Fine Dining - Popeyes History feat. Sierra Katow (Stand-Up Comedian, TV Chef Fantasy League) [Part One]

Episode Date: July 24, 2024

The stories from the sandwich launch are wild! I went to Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen with stand-up comedian Sierra Katow, but before reviewing the place we have to go over the franchise history The Eat Deets unveil founder Al Copeland's master plan to charge the company a "spice royalty" after he was ousted from leadership The Secret Menu: Villainous Treats Beyoncé has a "free Popeyes for life" situation going, but she's too embarrassed to use it A chronicling of the abject chaos that erupted upon the release of Popeyes chicken sandwich A Yelper expresses grave concern over a manager in front of the restaurant working on their black Mercedes in their work-issued gloves and apron in this week's Yelp from Strangers "Fine" Dining is now on video! Head on over to my YouTube to watch this episode! Music by: James McEnelly (@Ramshackle_Music) Theme Song by: Kyle Schieffer (@JazzyJellyfish) Segment Transitions Voiced by: Sandy Rose "Fine" Dining is on Patreon! Get an extra episode every month (Now's a great chance to catch the Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers episode with my friend Herbert before using that information to fill out your Septemburger 2024 bracket in a little over a month), extended Yelp from Strangers segments every other week, merch discounts, download access to our music including the 7 singles from our Olive Garden musical, and more! Patreon Producers: Joyce Van, & Sue Ornelas   Get the 5 Survival Tips for Casual Dining at www.finediningpodcast.com!   Send in your Popeyes stories at [e-mail].   Follow the show on TikTok and Instagram @finediningpodcast Follow Sierra on Instagram and TikTok @sierrakatow   Let me know where I should go next by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, PodcastAddict, Overcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. I read every one!   Next week on "Fine" Dining: Popeyes Review [Part Two]! Sierra Katow returns to help me try a bunch of the different ways Popeyes does chicken: sandwich, wings, traditional fried, etc.! Ever work at Popeyes? Send your stories to [e-mail].

On this unprecedented episode of the fine dining podcast, Are you speaking truth to power? You're talking about chicken. I know, I know. In formation, she doesn't shout out Popeye, she shouts out red lobster. Spice royalty also sounds like something out of Dune. Hello and welcome back to the fine dining podcast, the search for the most mediocre restaurant in America.

I'm your host Michael Ornelas and I am back once again looking for a restaurant that most defines what it means to be mid. And I'm reclaiming the word mid because I consider myself excessively mediocre and we live in a world where mid is being thrown around as an insult, as a jab against things, as though it means bad. But it doesn't. Bad means bad.

Mid means the absence of bad, but also the absence of good. Just like me. This week, I am joined by a guest who is decidedly not mid. Stand-up comedian, you can check out her brand new stand up comedy, hour long special on Apple TV called font, which is a name that definitely stands out for obvious reasons, but it's not what you think. Oh yeah, that's true.

Thank you, Michael. Yes. Yes. Sierra Cato. Hello. Hey, it's so great to be here. I love, yeah, I love your defense of mid. I think that is true. I, you know, we should be allowed to just be happy in the middle. Yeah, exist in averageness. Yeah. Yeah. And this week's restaurant, I feel kind of enshrines that idea because we got fast food. Hell yeah. that idea because we got fast food. Hell yeah.

Mm, mm. So we have a nemesis in the studio with us. There is a fly that snuck in. Another guest. When I opened the door. And y'all probably won't hear it, but it is going to be the bane of my existence for both this week and next week's episode most likely.

I mean, it's definitely a rather chunky fly. You know, I haven't seen such a big boy. He probably came from Popeyes. Yeah, yeah, probably followed definitely a rather chunky fly. You know, I haven't seen such a big boy. He probably came from Popeyes. Yeah, yeah. He probably followed us from the parking lot. And hey, that's commitment. But yeah, so we went to Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen.

Wow, yeah, that's right. That's the full name of this place. I didn't recognize that, but you're right. I think that was written on like the decor. It was everywhere. I should have known. I don't think they, but you're right. I think that was written on like the decor. It was everywhere. I should have known. I don't think they've earned the right necessarily to have a name that sounds so classy.

