Tag: Popeyes

What are Popeyes Twisty Wicked Shrimp and Smoky Garlic Tartar Sauce

According to the webs, this takes the Cajun chicken chain’s shrimp (seasoned with a blend of salt, pepper, onion, garlic, cayenne pepper, and bay leaf) and jazzes things up by marinating the little buggers in sriracha. You know, for the promised wickedness. These caustic crustaceans are paired with a new Smoky Garlic Tartar Sauce, which is, well, smokier and more garlicky than any tartar sauce that came before it.

How is it?

NOT HOT. If you’re an avid capsaicinophile hoping that this new offering will set your mouth on fire, you’ll likely be let down. I can handle (and enjoy) a decent amount of heat, but perhaps more importantly to this review, I am sensitive to spice, and I can tell you, without fear of killing the weakest among you, that you will be able to eat this shrimp comfortably.

I was disappointed with the lack of heat, but not with the shrimp itself. The pieces were large, the seasoning familiar in its Popeyesicity (not sure I can detect the bay leaf buried deep in there, though), and the breading added the perfect amount of crunch.

The real revelation was the Smoky Garlic Tartar sauce, which, oddly enough, seemed to pack a heat the shrimp did not. The dip was nuanced —- a light sweetness contrasted with a heavy dill-ness, imbued with the aforementioned punch that was… maybe the smokiness? I’m not sure. But in short, it provided a nice compliment to the straight-forward, not-that-wicked shrimp.

Anything else you need to know?

As you can see in the picture above, my sauce didn’t come in one of the pre-packaged sauce containers as shown in promo pics, and the first time I went, they didn’t have the sauce at all. So, I guess what I’m saying is: if you live far away from a Popeyes and you’re interested in this, maybe call ahead. Because, while the shrimp is decent, it’s the sauce that really completes the experience.

Conclusion:

If you’re an avid Popeye’s connoisseur, check it out. If you don’t get to Popeye’s all that often, get the chicken sandwich instead. Or the chicken. But seriously, the sandwich. Have you had that thing? Like Uncle Jesse always said, “have mercy.”

Purchased Price: $6.30
Size: N/A
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: Unavailable on Popeyes’ website

What is the Popeyes Raspberry Cheesecake Fried Pie

It’s a single serving deep-fried pie with raspberry and cheesecake filling that joins the classic apple on Popeyes’ dessert menu for a limited time.

How is it?

I’ll level with you here – Popeyes isn’t the first place that comes to mind when I think “dessert.” To be fair, it’s also not the first place that comes to mind when I think “chicken” despite the fact that there’s a Popeyes closer to my house than KFC.

It’s not that I have anything against Popeyes. As a matter of fact, I think its spicy chicken sandwich is amazing. It’s really more that it’s in the opposite direction from everywhere else I usually travel. Out of sight, out of mind, I guess.

Regardless, this pie is pretty dang good. Now, fast food pies are kinda my jam. I started ranking fast food restaurants by the quality of their pies as a kid, so believe me when I say that this one is definitely worth seeking out.

It has everything there is to love about a single serving pie, all wrapped up in a cute paper sleeve. You’ve got a flaky, perfectly tender, crisp exterior surrounding smooth, creamy, sweet filling. The raspberry flavor comes through loud and clear and is excellently complemented by the rich, creamy cheesecake accompaniment.

If I have one criticism, it’s this: If this pie had been billed as “Raspberry Cream” rather than “Raspberry Cheesecake,” I wouldn’t have known the difference. There wasn’t enough tang to qualify as cream cheese. While there was nothing wrong with the pale side of the filling (side note, the line down the middle was perfect in my pie, ensuring an equal and even distribution of both flavors), it just didn’t read as “cheesecake” to me. If that’s a big detractor for you, keep it in mind but don’t let it stop you from giving this pie a shot.

If I have another, quasi related criticism, it’s that a hint of acid would’ve taken this pie from an 8 to a 10. Just that little tart bite you get from a raspberry or a kiss of lemon to round out all that sweetness and cut through the richness of the filling would’ve made all the difference.

Anything else you need to know?

This sweet treat is only available for a limited time at participating locations.

Conclusion:

Popeyes’ Raspberry Cheesecake Fried Pie is a deep-fried pocket of deliciousness sure to satisfy your sweet tooth. Unless you hate raspberries.

