Sparks Wings and Ribs

Food is good, price is reasonable and the beer is cold. Burgers are great and wings also. The wait staff is attentive and overall this place should be busier than it is. It lacks that «Spark» (irony) that would make it a great hangout. I like the chillaxed vibe of the place, and the great good. It’s worth checking out again if you haven’t been here for awhile

I went here with my Burger group on May 12, 2014. I took a poll of the group and based on very subjective criteria I scored them in several different categories on a scale of 1 to 10.
BUN: 7.1
BEEF: 7.1
CHEESE: 7.1
EXTRAS: 6.8
AMBIANCE: 6.8
ACCURACY: 7.0
SPEED: 6.7
VALUE: 6.2
OVERALL SCORE: 7.0
if I equate the 7.0÷10 score to the 5 star rating it becomes 3.5 Stars.
This was a location where I differed from the larger group slightly. The group seemed to be satisfied with most aspects of the burgers and the other categories we evaluate giving an overall score that was slightly above average.
PERSONALLY, I had a few different issues with their burgers. But before I get into that, let me mention what I did like about the place. Spark’s is a «divey» bar in Apex that doesn’t pretend to be anything it’s not. The staff are helpful and knowledgeable. They clearly cater to a local crowd with beer specials and relatively good bar food. I’ve had their wings before and they are very good, and as the name would imply wings and ribs are what they claim to be their specialty.
Burgers however are the focus of this review. What I really liked; their buns. I’m no expert on the quality of their buns. However they have learned the secret to any great burger bun and it’s to butter and then toast it. And they do this to perfection! I’ll admit I’d be willing to go back for the buns here.
My real «beef» with this place was really with the burger patties themselves, and I think this had more to do with expectation than anything else. If you ask me how I want it cooked, I expect that there is variance in how it will be cooked. However the burgers were too thin for them to have made any variation and I found them to rather bland by themselves. A pet peeve of mine are places that have sub-​par burger patties that they disguise by loading them up with other things. While these patties weren’t bad, they were clearly being dressed up with other things for that purpose.

To conclude, the group found the burgers here to be above average and clearly liked the overall experience. I wasn’t as impressed, but I’ll also admit to being more picky.

We just ordered just the ribs to go. They were good. Moist, flavorful, and not tough. Not the best ever but good. Can’t comment on the service or other items. It was full of flat screens with sports, so a good place to catch a game.

It’s great if you are a regular and know everyone… otherwise don’t expect a very warm welcome or great service. Food is on part with any other bar food. Simply put, they won’t get any more of my money.

A nice classic sports bar with wings and burgers. It’s a fun place to go with music, tv, a pool table and good food at a reasonable price.

Sparks is fun. The food is solid and the Best wings in town. I like the smoked ones.
Draft beer selection covers the bases.
Live music
Some good bartenders and nice mix of friendly locals.

I went to Sparks, Friday May 17, 2013. I had my girl friend and a female friend of ours. Was planning on listening and dancing to Sayre and McShane. We also had wings and some drinks. As we entered the building, we were greeted by an obnoxious drunk who thought he was Don Juan and saying provocative things to my girl friend and our friend. He was very loud and obnoxious. He hit on all the woman who were there. He had two other drunk friends at the bar who were a little less rowdy. My problem is that no one, bartenders, wait staff and and any managers told this man to be quiet and also since he was drunk they allowed him to continue to buy beer. At one point he took off his shirt and boy that was an ugly site. The staff should have removed him from the place. They did not not. It is a shame because every thing else was fine.

Can’t believe I haven’t written a review of Sparks before now. Love this place — we tried it out a few years ago when the owner gave us a coupon when we were in line behind him at the bank in the same plaza and we have become regulars.
Tuesday wings special, Wednesday BBQ plate special (all you can eat but they give you plenty to start with — I always ask for an extra boiled potatoes at the start — love those things) and Thursday ribs special. All 3 are as good as it gets in this area, in my opinion. Classic buffalo are the only wings we’ve tried, but after reading the other comments, I wonder if I should try the smoked or stick with the tried and true? Oh, and I’ve gotten the burgers there too and also enjoyed very much! The pig chips are worth it as well and they make a nice side salad.
I’ve always liked the servers, although I have been surprised that they don’t seem to recognize us, as often as we are in there. And I would agree with other comments that their beer selection isn’t large (one of my favorite things about Tyler’s) but as long as they have Blue Moon and Yuengling, then I and my husband are happy.

Very nice outside, very divey inside. However good service. I only had cocktails so i cant speak to the food.

Allright food ribs are pretty good

Lip smacking, finger licking good! The ribs were sooo delicious, I can’t believe I put off going to this place for so long. My only complaint is the mac & cheese. As a true southerner I expect somewhat baked or REAL mac & cheese This is macaroni with sprinkled shredded cheddar cheese on top. The collard greens are second runner up to grandma’s! Service is fast & friendly. wonderful food. so I’ll be eating here again.

