The Lady May

A Restaurant Born from Grandmothers

Inspired by family and tradition, The Lady May celebrates the art of home-cooking passed down through generations, with dishes influenced by both Italian Catholic and Southern cuisine. The Lady May restaurant was created by owners Will Taylor and Chris McDonald while they imagined what Downtown Ocean Springs needed: a home-cooked meal. Do you remember growing up going to your grandma’s house for a meal made with love?

Will Taylor grew up going to eat at his grandma’s house in Westpoint, MS, while Chris McDonald grew up going to eat at his grandma’s house in New Orleans, LA. The two decided to combine their grandmas’ recipes with a unique twist, thus creating The Lady May’s fun and unique menu. The Lady May is more than just a restaurant; it is a celebration of family and the traditions that have been passed down through generations.

From the Kitchen to Something Bigger

The menu at The Lady May is a blend of two family cooking styles, with influences from both Italian Catholic and Southern cuisine. From fried chicken to scratch biscuits to homemade jam and pepper jellies, every dish carries a touch of nostalgia. And as they dove deeper into their grandmothers’ recipes and cooking methods, Will and Chris discovered new techniques and ingredients that became staples at The Lady May. They started pickling everything from cucumbers to peppers, and even added hot sauces and honey butter to their offerings.

Their idea board became a constant reminder of the unexpected paths their exploration had taken them on. Whether experimenting with different seasonal specials or chasing the authentic flavors of their childhood kitchens, they continued to let their grandmothers’ love for cooking guide them.

The Discovery That Changed Everything: Tallow

"It all started with an empty building and a whole lot of time during Covid," says co-owner Chris McDonald. "We found ourselves knee deep in buttermilk biscuits and pickle brine asking, ‘How would Nana have done this? What would she have cooked with?’"

That question led Will and Chris back to the roots of their past and the time of homemade biscuits, pickled vegetables, scratch jams, and every Southern family’s table staple: fried chicken. And the answer kept pointing to one thing they had forgotten: tallow. With a legacy steeped in their grandmothers’ recipes and Mississippi’s rich history of tallow production, they embraced its versatile uses not only in cooking but also in skincare. What started as frying up delicious dishes using tallow evolved into creating an acclaimed line of tallow-based moisturizers.