The magic in this Atlanta dish is the salsa macha

I like a dish that, when someone asks “How is it?” while you’re eating, you can offer one-word answers. I did that over lunch with friends as they inquired about my tray of Little Rey’s chicken wings. My answers: smoky, spicy, crispy and cooling.

Cooked longer and slower over the indirect heat of a wood smokebox, the chicken is imbued with tender smoky sweetness, while remaining juicy. The wings get a lacquering of salsa macha, an infused oil mixture of deep-fried peanuts, garlic and toasted chiles de arbol. Like a Mexican chile crisp, it’s deeply flavorful, sweet, crunchy and adds subtle licks of heat to each bite.

They are a rich mahogany color, with brittle skin making way for tender meat. There were pieces of my wings that were reminiscent of chicharrones, wonderfully sturdy enough to carry sauce. The salsa bar offers many variations and heat levels to try, too.