Purchased Price: 99 cents
Size: 1 pie (87g)
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (87g) 310 calories, 19 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 60 milligrams of cholesterol, 290 milligrams of sodium, 32 grams of carbohydrates, 1 grams of fiber, 22 grams of sugar, and 4 grams of protein.

I haven’t set foot in a Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen for around, sadly, a decade, since stopping at a Denver location that was a few blocks from my former favorite record store (Twist and Shout, if you’re interested). Even back then, however, I always thought that, when it comes to fried chicken, with its Louisiana-inspired seasonings and spices, Popeyes was the best in the biz.

When I received word that Popeyes was taking on Chick-fil-A with its own version of the heralded chicken sandwich that has made the Chick-fil-A so popular for so long, I knew it was finally time to rekindle my passionate taste for Popeyes once again.

The sandwich is pretty basic, especially when you read about it in print: a large chunk of boneless fried chicken, placed on a “buttered bun” with a few pickles and (spicy) mayo. Of course, it comes in two variations, classic and spicy. I undoubtedly went the latter, as it was originally Popeyes spicy fried chicken that I had always devoured.

Delivered to me in a foil-like silver bag, the first thing I noticed was how gratuitous this sandwich truly is. Popeyes already beats the chicken skin off of not only Chick-fil-A but just about every fast food chicken sandwich on the market with the sheer largesse of this New Orleans-style beast. I mean, it’s shocking how heavy the thing is. For only $3.99, even if the sandwich is just okay, you’re still getting your money’s worth.

But, you know, the Popeyes Chicken Sandwich is not okay… it’s mother-clucking fantastic!

It’s probably the best (non-gimmicky) chicken sandwich I’ve had in a long time. Every blessed bite is a mouthful of crispy fried skin and tender white meat, all coated with that special Popeyes seasoning that I have missed for so long. Every juicy sliver of meat is spiced with enough heat to not overdo it, but without that overly “greased” feeling that seems to buckle down a lot of fast food chicken.

(If I’m being honest though, I did squeeze a couple of packages of Louisiana Hot Sauce on top for a little additional down-home warmth.)

With a couple of mild pickles and a small dab of spicy mayo for taste — not to mention the very firm, very plump, and very rich buttered buns — it doesn’t need all the unnecessary hoopla so many other sandwiches do and, maybe, that’s the thing I love so much about Popeyes Chicken Sandwich.

With basically a strongly empowered piece of fried chicken and very little else, Popeyes may have crafted the chicken sandwich of the year — and if you don’t believe me, well, then it’s your loss, champ. Cómpralo ya!

Purchased Price: $3.99
Size: N/A
Rating: 10 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: Not available on the Popeyes website that keeps crashing my browser.

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When I opened my Popeyes box with the new Sweet & Crunchy Tenders, it smelled as if I opened a box of donuts.

That’s due to the shortbread cookie coating on the all white meat chicken. Yes, I did just type these have a cookie coating and, no, I did not misspell “shortening cooked coating” or “shorthair cat coating.”

From what I could tell, there aren’t shortbread cookie pieces in the coating, but these have a jaw-rattling crunch. If you examine a piece, it looks like the hardened skin of a golden brown Godzilla protecting the perfectly cooked chicken underneath. But after eating all three tenders in the box, I realized it might be too crunchy because I ended up with a mild case of Cap’n Crunch Mouth.

The coating has a noticeable sweetness, but it doesn’t remind me of shortbread cookies or, sadly, donuts. Being shortbread, I was expecting a butteriness, but I didn’t taste any.

I haven’t had other Popeyes products that had a sweet coating, like the Chicken Waffle Tenders and Southern Fair Chicken Tenders, so I also can’t say these remind me of any of their previous limited time offerings. But I can say, if by some chance your Popeyes forgets to include a sauce with your tenders, eating them sans sauce won’t be too bad.

While the sweet and savory tenders are good enough that they could be eaten without sauce, they are wonderful with the Smokin’ Pepper Jam Sauce. When I tasted it by itself with my pinky finger, it instantly reminded me of the sweet chili sauce that comes with the spring rolls from my favorite Thai restaurants. It’s slightly more sweet than peppery and when combined with the tenders it enhances the shortbread coating’s sweetness and adds a nice peppery element as a contrast to the sweetness.

Popeyes Sweet & Crunchy Tenders with Smokin’ Pepper Jam Sauce is a great tasting limited time offering. Even though it gave me Cap’n Crunch Mouth. I’d recommend giving it a try while it’s around.

