USA Today features writer Larry Olmsted knew right from the get go that wings were way too big a story for just one article.In Food pilgrimage: Buffalo wings in Buffalo, part 1, he starts with the Big Picture:

"No other food has grown so far so fast as the humble Buffalo-style hot wing (in Buffalo they are simply called “wings”). Within a couple of years after it was introduced in a single Buffalo restaurant, the dish had become the city’s obsession. In less than two decades it was nationally ubiquitous, an appetizer menu and bar food staple across the country, and one major international chain had launched. Hooters built its success and several hundred outlets worldwide (plus a Vegas casino, defunct airline and former pro golf tour) on the back of the humble wing, at least from a menu perspective. Today there are several large wing-centric chains (Zaxby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, Wingstop).  Half a century after it was invented, the hot wing has gone fully global, and can be found alongside nachos, dumplings or fried calamari on menus everywhere. It’s become the de facto food of sports,"

He then tells the delightful story of the birth of chicken wings at the Anchor Bar, as Theresa Bellissimo scrounged for something to serve her son and his friends who dropped by the family bar late one night. Could have had something to do with Buffalo's legendary 4:00am last call.

Drew Cerza, the Wing King, is then quoted as saying: "it’s only a Buffalo wing if it is deep-fried and it has a cayenne-pepper based sauce — those are the two parameters,” and the National Chicken Wings Festival which Cerza invented and holds every Labor Day Weekend at Coca-Cola Field is mentioned. An in-depth review of Anchor Bar wings follows.

"Passion over wings runs extremely high, and almost every local has their favorite place. With wings served everywhere in Buffalo, the Anchor Bar is just the historic tip of the iceberg. In Part Two, the Buffalo wing journey continues ..." 

Stay tuned.