The Lady May
Ocean Springs, MS
The Lady May serves honey butter fried chicken, scratch biscuits and all-day brunch on Washington Avenue in downtown Ocean Springs.
Atmosphere
The Lady May takes up a storefront on Washington Avenue, the main drag of downtown Ocean Springs, and the room is warm from the first step in. A wall of reclaimed wood, a cluster of mismatched heirloom plates hung like a gallery, and strings of bare bulbs overhead give the dining room a lived-in look that owners Will Taylor and Chris McDonald say comes from their grandmothers' kitchens in West Point, Mississippi and New Orleans. Indoors you will find booths, low tables and taller seats near the bar. Out back there is a courtyard with its own bar, which fills first on weekend mornings. Half the building is May's Market, a small shop selling jams, pickles, hot sauces, honey and biscuit mix.
What to Order
Start with the Honey Butter Fried Chicken plate, which comes with whipped honey butter, baked macaroni and a biscuit. The biscuits are made from scratch, and the Biscuits and Jelly order brings four of them with whipped honey butter and three house jellies, a fair sample of what the market sells by the jar. Brunch tables tend to share boards, such as the Waffle Board and May's Brunch Board, the latter with Belgian waffles, nine-grain toast, bacon jam and sausage. The kitchen also runs crab cakes over linguine and a crawfish flatbread with candied jalapenos, which is where the Italian side of the menu shows up. The Bloody Marys are a house specialty. Menus rotate, so check what is current.
Good to Know
The restaurant's own website lists hours as 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, and it serves brunch, lunch and dinner. One local listing shows Sunday differently, so confirm before you go, since hours can change. Reservations and the waitlist run through SevenRooms, which is the smart move for Saturday and Sunday brunch, when Washington Avenue fills with visitors. Street parking is the norm downtown, so give yourself a few extra minutes. If you want to take something home, May's Market is inside the same building and sells gift boxes as well as single jars.
Our Take
The Lady May is the best argument for a long, unhurried breakfast in Ocean Springs. It is comfortable enough for a family and good-looking enough for a date, and the fried chicken and biscuits are the reason to come. Book a weekend table through SevenRooms, order the chicken plate to share, and buy a jar of pepper jelly on your way out.
More Places to Eat
Details last verified September 2026. Always confirm current hours and menu directly with the restaurant.