On Sunday afternoon New Yorkers of all walks of life had a good reason to head to the usually touristy streets of Times Square. The always innovative and forward thinking people at iAdventure.com had an ace up their sleeves, unleashing “King of the Wing II” onto a sold out crowd of chicken wing craving city dwellers. Bowlmor Times Square, a bowling alley like no other would be thoroughly transformed into an eater’s paradise for two consecutive sessions of sauce filled madness. The LocalBozo.com crew is no stranger to the world of wings. We attend challenges just like this one all year long and any true reader of this site will have viewed our series of videos showing you where the best wings in all five boroughs can be found. But iAdventure.com managed to keep Sunday fun, filling, and outright entertaining all afternoon long with such a distinctive wing extravaganza.

At 3:30pm, we entered the non-traditional bowling alley complex, rode the elevator high into the sky finally landing on a floor drenched in a party atmosphere. Before we would have a single drumstick in our eager hands we had to drink in the scene, and of course drink in the sponsored beer for the afternoon. Pabst Blue Ribbon boldly made its presence felt as “King of the Wing II’s” one and only brew sponsor. Each guest would receive one PBR with price of admission, and later pay just $4 for any additional pours. PBR hats, t-shirts and other cool swag would be handed out by staff members throughout the afternoon to really spruce up the garb of an already rowdy crowd. And with a full pour in a red solo cup in hand, we made our way toward the day’s guest of honor- buffalo wings!

In a novel approach to use the space to the event’s advantage, each wing purveyor’s table sat in front of Bowlmor’s ornate bowling alley lanes. The first sample we would get our hands on would come from “House of Que.” Their smoky and spiced wing kicked off our tasting tour with savory goodness that fell right off of the bone. Just a few paces away we would meet 2012′s “King of the Wing” champions from Village Pourhouse. The popular sports bar chain won last year with a “Peanut Butter & Jelly” wing. In 2013, they returned, bringing the same wing to the party, but this time adding a decadent layer of bacon fluff. Each bite was a literal flavor explosion. The sweet sandwich confections mixed brilliantly with the taste of the salty cured bacon and juicy chicken notes. This “PB&J with bacon fluff” sent us running for the wet naps before moving in as the saucy wing tasted more like a dessert than an entree. After a few more slugs of PBR, we were overwhelmed by the fire of Upper East Side dive American Bar, (formerly American Trash) who came prepared with a wing with a serious heat kick. We couldn’t have been happier to have continually rinse our palates with beers in hand to help us put out their wing’s peppery kick.

After loading up on these excellent wings we headed toward the bar area for another round of drinks and another surprise altogether. The house DJ hit the music and introduced the stunning women who make up the traveling “Bar Top Bandits.” Without warning these beauties jumped up on the bar strutting their stuff, and belting out country hits and even some classic rock bar favorites. The “Bandits” got the crowd moving- dancing, singing along, and of course ordering more beers! And after the first of three rousing performances had concluded, we headed to the second bowling alley space to sample more killer drumsticks and wings. Downtown favorite Little Town brought an Asian inspired Teriyaki wing that was completely coated in the dark sauce. Each bite yielded equal parts sweet and salty. Murray’s Bar meanwhile kicked things up to the next level with a wing smothered in the chef’s secret recipe “Dirty Dust Sauce.” It was hard to figure out where the chili style sauce ended and the chicken wing began. This wing demanded at least ten napkins for clean up. Bowlmor Lanes threw their hats in the ring as well with a “Mango Habanero” sauced wing. The taste profile was relatively subtle but the heat of the popular chili pepper snuck up after several bites.

As the hours rolled on, patrons filled their faces with wings, PBR’s and smiles, but in the end, a “King” had to be chosen. Once again the DJ took to the microphone in front of an esteemed table full of judges. He announced that the “Judge’s Choice” was awarded to House of Que, which by this point was sporting the longest line of the afternoon. On the other hand the “People’s Choice” winner, which involved each guest voting for their personal favorite came as a shock as the team from American Bar swept the rest of the pack with their take on the traditional hot wing. It’s great to see some of the lesser known wing joints in the city get some much ado recognition. Once the winners were chosen and the last wing was doled out, the bar space turned into an all out, PBR fueled dance party. The DJ knew how pumped this crowd was from an excellent day of eating and drinking and carried us out into the close of the weekend in style.

- Jay Rubin