Sure, sure. We'll have to consult the people of Louisiana, I think, maybe, for them to lend their name. We'll pull them. Did you guys approve this? Did you guys know they're using that? Yeah. Yeah, but we did go to Popeyes, Louisiana kitchen. We went to Popeyes.

And so, for those of you new to the show, this is a part one episode. I do all of my restaurants in two parts. Part one, we're gonna cover the history of this franchise and then we're gonna go into some silly Yelp reviews of the specific location that we went to. And then next week you'll be able to hear us recount our experience at Popeyes, the atmosphere,

the service, the food, all that good stuff. But in the meantime, let's jump to our intro theme song. Not to impress! Your table is ready Complementary butter and bread These walls have growth signs Knit-knack cowboy hat Good luck at autographed guitar Some grab from your city Behold the tchotchke of mediocrity Fine dining

Just fine dining, fine dining Two letters on the sign are shining Neon flickering, irregular timing. Identify the perfect fine. Pal Sarah, we went to Popeyes, you knew nothing about it beforehand going in. I went in blind. I mean, what was I thinking, really? But I'm gonna educate you. Okay.

I'm just gonna read three and a half pages of notes in your direction and just sit back, find them interesting. And if you don't. If I don't, what happens? I have, no. Do I? I'll just keep reading. Okay. Like, yeah, like waterboarding. I'll just keep throwing facts until you're't, I'll just keep reading like it like yeah, like waterboarding.

I'll just keep throwing. I'm glad that you're like, okay. Yeah, no, I will. I will definitely, uh, someday go into Popeyes with a fresh eyes. As they say, fresh Popeyes. All right. We're going to jump into this week's eat deets. Eatery Details. Founded in 1972 in a New Orleans suburb by Al Copeland, originally called Chicken on

the Run. It has that weird preposition thing, right? Where you're like, who's on the run? Am I on the run or is my food on the run? And it's very different. The air of mystery. And before you know it, you're at the counter and you're like, oh, I guess it's my turn to order.

Right, right, right. Yeah. They rebranded to Popeye's Mighty Good Chicken after a few months of poor sales. So at least a few months in, they were like, all right, we're not going to stick our feet in on this. We'll pivot. Yeah, yeah.

They were willing to kill their babies and just change to Popeye's for some weird reason. I love that expression. Yeah. yeah, they were willing to kill their babies and just change to Popeyes for some weird reason. I love that expression. Yeah, kill the child. Kill their babies. Kill their darlings, whatever you want. Popeyes was named after Popeye Doyle, a fictional detective from the 1971 movie

The French Connection, and not Popeye the Sailor. Outlandish. Yeah, I definitely would have thought it was Popeye the Sailor, especially mighty good chicken. Doesn't it sound like the flexing of the muscle? Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But, um, yeah, I don't even know who Popeye Doyle is. Can you imagine he just eats a piece of fried chicken and then like his muscles just awoo-ga, like whatever they do and like. Right. I mean, it would have been a whole different guy. No more, none of the spinach, like eat your veggies message, right?

It'd be eat your chicken. Eat your fried chicken, specifically. Okay. I mean, that is kind of the takeaway America ended up taking. Like, look at us. Look at us. We are not eating our spinach. Right, right, right. We're just gonna stuff some chicken into our face and see what happens. Despite not being named for the Sailor, Popeyes did pay to use the cartoon characters from the show

in their marketing for 35 years. Which, I don't know if they did it from their inception, but that would put them roughly like 2007 is when they stopped. Oh, OK. Yeah, because I feel like I associated the two, even though maybe that was just because of the name. But I'm sure that was on a bag or something at some point. I didn't really start eating Popeyes with any regularity until they introduced the sandwich.

I'd maybe had it two or three times in my life before then. I thought you were gonna say until they brought Popeye the Sailor into the equation. Then I took it seriously. No, I think like after the fact. Right after. Because the sandwich came around in what, like 2019 maybe?

Oh, you're right, that was the big. It was like a big thing. Yeah, 2019 I think, I remember because I remember exactly where I was when I found that out. When they say like, you'll remember where you were from this moment on. You're like, I'll remember exactly where I was

when Popeyes announced a chicken sandwich. It was such a big thing, because I remember a coworker was like really into it. And like I was all, I was seeing it on Instagram and I was, I think, yeah, it was 2019. And you know, I also remember where I was during 9-11 and Popeyes chicken sandwich, so there you go. I mean, I do remember where I was on 9-11.

