Ezell's was made famous when talk show host Oprah Winfrey called it her favorite fried chicken.

[5] The restaurant was founded by Ezell Stephens and Lewis Rudd, opening its first location on February 3, 1984, in the Central District.

Stephens and Rudd attended night school and later earned a loan from the Small Business Administration to open their store.

[7] Following a contentious lawsuit Ezell Stephens left the company he started with his business partners Lewis and Faye.

In November 2011, Ezell Stephens changed the name of his three locations to Heaven Sent Fried Chicken, because in the lawsuit he lost the rights to the name, but got to keep his recipe.