Micawber Tavern, Belgrave

Sometimes, its the unexpected that turns out to be the best. Perhaps its the lack of anticipation or expectation.. but that's what faced me last weekend. Out in Belgrave for... reasons... the Micawber Tavern's menu had something called "Buffalo chicken wings blue cheese, celery GF", and you can probably guess the rest!

Its time to consult The Rules! Let's goooo...

The Scores

• The Specs: Flats and drums. Further and further alienated does my love of jointed wings make me feel... RATING: 5.
• The Sauce: I don't believe this was Frank's. It was just too sweet. Maaaaybe they added honey to a batch of Frank's and butter but the lack of heat on display here is, for mine, a dead giveaway. Not Franks! RATING: 5
• Crunch: Yes, definite crunch on show here. Clearly deep fried wings but I reckon tossed only in the deep fryer, and not in some seasoned flour beforehand... RATING: 7
• Serving size & price/Value for Money: $18 for 9 wings. $2 per wing. So I suppose that's normal value. I'm not convinced. RATING:5
• Heat/spice level: I've had spicier IPA pints than this tepid performance. Granted, they were from Banks Brewing, and they love a bit of hop burn. But you get my point. Rating: 3
• Flavour: Average. I don't like sweetness in my buffalo. RATING 4
• Celery: Was there Celery sticks? Well... kind of? A handful of weird celery "ribbons", for want of a better term. How on Earth am I supposed to dunk these in the blue cheese sauce??? RATING: 2.
• Dipping Sauce: Blue Cheese? Yes! Blue Cheese! And a chunky, cheesy dose too! Point off for abundant mayo in there though... RATING: 4 
• Other Stuff: The Micawber Tavern was BUSY when we arrived. Seems like one of the places to go in Belgrave, if you want a feed on a Saturday night. As the footy started on the TVs though, it cleared out reasonably quickly. I was comfy, and the service was prompt. Can't give too many props for the taplist though. It was a bit generic... no decent IPA to match my wings! RATING 5.

OVERALL RATING 36/80. No bonus points; no moist towelettes for post-wing clean up. 

Better than last week's UberEats debacle - but only just. No heat to speak of, and those weird celery ribbons, and that's the end for any plate of wings, I'm afraid.

Nice pub though.

Venue Details:

65-71 Monbulk Road, Belgrave VIC 3160

Facebook: @micawbertavern <> Instagram: @micawbertavern

Website: www.micawbertavern.com.au