I remember a specific thing like during that day, but not like at the moment of it happening. Yeah, I guess the moment, I don't know, because I think I was in school and they like made an announcement. So that could have been after. I think it was, I was on the West Coast. Anyway, Popeyes chicken sandwich though.

9-11. Yeah, yeah, not as devastating. Where were you? Not as devastating. Yeah, yeah. Copeland grew up poor and often joked that he was too poor to afford an apostrophe, hence Popeyes rather than Popeyes possessive.

Okay, yes, right, plural Popeyes. Which I guess means you're paying per letter on the sign or trademarking or whatever it is. Yeah, is that really a big difference, I guess? I mean, definitely a sign if you're getting some nice neon. If you're paying like per, each thing is its own neon letter, I get it, but. Yeah, I always wonder about that.

Because sometimes you drive by, I've seen hotels where I think it used to be a Comfort Inn and then they just change it to like, Com... Come Inn. Yeah, and you're like, yeah, that still works, I guess. It's not come with an E, it's like, come in, because I just got rid of the fort. At least it's not with a U.

Yeah, you're just like, yeah, it's something. Yeah, at least it's not with a U, right? That's true, but it certainly could be if somebody just knocks out the right area of the oak. Like, OP three light bulbs. Pretty soon. But yeah, I always wonder what the sign, you know, economy is like. Yeah. Well, I've actually prepared an entire four page eat deeds.

Oh, good. Sign economy. Sign economy. Yeah. I know I was in the right place. The Love That Chicken From Popeye's tagline was adopted in 1980. I didn't realize it was that old. I actually thought it was a shift because I remember the jingle being Popeyes Louisiana fast, but they took that same jingle and have now adapted it into Love That Chicken From Popeyes. Beautifully sung. Thank you.

But yeah, I yeah, it feels like it fits Love That Chicken From Popeyes. I don't think I could ever imagine anything else being there. Yeah, that's that's an interesting. But I wonder if they sang it originally or if it was just love that chicken for Popeyes. And then they started singing Louisiana fast. And then I don't know. I don't know what the right right. I haven't gone through all of their ads. Right. Right. Right. I'm thinking sign economy. You're thinking jingle economy.

What's going on there? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Jingle history. By 1985, Popeyes already had 500 locations. So in 13 years, pretty solid growth. Yeah. Yeah. I'd be happy if I had 500 of anything that I started with one 13 years later. Yeah, what's that like? Yeah, I mean, I wonder how many of those,

were they clustered? You wanna know where on the map they're going, I guess. But that is a lot. It's like 500 managers and thousands of employees. Yeah, it's a lot. It does seem like I assume they're in every state or close to it. Like they are everywhere. I feel like the fact that it's out here when it's something there's just not, you know, especially something that made its way from Louisiana, New Orleans to here is like a bigger deal because I feel like there's just not, you know, especially something that made its way from Louisiana, New Orleans, to here is like a bigger deal because I feel like there's just not a lot of that crossover direction sometimes. So, yeah, even though fast food chain, so more likely, but.

In 1989, Popeyes bought out Church's Chicken and formed a single company, America's Favorite Chicken Company, which is a very lazy name. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like, what are, yeah, whatever. Yeah, whatever, fuck it. Do they need to be voted that? Or I guess they just, they didn't care about the lettering there. Look, you can trademark whatever.

Okay, okay, good. You can claim, how many places have you been where it's like voted best in LA and it's like, bye. Number one, I know, I know. Your mom doesn't count. Right, right, they invented a new trophy for themselves to hang on the wall. Much like I invented this championship belt.

Oh my God, it's beautiful. For a September girl. That's totally fine. That's new, I don't know if anyone watching at home picked that up in the opening shot, but there is a September girl championship belt. I mean, as much as I, yeah, this is, you can see a reflection in it, it's just beautiful.

