Here's How Buffalo Wild Wings Got Its Name

Buffalo wings are an incredibly popular snack that people love for their tangy flavor and fun factor. After all, who doesn't love a meal you can eat with your hands while watching a game with your buddies? Wings are one of the most popular party foods, ranking second only to ribs as one of the best things to eat while watching football, according to We Are The Mighty. Wings have become so popular, it's estimated that Americans can go through about 14 million wings in a year, with the average meat-eating American chowing down on about 24 wings per month.

Buffalo wings got their name from the city they were born in — Buffalo, New York. The wings were invented (some say accidentally) in 1964 at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, according to its website. (The bar is still around, selling its wings, if you're planning a trip.) Though it's a safe bet that your neighborhood sports bar serves up a heaping batch of wings, one of the most popular chains for the spicy chicken snack is Buffalo Wild Wings. 

With a name like Buffalo Wild Wings, you'd think the restaurant chain had its start in Buffalo, but the truth is, the restaurant chain was born in Columbus, Ohio. Jim Disbrow and Scott Lowery were friends who recently moved from Buffalo to Columbus. According to the restaurant chain's site, the buddies were homesick for chicken wings. Necessity being the mother of invention, the friends opened a restaurant in 1982 that specialized in wings and weck, a regional favorite sandwich made with thinly-sliced roast beef and horseradish on a caraway and salt roll. The original name of the restaurant? Buffalo Wild Wings and Weck, according to Insider. 

The restaurant dropped the sandwich from the title and the menu in order to concentrate on beer and wings. Currently, there's a Buffalo Wild wings restaurant in all 50 states, according to its site. The restaurant has also expanded its original wing recipe to offer wings tossed in nearly two dozen different sauces.