Popeyes is taking the next logical step after its popular 2019 introduction of the chicken sandwich: nuggets.
The Miami-based chicken chain on Tuesday said that it will start selling chicken nuggets on July 27. The nuggets, which take “the quality and flavors of our famous chicken sandwich and made it in poppable pieces,” are available in sizes from four to 36 pieces. A 48-piece option is available on the company’s app or website.
The nuggets “are unlike anything you may have experienced before,” Sami Siddiqui, president of Popeyes Americas, said in a statement. “We aim to show the world once again the magic of Popeyes chicken with our new nuggets.”
Popeyes launched its chicken sandwich for good in November 2019, helping the company turn in the best quarterly result (38%) in modern restaurant industry history. Sales generated from the sandwich helped the chain generate new customers and carried its restaurants through the pandemic. They also earned dozens of industry competitors, including sister chain Burger King along with McDonald’s, Wendy’s and KFC, all of whom have upgraded their own chicken sandwiches.
The company is hoping to have a similar impact with chicken nuggets, or at least executives are promising a product far better than others on the market. “We have invested the time to perfect a product that leverages our classic techniques and Louisiana flavors that will change how people think about and experience with chicken nuggets,” Amy Alarcon, vice president of culinary innovation for Popeyes, said in a statement.
Nuggets, made popular by giant McDonald’s, have become almost as common in the industry as the chicken sandwich.
Their introduction seems a natural for a chain eager to continue expanding its customer base away from bone-in chicken consumers toward those who eat chicken in the car on the way home from work.
The nuggets are made from white meat and made with a special flour and batter system. They’re available in classic flavor and can be paired with several sauces including Bayou Buffalo, BoldBQ, Blackened Ranch, Buttermilk Ranch, Mardi Gras Mustard and Sweet Heat.
The company says that the nuggets are made “beginning to the end” every day in the restaurant.
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