In a cool twist, Fitzroy North's Empress Hotel has a Wikipedia entry! In a sad twist, that wiki page tells us that this was once a thriving live indie music venue that faced closure due to local dickheads who moved nearby without checking for live indie music venues... The tragedy is that the dickheads won and The Empress closed in 2013. But the pub was eventually renovated and opened up again in 2015 as the rocking everyman's pub that it is today.
Unsurprisingly, given this blog's content, The Empress serves Chicken Wings, So, how do they rate against The Rules?
The Scores
- The Specs: Flats and drums... surprise, surprise... RATING: 5.
- The Sauce: Glorious. As close to that sought after, traditional, Frank's Red Hot & butter combo as has emerged thus far. Just look at that colour! Fluorescent orange and absolutely spot on. RATING: 9
- Crunch: Crunch! Living up to the sauce, the crunch on these bad boys comes from deep frying a seasoned flour coating - or so says my delicate buffalo senses. RATING: 8
- Serving size & price/Value for Money: A bowl for $12.50 and a bucket for $26.50. No idea how many wings you get per size but, for reference, that's a bucket in the pic below. Now that I think about it, I'm not wholly convinced that a bucket of wings is worth $26...? That said, Thursday is apparently $1 Wing Night at The Empress and that represents serious value. RATING: 6
- Heat/spice level: In all honestly, I wouldn't have complained about a extra smidgeon of heat on these wings. They are very good but a touch more lingering heat would be a bonus. RATING: 6
- Flavour: Frank's, butter, and a Chicken wing... is there a better combo? That's a rhetorical question. The Empress' wings are delicious and it seems that a future $1 Wing Night visit looms, for a proper sitting! RATING 9
- Celery: Was there Celery sticks? No... RATING: 0.
- Dipping Sauce: Blue Cheese? Yes, Blue Cheese with, what is that, dill??? One point off for the herb inclusion. RATING: 4.
- Other Stuff: There's aways an IPA on tap at The Empress. Though, on this visit, there was just a Hazy and a Cold IPA - which is just a lager with another name. Bar Staff are aways friendly and The Empress is a fun venue for watching UFC or AFL... and probably other sports. RATING 7.
OVERALL RATING 54/80. No bonus points; no moist towelettes for post-wing clean up.
Imagine the glory of The Empress wings if only they opted to include the traditional celery sticks? If so, they'd be clearly on top of the table and the wings to beat. Personally, I prefer the wings at The Empress over the current leader, The Thornbury Local. But, The Rules are the rules. Honestly, how am I supposed to eat the Blue Cheese sauce if I can't dip my celery sticks in it? Come on guys...
Venue Details:
714 Nicholson St, Fitzroy North, VIC 3068
Facebook: @empressfitzroy <> Instagram: @empressfitzroy
Website: www.theempress.com.au