I spit shine it every day. I saw that, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's what I walked in on when I was, when I came, I was like, whoa, am I in the wrong place? You made a mistake. Yeah, yeah, is this the guy? In 1991, they opened their first international location in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

I feel like also like in Malaysia, being your first international is like a pretty big deal. There's a lot of like, so Malaysia, being your first international is like a pretty big deal. Well, there's a lot like so Malaysia, Indonesia, like the Philippines and then like United Arab Emirates are all places that have really adopted American chains. And there's places that have gone out of business long ago here that are thriving over there. Oh, amazing. Amazing. I see. So that could be. Yeah. It's just it's just interesting to to see what grabs on to cultures. KFC is huge in China and Japan. Oh yeah, I know there's a big thing of Christmas time.

They marketed, get your Christmas KFC, and they're like, yeah, sure. I guess that's what they do in America. Well, it's funny because they marketed, oh, this is what Americans do. And so they were trying to, but it's like, we don't. We definitely don't do that. But hey, I mean, I don't know what they do.

Yeah, so that pretty pretty smart marketing. I was in Japan for a New Year's in 20 like I think 19 going into 20 or 18 going into 19. Few years back whatever and I flew in from like the 20 I left on the 29th got in like at the end of the 30th because of the time change again like 17 hours So I like skipped a day and then my buddy and I were gonna go to the port of Yokohama for the big firework show for New Year's and we go and They do the firework show at midnight But apparently it's a part of the culture there that you stay up till sunrise not till midnight

Oh, and I was so jet- lagged that we were just like, nope. Yeah, yeah. What time would it be? Yeah, that is a lot. Yeah. But that's cool. That's the one thing about their culture that I know. But then you think about Land of the Rising Sun.

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't know if it's named after that, but like, Sunrise is definitely. Yeah, more of a thing. A thing, yeah. Yeah, yeah, no, I mean, that's good. So now we would know if they try to market us that they eat KFC on New Year's. Yeah.

Be like, no, they watch the sunrise. Yeah. It's different over there. Can't fool me. Yeah, I've seen the sunrise in Japan or not, but you get the idea. That same year, the chain filed for bankruptcy caused by over-expansion mostly due to buying churches out,

leading to massive debt. The company reorganized, leading to one of founder Al Copeland's most ingenious and hilarious moves. Essentially, the bankruptcy forced Copeland to step down as CEO, though he remained a franchise owner of a few Popeyes. More importantly, he established a company

called Diversified Foods and Seasonings, DFS. DFS had an exclusive contract to provide the food, like batter, spice combinations, etc. to Popeyes locations everywhere. This meant that Copeland could charge Popeyes a $3.1 million per year spice royalty, essentially forcing Popeyes to rent their recipes from him. The chain paid this exorbitant royalty until 2014, six years after he had died. And in 2014, they were finally able to negotiate

a $43 million deal to purchase their own recipes back from DFS and Copeland's estate. Holy shit. That is crazy. I mean, yeah, Spice royalty also sounds like something out of like Dune or like a site, you know? back from DFS and Copeland's estate. Holy shit, that is crazy. I mean, yeah, spice royalty also sounds like something out of like Dune or like, you know, it's like that's like some villainous. Villainous. He's oh, no. You said you said the word shit.

No, not yet. Villainous villainous. Uh, yeah. Do you know what that means? It's going to unlock the secret menu, the mini game here on the Fine Dining Podcast. Our category is villainous treats. We're going to slingshot back and forth jokes, our favorite villainous treats.

Examples of that being, what's in the box of chocolates? Or Voldemortadella. Oh, I like that. Or like block out the sunflower seeds. Get creative with it. Block out the sunflower seeds. Yeah, tell us who you thought won in the comments and leave your own villainous treat.

If you leave my favorite one, you can DM me. You can email me, fine dining podcast at gmail.com after I announced that you won and I'll give you a free fine dining t-shirt Congratulations to YouTube commenter at elevator lasagna for your submission to the category big boy foods With Michael Clarke Duncan doughnuts you can be the proud owner of a brand new fine dining t-shirt all you got to do Hit me up on Instagram or tik-tok at fine dining podcast or email me fine dining podcast at gmail.com. And I will get that sent your way.

Everyone else. Thanks for playing and good luck with villainous treats. I'll let you go first. We're going to go in three, two, one. Dictator tots. It's very 10 out of 10. It's right there. Mwahaha. Dictator Tots. It's very... Ten out of ten. It's right there. Muahahaha!

