King of Wings Launches Saturday-Only Smash Burger Concept Snipeburger

"Evan and I have been working on Snipeburger for a while, even before the fire," says Eddie Renshaw, who co-owns King of Wings at 7741 West 44th Avenue in Wheat Ridge with longtime friend Evan Pierce.

The restaurant has been closed since a December 20 fire caused damage in the kitchen, but it's found a new way to keep the beer flowing while it works to reopen ("hopefully in May," Renshaw notes). Before the fire, Renshaw and Pierce had just launched a new pop-up series: King of Wings had been closed on Tuesdays, but the duo decided to open up that day to host other small businesses and startups. "We were like, 'How can we combine forces with other smaller food businesses or food trucks or food pop-ups and try and share our following with their following and have their following come out and check out our restaurant?'" Renshaw explained to Westword at the time.

While the fire put the kibosh on those plans for a bit, King of Wings has recently started hosting other pop-ups, notably the popular Little Arthur's Hoagies from former Bar Dough sous chef AJ Shreffler. "He brings the big crowd, and it gets a lot of our regulars in to drink," Renshaw says. "Both of our communities have come together; it's been awesome to see."

Now, Renshaw and Pierce are introducing Snipeburger, which will be a Saturday staple at the restaurant until their much-loved wings can make an official comeback. The first Snipeburger event is Saturday, April 2, from 4 to 8 p.m. (or until it sells out — there will be no pre-sales for this pop-up).

"We've been working in the backyard on our days off, perfecting it," Renshaw notes, adding that the smash-burger approach was inspired by the St. Louis institution Carl's Drive-In. "I feel like we've got it."

The burger will be available as a double (the standard), triple or quad, topped with American cheese, sautéed onions and pickles. "It's not super-heavy. It's got crispy edges on the sides, but it's juicy and cheesy inside," says Renshaw, who adds that the real kicker is the sauce: "We're using our tangy gold sauce from King of Wings, and it's just so good on there."

Eventually, Renshaw and Pierce would like to open a Snipeburger restaurant. But for now, they're happy to have the opportunity to bring some of their staff back and to welcome the restaurant's regulars. The Saturday pop-up will be full-service, and the bar will be stocked with plenty of craft beer.

When King of Wings is able to reopen, Renshaw says, the Tuesday pop-up series will return as well, and Snipeburger will continue to make appearances.

Though the fire put a stop on the momentum that King of Wings had built since opening in June 2020, Renshaw remains nothing but positive. "There are two ways to take it when something bad happens," he says. "You can get down and be down on yourself, or figure out a way to get through it and make people happy with food."

Snipeburger is located at King of Wings, 7741 West 44th Avenue in Wheat Ridge, and will be open every Saturday from 4 to 8 p.m. (or until it sells out). For more information, follow it on Instagram @snipeburger.