Introduction
Buffalo Wild Wings is facing a lawsuit over its boneless wings. The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in New York, alleges that the restaurant chain is misleading customers by labeling its boneless wings as “wings” when they are actually made from chicken breast meat. The lawsuit claims that the restaurant is violating the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by mislabeling its products. The lawsuit seeks to stop Buffalo Wild Wings from labeling its boneless wings as “wings” and to award damages to customers who have been misled by the restaurant’s labeling. This article will discuss the lawsuit and its implications for Buffalo Wild Wings.
Buffalo Wild Wings Is Being Sued Over Its Boneless Wings
Buffalo Wild Wings is facing a lawsuit over its boneless wings. The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in California, alleges that the restaurant chain is misleading customers by calling its boneless wings “wings” when they are actually just chicken tenders.
The lawsuit was filed by a customer who claims that he was misled by the restaurant’s labeling of its boneless wings. He claims that he was expecting to get actual wings, but instead received chicken tenders. He is seeking damages for false advertising and deceptive business practices.
The lawsuit claims that Buffalo Wild Wings is violating California’s False Advertising Law and Unfair Competition Law by labeling its boneless wings as “wings” when they are actually just chicken tenders. The lawsuit also claims that the restaurant is deceiving customers by charging the same price for boneless wings as it does for traditional wings.
Buffalo Wild Wings has not yet responded to the lawsuit. It is unclear if the restaurant will fight the lawsuit or settle out of court.
This is not the first time that Buffalo Wild Wings has been accused of misleading customers. In 2017, the restaurant was sued for allegedly serving chicken wings that were not fresh. The lawsuit was eventually settled out of court.
It remains to be seen how this latest lawsuit will play out, but it is clear that customers are becoming increasingly aware of the deceptive practices of some restaurants. If Buffalo Wild Wings is found to be in violation of the law, it could face hefty fines and other penalties.
An angry customer has a major bone to pick with Buffalo Wild Wings. Alongside its sizable lineup of traditional wings and sauces, the casual dining chain also caters to customers who want to stay away from bone-in chicken with its breaded boneless wings. But these boneless options have now become the center of a class-action lawsuit accusing Buffalo Wild Wings of “false and deceptive marketing and advertising.”
In the lawsuit, Aimen Halim, a Chicago resident, explained that he purchased boneless wings from a Buffalo Wild Wings location in Mount Prospect, Ill., in January this year, believing he would receive actual chicken wings that had been deboned. “Unbeknownst to Plaintiff and other consumers, the Products are not wings at all, but instead, slices of chicken breast meat deep-fried like wings,” the lawsuit stated. It also said that if Halim and other “similarly situated” consumers knew these products were not actually chicken wings, they would have paid less for them, or would not have purchased them at all. “Therefore, Plaintiff and consumers have suffered injury in fact, as a result of Defendants’ deceptive practices,” it added.
Halim, who is seeking damages for himself and on behalf of other consumers, chastised Buffalo Wild Wings for not being more “careful” with how it names its products. The lawsuit suggested that customers are willing to shell out more money for boneless wings simply because they believe they’re actual wings. “Plaintiff’s and other consumers’ reasonable belief that the Products are chicken wings was a significant factor, and therefore material, in each of their decisions to purchase the Products,” the lawsuit said. “Chicken wings are a more premium and desirable product than a Product made of chicken breast meat.”
Buffalo Wild Wings, which describes the boneless wings as “juicy all-white chicken” on its website, has already issued a cheeky response to the lawsuit on Twitter. “It’s true. Our boneless wings are all white meat chicken. Our hamburgers contain no ham. Our buffalo wings are 0% buffalo,” the chain tweeted.
Though others may not resort to legal action, Halim is not alone in his belief that boneless wings represent a grand deception for consumers. In 2020, a man who resided in Lincoln, Neb., proposed that the city completely remove the name “boneless wings” from local menus, according to the Associated Press. Actor and comedian Jimmy O. Yang even penned an article about his distaste for the food item for Bon Appétit in 2018, suggesting that “any restaurant who serves boneless wings should be indicted for fraud.”
Buffalo Wild Wings may be the one facing legal drama over its boneless wings, but it is far from the only restaurant chain that sells them. Wingstop, Applebee’s, and Red Robin are among the other brands that offer some iteration of boneless wings.
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Zoe Strozewski