Three years ago, Cheyenne and Cruz Guzman scribbled down a dream of theirs in a notebook.
The couple fell in love at the restaurant they worked at; Cheyenne was a server and Cruz worked as a chef. When they started dating, the pair wrote down a crazy idea they had, aiming to one day make it a reality.
Written down on the piece of paper were two words: food truck.
Over the years, they saved and saved and saved, hoping to one day put it toward their crazy dream.
Last year, the day finally came.
Cruz told Cheyenne he was ready to pay the down payment on their custom-made truck. And since Cruz is from Puebla, Mexico and his brother owns El Antojo Poblano, Cheyenne just assumed they would start a Mexican food truck.
Cruz wanted something else though.
He envisioned chicken wings — crispy, juicy chicken wings smothered in a rich, savory sauce that makes your mouth heat up with every bite. That’s the kind of food Cruz wanted to serve.
Only Wings is now on the streets of Tucson, combining classic Mexican flavors and foods like elote and mole poblano with some of the best chicken wings you’ve ever had.
“It was just a crazy idea that we wrote down,” Cheyenne said. “We manifested it.”
It’s hard to miss the Only Wings truck. The bright baby-blue truck covered in pictures of chickens and plates of wings can usually be found outside TraXide Taproom, located at 402 E. Ninth St., on the weekends. The lights that line the sides of truck emanate flashes of color, luring in the Fourth Avenue crowd and tempting them with the smells of freshly cooked chicken wings.
As you order your wings, you’ll see Cruz in the back, frying up the food and sprinkling the perfect amount of cotija cheese on top of a heap of chicken wings.
These aren’t your average Buffalo and garlic parmesan flavors that you can find at any wing joint, though. Only Wings serves up sauces that you’d never expect to see on a chicken wing.
Their specialty wings include flavors like chipotle mango that’s topped with fresh mango, chipotle-pineapple glaze and diced pineapple; and al pastor, which comes with an elevated adobo sauce and is topped with onions, chunks of pineapple and cilantro.
Cruz came up with all the sauces, tweaking these classic flavors to ensure they were thick enough to hold onto a wing; no one wants a dry wing.
He also pre-cooks all the wings at a commissary kitchen before frying them up and serving them to customers. Not only does it make the wait time faster, but the wings themselves are so crispy, you’ll hear a crackling crunch as you tear off the skin with your teeth.
Most importantly, Cruz isn’t serving up itty bitty wings that you can devour in two bites. You’re getting a 10-piece order that features large wings that actually have some meat on their bones. (Flats stans rise up; they include more flats that drumsticks.)
Only Wings' mole poblano wings come with mole sauce topped with sesame seeds, red onions and queso fresco.
As I scanned the menu on Thursday night, one flavor almost brought tears to my eyes: mole poblano.
A mole poblano sauce on chicken wings is absolute genius, especially since Cruz is from the birthplace of the smoky, slightly sweet sauce.
“He [Cruz] loves mole. Actually, I never liked mole until I had his sauce and I couldn't stop eating it,” Cheyenne said. “We made chicken every day for, like, three nights straight because it was so good.”
Cruz’s signature mole sauce covers the wings, topped with sesame seeds, red onions and queso fresco. Though mole is a divisive food since it is made with chocolate, there’s nothing controversial about these wings.
The mole sauce is so rich, you can tell Cruz uses an authentic recipe. The juicy chicken mixed with the spicy mole poblano sauce makes your mouth tingle as you try to get all the meat off the bone. It reminds me of something you’d see at a fancy restaurant; it truly is an elevated chicken wing that isn’t just a pile of grease with a bright orange sauce.
But there is one flavor on the menu that Cruz didn’t come up with.
While making the menu, Cheyenne thought of trying an elote wing, incorporating all the ingredients you’d see on the classic Mexican snack. Cruz was apprehensive, but Cheyenne insisted on trying it out.
Turns out, she came up with a winner: elote style is their most popular wing on the menu.
Just like the elote you get from a street vendor in Mexico, these wings come with a spicy mayo sauce along with pieces of corn, Tajín, cotija cheese, fresh-squeezed lime juice and sliced jalapeños.
The elote-style wings come with a spicy mayo sauce along with pieces of corn, Tajín, cotija cheese, fresh-squeezed lime juice and sliced jalapeños.
The wings look exactly like the elote that Esqueleto orders in "Nacho Libre." You kind of just want to stare at the plate and admire the beauty before you dig in.
I promise I’m not exaggerating when I say these may be some of the best wings I’ve had in my life. The spicy mayo is so addicting and goes perfectly with the wing. When you take a slice of lime, squeeze some on top and take a huge bite, the world stops for a minute as you take in the deliciousness of all the flavors melding together in your mouth.
Before I knew it, it had already eaten five wings and they were still calling my name. Even when I woke up the next day, I couldn’t help but anxiously wait for lunchtime so I could have another taste of their sauce.
Despite being smothered in sauce and covered in toppings, Cruz’s wings never get soggy. The crispiness isn’t compromised.
After eating at Only Wings, you’ll realize why it’s called that — because those are the only wings you’ll want for the rest of time.
Only Wings can be found parked at TraXide Taproom on Friday, Saturday and every other Thursday from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. You can also check their Instagram to see their upcoming events.
