Keith Lee’s Scathing Review Gets Shocking Reaction from Louisiana Restaurant

A bemused Keith Lee criticized a Baton Rouge, Louisiana restaurant for taking license for a creative menu.

There’s nothing mistaken with wing sauce names like “Catfish Nasty,” “Krucial” and “Rebel,” but a famous TikTok critic expressed his opinion after feeling confused when takeout boxes weren’t labeled.

“All the flavors have names, so most of them I don’t know what is what, and they have no label. …I have no idea what I’m about to eat,” Lee announced before eating three orders of mixed chicken wings with six secret homemade barbecue sauces after which destroying an order of fried fish.

He liked the primary wing he bit into, but after biting into the second he said, “This tastes like a regular wing.”

While many restaurateurs would lose their shit in response to loud criticism (40,000 comments on the video to date), KOK Wings & Things co-owner Tré’Jan Vinson took it in stride and used the feedback to enhance his business.

We can see why KOK Wings & Things has evolved right into a mini chicken wing empire with 4 locations, catering and food trucks in lower than a decade. Of course, anywhere that, as Lee noted, “dances on tables” and sells beer by the bucketful is certain to be a hit.

In his TikTok response to Lee, Vinson announced a brand new color-coded sticker system that identifies all of the names of the sauces. Thanks to the “Keith Lee effect,” every takeout box will now have a sticker. “He made a key suggestion in his review that he didn’t know what he was eating, and that any new or existing customer should know what flavors of wings they’re trying,” Vinson declared triumphantly.

“I want you to know that we always promise to improve our product, our business and our brand, and we will never stop improving,” Vinson said.

“That’s how you respond,” wrote a fan on X. Another he said“I appreciate and love when companies treat constructive criticism as an opportunity to improve, not as an insult. I want nothing but the best for this restaurant…”

In early June, one other Baton Rogue restaurant, The Bayou Affect, responded to a critical review and boldly turned the tables, giving a well known critic a 2 out of 10 for not knowing what dishes to order, much to the backlash of many.

“The first professional reaction I’ve ever seen to Keith Lee,” joked a KOK Chicken & Things supporter. The comeback buzz has spread like wildfire across social media, with Vinson’s TikTok video now sitting at over one million views.

“You are a classy man. People at Lotta in Atlanta could take notes while listening to customers,” one other commented, referring to the death threats Lee received in response to criticism of the town’s popular Black-owned restaurants.

Lee planned to return to Atlanta earlier this yr as a part of the Redemption Tour, but not without protection. “When my safety and the safety of my family come into play, that’s where I draw the line,” he said on the time. The former MMA fighter also noted that his “hands are registered too” and he was able to throw down if vital.

But the burning query is: How did the food taste at KOK Chicken & Things?

For a spot that claims to be a “party scene, not just a restaurant,” it seems the wings were successful.

Lee helpfully provided descriptions of the flavors’ nicknames during his review. For example, Krucial is a honey-garlic mix, and Sum Nasty is nice and spicy. For the record, he spent $41 on a mountain of food and gave the Krucial and Double Dip wings a top rating of 8.5 out of 10. The other flavors received a really respectable 7.5 out of 10.

“I really have no idea what I’m eating,” Lee joked, but it surely didn’t appear to matter, since not one of the wings could go mistaken. The same couldn’t be said for what Lee considered “seasoned freezer fries,” which earned only a 4 out of 10, or the marginally “greasy” fish pancakes, which earned a 5.

“Everybody dancing, partying. Shaking it up. Doing, what do they call it?” Lee asked an unidentified member of his entourage. “You said they were making chicken? Apparently they were banging chicken.”

Honestly, we predict it’s time.