Canz a City Roadhouse

40-11 30th Ave

Astoria, NY 11103

Website

For those of you who read this blog often, you know we already visited the Canz out in Westbury. Recently, they also opened a location in Astoria, Queens and we had to give it a try.

Right off the bat I liked this location better. First of all, it's in Astoria which means I didn't have to drive anywhere. I'm a fan of public transportation, especially when drinking is involved. Second, it has one of those storefronts that completely opens up - giving you the feel of sitting outside without having to bake in the sun. There was also another outdoor section in the back (sans TV's though). It was a perfect day for Wings Al Fresco. One odd similarity was the waitress. What are the chances of having the same waitress the only two times you go to two different locations? Probably pretty low, but we had the same girl as last time. I believe Steve called her "less than polite" in the earlier review. I'm happy to report that she was a little happier this time around - a bit frazzled at times, but friendly none-the-less.

The open, airy eating area in the back.

We ordered two different flavors from the last visit - Asian and BBQ - and made sure to stay away from the Dirty Canz wings. Hey, I'm willing to try a lot for this site, but I'm not dumb.

The Asian was ok. They were cooked really well and had a nice amount of meat but were a little on the dry side. They were really similar to the Teriyaki, which I guess makes some sense. Overall, pretty forgettable.

The BBQ was totally surprising. By now you probably know about our indifference towards BBQ wings. It's pretty well documented. Most of the time we just stay away from them, unless we're out of flavors to try. Well these were, by far, the best I've had yet. I loved them. They were plump, well cooked and coated in a nice, thick and gooey sauce. They weren't overly sweet like most BBQ tend to be. They actually reminded me a lot of the BBQ chicken I grew up eating off the grill in my back yard. Steve wasn't able to make this outing, but I texted him to tell him I actually liked a BBQ wing. He didn't believe me. He'll just have to make the trip and try them out for himself. If anything, these wings inspired me to expand my horizons in the BBQ category. I'm now looking forward to places like Virgil's and Dinosaur BBQ, which I'm sure will blow Canz away.

If you're looking at what I like to call the "full spread photo", you may be asking yourself, "what are those things in the middle?" They are the Canz Buffalo Bitez, a boneless chicken "wing". I know, I know... it's not a wing if it doesn't have a bone in it. Steve, Jeremy and I actually had a talk about these guys and decided to ban them from the site. We just didn't feel right about them. However, BJ (a friend of ours that I was with this night) ordered them kind of spur of the moment. I didn't know they were coming. But, with apologies to the traditionalists, I liked them. They're crispy, tasty and obviously their meat to bone ratio is unbeatable. I'd eat them again and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

The full spread shot. Yeah, those are boneless "bitez" in the middle.

So yeah, maybe this place is a little schticky. A modern day Hooters. But the wings are actually pretty good and worth giving a shot. They also have all the games on and a huge selection of beers both on tap and in cans, er, canz. It rides the line between chain-y franchise and cool neighborhood hangout, but I like Canz and I'll probably be back.

Dirty Canz Wings

I've been holding out on you guys for a while now. Ends up, I've had video on my phone of Steve and Bryan eating the Dirty Canz Wings at Canz Restaurant and Bar and I totally forgot all about it. I just happened to be flipping through my videos yesterday and saw them. So, for your viewing pleasure, I give you these:

Canz Restaurant & Bar

Canz Restaurant & Bar

1610 Old Country Road

Westbury, NY 11590

http://www.canzusa.com/

Map and Directions

Canz Roadhouse or Canz Restaurant & Bar is a localized version of Hooters in Nassau County, NY. The place has, you guessed it, empty cans all over the place but I think they mean something completely different when they say "I (heart) Canz" or "Do you have a Crush on my Canz" on the back of the waitresses' shirts. I may be wrong, but I am sure I am right. It is a sports bar with a lot of TV's playing just about any sport event airing that particular evening and hires attractive waitresses that wear skimpy uniforms... like Hooters. Another one is opening soon in Astoria, Queens.

