The nomenclature of “boneless wings” has lengthy irked poultry purists. In 2020, Ander Christensen of Lincoln, Neb., stirred the nation with an impassioned speech to his metropolis council on the topic, pleading “that we as a metropolis take away the title ‘boneless wings’ from our menus and from our hearts.”
An Associated Press story final month referred to as the boneless wing a “culinary lie” and one instance of a class of “light impostors” that features imitation crab meat and child carrots (which are literally grownup carrots, whittled right down to an cute measurement). Cookbook writer and TV character Christopher Kimball informed the information service that the majority customers have “no concept the place any of these items comes from.”
“You’re associating it with the Tremendous Bowl and events and enjoyable, so that you remodel the notion of the product,” Kimball mentioned. “You possibly can blame the meals firms, however we’re shopping for it.”
Like many who lament the rise of the “boneless wing,” Halim’s lawsuit traces its origin to rising prices for hen wings. Within the recession of 2008, it says, poultry processors skilled a downturn in demand for breast meat, whereas demand for wings — deemed an inexpensive luxurious — soared.
Across the similar time, the consumers for wings grew hungrier, the lawsuit says, with Buffalo Wild Wings increasing its attain, together with chains corresponding to Atomic Wings, Wingstop and Wing Zone — all of which additional pushed up the value of wings and made it cheaper for eating places to substitute breast meat.
The lawsuit seeks compensation on Halim’s behalf and for an unspecified variety of different clients who declare to have been equally duped into shopping for what they thought of a “premium” product. “Plaintiff and different customers would have paid considerably much less for the Merchandise, or wouldn’t have bought them in any respect, had they identified … the reality in regards to the Merchandise,” the lawsuit says.
Buffalo Wild Wings knew higher, the lawsuit alleges: Individuals have been complaining in regards to the time period “boneless wings” for years, it notes. And in contrast, the submitting notes, a few of Buffalo Wild Wings’ opponents use completely different names to explain related merchandise. Domino’s serves “Boneless Rooster” and Papa John’s provides “Rooster Poppers,” it says.
Buffalo Wild Wings didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
The lawsuit is looking for to signify a category of customers across the nation who additionally bought the chain’s “boneless wings” at one of many chain’s greater than 1,000 areas and estimates that the variety of customers totals “within the 1000’s.” It claims that the product violates Illinois and nationwide legal guidelines banning fraud and unjust enrichment and seeks unspecified compensation and punitive damages — and an injunction in opposition to Buffalo Wild Wings stopping it from persevering with to make use of the time period.
