Between its delicious food and homey atmosphere, it is no surprise that Ypsilanti restaurant Ma Lou's Fried Chicken has received rave reviews.
The restaurant's outdoor dining area features tables under red umbrellas. Inside, tables are stocked with local vinegar, Heinz Ketchup, and a hand paper roll. The aromas and flavors of Southern food welcome visitors as soon as they step inside.
When talking about fried chicken, owner and chef K.C. Knipple's eyes sparkled with excitement and pride.
“Oh, yeah, it's my livelihood," said Knipple. "I've always liked food, but I've never been drawn to any particular item like I am with chicken. And that is only over the past eight years. It's just the obsession with perfecting it. That's probably what you've seen in my eyes."
K.C., Ma Lou's restaurant owner, stands next to the Ma Lou's logo wall
At least a dozen press releases from organizations such as WDRG, Lovefood.com, MLive and clickondetroit have shared outstanding reviews and appetizing pictures.
The thought of Ma Lou's best fried basket or visitor-recommended milkshake is enough to make the mouth water, so The Eastern Echo's team went out to 15 W. Michigan Ave. to give the local restaurant a try.
Ma Lou's wall menu shows legacy dishes and new ones.
K.C.'s recommendation was to try the fried chicken plate because it embodies Ma Lou's soul food spirit.
Ma Lou's characteristic dish is the fried chicken plate. On top are three pieces of fried chicken with a spicy glaze. On the middle right is the collard greens dish with a savory sour flavor, and on the bottom left side, there is the cooked beans dish with smoked and sweetened flavors.
He also said that the best-selling items on the menu are the sandwiches. Among the sandwiches menu, The OG is the best seller.
Best seller sandwich is the OG. The OG in the photo has battered and fried chicken breast with spicy glaze, cheddar cheese, and coleslaw salad, all packed in a soft and tender bun, with a pickle on top.
K.C. shared that for the first time in seven years, Ma Lou's menu has house-made ice cream shakes. He always wanted to make shakes. Now, after he was able to get an ice cream machine, visitors can enjoy them.
A new arrival in Ma Lou's is the strawberry shake, which was house-made with the new ice cream machine at the restaurant.
Fried chicken's popularity in Ypsilanti
Ma Lou's has given a fresh face to fried chicken in Ypsilanti, but fried chicken has a deep history in the city.
Ypsilanti has been a home for Native American tribes and immigrants from all over the world. It has also facilitated movement across the country. The Chicago Road that connected Detroit and Chicago at the beginning of the industrial era runs through Ypsilanti, and many people that moved from the South to the North settled in the city.
“Ypsi-tucky” was a nickname given to Ypsilanti when people from Louisville, Kentucky, moved to Willow Run in Ypsilanti Township and brought Southern culture to the North, along with Southern cuisine and its flavor of crunchy fried chicken.
Outside of fried chicken, Ypsilanti’s dishes are a mosaic of food and a symphony of flavors.
Types of food and restaurants
There is a great deal of competition in selling fried chicken in Ypsilanti.
Google Maps shares at least 82 restaurants from both banks of the Huron River, bordering Ford Lake around the city of Ypsilanti, as seen on the map below.
People who like to eat out can find 45 restaurants that offer American cuisine in the price range between $1 and $50 per person. In Ypsilanti, food lovers can also find affordable Hispanic restaurants that serve Mexican, Guatemalan, or Cuban cuisine. Asian food is right behind, followed by the Mediterranean restaurants, which serve mostly Middle Eastern food. Last is the fusion cuisine, or the futuristic food experience that represents fine dining.
The pie graph shares an analysis of the number of restaurants in the Ypsilanti area by category of kitchen, and American cuisine leads with 45 restaurants.
The bar graph shares the range of prices over restaurants in Ypsilanti that are based on Google reviews.
American food
The pool of restaurants taken from Google Maps sheds some light on what food is most popular in town – American food. Menus of the many American-style restaurants suggest that American food encompasses a wide range of options. The restaurants offer dishes such as fried chicken, hamburgers, fries, Detroit-style pizza, BBQ, salad, and more.
The popularity of this genre of food could come from the exhaustion of preparing food at home.
Fatigue from homemade fried chicken preparation
One might think that people stop frying chicken at home because of the mess from deep frying or the big, dirty bowls with leftover flour and butter mixture. However, Knipple said, “I think it's a generational thing.”
The owner clarified that the older generations knew how to make fried chicken at home and could enjoy it. However, the knowledge of how to make perfect fried chicken at home has not been passed down to the younger generations, and now many people prefer to eat fried chicken out.
Vision for Ma Lou's
K.C. Knipple, who was born and raised in Ypsilanti, had a vision for Ma Lou’s already in his mind. He saw himself cooking fried chicken to perfection and selling it.
He appreciated the opportunity to have an available spot in Ypsi’s downtown and opened the restaurant on March 3, 2017. The restaurant has now been operating for eight years with great reviews.
Ma Lou's restaurant indoors reflects a dining experience of tables with chairs and couches, also a TV screen plays TV shows in the background.
Success and struggles
Ma Lou's busiest times are during the summer months and Christmas. However, Knipple said he has had an ongoing struggle with labor and staffing since the restaurant opened.
”When we opened, the typical entry-level job here was $10 an hour plus tips, where entry-level now is $14 plus tips," he said. "So they're being paid roughly $18 an hour, and I still can't keep employees.”
EMU students are welcome
K.C. Knipple said that Ma Lou’s has many students from the University of Michigan who come to dine in, and he is aware that many Eastern Michigan University students are commuters. Ma Lou's invites EMU students to stop by and enjoy some delicious American cuisine. Knipple encourages students to include his fried chicken restaurant as part of their visits to downtown Ypsilanti.