Sparks… what can I say you are a average bar, average service, with great wings and burgers. I would stay away from the breaded wings they are just OK. The burgers are what keep me coming back. I even brought my office and treated them once.
I will keep coming back but I have low expectations on service and beer… and high expectations on the burgers and wings. (non breaded wings) the smoked ones are good also.

Recommended by a local, we headed here for lunch. I was prepared in a solid-​colored shirt, my colleague ended up wearing some of the sauce back to the office.
My lunch special was a nice and large pile of chunky pulled pork with cole slaw and their «pig chips» (hand-​sliced and stored-​fried potato chips with a spicy salt). While there were two bottles of barbecue sauce on the table, the waitress volunteered to bring over their sweet and hot sauce. This was the shizzle. A little spicy (not very) but a ton of zing to it, I nearly licked the bowl clean.
The place is divided in half with a restaurant and tables/​booths on one side. And a bar with a pool table on the other. All decorated with sporting memorabilia.
Service was great. It’s obvious that the staff like what they’re doing as they were friendly and helpful, even for those of us with New York accents.

Sparks wowed again last night. I ordered food for my husband for dinner. He got the buffalo chicken sandwich with cheese fries (instead of regular fries). The food was ready when I got there. The fries were hot and yummy (I stole a few of them). The buffalo chicken sandwich was so large it looked like two chicken breasts put together. My husband actually had to cut it in half and finish the other half this morning for breakfast. Sparks continues to wow me with their food and service! No wonder they are on speed dial on my phone!

Keep in mind the only thing I eat here are the wings. And the wings are good. I like the «Knock your socks off» which is the hottest. I think they juiced it up a bit as it seems to be hotter than it used to be (yay!!!). The sesame versions are good too if your not into spicy hot. The smoked wings are fantastic!!! The wings aren’t cheap so when I asked for the KYSO and Garlic mixed and was charged $ 1.49 «mixing fee» I was a bit perturbed. I HATE IT when servers don’t tell you about additional charges when you order. I used to be in the restaurant business for over 10 years so I always tip very well. The male bartender is very friendly. The female bartender is «pleasant» but I always feel like I’m an annoyance rather than a customer that is handing her money.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I walked in — it has that kinda dive bar feel, not that there’s anything wrong with that, i love me some dive bars! just not really on this particular day when i was starved and not «thirsty»
We sat outside cause we had the good doctor Ovie (our golden). We actually weren’t sure if we could have him with us, but they welcomed him in. The waitress brought him a nice bowl of water — which he sat in later. We love dog friendly places and dog friendly people — so a big thumbs up for that!
of note — The outside patio is actually kinda nice and tucked back behind a wall, so you dont’ feel like you’re right on the road — so it’s quiet too.
I had the Durham Bull burger — i broke my no local beef rule for the first time this year — i have been CRAVING a burger and just couldn’t contain myself any longer. it was totally worth it.
There was a small part of me that was a little sad that I didn’t get the smoked wings — which is what jon had… HOLY DELICIOUS WINGS. In case you were unawares… I’m a wing expert. Those are delicious wings. If you go, dont’ get sauces, just get the smoked wings. I’ve bookemarked this place just for their wings. and i HAVE to go back, because jon literally only let me have ONE BITE of a wing and then pulled not just the plate away, but took the wing out of my hand. neat.
so if you’re sitting there tonight thinking — i need to get my dog outside or i want to hang out with mr. dog, but i’m also in the mood for some awesome wings — hop over to this place. you won’t regret it :)

