Rating: 8.5/10
Atomic Wings had its grand opening last Saturday and brought a wild ride full of flavor.
Atomic Wings’ presents menu options that are not only good in terms of variety, but all options in the restaurant are Halal for anyone who adheres to that dietary restriction.
Another benefit for Atomic Wings is their operating hours, which run fairly late. This makes Atomic Wings even more accessible for any students getting some late-night munchies.
Get The Daily Illini in your inbox!
Their five-piece traditional wing meal came with five bone-in wings, an order of seasoned waffle fries and a fountain drink for a total of $13.37. For this order, you can pick one of their roughly 20 sauces or dry rubs set to spice levels ranging from “Sweet” to “Hot.”
Atomic Wings proved to be a textbook wing that checked all the marks of what makes a chicken wing a good chicken wing. The included waffle fries were not only generous in quantity but well-seasoned and managed to be crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside.
The “Hot Buffalo” sauce does an amazing job of being savory while also having a nice kick to last a while.
A major bonus for Atomic Wings is that their wings are always fresh and never frozen, which is noticeable after tasting them.
I dove back in for more flavors, and ordered 10 wings for a total of $17.27, opting for the lemon pepper dry rub and the spiciest sauce available — nuclear.
The lemon pepper dry rub was a nice surprise in regards to its seasoning and flavor, which felt present throughout the whole wing. As for the nuclear sauce, I struggled to get through one wing due to the spice level, but there was still a nice hint of other flavors which balanced well with the sauce’s spice.
One disappointing thing about Atomic Wings was that they only accept cashless forms of payment. Sure, we might be moving towards a digital-focused way of living, but this can be a downer for anyone who may not have a credit/debit card or access to any payment apps.
Atomic Wings might not reinvent the wheel when it comes to chicken wings, but they truly have the hottest chicken in town. At an accessible location on campus, the restaurant proves to be an easy-to-reach location for any student craving wings.
