Wing chain shuts down two locations in Ontario

American sports bar franchise, Buffalo Wild Wings, is seemingly solidifying its exit from the Canadian market after it shut down two more of its locations in Ontario this month. 

Chicken wing connoisseurs noticed that the Atlanta-headquartered chain quietly shuttered many of its restaurants in Ontario this year, many of them with little to no warning. 

The franchise currently operates over 1,200 locations in the U.S. and previously boasted several locations across the province, many of which have since been listed as "permanently closed," including Oakville, London, Hamilton - Stoney Creek, Ajax, and Vaughan.

Founded in Columbus, Ohio in 1982, the franchise is well-known for offering Buffalo-style chicken wings in a variety of sauces like Parmesan Garlic, Honey BBQ, Nashville Hot, and Mango Habanero. 

Wing chain just suddenly closed almost all of its locations in Ontario https://t.co/Xr3CsSVwez #Ontario #Wings

— blogTO (@blogTO) May 14, 2023

The chain's Oshawa and Barrie locations have both been marked as "permanently closed" on Google and removed from the brand's website, which lists only three remaining restaurants in Hamilton - Ancaster, Mississauga, and Windsor. 

The franchise also previously shut down two locations in Calgary at Macleod Trail and Sunridge Mall. 

blogTO reached out to Buffalo Wild Wings' parent company, Inspire Brands, for comment on the closures in Ontario, but did not receive a comment back. However, a spokesperson for Buffalo Wild Wings told CTV News that the brand had made the "difficult decision" to close "a few" of its locations in the province. 

With only three options remaining in the province at the time of writing, it looks like fans of the American franchise might be forced to cross the border soon in order to get their chicken wing fix.