By JULIE CARLE
BG Independent News
They came into South Side 6 on Saturday wearing scarlet and gray or maize and blue. Though they were rivals in their football allegiances between Ohio State and Michigan, they were at the South Main restaurant with the same goal: chicken wings.
And chicken wings they got, in quantities of 50, 100, even 200.
Owners So and Amal Shaheen, their sons Omar and Mohammed and a whole host of cousins had the process down to a science as hundreds of people filed in throughout the day for the 19-cent wings special specifically for the Ohio State-Michigan football game.
“What’s better than wings for watching one of the biggest games of the year?” So said.
The special promotion was the second time for the OSU-Michigan game, but he had sold chicken wings for at least the past 10 Super Bowls, he said.
This time, they expected to fry up and serve as many as 27,000 wings between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. That’s 220 cases of chicken wings, with each batch taking between seven and eight minutes to fix. The busiest time was between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., prior to the noon start of the game.
The wings special was one of the ways the Shaheens give back to the community that has been so good to them and their business, So explained.
He also used the opportunity to collect food donations for the Brown Bag Food Project in Bowling Green. He asked customers to donate nonperishable food items in boxes in front of the store. They could drop their donations in Ohio State-marked boxes or Michigan-marked boxes, whichever team they were rooting for.
Even by 10 a.m., all six of the boxes were more than halfway full. There was no clear “winner” based on the food donations.
“I didn’t have any doubt that the boxes would be filled,” So said. “I know people are generous, especially in Bowling Green.” In fact, by 10 a.m., he was figuring where to place the overflow food items to keep filling the boxes.
He also had an overflow tent set up for when the store got too crowded as customers waited for their orders. Usually about three to five customers were in the store at a time with their order slips and others were asked to wait in the big tent for their turn.
On his social media posts, So had cautioned customers that they might have to wait a little bit, but that they would get them through as quickly as possible. The tent was complete with chairs, entertainment, and a heater for warmth on the chilly day.
Happy the Clown was in the tent to greet folks as they waited. He entertained them by making balloon creations (Ohio State or Michigan cheer sticks or giant balloon suckers) and handing out buckeyes as a nod to his preferred team.
The atmosphere inside the tent was relaxed and patient as they waited their turn to head into the building.
Everything about the day—from the bargain-priced wings to the food donation to the Brown Bag Food Project—was done to give back to the community.
“I want people to know how beautiful BG is. We’ve been here since 1992 and it’s always been a very hospitable community. Our kids went to school here. We made a career here,” So said. “I’m a firm believer if you take something out of the community you put something back in.”
Wendell Wohler, a longtime customer of the store, picked up his order of 100 wings for his family to enjoy as they hoped for a Buckeyes win. So added a little extra treat in Wohler’s order to thank him for his business over the years.
“My dad used to deliver chips for Cain’s Potato Chips, and So was a customer. We’ve had a longtime connection,” Wohler said. “I have been in for the wings before, but I also come in on a Saturday every once in a while for their Saturday specials.”
Bert Grubbs and a friend drove all the way from Kenton for South Side 6 chicken wings. He had seen the South Side 6 promotion on Facebook and wanted to include the wings for his party of 10 to 12 people. They also planned to visit Frobose Meat Locker in Pemberville to pick up some of the different flavors of bratwursts.
While a lot of the customers were sporting scarlet and grey, there were still a surprising number of Michigan fans coming in for the special. Hunter Thomas and his son Liam of Portage picked up a tray of 50 wings for their small family football-watching party. Hunter said he didn’t yet have on his Michigan shirt, but he sported a pair of maize and blue sneakers.
Bowling Green State University alumni Bart Ankney and his wife, Candise, who also teaches in the university’s nursing program, were in town to pick up 100 wings for their party. Seven of their BGSU alumni circle planned to watch the game together. When asked if 100 wings would be enough, Bart said each of the alumni also planned to pick up 100 wings.
An obvious Buckeye fan, dressed in a red OSU sweatshirt, James Conway ordered 50 wings and an order of fries for his family. He and his wife, Stephanie (Shertzer), were OSU grads who had watched plenty of football games in “The Shoe” when they were students. He also had attended games at Michigan and Penn State, but he was looking forward to watching the game in his chair from the warmth of their home.
Mickey Barringer from Cygnet stopped in for her 50 wings and some good German chocolate bars. “These are the best wings,” she said. “The batter is perfect, and they are perfectly seasoned.” She would be with five family members for the game, but she admitted that she most likely would not be watching the game.
Ben Bauer’s contribution to the neighborhood block party for the game was 100 of South Side 6’s chicken wings. Each year, approximately 40 people from his Waterville neighborhood get together to watch the big rivalry game.
“We’re a mix of fans, but we have lots of fun,” Bauer said. He had not eaten South Side 6’s chicken wings before, but he’d seen So’s promotions on Facebook. “He’s been posting every day, so it’s been kind of fun to follow.”
