Nearly 9,000 people ventured up to the Anne Arundel County Fairgrounds for the 6th Annual Maryland Chicken Wing Festival. The festival has become a local favorite and is really the kick off to festival season in the area.
This year featured an expanded kids area with an escape room, inflatables, and a mechanical bull. Vendors lined the pathways at the fairgrounds of course; but the main attraction was the wings!
Thirteen wing competitors were on hand including some local favorites from O’Loughlins, Stan and Joes, Stan and Joes Riverside (former Thursday’s in Galesville), Skipper’s Pier, Smoke Rattle and Roll, and more. With 6 bars serving spirits and beer, you never needed to walk far. Beer offerings ranged from the basic Miller Lite to craft selections from Heavy Seas, Jailbreak, Terrapin, Flying Dog and more.
By 1pm, the event was sold out. Brendan Curley, president of ABC Events who produces the festival said “the weather is spectacular, and we’d love to accommodate everyone, but we also realize that we need to make sure it is an enjoyable experience for all, so we did cut off sales at the gate. But, those already ticketed, come on up–we’ve got plenty for you.”
To make sure the festival had enough wings to go around, organizers had a food supplier on hand to allow the competitors to replenish their stock as needed. The upper pavilion was packed with tables to get off your feet and enjoy your wings!
Of course there was live music. This year, there were two stages that kept the crowd entertained–one electric, and the other acoustic.
Notably absent from the event was the fairground’s Paul Bunyan. We checked with a fairground board member and are pleased to report he is safe. They just took him down for a bit of fresh paint and to install a new base–apparently he was getting a bit tipsy!
Up next for Curley and the team at ABC Events? The Bay Bridge Paddle on June 1st at Sandy Point State Park, an inaugural Latina Festival on July 20th back at the fairgrounds, and their signature event–the Maryland Seafood Festival on September 7-8 at Sandy Point State Park. Tickets for all of those events are on sale now.
