Wingbox brings unique styles of chicken to the table

Watch out, Wingstop, you’ve got competition.

Wingbox is a new addition to S. De Anza Boulevard, in the same plaza as 85°C Bakery, Sno-crave and other popular food destinations. The establishment’s small, modern and squarish interior is inviting and spacious for its size. It only took around seven minutes for us to arrive there, which is convenient for students with a 40-minute lunch break.

The first thing we noticed when we arrived, however, was not the comfortable design, but the extensive and unique menu containing a selection of non-traditional and unconventional flavors of wings inspired mostly by Asian food and made with ingredients like teriyaki, Japanese mayo and sesame oil.

The menu welcomes customers when they walk into the restaurant, hanging from the wall and listing 27 seasonings and flavors of wings, from “Blackberry BBQ” to “Caramelized Tamarind.”

When we arrived we did not know what to order from the diverse menu, so the cashier was kind enough to recommend to us the restaurant’s most popular chicken styles.

The fusion works surprisingly well, especially with Wingbox’s boneless wings, which resemble Orange Chicken but boast a more sophisticated and developed taste.

Hence, Wingbox’s menu satisfies two audiences: those who regularly eat at restaurants and lean towards more traditional and simple chicken, and those who favor something more unique and exotic.

We had to wait only around five minutes for our $9 takeout boxes full of chicken and rice. Both the Kamikaze and Saigon Alley chicken were juicy and tender, complemented by the soft, white rice that came with the order.

The restaurant’s menu, in fact, is not only limited to chicken; its sparkling lemonade menu with flavors such as watermelon, strawberry and passionfruit compliments its poultry dishes perfectly. Although the staff takes a couple of minutes to prepare the drink, it is well worth the wait. The lemonade has a fresh, fizzy and fruity feeling to it.

Even with the high-quality dishes and diverse menu, Wingbox manages to keep its prices low enough for students to want to return and try new dishes.

All in all, it’s fair to say that Wingbox thinks outside the box.