Ferndale, MI — On Tuesday, after months of anticipation and excitement, Four Man Ladder Hospitality opened the doors to its newest concept in downtown Ferndale: Little Ghost.

The Detroit-based restaurant management company’s fourth concept is the team’s introduction to the fast-casual scene. The group is known for popular Detroit restaurants Grey Ghost Detroit and Basan, and neighborhood bar Second Best. Little Ghost is inspired by the fan favorite burger from Grey Ghost Detroit, which essentially has its own cult following (and for good reason).

RELATED: Grey Ghost Detroit’s new venture gears up for a summer debut in Ferndale

For months, patrons and followers of Grey Ghost Detroit (myself included) awaited the Grand Opening and kept tabs on Little Ghost’s social media pages following the announcement of its inception back in April. Four months later, Little Ghost kicked off festivities at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Pearson Street, just five streets south of 9 Mile Road. The wonderful owners gave me a heads-up last week that Little Ghost would be opening on Tuesday, so I made plans to stop by on my way home after work to pick up takeout for dinner.

Leading the kitchen at Little Ghost is Chef Eric Lees, alongside chefs and co-owners Joe Giacomino and John Vermiglio, and partners Will Lee and Michael Gray. The team crafted a simple yet flavor-packed menu including several burger variations, chicken, sides, and vegetarian and gluten-free options. Some of the highlights include the Double Ghost Burger, Nashville Chicken Sandwich, All-Beef Hot Dog, Bag of Donuts, and Chicken Tenders. With so many hits on the menu, needless to say, I was eagerly looking forward to this all day while at work and wasted NO TIME in promptly leaving at the end of my shift; destination: Little Ghost.

FULL SECTION: MI Foodie Adventures Burger Series

I parked a few homes down along Pearson Street around 4:30 p.m. and hurried down to the eatery at the corner of Woodward. There was already a frenzy of enthusiastic patrons coming and going from the tiny yet visually commanding establishment holding bright pink and purple to-go bags with the signature ‘Little Ghost’ on the side. I walked in and joined the foodie fray, essentially ordering nearly one of everything so I could try as much as possible to showcase for this foodie adventure. The kitchen staff worked like clockwork to address the steadily increasing orders, with a line essentially out the door by the time I placed my order and left about 8 minutes later.

I was about to learn that the vibrant and loud vibes of Little Ghost were not only apparent in the branding and dialed-up inspirations from the hospitality group’s other concepts, but they are also entrenched within the food itself. I decided to order a Double Ghost Burger, an All-Beef Hot Dog, a Nashville Chicken Sandwich, Chicken Tenders, and French Fries. I certainly didn’t plan to eat everything, but knew that I could share some of the tenders and fries with my roommate/best friend since I knew he would be getting home from work about the same time as me.

Buckle up, because this long-awaited foodie adventure was most definitely worth the wait!

The Food

This is a hot dog, or glizzy as the youth refer to them, that I would order again in a heartbeat. It was an exceptionally cheesy and spicy delight. The whipped cream cheese and melted cheddar crisp that was layered between the bun and the split beef hot dog itself was creamy, gooey, and a great contrast of presented cheese profiles between the cream cheese and sharper cheddar.

The cheddar was melted into a flat crisp on the grill, which brought out all the flavors from the fat, and was set over the pepper jam spread across the bun. The pepper jam added an almost honey-like sticky sweetness, which played off the pickled jalapeños and balanced the heat. When taking a full bite, there was a great crunch factor, hearty beef flavor from the dog, crispy and creamy cheeses, all rounded out by the sweet and mild heat — a great creation!

I was blown away by how epic and awesome this burger was; it may even be better than the OG cheeseburger from Grey Ghost! It has been some time since I ordered a burger of this magnitude, but if you have the appetite for it, the double-patty Ghost Burger is the move. As you can see above, this burger was oozing in melted American cheese and ghost sauce between two perfectly cooked patties, and definitely required two hands to hold.

A full bite (or as much as one can muster) yielded the profile of one of the best burgers I’ve had around Metro Detroit in a while. This burger is on par with my top three favorites for Metro Detroit, which include the cheeseburger from Grey Ghost, the Brasserie burger from Redcoat Tavern in Royal Oak, and the beasty ‘Big Rick’ burger from Karl’s Cabin in Plymouth. The copious cheese and ghost sauce were such a great blend. I’m not sure what’s in that ghost sauce, but it was so heavenly and complemented this savory burger so well, I couldn’t get enough of it. And if it wasn’t for an upcoming trip to Greece in a few weeks, I would be stopping by to order one of these at least once a week!

The Nashville Chicken Sandwich was pretty solid overall, although by this point I was losing steam and getting full, so I only managed a few bites. The chicken was really tasty and seasoned well, although I wouldn’t have minded seeing a second thigh piece included due to the pricing for this item. The two pickles were massive and thick, and provided that nice, juicy crunch and bite I was expecting, so that was really nice.

I was a big fan of the celery root slaw, a modified coleslaw that honestly worked really well for this sandwich and paired well with the ranch along the bottom bun. I could taste the slightest of heat, but that may have been from the seasoning on the chicken. I would love to see a ‘hot’ chicken sandwich version of this, which would be my preference over the plain chicken sandwich version. But overall, still a pretty solid menu option.

The Chicken Tenders were nice and crispy as well, similar to the chicken thigh for the Nashville Chicken Sandwich. I loved the texture, crunch, and noted these tenders were cooked to perfection as well throughout the interior of the strip. I only ate two and pushed the rest off to my roomie, but I thoroughly enjoyed these tenders and found them to be even more delicious when dipped into the Fancy Sauce or even the queso.

The French Fries were about the usual fast food rendition, with a slightly above average crisp to them than most. Although nothing stood out to me regarding the fries on Tuesday, I actually enjoyed the remaining ones more than I had for leftovers on Wednesday for lunch. These fries were even more enjoyed after plunging them into the Fancy Sauce or Queso, because why not? Everything’s better with queso.

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Typically, with fast-food concepts, you don’t expect the food to be on par with contemporary or trendy restaurants since quality is often sacrificed for speed and quantity, but in this case, Little Ghost stands triumphantly opposed to that notion. The food was outstanding, with the main attractions topping the flavor charts, and all for very reasonable prices. So, if you’re in the mood for some tasty and saucy burgers, crispy and well-seasoned chicken tenders, zesty and cheesy glizzies (hot dogs), or something sweet, you have to stop by Little Ghost in Ferndale ASAP!

Little Ghost is open 7 days a week, serving lunch and dinner. Their hours of operation are Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. until 10 p.m. On Friday and Saturday, Little Ghost remains open a bit longer until midnight. Online ordering is also available.

But wait, there’s more! The owners aim to grow the Little Ghost concept, with additional locations planned in the future. So stay tuned! For more information on Little Ghost or to check out their menu and swag, click here.