The nationwide buzz over Popeyes new fried chicken sandwich has made business so brisk for the restaurant chain that a franchisee in Chesterfield County, Virginia, was prompted to declare a moratorium after Saturday on the tasty sandwich.
The general manager of that Popeyes restaurant said business has been at a frenzied pace for the past few days, but while he’s welcomed the extra income, he’s wary of how the increased attention affects service.
“To tell the truth, I’m thinking about stopping sandwich orders after [Saturday],” he said. “I can’t even sell regular chicken orders because customers are packing the place for the chicken sandwich.
“Thursday, when they started coming through the drive in and standing in long lines inside the store, we sold 750 sandwiches,” the affable manager said. “As of Saturday, the number had risen to 1,200 sandwiches sold a day” — a boon at nearly $4 each.
He said his store has also had to offset its sandwich meat supply to assist other stores.
He added the social media craze over the sandwiches enabled the store to forego its own campaign plans for the new menu item, which consists simply of a lightly spiced chicken breast on a toasted bun with pickles and mayonnaise.
“The sandwiches have been selling in advance of the advertising campaign,” the manager said. “We didn’t expect this kind of response, but it’s been good.”
