Wing Dome: A Hot Spot For Finger-Lickin' Food

----------------------------------------------------------------- Restaurant review

XX Wing Dome, 1501 N. 45th St. ($) Lunch and dinner (25 cents to $4.95) 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Wednesday; until midnight Thursday; until 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday; until 10 p.m. Sunday. Beer, wine. Major credit cards. Nonsmoking area. Reservations and takeout: 634-WING. Fax: 634-2724. -----------------------------------------------------------------

Winging it.

It's an axiom in the hospitality business: You don't need a vast menu to succeed. A limited one will do if well-planned and perfectly executed.

Seldom, however, has this axiom been so humbly - and successfully - applied as at a new enterprise in Wallingford, the Wing Dome.

Owner (and manager and waitress) Karen Gibson opened the Wing Dome in June, serving almost exclusively chicken wings.

The wings took off.

"I have been shocked," she said, "shocked at the number of repeat customers we have. There are people who have been in here 25 times since we opened.

"I've had others come in, order 50 wings, and say: `You stole my idea! I was going to open my own wing joint.' Then others have said: `I love this place. It's the most politically incorrect place in town.' "

Short of any undiscovered den serving spotted owl, it probably is.

Chicken wings may be of some limited value for a chicken (they certainly don't use them much), but for human consumption they are questionable: high in fat and spices; low in social distinction.

I would never eat more than 30 or 40 in one session.

Popular in East, South

Gibson, a former marketing manager for the Sara Lee Corporation, noted that whatever their gastronomic shortcomings, chicken-wing joints (pun accidental) are popular in many parts of the country.

"Not just in Buffalo," she said, "but in Atlanta, Winston-Salem, Dallas, everywhere. But there wasn't an outlet for them here and that was one of the reasons I chose Seattle."

Gibson took over the premises of Isla Bella and made minor decorative adjustments. A half-dozen 2-by-6s appear to have been scorched by a blowtorch and nailed up randomly to the ceiling. To augment this dubious array, she acquired a busted roof tile from the Kingdome and hung that up, too.

Voi, as they say, la.

But for wings and dip, burgers and salads and cold beer, what more did she need? Apparently nothing.

Her hot wings are excellent. The Caesar Salad ($4.95) surprisingly tasty. And the one-third-pound burgers are made from freshly ground, certified Black Angus beef with jalapeno mayo.

The Wing Dome is a remarkable, savory triumph - whatever its gustatorial limitations.

It all started in Buffalo

Buffalo wings originated in the city of that name at the Anchor Bar in 1964, when Theresa Bellissimo received an unexpectedly large order of wings from a supplier, deep-fried them, coated them with a buttery hot sauce and served them in a diner basket along with celery sticks and a tub of blue-cheese dressing.

The city of Buffalo officially recognized them in 1977 and declared, annually, July 29 Chicken Wing Day.

Karen Gibson's traditional wings come with gradations of "heat" (one to five star) at $4.95 for 10 wings, $9.95 for 25 wings, on up to $30.95 for 100 wings. The one- and two-star ratings are suitable for beginners; three will get your attention and start sweat glands into commotion.

Four stars are seriously warm; five stars, as one startled friend exclaimed between choruses of, "Wow!" "Wow, wow!," should require written parental consent.

In addition, you can get Blazin' Bayou Wings with Cajun and Honey Mustard Sauce, Kamikaze Wings with Teriyaki, One-Two Punch Wings (honey and garlic), Old West Wings (with barbecue sauce), some truly compelling Big Cheese Wings (Parmesan cheese with Dijon mustard) and Rasta Wings in a Jamaican-style jerk sauce.

The specialty wings are about 25 cents more per order (of 10 wings) than the original flippers. Or you can get a "Crying Out Loud Sampler" of 20 wings for $9.85.

Side dishes include three large salads ($2.85 to $4.95), an Asian, Caesar or Iceberg with celery and blue cheese.

The Flamin' Fries ($3.15) are an after-ski delight: large, striated fries (like rigatoni) slathered with a spicy cheddar cheese sauce and covered with an all-beef chili.

Monday nights (as in "Are you ready for some football?") the wings are two bits a pop, and the Wing Dome is elbow to sweaty elbow.

Despite 20 years of diligent culinary blue chippery, I liked the place.

P.S. Get a rug.

(Copyright, 1994, John Hinterberger. All rights reserved.) John Hinterberger, who writes the weekly restaurant review in Tempo and a Sunday food column in Pacific, visits restaurants anonymously and unannounced. He pays in full for all food, wines and services. Interviews of the restaurants' management and staff are done only after meals and services have been appraised. He does not accept invitations to evaluate restaurants.