picked up a to go order. Not bad, not bad at all

Welcome to Sparks Ribs and Wings, where you can enjoy delicious entrees such as burgers, chicken sandwiches, ribs, briskey, NC BBQ… but please don’t mistake wings for entrees!
Ok, let me back it up to the beginning, and tell my story…
We walked in and stood there for a good minute before the waitress (just one working that day) says «just sit down where ever you want.» Hey, that’s cool. We picked a booth and started looking over the menu. We both decided on Wings, as the signage out front claims them to have the best wings in Apex.
I saw two types of dry rub wings — SWC Rub, and Panther Rub. Wondering what the difference was, I asked our Waitress (who seemed like she’d rather have been anywhere else in the world.) «I can’t really explain» was the answer. I tried to ask a little more «is one more sweet, and the other more salty?» Again, she didn’t know. Giving her the benefit of the doubt, I asked «Ok, which do you like better, and I’ll go with that one.» Her answer? «I don’t like Dry Rubs.» Ok. Fine. I just picked the SWC dry rub. I paid the extra dollar to split my 10 wing entrée, adding Sweet and Hot wings just in case I regretted the dry rub.
My friend ordered the Wolfpack Boneless wings, with Classic Buffalo sauce… and we topped it off with an order of Fried Pickles. When asked whether we wanted it with our meal or as an appetizer, I said «sure, go ahead and bring it out first as an appetizer.»
It came with the wings. Ok, not a big deal. I’m flexible. They were ok. A step above Zaxby’s but nothing like Carolina Ale House or Cameron Village Tap Room. Flour instead of Cornmeal, which was a cool idea, but the pickles were thin. At 5.99, I was let down. There were a ton of them, but I prefer quality to quantity.
The wings themselves were nothing special. The dry rub was more like a «sprinkle,» as I don’t think they rubbed it on before they cooked it, rather, just had a shaker and sprinkled it on after it came out of the fryer. It really had no taste except for a light sweetness. The «sweet and hot» tasted like watered-​down Bull’s Eye with a little bit of Cayenne. It was way sweeter than it was hot. It was better than the dry rub, though.
I asked my friend what he thought of the boneless wings, and he said they were standard run-​of-​the-​mill boneless wings. Okee dokee. Par for the course.
The waitress decided to clean our table before giving us our check, «because it makes it easier on me,» she said. That’s cool. She got 10%, because it made it easier on ME. Especially after the billing issue…
The weekly coupon magazine has a coupon that advertises buying 1 entrée, and getting another at 50% off. When I gave her that coupon, she came back to tell me that «Wings aren’t entrees, and neither are fried pickles.» I’m not going to argue Fried Pickles — clearly an appetizer — but when you hold yourself out as a Wings restaurant, you’d think your wings would be considered entrees, right? Wrong, apparently. Full price.
This meant that 10 wings, 12 boneless wings, fried pickles, and 2 sodas came out to just about 40 bucks after the 10% tip this chick was lucky to have earned… 40 bucks for lunch. I realize this is Apex, the peak of high living, and I’m down with that, but c’mon.
I felt sort of violated walking out of that place into the hot Carolina summer sun. Was I a victim of false-​advertising or simply a fool for letting a coupon bring me in front door to only be punched in the wallet by a restaurant that apparently prides itself on arguing semantics?
The whole coupon issue is negligent at best, shady and underhanded at worst. The least they could do is asterisk their coupons that wings aren’t entrees at their wing restaurant. What should they have done? Gone ahead and given me the discount, and told me that for further reference, wings don’t count.
I guess they needed the $ 4.50 that denying the coupon earned them now, as opposed to the future income that a returning customer and a positive review would have given them.
I originally was going to give them 2 stars. After considering it, the food was lackluster, the service was unimpressive, and the coupon fiasco is enough to make me sink it to a 1.
The waitress encouraged me to use the coupon when I came back, and to order an «entrée» next time such as a burger. Yeah, no. The coupon met its fate in the trash can. I won’t be back… not until it’s explained to me how a burger is an entrée at a wing restaurant while wings are not.
Avoid.

Spark’s has become our go-​to place for drinks and to watch the game. They have plenty of HD tv’s and they typically have all the major games on. The service is great, and the staff is very friendly.
Sundays are great for a quieter evening, and if you want a chance to use the pool table (there’s just one). They also have some Megatouch machines, and some other games like golf or bowling. Fun stuff.
If you’re looking for a more lively crowd, Thursdays are Karaōke night which draws a good crowd and there’s usually some good talent.
The wings are really good, as well as the chicken tenders, and I especially love the fries.

Sparks is a rather typical sports bar/​grill combo, located just off Hwy 55 in Apex. I’d driven past it quite a few times and decided to stop in one night on a whim. Walking in the door, I immediately noticed that about ²⁄₃ of the building was the dining room and only about ¹⁄₃ was contained in the bar area. The two are separated by a half-​wall, and smoking is only allowed in the bar area. Needless to say, after about 9PM, there are a lot of people vying for a small amount of room around the too-​small bar.
Having been to Sparks quite a few times since then, I can tell you that this has, on a few occasions, led to bouts of violence. In my experience, never anything large-​scale, but I have definitely seen the Apex black-​and-​whites roll into Sparks a handful of times when I was there.
Aside from the minor fracas now and again, though, Sparks definitely has a good vibe. It’s one of those places that you can actually see change as the night goes on — a slow progression from early-​evening reservation to late-​night revelry. You can usually find a good complement of locals and «regulars,» mixed fairly evenly with first-​timers or infrequent visitors.
As of my last visit, Sparks held karaōke on Thursday nights. I made it out for a handful of shows, and it was usually a lot of fun, especially if you sang later in the evening. As the bar’s consciousness gets progressively looser, the crowd becomes much more willing to feel the music, sing along, cheer, and befriend those who have passed their daunting trial by microphone.
Service here is pretty good, if you can find a seat at the bar. If not, it’s a little harder to get a drink as the entire bar is surrounded by seating. Also, I’ve found that usually on the weekends the service seems to be a little less responsive, which may be due to the different staff there on the weekend nights.