Wing Zone Takes Home `national Festival Favorite’ Honors At 2004 Buffalo Wing Festival

Wing Zone, a fast-growing takeout/delivery chain best noted for its 25 flavors of fresh, cooked-to-order Buffalo chicken wings, took home the “National Festival Favorite” award at the Third Annual National Buffalo Wing Festival held this past weekend in Buffalo, New York, � the country’s only annual event to celebrate chicken wings as a favorite American delicacy.

Wing Zone won these honors because of their incredible popularity with the more than 60,000 wing lovers in attendance. This was evidenced by the long lines at their booth, as festival attendees returned repeatedly, to sample another of their 25 signature sauces. Buffalo, NY icon, The Anchor Bar, where wings were born, some 40 years ago, won the “Local Festival Favorite” award.

“We are honored to be chosen as the National Festival Favorite,” said Stan Friedman, Executive Vice President of Wing Zone. Last year was the first time we participated in the National Buffalo Wing Festival, and we came home with the Most Creative Sauce Award. “We are truly humbled by this year’s award and by how Buffalo continues to embrace us,” said Friedman, further noting that Wing Zone’s 25 signature flavors were recently featured on Al Roker’s Primetime Food Network program “Roker on the Road.” “The national recognition is great, but when Buffalo’s locals herald you, it really validates everything else,” he said. The National Buffalo Wing Festival was held for the first time in 2002 in Buffalo, NY, featuring more than 20 restaurants noted for the nation’s best Buffalo wings. The idea for the festival sprang up a few years ago when the movie, "Osmosis Jones," with Bill Murray, featured a fictional festival. When a local newspaper columnist who saw the movie questioned why no such real event exits, food promoter and Buffalo Wing King, Drew Cerza of RMI Promotions capitalized on the idea with the motto, “Duh! Why not a National Wing Festival?” “Wing Zone earned the `National Festival Favorite’ award based on its overall excellence at the festival,” Cerza said. “They went above and beyond the call of duty in helping us promote the festival with their eye-catching booth featuring all 25 delicious flavors of chicken wings. We were also proud to have them as the main sponsor of the first-ever `Low-Carb Wing Zone.’ We are looking forward to their return next year, as they continue to play an instrumental role in our flagship event, by attracting national attention to chicken wings and to Buffalo, NY.” About Wing Zone Adam Scott and Matt Friedman started Wing Zone in 1991 while attending the University of Florida. The ambitious duo realized the need for more food delivery options for fellow college students other than pizza, and also saw a golden opportunity to start their own business. Within a few years of perfecting their special sauces and techniques for wing preparation in their frat house kitchen, their takeout and delivery concept had six corporate locations. They graduated with degrees in finance, coupled with real-world business experience, and began franchising in 1999. Wing Zone is rapidly expanding, with more than 60 units currently operating and plans that will put more 100 units on the map in the next 12 months. Wing Zone was rated a Top 20 New Franchise by Entrepreneur Magazine (Jan. 2004), was recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest growing, privately held companies in America and was awarded Most Creative Wing Sauce in America at the last year’s Buffalo Wing Festival in Buffalo, NY. For information about Wing Zone or the festival, visit www.buffalowing.com or www.wingzone.com.

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