Jody and I were there for a team dinner with our baseball team and the guys had already ordered hot wings and they arrived at the tables just after we grabbed our seats. Great timing on our part, if I do say so myself.

The hot wings were really good. They were the traditional butter, hot sauce and cayenne pepper hot wing recipe, but they were made perfectly. They were of decent size, coated well with sauce, and had a little kick to them, but not too much. They seemed to be fried first and then baked/broiled to make the inside juicy and outside crispy. If that is not their method, then whatever it is, they need keep it up because it's working! For traditional hot wings, these were some of the best I have had.

Since that was just the appetizer, some of the team ordered dinner, but Jody and I happened to notice that hot wings were not the only wings on the menu. Upon further review, we saw that there was Plain, Mild, Medium, Hot, BBQ, Honey BBQ, Asian, Teriyaki and Dirty Canz. Dirty Canz has a note that says "Extremely Hot" next to it. Jody went with teriyaki, being a big fan of teriyaki flavored wings, it was an easy decision. I, on the other hand, went with the Dirty Canz wings. I mean, "Extremely Hot" is a relative phrase... what is hot to one person is mild to another, so how bad could it be?

As I ordered, the less than polite waitress told me that they were "inedibly hot" and asked if I was sure. Of Course I Was Sure! Damn it, I'm A Wingman! I politely said yes, I am sure and she kind of shook her head and walked away. The team, upon hearing that I ordered the Dirty Canz, proceeded to rib the crap out of me. Now, this was nothing new, I had already been taking abuse for ordering a Blue Moon beer which happens to come with a slice of orange. I heard such clever things as "You don't fruit the beer!" and "What size skirt do you wear, Sally 'Fruit-in-the-Beer'?" I don't care, Blue Moon is good and the orange is a nice addition. Why am I explaining myself to a computer screen? Whatever, back to the review.

Well, I ate my words with the Dirty Canz wings. When they came out, I did not get the smell of something really hot and spicy... you know, when you nostrils burn before you even taste them... they just did not have that kind of smell. They looked good and they were the hottest wings I have ever eaten in my life. I mean these were eyes tearing, nose running, lips burning, forehead sweating, mouth smoldering, hiccup inducing hot. These wings need to be served with bread or milk because water and beer just do nothing to combat that kind of heat. After the first wing, everyone was laughing at me, and I would have been laughing at me too if I was not looking for a fire extinguisher to put our the fire in my mouth. That level of heat is nothing I have ever tasted before and most likely will never do again. Of the 12 ordered, I only could eat 4, Jody had 2, and the rest were eaten by other members of the team. They all agreed that they were HOT wings.

I don't want to ignore the Teriyaki wings in this review, but honestly, I cannot tell you what they tasted like. The Dirty Canz burned my mouth so bad that I couldn't taste a damn thing. They were also cooked well and had smoked sesame seeds sprinkled on them. I was using the sweetness of the teriyaki sauce to cut the burning from the Dirty Canz. Jody will have to comment on the teriyaki sauce since I only saw what they looked like and remember a hint of ginger in the recipe.

Canz is nothing more than a sports bar with a similar gimmick to Hooters. It seems to be working for them and their food is pretty good. The wings are worth the trip, but they are expensive... $26.95 for 30 wings or, almost $1 per wing! They do have Monday Wing Night special, $19 for all you can eat/drink wings/draft beer. That is worth the trip. They have a bunch of other nightly specials, check out their website for more. The Wingmen would, and probably will, go back... maybe we'll hit up the Astoria one when it opens.

One last note. I am going on record and saying that I will most likely never eat the hottest wings on the menu again. I mean, normal hot wings are ok, but if they come with a warning label, make you sign a waiver or have to prepare them with a Hazmat suit on, I will shy away. I'm in this for the taste, not to prove anything. Does that make me less of a man? Probably.