ROBERTSDALE, Ala. — Dan Crotts didn’t know it was coming.

“I got a call (from “Southern Living” magazine) a couple of months ago, asking some questions,” said Crotts. “They wanted some basic info. I didn’t think anything of it.”

So Crotts was surprised when his customers came in last week, saying that his restaurant, Mama Lou’s on Pine Street in Robertsdale, was featured in the April edition of “Southern Living” in a story about the “Best Fried Chicken in Alabama.” According to “Southern Living,” the magazine has a circulation of 2,800,000.

That’s a lot of fried chicken.

“All I could says was, “Wow, that’s awesome,’” said Crotts, who purchased the restaurant in 2006 from the original owners, Louise and Dale Polka.

“Dale and Louise were ready to move on,” said Crotts, who said he owned a Dairy Queen in Gulf Shores.

“Ivan took care of that,’ he said. “There was five feet of water in the place.”

Crotts sold the restaurant, but wanted to keep in the food business. Crotts is also the Athletic Director at Central Christian School, so he wanted something close to the school.

“I liked that Mama Lou’s was a little off the beaten path and caters to locals, not tourists,” said Crotts. In fact, one of the tables at Mama Lou’s has a plaque over it, designating it as “Ms. Betty Taylor’s table.” Taylor also has a proclamation over the table from Robertsdale Mayor Charles Murphy proclaiming Taylor “Mayor of Mamma Lou’s.”

“She comes here to have lunch every day,” said Crotts,

“The restaurant had good quality food, and the menu was a great value. In fact, NPR (National Public Radio) did a feature and the restaurant was listed as a ‘best value per bite.’”

It also helps that the restaurant’s staff of 12 has been fairly stable.

“We have two cooks here that have been here more than eight years,” said Crotts.

While Crotts kept Louise Polka’s original recipes, some things have changed.

“We are open seven days a week, and we serve breakfast and lunch now,” said Crotts. “People are catching on to the breakfast.”

The famous fried chicken makes its appearance at the lunch buffet, served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. You can get the chicken at dinner by ordering from a menu, and Crotts is proud of the restaurant’s prime rib dinner. Sunday sees turkey on the menu.

Mama Lou’s is a little hard to find if you don’t know Robertsdale. Take Highway 59 into the city, and turn onto Highway 104 heading east. Right behind the Regions Bank building, you will find Pine Street. Proceed down Pine and you will see Mama Lou’s.