Shirley Mae’s Cafe - Soul food restaurant in Louisville - 802 S Clay St, USA

We were in town for a few days and were leaving that day. We wanted to try something local before we flew out later in the afternoon. We drive over to “Smoke Town” a Black neighborhood in Louisville. The cafe is walk up with a few tables in front. It seems most people do take away. The staff of the restaurant were awesome. The younger of the two men had an almost freakish ability to manage names of all the customers …I was sorta jealous. He was cool and busted my chops for not ordering any green vegetables with my lunch special (I'm not sorry though). The other patrons were very cool and we met some of the locals who go there regularly, including an older couple clad in their Sunday church duds. The only downside, the food took forever, We waited an hour or more. The wait got more pleasant when the younger man walked across the street and put on some great music at the bottle shop. We had planned to eat there. The weather was amazing! But, we weren’t anticipating the long wait, so we had to take it to the airport and eat there. Now, for the best part….the food was totally worth the wait. I got the meatloaf with Mac and cheese and sweet potatoes. My wife got the chicken wings with Mac and fried corn. The portions were generous and everything was outstanding. The chicken wings are really fried chicken. They’re huge and some of the best fried chicken I’ve ever tasted. The sides were solid and the two fried biscuits were almost like a dessert! The regulars told us the long wait that day was really unusual, so I wouldn’t get too hung up on that. Other than that, it was a cool lunch spot. I’d totally go back or recommend them to friends. Definitely fits the role of what I like to call “a local gem.”

This was my 1st time trying this restaurant. I was surprised that they only offered a small outdoor area for seating on the sidewalk next to the building where ppl order their food. The guy taking orders was professional, nice, and friendly. Their prices are reasonable but the food left a lot to be desired in my opinion. I ordered a smothered pork chop which was lacking flavor, it tasted more like flour than a gravy flovor and that "gravy" was very, very thick. The sides I ordered were cabbage, sweet potatoes, and mac and cheese. The cabbage had good flavor to it but it was a very small portion that was full of the hard stalk part at the bottom of the head of cabbage (the portion most folks toss in the garbage). The mac and cheese was cheesy but that's about it, it had no seasoning at all. The sweet water cornbread was just ok. The sweet potatoes were the best part of my meal. The pork chop was $6, the sides were $3 each and the hot water cornbread was 2 for $1. I try to support BOB so I'll give them another chance and order some different items.

This was such an amazing experience. We met the famous, great, Mrs.Shirley Mae, and her sons. Learned about the culture of Louisville ,Kentucky, Smoketown, and the authenticity of this great tasting food. The fried chicken, smothered pork chops, greens, mac& cheese, pinto beans, and hot sauce was sssooo good. Thank you'll for the amazing experience and many blessings to come 🙌🏾

This is my favorite spot for bone-in chicken to be honest. The sides are also incredible. You get a great amount of food for the price and the service is absolutely a 10/10. This place is just another level of great. I had the coleslaw and mac and that was just right where it needed to be. The fried chicken was buttery good. The banana pudding is delicious. I also had the sweet tea. If you want sweet tea with the extra sweet this will also satisfy.

When you go you must get the Cabbage!!!! Oh my it melts in you're mouth. I wanted more. We ordered mac cheese, cabbage,mashed potatoes, chicken wings and meat loaf. Everything was delicious!!! You will have to wait a bit however it is worth it!

This is a sleeper of a good restaurant. We went there and the outside looked not very good at all. It's cash only, and takeout only. The food was really good though. The portions were more than adequate, the prices were reasonable and the people were super friendly. We had two different dishes and different sides and everything was good, even the peach cobbler dessert. Our plates were wrapped in plastic wrap so nothing would spill. Overall an excellent experience and one of the best meals we had in Louisville including trying a couple of highly rated restaurants from the web. Highly recommend as a to go style restaurant.

The food the really good, but prepare to wait at least an hour before you go pickup. Fresh food, good people, and friendly conversation. The locals love this place. Order and pickup only, cash, and Cashapp. Should work on speeding up their kitchen. I would recommend if you aren't starving.

Best fried chicken ever. My lady loves the water cornbread. Chess pie is delicious. It is just good food. They only have chicken wings on the weekends, but 3 of them per order was plenty. They are large. We also had the meatloaf and it would melt in your mouth. Mmmmm my mouth is watering just thinking about it. This was my second time to Loiusville and my second time to eat at Shirley Mae's Cafe. If my travels take me back to Loiusville I will eat there again. It is an interesting experience. You walk up to a door in the side of a brick building. The menu is on the wall. Order your food and they will cook it and bring it out to you, in your vehicle if you like. It may seem strange to some, but believe me, it is some of best southern cooking I have ever had.