Avocado! That works, that works. I'm gonna make you cringe so much. Hey, it's good. I love that one. Um, Lox Luther? It was right there the whole time and I didn't see it. Yeah, all of Superman.

Hannibal Lectureen? Num num num. Delicious, yeah. I just want to eat him like a cannibal. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He does that. That's crazy. Pole Pot Roast.

That just sounds good. Hey. Heist Tea. Beautiful. Senator Palpoutine. Ah, this one's just cute. Piedentity fraud. The tastiest fraud. Yeah, yeah, you're right. You're right. How about Osama Bin Laden Typhoon? Make sure you bite the dumpling and drink the soup before you commit terrorism.

As they say. Yeah. Yeah. All right. That's our minute. We lost some steam at the end, but I think we got it. Yeah. Yeah. So let, let us know who you think won. Comment yours below and I will send my favorite one, a fine dining t-shirt. Back to the eat deets. In 1999, they passed the $1 billion per year sales mark for the first time. So not profit, just revenue. In 2003, Beyonce revealed that Popeyes gave her a lifetime membership card for Free Chicken after they heard she was a fan.

She said she's been too embarrassed to actually use it though. Oh, interesting. Yeah, I would wonder. Okay, because obviously whenever I hear them give out things like that, I'm like, I hope they're using them, but I could see it being a little strange because what if you go in? I mean, she's Beyonce, so that's a little bit of a different story. Like, I feel like people would just give her free food anyway.

Well, I wonder if it means I'm too embarrassed to go to Popeyes or I'm too embarrassed to accept free Popeyes. Like, imagine they give her free Popeyes for life. She's like, I'm never going again. Yeah, yeah, you're right. Well, I also am wondering if it's like, well, has she been going before?

That's how they found out. Yeah. Then also, I will say this, in formation, she doesn't shout out Popeyes, she shouts out Red Lobster. Yeah. So did Red Lobster give her full lifetime lobster? I hope so. Well, but also the line is, if he fucks me good,

I take his ass to red lobster. Maybe if it's just OK, it's like you get Popeyes. Wow. Because of affordability, not because because because it's like monetary value. Yeah. Like I'm rewarding you with I'm spending more on it. I think hers, that red lobster shout out like saved their business for a hot second, even though I think they're still bankrupt. The all you can eat shrimp or something, messed it up, but yeah, I mean, sure.

So Popeyes is more like, eh, you're okay. Yeah, sure, why not? Let's just get a couple chicken. Do you think if she had shouted out Popeyes instead, they would have incorporated a lemonade? I mean, they still should. I mean, yeah. Popeyes, get on it. But you're right, you're right. I mean, it's less. They still should. Popeyes, get on it.

But you're right, you're right. I mean, it's less of a topical album now. Yeah, missed opportunity. But yeah, retroactive, we'll still accept. In 2008, Al Copeland, that's when he passed away from cancer. Oh, right, right, right. While still licensing out the Spice Royals. Still.

Yeah, yeah. I like to imagine he was literally buried and they had an open casket and he's just like... out the spice royalty. Still. Or whatever. Yeah, yeah. Still twirling. I like to imagine he was literally buried and they had an open casket and he's just like in the- Yeah, yeah. Still collecting cash from Popeyes managers. Not a donation, but a coffer that's just like- Right, right.

Put your spice royalties here. That same year, Popeyes rebranded to emphasize their Louisiana roots, maybe to differentiate themselves from a growing number of fast food chicken places. So they kind of got away from the Popeyes, like Popeye the Sailor Man look. And we're just like, we're digging into the Louisiana culture. In 2009, Popeyes introduces feisty spokesperson Annie

on national television to tell it like it is. That's how they phrased it. Yeah, yeah. You know we love our feisty tell it like it is. That's how they phrased it. Yeah, yeah. You know we love our feisty tell it like it is. Yeah, but like tell it like it is. Like, are you speaking truth to power? You're talking about chicken. I know, I know.

She says, hey, this chicken is from Louisiana. In 2010, Popeyes beat out KFC in a national taste test. That doesn't surprise me. That's a big. America's favorite chicken, living up to the name. In 2011, Popeyes had 2,000 restaurants. Okay, so they're expanding from their 500, and then did they continue to do international, I wonder?

