Wing Review: On Tap

The Basics:

Name: On Tap

Where: 1203 N 10th St, Milwaukee, WI 53205

MKE Wings Crew Present: Frank, Ross

Review Date: Feb 21, 2024

Wing Specials (as of date published):

Wednesday: $0.60 Wings

The Review:

The old Pabst brewery complex is steeped in history but has seen much change as of late. The last decade has seen the complex redeveloped with exciting arrivals (MKE Brewing and Central Waters Brewing) and disappointing departures (MKE Brewing). The subject of tonight's wing review On Tap exists in a space that was most recently occupied by the downtown location of Jackson's Blue Ribbon Pub. The former tenant had some pretty dang good wings, will the new occupant continue to dish out tasty wings? We shall see!

It was a small crew for our visit, just Ross and I on a Wednesday night to take part in $0.60 wing night. Normal menu price is $17 for 8 wings (per website), so $0.60 is a helluva deal compared to that normal price, and really a good deal anywhere as a $0.60 wing night is few and far between these days. *As always, prices/availability of menu items/prices and/or specials are subject to change at the sole discretion of the bar without the knowledge of Milwaukeewings.com and may not be updated accordingly.*

On wingnight, wings must be ordered in quantities of 6, and you can choose from their 6 flavors: Sweet Chili, Honey Mustard, Buffalo, BBQ, Truffalo, and Garlic Parmesan. The smaller sauce offering worked in favor of our 2-man crew and Ross and I were able to try everything.

The wings came out in a timely manner and we were greeted with some very plump wings with a nice crispy exterior. Additionally, the chicken itself was super flavorful, on chicken alone, these are some top notch wings. However, how were the sauces? As noted, we tried everything, thoughts on each below:

Buffalo: a very buttery buffalo with a bit of peppery tanginess to balance it out, certainly not hot by any means. Tasty, but I do wish it packed a bit more heat.

Truffalo: this one worried me as I hate Truff brand hot sauce, it's too sweet and synthetic tasting. Thankfully, this sauce did not taste anything like that. This sauce was similar to the Buffalo with maybe just a bit more tangy zing to it, this ended up being my favorite.

Garlic Parmesan: Very heavy on the parmesan flavors with that tangy, nutty, funky flavor I love with a bit of garlic in there as well. Tasty, just wish this one as a bit bolder in the flavor department.

BBQ: A little sweet, a little tangy, not at all spicy. I liked it as it wasn't overly sweet like some BBQ sauces can be, but standard BBQ wings are never my top choice.

Sweet Chili: Surprisingly, Ross and I liked this one the least, and we generally like a good sweet chili. We thought this would be more aptly named sweet and sour, not sweet chili as it really lacked the savory balance to the sauce and was just a bit too sweet for us.

Honey Mustard: Not to sweet, a bit tangy from the honey and a bit of punch from the mustard without being overly hot.

The MKE Wings Crew's Favorites:

Frank: Truffalo

Ross: Honey Mustard

Conclusion:

If it were on the chicken alone, this place is a slam dunk certified wing joint. However, the sauces were a bit hit or miss, some were good, some were duds, and nothing really stood out. I also lamented the lack of any sauce with any real level of heat to it. Don't get me wrong, the wings were good but we did not find them quite good enough to be Milwaukee Wings good, however certainly worth a shot on their Wednesday wingnight for $0.60, but otherwise that normal menu price is steep!

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