Golden Flame Hot Wings (Colorado Springs, CO)

Though I appreciate a nice hot wing, my heart has always been devoted to another fried delight, the onion ring. I felt a craving for chicken wings that I hadn't felt in many moons recently, but I realized it represented yet another opportunity to subject onion rings to the stringency of the Onion Ring Standard.

Thank you to Allegra for again accompanying me on my quest. Here's a review of onion rings from Golden Flame Hot Wings in Colorado Springs. 

Presentation and Appearance: 3.5/5

The carton, while being a slightly different red and white pattern from most red and white patterned cartons, was fairly standard, as was the paper separating the rings from the carton. As is so often the case with presentation, it was nothing special, nothing egregious. 

Dark brown batter of varying shades coats the onion rings, running the gamut from golden-brown to the shade of the mountains and foothills surrounding me as I glance out the window. The darker shaded onion rings have a tendency to mask inconsistent battering, making them look more evenly coated than they are. 

Taste: 3.5/5

These onion rings were fairly modal in most aspects, such as size, consistency, and taste. As suggested by the darkened batter on the onion rings, they may have spent a little too much time in the fryer. That extra time did lead to some marked improvements in taste, however, most prominently featuring a hearty dose of onion juices unleashed by the fryer. 

The overcooked nature of the rings also led to a little less grease on the onion rings themselves, another plus, though it comes at the expense of a proper fry time. Beyond that, the breading has a pleasant and mildly seasoned taste, which is somewhat overshadowed by some of the other problems. 

Texture: 2.5/5

My initial impressions of the texture of these rings were positive on most fronts. The onions were in the middle ground between raw and mushy, and the batter was hard and crisp. Further reflection, however, revealed that the texture of these onion rings was only the result of overcooking. 

Occasional slippage helped reveal this fact, as did the minute space between batter and onion. While the texture had its positive attributes, most were only a result of cooking them near to the point of burning, as though some good onion rings were made and then heaped into a fire and then reluctantly fished out and plated to unsuspecting customers. 

Value: 3.5/5

A modest sized basket of these beer-battered onion rings was $4.99. For the price, I felt the quantity was lacking, though the taste and texture were about par for the course, barring the problems with being overdone. 

Total: 13/20