One of Metro Denver's Best Wing Joints Is Now Open in Aurora

"Everything just fell into place," says Dean Copeland, who just opened a new Aurora location of CD's Wings, a Westminster spot that landed on our 2023 list of the ten best places to get wings in the metro area. He'll soon add one in Parker, as well.

Located at 6710 South Cornerstar Way, the Aurora outpost is currently in soft-opening mode, serving walk-ins from 10:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. daily, with online and phone ordering coming soon.

CD's originally opened in 2003 in a much smaller space than its current home. "Two of my hockey coaches owned it previously," recalls Digger Schwartz, who began working there that year at the age of eighteen and now owns the business with his wife, Ryan. The couple took over the spot in 2007, and in February 2018 moved it to a bigger space at 7685 West 88th Avenue, complete with an outdoor patio, in order to better serve its large fan base.

Busy business owners and parents to young kids, they weren't thinking about further expansion. "We wouldn't have enough time to do it on our own without the help of someone else," Digger says. Then fate stepped in.

Copeland, whose culinary career includes serving as the opening bar manager for the now-closed Beast + Bottle, had spent years working for Wingstop in the southeast region of the country. "I was traveling way too much," he says.  Wanting to slow down and spend more time with his wife, he decided to return to Denver.

He originally wanted to open a sports bar or tavern of his own, but then his father-in-law, a longtime friend of Ryan's father, suggested he go meet with the couple at CD's. "Ever since I started dating my now-wife, my father-in-law has called me the wing man," Copeland says.

When he arrived for that first meeting, around 2 p.m. on a weekday afternoon, CD's "was packed," he recalls. "I asked Digger if he wanted to reschedule since they were so busy, and he said, 'This isn't really that busy.'" Impressed with the operation, a few days later Copeland pitched the idea of opening a location of his own. The expansion plans began to take shape.

Instead of finding one perfect location, though, Copeland found two — the Parker outpost will be at 11211 South Dransfeldt Drive. The new locations are similar in size to the original CD's and will focus more on takeout business than dine-in, but the wing menu will remain the same.

Both Copeland and Digger attribute CD's cult following to two factors. First, there's the quality of the product itself. "We keep it simple," Digger says. "We focus on using fresh, bone-in wings — medium-sized, because those cook better than bigger wings."

And second: "We give back as much as we can," he adds.

"Digger and Ryan are really salt-of-the-earth people. They care about the community," Copeland says. That's a passion he plans to bring to the new CD's outposts.

The timing of the expansion seems to be fated, too. "We've always done stuff around major life events," Digger says, noting that he and Ryan just bought a house while Copeland also just bought a house and is expecting twins.

Both are excited not only for the changes in their personal lives, but also for the future of CD's. "If it goes well, there might be more coming," Digger concludes.