classic Buffalo wing,<\/a> then try other flavors and specialties once he\u2019s established a benchmark.<\/p>\nBliss prides himself on his \u201cnine club\u201d \u2014 a coveted ranking on the scale that only the best of the best can get, as he\u2019s yet to give out a perfect 10.<\/p>\n
The popular devourer is even producing nine club stickers for those prestigious restaurants to put in their windows.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019re about 20 nines right now, out of the 75,\u201d he said while eating the Thai chili wing at Sally Black\u2019s in Williston Park on Monday.<\/p>\n
It got a 9.15, while the new eatery\u2019s regular buffalo wing took home an 8.8.<\/p>\n
He isn\u2019t a chicken when it comes to being brutally honest and has given low sixes to local spots that flopped. Bliss shredded the chicken wings at 7-Eleven with a ruthless one-point rating.<\/p>\n
Restaurant owners typically keep their composure if they get an underwhelming score, but some viewers cry fowl.<\/p>\n
\u201cI went to use the bathroom somewhere once, and some guy comes in and goes \u2018Wing Scout! I don\u2019t like your rating system!\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cThe guy was approaching me in the bathroom about it,\u201d he added. \u201cI\u2019m like, \u2018bro, relax.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Aside from the occasional bonehead, feedback has been fantastic for Bliss, who is most happy giving a spotlight to unsung wing joints on the island known mainly for pizza and bagels.<\/p>\n
Now he\u2019s organizing Scout Fest, where the places he\u2019s profiled will be part of a street fair in Babylon Village this September.<\/p>\nThe \u201cWing Scout\u2019s\u201d highest rating, a 9.8, goes to Candlelight in Scarsdale, Westchester. Courtesy of Ryan Lee Bliss<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cWe\u2019re going to have a little bit of everything from a wing-eating contest to some judges testing the wings.\u201d<\/p>\n
When it comes to can\u2019t-miss wings, Bliss has a few poultry pillars on Long Island.<\/p>\n
The scout praises Shanahan\u2019s in Kings Park for their regular wing and Mama\u2019s Garden food truck in Bay Shore for a dry rub, both of which are respectively 9.4.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s also partial to a pair of 9.1 ratings: East Northport\u2019s La Villini for a chicken scarpariello wing and Cow Palace for a lemon pepper one.<\/p>\n
Sadly, to the dismay of proud islanders, the iconic Candlelight in Scarsdale on the mainland of Westchester holds the scout\u2019s highest-ever ranking, 9.8.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose things are no joke,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
But the journey is just beginning as Bliss, who plans on going to the motherland in Buffalo, will keep scouring the Empire State\u2019s whole flock.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou gotta catch them all. You gotta find every nine that\u2019s out there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n