This summer has been the summer of chicken sandwich memes. Chick-Fil-A has held the top spot for America’s favorite chicken sandwich but, with the recent release of Popeyes very own version which some say give the “Home of the Original Chicken Sandwich” a run for its money. This new chicken sandwich featuring crispy fried chicken breast in mild or spicy, pickles and mayo on a soft brioche bun. Sounds delicious right? The internet thought so it became a full fledge meme in just days after its release. Chick-fil-a was not having it and threw a little shade at the Popeyes franchise threw a tweet. Don’t let the heart fool you Chick-fil-a went out of its way to note that when it comes to fast-food chicken sandwiches, they are “the original.” Popeyes kept it simple and responded with a simple “…y’all good?” These where the first two tweet leading up to the major beef between the two.
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The internet was flooded with memes on every platform from Twitter to Facebook. Everybody had a say about who really had the “best” chicken sandwich. The debate even went as far as bringing politics into the discussion. In 2012, the company claimed it would “leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government.” Yet they continued to donate to anti-LGBTQ charities.
This added even more fuel to the fire eater saying they won’t support a restaurant that supports the oppression of others. This gave Popeyes the upper hand in the sandwich battle. Chicken sandwich eaters all over wanted to try a Popeyes chicken sandwich. The demand was so high they sold out. This left customers outraged with responses like “Chick-fil-a would never” the main question was “how do you run out of chicken.” Leaving some customers running back to Chick-fil-a.
So, who really won the sandwich war? The answer is both with all this social media attention both restaurants received flocks of hungry customers to the store resulting in long lines and product shortage. Therefore, both franchises made millions by playing their cards right on social media.
By: Crystal Robinson
Ms. Harner's EN100 Blog 