Urban Wing's Express brings flavours from Africa to India to wing game

This story was originally published on Feb. 8, 2022.

For three friends, opening a restaurant was a matter of launching themselves on a wing and a prayer.

And while the banks may not have been keen to support a restaurant that debuted at the height of the pandemic, these buddies bet on themselves. They scrimped and saved to open Urban Wing's Express last month in Emerald Park, boasting 33 mouth-watering flavours of wings.

Pramit Patel, Armish Patel and Kaushal Patel first met while cooking at Moxies in east Regina, back in 2015. All three hail from the same state in Western India,Gujarat. After a few years in the kitchen together, the group figured it was time to go rogue.

"We started as line cooks and eventually became culinary supervisors," recalled Pramit. "I am now a head chef [at a different restaurant]. We said to each other, 'We've learned the business now. Let's do our own thing.'"

Over time, he said, they got to know each other's families and became close friends.

"We get together weekly and support each other in our day-to-day lives, no matter if it's financially or emotionally. The way we think, all three guys, we're on the same page,"Pramit said.

When they'd go out to eat, the trio would notice the popularity of chicken wings, both on the restaurant side and at the bar. Their fate was sealed. And yes, Urban Wings Express is licensed to serve alcohol to dine-in customers.

It was an uphill battle as they sought financing back in 2020. Banks toldthem there was simply too much risk involved in opening restaurants during COVID.

"My wife inspired me to pursue this business," said Pramit. "For three years, I never got a raise. I was working six days a week and I have a young family. I come home at 1 a.m. after closing the restaurant and I'm so tired. My family is already asleep. The next day, it's the same routine. My wife said to me, 'Pramit, do something better. You have all this knowledge, you should use it for yourself.'"

The partners' wives all work outside of the home and contributed money to launch the restaurant.

The group looked at locations in Regina, but settled on Emerald Park because the rent was more affordable.

All three partners work full-time jobs in addition to operating Urban Wings Express. I asked them how they keep up and how they get enough sleep.

"That's hard," said Kaushal with a laugh.

Their hard work is paying off in terms of the food quality and flavours. They marinate the wings for three to four hours, or in some cases overnight.

They prepare two types of wings: naked and breaded. Then they parbake themand fry them to order. Most people (an estimated 60 per cent of customers) order the wings naked, but if you want to try the breaded wings, the owners recommend the dry rub flavours.

Their most popular wing flavours are Garlic Parmesan (Kaushal's favourite he recommended I get it saucy or "wet" instead of as a "dust" rub), Firecracker (a hot sauce consisting of soy sauce, garlic and Sriracha) and Coca-Cola (wet). Pramit's favourite is West African Spicy Peanut (wet) and it was fantastic, akin to an Indonesian satay sauce. Meanwhile Armish recommends the Volcano Chipotle (wet) flavour. "It gives a nice heat."

They also have an Indian Curry wing, sauced with cream, Indian spices and fenugreek.

"If this is successful, we will implement more flavours in the future," said Kaushal.

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After being open just a month, their sales are solid, and while they're not earth shattering, they arestill ahead of their projections. Being a wing restaurant specializing in takeout and delivery, they expect a spike in business for Super Bowl on Feb. 13. In spite of the long hours and risk, the three say they're in the game for the long-haul.

"We opened this business not just for the money, but to set goals for ourselves and accomplish these goals," Pramitsaid. "We've had challenges in our first month and there will be new challenges ahead, but it will get smoother over time."