Baton Rouge natives and chicken wing enthusiasts flocked to the Baton Rouge River Center on Saturday for a day of music, community and a smorgasbord of masterfully prepared deep fried confections at the first annual Baton Rouge Wing-A-Thon.
An event for fans and connoisseurs alike, the Wing-A-Thon was a showcase of the best wings in the city, as well as a chance for local businesses to prove their worthiness in the competitive local wing market.
For The Bulldog’s General Manager Remi DeMatteo, the event was an invaluable opportunity to show the varied aspects of his restaurant and beer garden on Perkins Road.
“Besides the fact that we’re aligned with all of these great companies, this type of event gives us exposure to people who may not be aware of The Bulldog brand, who might not know that we serve wings,” DeMatteo said. “It’s just a great way serve the people and raise awareness for who we are and what we do.”
More than 15 separate vendors and restaurants turned up to the event. Hundreds of patrons lined up and dug in, circling the arena one booth at a time, taking advantage of the unlimited free samples offered at the event while also enjoying live musical accompaniment provided by local band “The Prime Mates.”
“There’s wings everywhere,” petroleum engineering freshman Matthew Waguespack said at the event. “I just love wings, and this is great because it’s just a little bit of everything.”
Wing-centered events are a mainstay of many cities across the country and provide a fun opportunity for people to interact and enrich the community. Seeing this type of experience in other markets was what inspired the River Center to host what might become a yearly Baton Rouge tradition.
“We saw events like this all over the place and thought, ‘Let’s bring that here,’” said Jessi Mapes, Baton Rouge River Center marketing manager. “It’s a way to engage with people and the community. Also it helps that 20 bucks for wings doesn’t suck.”
As folks sampled their way through the parade of varying wings and sauces, they were given the chance to compete in contests to test their courage, moral fiber and general lack of regard for their taste buds.
The first event was a classic hot wing eating contest, where five contestants sat before a crowd of onlookers and chowed down on the hottest wings in the land.
One of the contestants, incoming freshman Andrew Badeaux, was particularly equipped to take the heat.
“I don’t eat a lot of hot wings, but I’m from really south Louisiana, and we eat a lot of hot stuff,” Badeaux said. “So I loved it.”
The stalemate was broken, however, once the event’s emcee brought out a new level of hot wings, enough to where Badeaux had to bail.
“It wasn’t too hot until those last two wings,” Badeaux said. “It was a different taste and I just wasn’t used to it. But I’m definitely beginning to feel the after burn right now.”
Other events included dunking for wings, where contestants donned ponchos and goggles and dove headfirst into a salad bowl of ranch, a celebrity eating contest featuring DJs from 100.7 The Tiger and a best wings prize delivered to the vendor with the most patron votes.
“It’s going to be bigger and better every single year,” Mapes said. “If folks couldn’t come out this year  — don’t worry we’re going to have another one this time next year. They definitely shouldn’t miss it.”

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Connor Tarter

Contestant Brandon Grotsma eats wings in front of a growing crowd during a hot wing eating contest Saturday, April 26, 2014 during the first annual Louisiana Wing-a-thon at the Baton Rouge River Center.