Detroit, MI — I’m back on the foodie grind, this time to check out a Midtown Detroit newcomer specializing in fried chicken! I was given the heads up about The Eagle, a new amiable establishment that opened at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Stimson Street, just south of Mack Avenue. The word has yet to fully fly the coup on this restaurant, as they just opened at the end of September. But there is PLENTY to peck away at when it comes to the restaurant’s savory chicken and sides.

All puns aside (for now), I set out for The Eagle in Detroit with my friend Laurie Tuesday night. We arrived at 7 p.m. for our table, greeted by a friendly and upbeat host. Once we were seated, our server came by to give us a full menu breakdown and highlighted the main attraction’s particulars: the fried chicken! Our server admitted she was still very new to the staff but did an excellent job explaining the uniqueness of The Eagle’s fried chicken (which will be explained later) and made great suggestions for snacks/sides on the menu.

FULL SECTION: MI Foodie Adventures Blog

One of my favorite aspects about The Eagle is its location. It’s only a 7-minute walk down Woodward to Little Caesar’s Arena to catch a Red Wings or Detroit Pistons game. Tack on a few more minutes, cross the bridge over the freeway, and you’re at Comerica Park and Ford Field! As avid sportsgoers, Laurie and I were excited to secure a new go-to spot for food and drinks so close to the stadiums and event venues.

The interior of The Eagle had me reminiscing about my mid-20s, during which I briefly lived in the South. Early in my TV news career, I worked in Birmingham, Alabama, for the ABC affiliate. Although I was only in the South for just over a year, I managed to hop around a fair bit to several barbeque establishments and a few famous eateries throughout the region. While The Eagle was hatched and headquartered in Cincinnati, its menu features a fair amount of Southern influence with several of its dishes.

I felt like ordering a bit more than a usual outing in order to provide a more comprehensive scope review for options at The Eagle. Laurie and I went all out for the snacks and sides, ordering Hush Puppies and the Spicy Chicken Dip from the snacks list. We ordered the Mac & Cheese, Horseradish Mashed Potatoes, and Homemade Biscuits from the sides. We decided to split a Fried Chicken BLT, and for the main attraction, we went with the half-chicken. The half-chicken order consisted of two wings and two chicken breasts. And to top it all off, the fried chicken orders are served with spicy hot honey!

After placing our order, Kitchen Manager Joe Purdue came by to introduce himself and further explain the ingenuity behind the cooking process for the fried chicken. When our server gave us the tutorial behind the fried chicken, I noted several points to inquire about with Purdue. For example, the chicken is dry-brined in-house for over 24 hours, double-dredged, and then pressure-cooked! Purdue said the kitchen has two special pressure cooking machines, both specifically built to fry up six whole chickens at once, all within a matter of minutes. The double dredge and pressure cook method results in a succulent and tender chicken happily falling off the bone while still yielding a crispy and flavorful outer skin that is far from lacking in terms of seasoning.

This leads us to the most exciting part of the adventure — when the food began to arrive! Laurie and I began to spoon and fork over a little bit of each side/snack to our plates so we could try a little bit of everything:

The Hush Puppies are comprised of corn, jalapeño, and cheddar and come served with The Eagle’s made-in-house comeback sauce. These hush puppies are a solid choice with a nice crispy exterior, giving way to a soft dough-like interior. It’s a great 180 flip, capturing the lovely essence of the deep-fried Southern classic while providing bits of cheddar and heat within. However, the comeback sauce was the real winner of this snack menu option; it was phenomenal! The Eagle’s variation of this sauce, which originates out of central Mississippi, was excellent and paired great with this savory menu item.

RELATED: New Vietnamese restaurant in Warren is serving up fresh-as-can-be bánh mì

I gobbled up several bites of the Mac & Cheese. Almost immediately, my taste buds lit up like a Christmas tree, experiencing a deliciously gooey five-cheese blend delight that clung to and smothered the noodles. I thoroughly enjoyed the garlic breadcrumbs, which entirely covered the circumference of the dish, leaving hardly any gaps and ensuring that you’d get some garlicky crunch with every bite. I tasted notes of smokiness and even some heat within the cheese blend, providing good influences of different flavors while not having any particular one overwhelm the other. Needless to say, Laurie and I were BIG fans of this Mac & Cheese!

