When you consume wings, you're going to get dirty. There's no getting around messy fingers. Lily's…read morehas the answer for that. Wet wipes, right there at the table, in the napkin dispenser. It's little things like that that sets Lily's Wings, Burgers, and Things apart. They stand heads and shoulders above the competition. This small, local, independent eatery is located in a small strip mall adjacent to a gas station and Subway along Northway Drive not far from the YMCA, the Whitney Senior Center and soccer fields, and all of the medical offices located in the vicinity.
Lily's serves large bone-in wings, boneless wings, drumsticks, country-style breaded chicken tenders, angus or bison burgers, fish sandwiches, commercial fries, handcut fresh french fries, onion rings, jalapeno poppers, cheese curds, and more. If you don't care for fries, they have homemade cole slaw.
What's nice is that there's such a variety. Along with the wings, you can choose from various homemade sauces that range from fruity to spicy, depending upon what you like. I tried the teriyaki sauce with my boneless wing combo and really liked it. It has a kick at the end, but wasn't mouth-on-fire hot.
The hand cut, fresh french fries are excellent - among the best I've had in the area. They were perfectly cooked served with homemade ranch dressing. I was given a generous portion of fries to go with my combo, which featured 11 boneless wings.
You can sample the sauces before you decide on which one you want to go with your wings.
The restaurant is kept clean, and the server/cashier was very helpful to this newbie customer.
I've also had a hamburger here - the black and blue. It was done to order (medium well). The bun was soft and delicious, the hamburger was juicy and flavorful, and the toppings (red onion, lettuce and tomato) were fresh.
My only complaint, and it's a small one, was that the previous customer had left some sauce residue on the table. There wasn't a lot, and I'm sure it's easy to do at a place like this - where the sauce is the boss - but they may want to check the tables more frequently to make sure they're wiped after each customer.
On the downside, it's often the case that they are understaffed. Sometimes, this means that customers up front aren't getting attention because the person is in the back tending to cooking. There really should be more staff on duty or they're going to lose business. On the plus side, each meal is made fresh to order, so that sometimes means waiting a bit for your food.
There are a couple of televisions here so you can watch the news or a game. Also, the Lily's food truck ensures that you can enjoy their food when you're out and about. The food truck is frequently seen in downtown St. Cloud, especially in warmer months.
You can also order online, and they'll have the order ready for pickup when you get there. It's all these touches that make Lily's a restaurant worth visiting and revisiting.
I still can't get over the wet wipes. Only a true wing place would have these, instead of dry napkins. It's touches like that that make Lily's a special place.