I guess, right? I'm certain, yeah, yeah, yeah. So that's counting everything, okay, got it. Yeah, I just made mention of the first international one. It's not the only. Okay, okay OK, yeah. In 2017, they were bought out by Restaurant Brands International. Lazy, lazy names. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Generic as can be for one point eight billion dollars. And usually when you get bought by like

like a conglomerate like that, that's usually the start of the decline. Oh, I see. Yeah, because it kind of loses its identity a little. Pie. Yeah. The identity. Yeah. I feel like I mean, that's what happened with Red Lobster. John Oliver did a whole segment. Did you see it on Red Lobster? Yeah, that's kind of the only thing I know.

Yeah. But like, it's crazy how they'll get bought out by a shell corporation who then sells the restaurants to their own real estate company and then like rents them back to the right, right so the They're just bleeding them dry. Yeah. Yeah, it's not sort of like it's a death spiral And a lot of like the brands that we grew up loving are kind of going through that I mean, it's why Toys R Us is no longer around and like Toys R Us was a magical place for me Oh, yeah. I was sad to see it go. They killed the giraffe.

They chopped his head off. They split its throat, but like, because it's so big, they had to like do it like three times. No, they had to do it multiple times. Yeah, it's tough. Getting out a giraffe is not easy. Our childhood, it's just, yeah, ruined. In 2019, they introduced the viral chicken sandwich.

I don't like that phrasing. I don't, the viral chicken sandwich. I don't like that phrasing. Virus on a sandwich. Oh God, you're right. Well, it was 2019, so we weren't thinking about the virus. We weren't too far off. Too far off. Yeah.

We all remember the crazy hype around its release with lines around the block at multiple locations and the chain selling out within two weeks. But do you remember the annoying tweet that started at all? No. On August 19th, 2019, Chick-fil-A tweeted, bun plus chicken plus pickles equals all the love for the original.

Popeyes responded, y'all good? They're just trying to start beef on the internet kind of thing and then draw attention to chicken people. And that was like the age of like all these fast food brands kind of developing their voice on Twitter. Yeah, no, yeah, that's right. Yeah, it was huge on Twitter. I remember where I was that day, that fine day in 2019. August 19th. There's 9-11 and 8-19-19. Those are the two dates that you know. I know. And for the previous generation, it was where were you when Kennedy was assassinated.

And for the Gen Zers, it is where were you when Popeyes dissed Yolga. But that single tweet earned Popeyes 8 billion impressions. That kind of social media reach is supposedly valued at about $87 million. Stop. That's so funny. They're like, well, look, if we had to buy ads for this, we would have to spend $87 million on Twitter. Two words. Y'all good? The tweet is credited with generating the major hype around the sandwich, which Popeyes allegedly spent two years perfecting the recipe for. I hope that that social media manager, whoever tweeted that, got a bonus

that was equivalent to 87 million. I hope they got $87 million. Otherwise. Probably just a college kid too. I know. Who was like. It's an intern. Yeah, who was unpaid.

Probably was like, oh. Yeah, yeah, probably definitely wasn't given anything. Yeah. But you can't deny the success, because we all know Popeyes inspired a multitude of copycats leading KFC, Jack in the Box, and Carl's Jr. to all develop their own version of the Chick-fil-A style sandwich.

Yeah, and I remember going to another branch of Popeyes than the one we went to, like by the freeway kind of thing and just like kind of quietly eating it in my car and being like, okay, I've done it. I've made it. Did you eat it in your car? I did. That's kind of, that's your car? I did. Yeah, yeah. That's kind of, that's where Popeyes is meant.

Sure, yeah, yeah. In the darkness. We'll talk about it next week. Sure. It is so clear that Popeyes is not meant to be dined in. Yeah, yeah. Hmm. Yeah. Yeah. The hype was out of hand. Some employees ended up quitting because they were forced to deal with long lines,

angry customers, and 10-12 hour shifts. Oh wow, yeah, like real burnout. They just didn't have the infrastructure in place to handle the demand for this fucking sandwich. Right, right, right, of that wild tweet. On September 2, 2019, a guy in Houston pulled a gun on employees after they told him the sandwiches were sold out. Oh, hangry am I right?

