(Photo: Danny Kim)

• Pok Pok Wing

  137 Rivington St., nr. Norfolk St. 212-477-1299

  When Andy Ricker opened this diminutive snack shop early this year, it was surely the biggest boon for Asian-chicken lovers since Bon Chon first hit these shores. The salty, pungent, garlicky chicken wings (pictured, right) are the signature appetizer at Ricker’s Portland, Oregon–based Thai restaurant, Pok Pok, and here they’re the star of his takeout shop’s brief menu (a full Pok Pok will open in Brooklyn later this year). Wings come in full or half orders, spicy or not, accompanied by a finger-food salad of cucumbers, lettuce, and carrots. There’s no reason to resist tearing through the messy things with your fingers, too—so long as you keep a stash of wet wipes close at hand. Cool down with one of the shop’s “drinking vinegars” in flavors like tamarind (our favorite) or pomegranate, mixed with soda water and served over ice.

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From the 2012 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine