Kuzzo’s Chicken & Waffles

When former Detroit Lion Ron Bartell opened Kuzzo’s in 2015, it did more than serve chicken and waffles — it helped kick off the whole modern revival of the Avenue of Fashion. The menu is Southern comfort with a wink (the Bam Bam pairs cinnamon-spiced waffles with fried drumsticks; the Tender Love comes with grits), served all day in a room that stays busy with regulars and out-of-towners alike.

It’s become the unofficial front door to the corridor: the place people try first, then linger on the block for everything else. Homestyle cooking, neighborhood pride, and a name everybody on Livernois knows.