The news Tuesday that Burger King’s parent company has a deal to buy Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen has sent ripples of fear and shock through the chicken po’boy and biscuit community.
i don’t trust burger king buying popeyes , burger king had cheeto chicken fries
— hdN (@coolbeanss_) February 21, 2017
If Burger King changes anything about Popeyes I will riot in the streets.
— David Helman (@HelmanDC) February 21, 2017
Me getting a Popeyes 2 pc & a biscuit with red beans and rice before Burger King takes over. pic.twitter.com/Q3zxE2bPCT
— Fredd Wilson (@reporterfredd) February 21, 2017
However, New Jersey fans of the franchise may have much to celebrate.
Restaurant Brands International, formed in the 2014 merger of Burger King and the Canadian chain Tim Horton’s, plans to buy the 45-year-old fried chicken chain for $1.8 billion. Popeyes has more than 2,600 locations nationwide, concentrated in the South but with a strong presence in New York, Illinois, Maryland and California as well. New Jersey, however, is relatively underserved with only about six dozen locations.
“We look forward to taking an already very strong brand and accelerating its pace of growth and opening new restaurants in the U.S. and around the world,” says RBI chief executive officer Daniel Schwartz in a statement Tuesday.
Popeyes was the brainchild of flamboyant New Orleans businessman Al Copeland, who opened the first restaurant as Chicken on the Run in 1972. He soon changed the name to Popeye’s, after Gene Hackman’s Popeye Doyle from “The French Connection,” which came out the year before, and amped up the spice in the recipe.
By 1989, Popeye’s had become the nation’s third largest fried chicken franchise and purchased rival Church’s Chicken, which it operated separately, but Copeland overextended, and in 1991, the company filed for bankruptcy. His creditors formed America’s Favorite Chicken Company and took over the company, selling off Church’s Chicken in 2004 and rebranding as Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen in 2008.
It’s a great time to be in the fried chicken business, which surpassed hamburgers as the top fast food category in 2016. The popularity has spawned fast food Frankenstein creations such as Taco Bell’s Naked Chicken Chalupa, in which fried chicken cradles lettuce, diced tomatoes, cheese and avocado ranch sauce, and KFC’s Chizza, in which fried chicken takes the place of traditional dough and is topped with sauce, mozzarella, pineapple and ham. It’s only available in Asia — so far.
More reaction:
Burger King should’ve just bought KFC pic.twitter.com/sJeGhIorn8
— j (@JUSTlNW) February 21, 2017
Me when I found out Burger King bought @PopeyesChicken pic.twitter.com/uXjLOPDMMv
— quavo (@Mgm_Ky) February 21, 2017
@Wendys could you buy out Popeyes instead of Burger King? Atleast you know how to treat chicken with respect and deliciousness [?] [?] [?] [?] [?] [?] [?] [?] [?] [?] [?] [?] [?]
— jon (@TheRealJonHutch) February 21, 2017
Vicki Hyman may be reached at vhyman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @vickihy or like her on Facebook. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook, and check out Remote Possibilities, the TV podcast from Vicki Hyman and co-host Erin Medley on iTunes, Stitcher or Spreaker, or listen below or here.
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