Wing Zone Winging Its Way to 95th Street

One thing 95th Street doesn’t have is a restaurant exclusively devoted to buffalo wings -- until now.

Atlanta-based wing joint Wing Zone is planning an August 1 grand opening at 5713 W. 95th St., Oak Lawn. The new restaurant is expected to spiff up the Oak Lawn Plaza anchored by a Chase bank branch and Frankie’s, whose shuttered store fronts are usually rented out to seasonal Halloween costume companies.

Started by a pair of fraternity brothers who spent many hours concocting a variety of flavorful sauces that would one day become the restaurant chain’s signature, Wing Zone offers 15 different sauces, ranging from sweet, spicy and savory.

Each wing sauce is designed to “arouse the taste buds” including such descriptive names as Buffalo Bliss, Tokyo Dragon, Thai Chili, Blackened Voodoo and Nuclear Habanero.

In addition to wings, Wing Zone offers burgers, chicken sandwiches, shrimp, tenders, appetizers and sides, and desserts.

Local franchisee Amyn Ali has signed on to develop 14 stores in the Chicago-area market, including the Oak Lawn location. Other Wing Zone locations slated to open are Bolingbrook and Auburn Gresham, Crain’s Chicago Business reported.

Wingzone is planning a big grand opening celebration starting at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 1. Featured activities include a DJ, ribbon cutting, music, face painting, raffles and free giveaways. Wing-eating contests pitting Oak Lawn police against Oak Lawn firefighters are planned for 1 p.m., followed by a customer wing competition at 5 p.m.

The Oak Lawn location is also hiring for all positions, including shift leaders, cooks, crew and drivers. Candidates can apply online at Wingzone, or contact manager Jose Ortega at 773-209-7139.