Anchor Bar mooring down in Rochester Hills

The Anchor Bar – known as the birthplace of the Buffalo chicken wing – will be opening a new location in Rochester Hills in the former Famous Dave's location at 2945 S. Rochester Road.

Rochester Hills City Council on Monday, June 18, unanimously approved a recommendation for the Michigan Liquor Control Commission to approve the transfer of a Class C Resort Liquor License to Banana Leaf, Inc, which will own and operate the new Anchor Bar location. The company is purchasing the license from Val's Operations of Tawas, Michigan.

Rochester Hills City Clerk Tina Barton said the Class C Resort license is one of 550 such licenses in the state that may be transferred across county lines, and will not effect the number of Class C liquor licenses permitted in the city through the state's quota system. The license will otherwise allow for the operation of the tavern/bar without any noticeable differences.

An attorney for Banana Leaf Inc., said the owners hope to have the new location ready to open within the next two months.

The original Anchor Bar, located in Buffalo, New York, is credited with hatching the style of spicy chicken wings in the 1960s that have since become known as Buffalo wings. The original Buffalo wing was a deep-fried wing covered with Frank's RedHot sauce and butter, served with blue cheese dip.

Today, the Anchor Bar offers eight different flavors of sauce for its original wings. Menu items include house-made lasagna, pizza, burgers, sandwiches and other fare. The restaurant also will feature a full-service bar with speciality cocktails, beer and wine.