Sharky’s Wings and Raw Bar, Clifton – Review

by Alice Magdziak • January 27, 2012 • Bars and Grilles, Food, Passaic, Various and Sundry • Comments (0) • 3564

A lot of the time, when people think of the Super Bowl and food, they think of wings. Because we like to get in the spirit of football and eating, we recently tried Sharky’s Wings and Raw Bar in Clifton and in Boonton because we’d heard that they were some of the best wings around.

We went to Clifton first and I felt the “hot”-sauced wings could have been hotter but another diner thought they were adequately hot. Well, I do know that as I get older, my tolerance for spicy food has gone up and I can eat hotter and hotter things without wincing. So, maybe they were hot enough and it’s just my old taste buds. Despite our differing opinions on the heat level of the hot sauce, we all agreed that they were some really good wings. They have lots of different flavors of sauce, too: Mild, Medium, Hot, Extra Hot, ON FIRE, BBQ, Teriyaki, Maryland, Blackened, Ceasar, Honey Mustard and Oriental.

We also had dinner in Clifton after trying the wings and we all enjoyed our food, too. We tried a chicken cheesesteak which was slightly bland but easily kicked up with some of the aforementioned hot sauce.

But, really, what should we expect? You can’t replace beef with chicken and expect the same taste sensations. For a slightly healthier version of the cheesesteak, it was pretty good. Amazingly, the fries were even better than the sandwich. All three of us that night agreed that the fries here were amazing. Perfect crispiness, nice and hot when served and the remained crispy throughout the meal. Excellent job on the fries, Sharky’s!

We also tried two different burgers. One regular cheeseburger and one Sharky burger which came with Taylor Ham and cheese. Both diners enjoyed their burgers and thought they were cooked well and the toppings were nice and fresh.

Now, if you go to Clifton’s Sharky’s East don’t expect a restaurant. It’s definitely a bar that serves really good food. It’s worth going to, just don’t bring your parents or your kids. They have lots of TVs with various sports on and it’s a loud boisterous crowd that toward the end of our meal were really jockeying for a table. A guy asked us if we were leaving when we got our check and asked that we let him know when we were leaving so he could have the table. We were actually waiting to see our waitress so we could pay and couldn’t find her. The guy was so excited about getting a table that he actually helped looked for our waitress. So, if you go during prime drinking time, be prepared to either wait for a table or possibly feel rushed once you’re done eating. It’s worth that small hassle, though, to try the wings and the excellent meals.

Sharky’s West in Boonton is actually bigger and more spacious but you won’t get the dive bar atmosphere of the original Sharky’s in Clifton. We’ve come here a few times since our first visit because it’s close to Ed’s work and a few of his work friends joined us. Throughout the few visits, we think we’ve tried just about all the different wing sauces.

Mild is extremely mild (and in my opinion not even really worth it unless you HATE spice). Medium is good if you’re taking advantage of their wing specials during the week and want to really stuff your face. Hot has plenty of heat like I mentioned before but isn’t crazy. Extra Hot is pretty dangerous (I think I ate four before I had to see if I could trade with anyone). ON FIRE… well, what can I say? it’s very hot. One of Ed’s co-workers really loves the hot stuff and she ate a whole order of 5. I ate one and about ten minutes later could have eaten another one. It’s serious. BBQ is delicious, especially as a palate cleanser after some Super Hot or On Fire wings. Teriyaki is mild but extremely delicious. Maryland I found to be a little dry but another diner thought they were his favorites. Blackened, Ceasar and Honey Mustard weren’t my favorites but other diners liked them so if you really love those flavors give them a try. The Oriental wings were very, very good! Spicy and sweet, they were a perfect combination of edible and pain.

Either Sharky’s you choose, you’re bound to have delicious food and you can burn your face off with some super hot wings.

They have great Happy Hour specials on weekdays only like 50 cent wings and $1.50 domestic drafts.

Here are all our pictures from our evening with Clifton’s Sharky and his wings: