Popeyes Chicken Sandwich Is Officially Coming Back This Weekend

Popeyes is bringing back its popular chicken sandwich this Sunday, Nov. 3, and likely hoping for a repeat of the big bump in sales the chain saw when it was introduced in August. The Popeyes chicken sandwich that debuted in August sold out at all locations within a matter of weeks.


A staggering 62 days after Popeyes first acknowledged it was running out of its wildly popular chicken sandwich and just days after speculation about its return hit a fever pitch the fried chicken chain officially announced the return of the sandwich on Monday with just two words: “It’s back.” The wait for the best fried chicken sandwich in all of fast food is almost over.

“We plan to offer it to our guests for a long time,” Bruno Cardinali, head of marketing for North America at Popeyes, told CNN Business in an email. “We are confident that we’ll be able to meet the demand.”

Why it matters: The sandwich helped Popeyes have one of its best quarters in 20 years, pushing its comparable sales to more than double what analysts had expected, reports Bloomberg. It also comes at a time when fast food chains are looking to add more poultry to their menus sparking what could become a new trend of cash cow items for the industry, per Axios' Dion Rabouin.

"Y’all…the sandwich is back Sunday, November 3rd. Then every day," Popeyes Louisiana Chicken tweeted Monday, announcing the return of its highly sought after fried chicken sandwich that set off the "chicken sandwich wars" on social media in August.

Popeyes announced the return of the chicken sandwich on the same day that parent company Restaurant Brands International Inc. QSR, -3.12%   announced third-quarter results. While earnings were in line with expectations, sales fell short.

We initially thought that Popeyes had pulled the plug on its chicken sandwich to create more hype and demand. After all, this is a common tactic used in the fast food world. Taco Bell’s Nacho Fries, the McDonald’s McRib, and Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Latte are great examples. But it turns out that demand for the chicken sandwich far exceeded Popeyes’ own expectations, which left the company’s supply chain unable to keep up with the demand. The company reportedly thought its initial supply of chicken sandwiches for last for about a month, but we ate them all in just two weeks. Popeyes CEO Jose Cil appeared on CNN and told America, “Yes, we have really run out.”

The Popeyes sandwich that debuted in August sold out at all locations nationwide within a matter of weeks, prompting a Tennessee man, who allegedly could not get his hands on the buzzed-about sandwich, to sue the company, alleging it engaged in "false advertising" and “deceptive business practices by entity to public.”

Popeyes was a bright spot for the quarter with 15.6% sales growth to $1.1 billion and 9.7% same-store sales growth. Other brands in the Restaurant Brands International portfolio are Burger King and Tim Hortons.

Popeyes, Chick-fil-A and other fast-food chains traded insults on Twitter, claiming ownership of the best-tasting chicken sandwich.