So now that Popeyes has a coating made from cookies, maybe the chicken chain could try making one with another snack — potato chips.

(Nutrition Facts – Not available on website.)

Purchased Price: $7.00* (meal)
Size: N/A
Rating: 8 out of 10
Pros: Smells like donuts. Coating is made with frickin’ shortbread cookies. Crunchy. Smokin’ Pepper Jam Sauce is wonderful and reminds me of sweet chili sauces for Thai spring rolls.
Cons: Might be too crunchy; gave me a mild case of Cap’n Crunch mouth. Limited time offering.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.

Living in New York, I’ve watched firsthand fried chicken get gentrified. Over the last few years yuppies and foodies and rich people have been trying to perfect fried chicken.

It’s akin to making the best mafia movie or writing the consummate coming-of-age novel or creating the perfect sports moment when, in this very world, there already exists The Godfather II, The Catcher in the Rye, and The Mark Sanchez Buttfumble, respectively. Why pay $100 for the Momofuku fried chicken when you could get on the L train and get a bucket of Popeyes, the perfect fried chicken, for one-tenth the price? (For the record, I have tried the Momofuku fried chicken dinner – feel free to skip it.)

I’m glad to see Popeyes is reclaiming the fried chicken media spotlight with a brand new product. Thankfully they’re making no claims on improving their already perfect fried chicken; Popeye’s is clearly just unveiling the new Chicken Waffle Tenders to try and capitalize on the recent chicken & waffles flavor craze. Their chicken breast strips are marinated in the regular mix of spices before being battered and fried in a “waffle-style coating”. I already like the chicken tenders on Popeyes everyday menu, so I was excited to taste their latest limited time item.

A coworker joined me in my recent foray to Popeyes, as I figured his British accent and sensibilities might add additional snark to the already snarky process of review writing. Our combo meals came with three Waffle Tenders, along with a biscuit, small side, fountain drink, and cup of honey maple dipping sauce. A Waffle Tender was noticeably darker in color and oilier in texture compared to the regular tender I bought as a point of comparison, though both had the same delicious, but depressing smell of fast food grease (I’m sure they came out of the same fryer).

As for taste, the Waffle Tenders were really quite good. The meat was moist and well-seasoned, and pieces with concentrated areas of batter had a faint but distinctive sweet, yeasty flavor. While regular Popeyes tenders tend to taper off at each end, resulting in dry and almost too-crunchy parts of chicken, the waffle ones had more uniformity in the width of the meat, so they were consistent in their moistness and crunchiness.

I also enjoyed the Honey Maple dipping sauce. For some reason I had expected something with a mustard base, but the sauce was thick with the consistency and color of actual honey. The dipping sauce was sweet without approaching saccharine and even added a touch of tanginess to the proceedings.

What about the opinion of my cheeky coworker? He claimed, “It was like eating a sponge filled with grease, but in a very good way.” He had a point – the Waffle Tenders were clearly greasier than the regular ones, and I felt a little sick after eating all three.

Still, it’s something of a silly complaint since no one goes to Popeyes expecting to down a healthy meal that soothes an upset stomach. If that’s what you’re expecting us to review, maybe you should go start your own quasi-review website. (FYI, thedeliberateandsensiblebuy.com is available for $10.99 on GoDaddy.) Stay away from the gentrified fried chicken places, get down to your local Popeyes, and try the Chicken Waffle Tenders as soon as you can.

(Nutrition Facts – Not available on Popeyes’ website.)

Other Popeyes Chicken Waffle Tenders reviews:
Grub Grade
Brand Eating
Thrillist

Item: Popeyes Chicken Waffle Tenders
Purchased Price: $5.99 (for 3 piece combo)
Size: N/A
Purchased at: Popeyes
Rating: 8 out of 10
Pros: Meat was tasty and well-seasoned, with consistent moistness and crunchiness. Sweet, yeasty flavor occasionally shone through. Honey Maple dipping sauce was sweet and tangy. Waffle Tenders combo meal is a great deal. Mark Sanchez jokes. British snarkiness. Everything at Momofuku except for the fried chicken.
Cons: Really greasy. You’ll probably get a stomachache. Gentrification of fried chicken. Being a Jets fan. Forcing your coworkers to go to Popeyes. Thedeliberateandsensiblebuy.com.