beer sampling for those 21 and over. Rock 107's live entertainment includes favorite bands such as Double Cross, Our After, Fender Bender, and Berkley Horse.
Sno Mountain hopes to connect with the community and raise excitement for the imminent opening of its summertime Sno Cove, the area's newest family fun headquarters. This fun park boasts specialty water slides, a wave pool and lazy river, miniature golf, bumper boats, batting cages, a tram ride and a skate park with a mini half-pipe. While the kids are drooling over the proximity of the park they plan to spend their summer vacation in, you can focus on drooling over the incredible array of wings in front of you.
Oh, and who decides which restaurant will reign on a saucy pedestal as the ruler of wingdom? At Wingfest, YOU are the judge.
"One of the most important categories is people's choice - everyone who attends will get one ballot to vote on their favorite wings," said Andrea Prokop, marketing director at Sno Mountain.
The 15 local restaurants battling for the title are The Penalty Box, Goodfella's, Nina's, Rusty Nail, Yankeez Pizza, and Kelly's of Scranton; as well as The Y-Knot of Elmhurst; Novack's Food & Spirits of Dickson City; The Stone Elephant and Runco's Tavern of Olyphant; The Bar at the Patch and Grande Pizza of Dunmore; The Chicken Coop and Bart & Urby's from Wilkes-Barre; and last but not least, The Town Tavern competing as the prize-fighter of Duryea. Each vendor must sell their wings at a flat rate of three wings for $1. However there will also be additional food from each of the restaurants for the customer's purchasing pleasure.