OX-B’s Chicken Joint – Spiciest Dish in Columbus Series

There comes a time in everyone’s life where they want something different. Where they’ve given up on trying the same thing over and over. OX-B’s Chicken Joint feels like it was created primarily for that moment.

Slinging southern comfort foods since February 2020, OX-B’s is now located in five different spots across Central Ohio. In this particular case we went to the store-front in Reynoldsburg.

Connected to The Duggie by a wall and a tiny ordering window between the two, OX-B’s has a cozily packed inside with five or so tables, an ordering stand, and a kitchen.

The menu is small but mighty, with wings (smoked, classic, boneless, or tofu), a sandwich called the Slopwich (more on that later), chicken and waffles, chili, and a handful of sides.

The Lady of the Farm selected the Chicken and Waffles, a bed of waffle fries, topped with cheese, green onions, and chicken tossed in wing sauce. Sauce of choice was Carolina Gold, a solid mustard-y base, similar to what you would expect out of a Carolina Gold sauce.

Before we get to the main event, here’s a glimpse of their boneless wings, 12 of them doused in sauce will run you $12.50, while 12 classic or smoked is $15.50.

Too Hot To Handle? We shall see. To test the claim, I selected the Slopwich, a sandwich constructed with boneless wings (tossed in Too Hot To Handle sauce), waffle fries, white cheddar mac, additional wing sauce, cheese, and coleslaw. I’m here for a good time, not a long time. The Too Hot To Handle sauce is their hottest of 10 wing sauces and spicier than any of their 4 dry rubs. Delicately slicing the sandwich in twain, I grabbed the first half, examining the insides. Lips curling in anticipation I began to devour the Slopwich.

Mixed amongst the toppings, the Too Hot To Handle sauce is the little brother of other spicy buffalo sauces I’ve tried. There’s a vinegar peak, followed by some drifts of heat, potentially from the addition of habaneros or similar peppers, but it caps out in the tolerable ranges. The intensity of the heat fluctuates between bites, letting you ride a fun wave of spiciness while you enjoy the other portions of the Slopwich.

My capsaicin compatriot that had joined me on this adventure offered up a boneless wing (dredged in Too Hot To Handle), to ensure I was getting the full effects of the sauce. Clinking two boneless wings together, I observed the seeds, noting their abundance, a typical sign of peppers that had been processed to add to the sauce. Biting into the wing, it was the same carousel of chaos, but never spiking out of a medium-high heat.

Slightly sniffling, I nodded, reflecting on my experience. Too Hot To Handle? For some, but for those seeking the spiciest dishes in Columbus, it is handleable. That in mind, we’re placing OX-B’s at #44, just behind Cluck Norris’s Holy Cluck Sauce.

I’m a big fan of sloppy sandwiches, and the Slopwich hit the spot. While it’s not necessarily close to us, I can definitely see myself stopping by OX-B’s Chicken Joint any time we’re in any of the five areas. You can find OX-B’s at any of the following locations.

• 14952 E Broad St Reynoldsburg, OH 43068
• 1650 N 21st st Newark, OH 43055
• 80 Oak Meadow dr Pataskala, OH 43062
• Indian Mound Mall Food Court
• Baltimore, OH

More From Our Quest To Find The Spiciest Dish