Lack of spice doesn't mean bland to me, although I am prone to eat extremely hot things from time to time.

Best wings are the ones I make myself. I like a level of spice that sets my mouth on fire, but the heat builds slowly, over layers of smoke, garlic, onion, and other flavors. It needs to be hot enough to burn intensely but with immense flavor to back it up. I also modified-buttermilk brine (a ripoff of the Dan Gill technique) the wings before frying them, which really takes things to the next level. Serve with Diablo Poutine and you are well on the path to fat-kid nirvana.

In terms of restos, I'm particularly fond of East Coast in Cambridge, MA is infamous for their Hell Nights, a paragon of inferno cuisine. I'm a huge fan of spicy curries, and Goan curries (especially with lamb) at most any good Indian restaurant are exceptionally hot, yet wonderfully flavorful.

One of my biggest mistakes was telling a Thai chef in Bangalore that his "beef" (buffalo) chili salad wasn't hot enough. That came back to roost at the same time the "Delhi belly" set in. Ugh.

Cheers,

-Andrew