Killer Wings and Beer. ‘Nuff Said. Monster B’s – Stamford, CT

We first checked out Monster B’s over the summer when we were putting together the most awesome places to check out for craft beer experiences.  One of the most intriguing things about Monster B’s is the seemingly endless beer selection.  They have 30 rotating beers on tap and have more than 150 different bottles, too.  Which means you’ll have a lot of fun trying to work your way up on their Hall of Foam.  The first level, Silver, is earned for downing 100 beers, and earns you a picture on the Hall of Foam, a membership card, a t-shirt, $10% of all food orders for the year, and even $1 off draughts.  But, there are two more levels, too.  With greater power, comes greater benefits, too. ;)

But they don’t just stop at the beer, nope. They also have the Hall of Flame.  Yup, eat 12 insanely crazy redonkulously hot chicken wings and you’ll get put up on the Hall of Flame, right next to the Hall of Foam winners.  So, when my friend (and wing connoisseur) Paul Mueller was coming over for a manly, action-packed Saturday of watching the Stamford Harbor Parade of Lights show and watching The Muppets movie (errr), we knew we had to take him here.  He’s just about the most devout wing-nibbler that was ever created on this here Earth.  He even just took a roadtrip with his brothers to the original home of the buffalo hot wings:  Anchor Bar.  Yup.  I had these visions in my head of Paul and I, head to head, chomping down through the Hall of Flame challenge.

We asked our waitress to explain it again for us:  12 chicken wings, you can’t drink or eat anything during, and 10 minutes after, you eat the wings.  I looked up on the board:  only 3 people beat the challenge, while about 30 people tried.  I was thinking, eh, maybe, but then she described one person whose lips ballooned out and was in horrible pain all night.  So, we decided to just go with some regular hot wings, ribs, and burgers.  Wusses. :(

Buffalo Wings

These are some of the best wings that you’ll find anywhere, even better than Vinny’s Backyard BBQ in Stamford.  Better than a lot of wings we’ve had beyond CT. Yeah, they’re that good.  They were saucy, but not too saucy.  The sauce was a bit tangy, a bit sweet, and had lots of bite to it.  If you’re into pain and are sadomasochistic, try the Hero sauce.  It’s helluva spicy and will knock you on your tookis.  We ordered it on the side…smart move.  Kristien liked the wings a lot too!  They weren’t those mammothly meaty wings that some places serve and they weren’t overly breaded either.  Nope, just the right size, just the right amount of meat and so tender and juicy – not soggy and not too crispy. YUM!

Ribs

Paul, ever the rabid carnivore and official Omnomivore too, was thinking about salad but then proudly declared he wouldn’t push the wussiness.  He got a 1/2 rack of baby back ribs.  Yeah, half a plate was enough, no doubt.  The ribs came to him, smothered in a sweet and tangy bbq sauce and they lay atop a bed of shoestring fries.  Paul and I agree that the sauce is decent, but there was just too much of it.  The taste of the ribs got lost, but they were still tender and you could easily pull the meat off the bone.  We learned that’s good at our Blues, Views, & BBQ judging gig.  The coleslaw was swimming and drowning in mayo.  Not a favorite of Paul or Kristien, who as you know is a coleslaw expert.

Burgers

Kristien and I got burgers.  She’s a self-confessed burger purist, so she got it with her usual cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, mayo and ketchup.  She thought it was just okay and didn’t have much flavor.  My guy was plain and simple too, with onions, tomato, and lettuce.  The beef was cooked a bit over medium for us.  Although there wasn’t a ton of flavor going on, it was still a decent enough burger for a bar. I would order it again to wash down a beer.  The fries, though, rocked it for me.  They were crispy and there were so many. I’m one of those people who can take down half the order of fries before even digging into the burger.

Drinks

You might go crazy trying to figure out all the choices available here.  A good thing to do is start with the style of beer that you like, then ask your server or the bartender what’s good like that.  We love thicker, darker, stoutier, hoppier beers and they had a nice selection of those.  If you’re not sure that you’ll love a beer, you can usually ask for a small taste and try it out.  I like to be daring and just order it, then find out the results.  Kristien’s more cautious with her beer drinking, she doesn’t like hoppy or too light of a beer, but I still love her.  If she orders and doesn’t like it, I’m the default drinker-upper:  beer should not go to waste. ;)

Final Impressions

Monster B’s is a fun place to go with friends.  You can sit at the bar or sit down at some of the tables in the front of the house or in the back.  There’s darts, electronic shuffle board, and pool.  They have really killer wings and beer selection. The rest of the food is ok – but the wings and beer are so good they make up for it.  Also, you can reap some pretty impressive rewards just by keeping track of your beer consumption.  We know that Ryan from Food Plus Beer is on the Hall of Foam and  Jessica May from Alternative Control is a fan too.  So, we were wondering.  Have you made the Hall of Foam?  Do you have a goal to shoot for?  Maybe the Gold or even the Platinum level?  Let us know.

Noms:  3

Cost: $$

Monster B’s
487 Glenbrook Road
Stamford, CT 06906
(203) 355-1032
Hours:  Opens at 11 a.m.; closes Tue at 11 p.m.; Wed at 12 a.m.; Thu at 1 a.m.; Fri to Sat at 2 a.m.; Sun at 10 p.m.; Closed Mon
Site:  http://www.monsterbs.com/index.asp