Slows BBQ – Detroit, MI

Slows BBQ in Detroit has some fantastic BBQ and tender Wings. They aren’t your usual fried wings, but worth a try.

The gang went to Detroit a few weeks ago now and we had an absolute blast. We got to tour the MCS (Michigan Train Station) thanks to our helpful guide, and went to the largest auto show in the entire country.

But the real reason why we all went to Detroit was to eat some wings! Last year Nick and I ate at Sweet Waters and were blown away. So we knew Detroit had some damn fine wings to look forward to. One of the places we put on our list this year was Slows BBQ which sits in the shadows of the abandoned Michigan Train Station in Detroit’s Corktown. Normally I don’t think of wings per se when I think of a BBQ joint, but BBQing a wings is definitely something I’m a fan of. I’ve successfully attempted my own BBQ wings in the past. Slows does have wings on the menu and the description had me intrigued. The menu says, ‘A stack of our famous wings, marinated, rubbed and smoked until awesome.”. It’s hard to argue with awesome!

So after our little urban exploring adventure at the train station we swung on over to Slows for dinner. The local photographer we met up with has told me in the past, and reminded me that the wait for Slows is usually really long. And unfortunately for our hungry stomachs he was right. The friendly hostess told me the wait was an hour and a half. But we were willing to wait due to Slows reputation. The hostess was actually nice enough to take down my phone number and said she can call when our table is ready. She gave us a suggestion to head a couple doors down to LJ’s Lounge for a few drinks which we thought was a fantastic idea. After a few (too many maybe) beers at LJ’s our table was ready about 2 hours later. I missed the hostess first call and she gave our table away. D’oh. She had one ready for us though pretty quickly after that.

So after the long wait, and flowing beer, we finally sat down to try these wings and BBQ. We ended up ordering 3 orders of The Big Three which consists of Pulled Pork, Pulled Chicken and Sliced Brisket and then two orders of wings. It sounded like enough at the time but we’re from Wisconsin and we like to eat.

The food came out pretty quickly. I’ll skip over the full BBQ review, but I will say it was damn fantastic. Maybe not as good as Smoque BBQ in Chicago, but certainly as good as it’s reputation. The wings were exactly what I expected; marinated, seasoned, and cooked low and slow giving them the perfect amount of smoke flavor. On the table you have a variety of BBQ Sauces to choose from. We all grabbed a couple wings and I doused mine with their North Carolina style, vinegar based sauce. I tried the rest of their sauces out, but found that to be my favorite.  The wings were done just right. You bite into them and the meat melts off of the bone. Again these aren’t a traditional fried quickly or grilled wing and they don’t pretend to be. The seasoning on the outside was just right with a nice salty, herb flavor. The combination of the sauce made these wings just right for me. I love good bbq. I love good wings, and these were the perfect marriage. Not everyone was completely in love with them, and I wouldn’t say BBQ style wings are my favorite choice for wings, but I found them to be a welcomed change of pace.

Unfortunately the worst part about the meal was that we indeed did not order enough. We could have probably ordered another Big Three and probably another 2-3 orders of wings.  Over-all I’m glad we stopped at Slows,even if the wait was pretty ridiculous. Luckily for them they had a bar close by to keep us entertained. I would love to go to Slows again when we’re  in town. I also didn’t have my camera with me at the time so no pics.

I’m giving the wings at Slows BBQ a respectable 3 out of 5 wings.