Next is the homemade biscuits, served with blackberry jam and honey butter. I was excited about these biscuits, and once the plate was set down, I became even more enthralled. The biscuits were fresh and very warm and had the appearance of many buttermilk biscuits I had enjoyed during my times throughout the South. I slathered some honey butter on the bottom half of a biscuit and spread blackberry jam on the top half before combining the two. The biscuit was airy and doughy, relatively chewy (but in a good way), and was just on point in terms of a Southern-style biscuit. The blackberry jam won out between the two spreads, giving that extra rich and tangy kick to the dimension of the overall taste. Laurie was a big fan of these biscuits, even stating she would die for them (😂), but after biting into one, I get it!

The next dish was one of Laurie’s favorites (and a close second for me): the Spicy Chicken Dip. This dish is under the snack section of the menu but could easily serve as a light lunch or be an entrée if served in a larger portion. The mouthwatering pulled chicken was exquisite, submerged in a spicy cheese sauce with chunks of blue cheese and melted smoked gouda. The blue cheese and smoked gouda combination was perfect for this dish, with the two cheeses playing well off of each other, providing sharp and tangy bites infused with the spicy cheese sauce. There was a perfect portioning of the smoked gouda, again showcasing the crafted control of the kitchen to balance the right amount of flavors so that, at least for this dish, the smokiness or spiciness wasn’t overwhelming the other flavors. For those unsure on the blue cheese front, my defense for this dish’s case resides in the fact the cheese isn’t too prominent but still noticeable in the background. So, if blue cheese doesn’t phase you all that much, then this is definitely a must-try side!

Now, let’s talk more about the culinary masterpiece at hand because the fried chicken at The Eagle soars at the top of the taste pecking order —the cooking method described above for this chicken yields truly remarkable results. A well-seasoned and crispy exterior pressure-fried to perfection has 10s across the board for crunch and taste, revealing an absolutely tender meat interior where the meat practically slides off the bone. Laurie and I each ate a wing piece. I drizzled the spicy hot honey over mine in a zig-zag pattern, ensuring a nice sticky, sweet heat flare with every bite. The heat aspect wasn’t that intense, but just enough to notice and help shake up the overall sweet/heat profile atop the savory and crispy chicken. This fried chicken is some of the best that I’ve had outside of the South, which was about six years ago. Needless to say, any future visit will DEFINITELY include an order of fried chicken in some capacity!

FULL SECTION: MI Foodie Adventures Restaurants Series

And lastly, the Fried Chicken BLT! This fried chicken cutlet is prepared and cooked in a different manner than the regular fried chicken. This cutlet is a single dredge and seasoned a bit differently but remains just as delicious in its own right. The real scene stealer is the jalapeño honey mayo; it provides such a great kick of heat with subtle sweetness spread across heavenly toasted Italian bread. The chicken was so juicy and tasty, seasoned very well and evenly across the cutlet. The mixed greens are fresh and blend beautifully with the avocado relish spread across the bottom of the top slice of bread. Between the two great sauces, a zesty crispy cutlet, and bacon with greens, this sandwich is a reliable star selection.

I must give The Eagle serious props for not only providing a marvelous meal but also for rounding out the experience with exceptional service by the attentive staff and welcoming management team. Not only did Joe come by to chat, but one of the shift managers came by to clear some plates at the end of the meal and inquired how everything tasted. She was very friendly, and I noticed she had been actively engaging all the tables around and checking with guests to ensure everything was adequate. Shortly after, General Manager Jason Knake stopped by to chat, and I was inspired by his enthusiasm for this new endeavor. Jason admitted he just started the week prior, but his engagement level was stellar and welcoming. He’s running an efficient ship at The Eagle, and the food more than backs that claim from exceptional snacks, sides, and fried chicken!

I honestly wish the best for Jason and his team; they’re a warm and friendly bunch who are already establishing great community patronage. In the days since dining, I’ve already begun spreading word of mouth among different friend groups while working on this write-up because I genuinely feel that this restaurant deserves attention. It’s in a great, booming location in the southern area of Midtown for dining, within walking distance from the Detroit sports venues. Plus, it has reliably consistent top-quality fried chicken, supported by a wide-range plethora of sides and snacks. Whether you’re in the mood for dinner and a night out or need a fun new spot to grab a bite and a drink before a Red Wings or Detroit Pistons game, The Eagle will become your new go-to spot!

For more information on The Eagle Detroit, click here.