World's #1 Wing Chef

Occupation: chef at Abigail's restaurant in Seneca Falls, New York

Distinction: his "Bleu Bayou" Buffalo Wings named world's best on September 2,
2007

What makes the Bleu Bayou special: blue cheese and celery blended into the sauce. Other secret ingredients

Fun fact #1: Bleu Bayou wings were not on Abigail's menu until recognized by the hunt's judges

Fun fact #2: Grady loves to experiment. In 2005, he came up with 150 types of wings for Abigail's lunch buffet

Fun fact #3: Grady does not consider the Bleu Bayou his best wing. He prefers his 'sweet, sour and spicy' wing

Fun fact #4: Abigail's was not a planned stop. A morning radio show invited six restaurants to cook for the hunters. Abigail's sent Grady.

Fun fact #5: Abigail's went from selling a few dozen wings a day to more than 50 dozen after winning the hunt's top prize. One customer came from Canada

Grady on cooking: "Listen to customers. You're cooking for them. Never be afraid to try new things."

More tips: "Respect the wing. Be careful frying them. Overcooked is bad. Undercooked is definitely bad. Never use a thin sauce. It doesn't hold the flavor. A thick sauce grabs the wing and stays with it."

Hunt leader Matt Reynolds on Grady: "He was different from other cooks on our trip. He didn't breath down our necks and he wasn't nervous. He stood at a distance while we ate, watching. He had this aura about him like a holy man. He was genuinely curious about how we liked his food and he never mentioned winning or losing."

Biographic facts

Age: 40something

Born: Geneva, New York

First wing: Mama Grady's Tabasco and margarine wings