[mrtranscendence]

I was born and raised in Florence. I've always been fascinated by how widely the water tower is known; as far away as Boston I've had someone remark on it upon learning that I'm from there.

I'm not sure Florence has all that much else to recommend it, mind you. Of all the suburban towns surrounding Cincinnati, it's definitely one of them.

[eutropia]

Florence has one of my favorite roadside eateries: the Quaker Steak & Lube! (known for their chicken wings, lol)

Any time we drive to the Ikea in Cinci from KY, we'll get hot wings on the way home.

[philiplu]

Huh, I never knew Quaker Steak & Lube had spread that far. I lived in Sharon, PA for most of the 80s, and worked a couple blocks from the original restaurant. Decent wings, if a bit too focused on heat level ("atomic wings"). Nice lunch joint - of course, the pickings were pretty thin in Sharon.

[mauvehaus]

How do you have room for wings after eating the meatballs at IKEA?

[mod]

What makes the wings so good?

(My business is known for its chicken wings as well, just comparing notes!)

[mauvehaus]

I would submit that they actually aren't that good on an absolute scale. Relative to other widely available chain wings, perhaps, and I suspect that's why they have such a strong following.

Mind you, I haven't had them in years and now live almost 7 hours from the nearest Quaker Steak and Lube. My recollection may be flawed.

[mod]

Fair. I'm not a fan of any of the chain wings.

Our recipe is simple: decent sized wings, deep fried naked, sauced and served. Good sauces matter, of course.

Given how easy that is, it's amazing to me that almost nobody else has good wings (at least around here). I'm not sure what they're doing differently.