Eat a Snickers buddy. You're not you. him the sandwiches were sold out. Oh. Hangry, am I right? Eat a Snickers, buddy. You're not you. That would be a great Snickers ad, it's just a dude pulls a gun on Popeyes employees. You think it's a Popeyes commercial. You're not you when you're hungry. Have a Snickers. And they're just like, wait, what? Wait, we're in Popeyes.

This isn't what I wanted. I want this. Well, whenever Snickers and Popeyes team up and they do like a Snickers, you know, dessert or something. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's the commercial. You're welcome. It's so dark. Oh, I love that.

According to court reports, Robuchaw, oh, I guess that's the guy, Robuchaw left the drive-through and went into the lobby of the restaurant. He then allegedly pulled up his shirt displaying a gun and said, I'll shoot this bitch up. Oh, so he was in the drive-through, got so mad and then like went in.

Went in. Gee. Like, so it wasn't even impulsive. It was like. Yeah, I thought it was there and then it was like, okay, what are you gonna rob it? Oh man. He was like, yeah, he had to like pull over.

He had time to cool down and he did not. He did not use that time to cool off. Though it is Houston in the summertime. So there's no cooling off. No cooling, yeah, that's not happening there. After the initial sellout, the restaurant hired 400 new employees to pair for the relaunch.

It wasn't enough. No, yeah, that many people were like, hey, if I get shot on the job. There's 2,000 restaurants, you hired 400 new people. Right, and they're all in Houston. Yeah. On November 4th, a man was stabbed to death in Maryland after he allegedly cut in line for the chicken sandwich.

Oh. Stabbed, you lost your life. You lost your life because you cut someone in line for a chicken sandwich. And people stabbed him. Was it like a mob, like, or was it one other person? Like that's someone's story. Oh my god.

Yeah. On their gravestone. They write the whole thing. Yeah, yeah. Well, like he was the bad guy, but he wasn't the worst guy. He didn't murder. He didn't deserve to be stabbed to death. Punishment did not fit the crime.

And then people leave Popeye sandwiches for him every year. The next day, in downtown LA, a woman smashed up her Mercedes trying to force her way into the drive-through line of a Popeye's. This is getting out of hand. I feel like this is like the purge. This is like Popeye purge right now. Yeah, fuck that Mercedes. I need my Popeye sandwich. You know how they make movie adaptations? Like they just had the Pop-Tart one, the Flamin' Hot Cheetos one?

They should. Let's make a movie on the launch of the Popeye's sandwich. It's like a contagion style like rabid spreading of people. It's 28 days later. We're all developing the rage virus. I need that fucking sandwich. Just ramming your vehicular homicide. Just like stabbing random people for a sandwich.

It's insane. The video is pretty funny. A crowd gathers to jeer at the woman Yeah, yeah, just like stabbing random people for a sandwich. It's insane. The video is pretty funny. A crowd gathers to jeer at the woman as she repeatedly grinds her car against a post trying to get into the drive-thru. What the fuck? So what, was it like, like it was closed, I guess?

Or you mean like there were people in line? I don't know. I'm guessing she was trying to get like butt in or something. I don't know. Just get in the line. Yeah, just wait. It'll be fine. Yeah.

These are some of the most extreme incidents, but there are countless other examples of belligerent customers fighting Popeye's employees over the sandwiches or lack thereof. Oh God. They do not get paid enough for the shit. I would not, yeah, it's like, I don't work here. But one in five locations got one new employee

to deal with it. Oh good, good. One more man to punch down, punch another man. One more victim. I hope, yeah, I hope these were like security guard sized employees. Yeah, try to mess with us. My name's Tank.

Nice. Moving on, did you know that there used to be a few Popeyes buffets scattered throughout the US? No. All you can eat chicken and biscuits for like nine bucks. That's a great deal. The last surviving one in Lafayette, Louisiana, closed in 2021, citing pandemic restrictions on buffets.

Oh, yeah. Buffets weren't doing so hot during that time. You know, I don't think they're going to recover. I think it just made me conscious of like just how much. No. Yeah, especially already. Yeah. germs are already getting your sandwich and everything. You know, it's like you kind of want minimal contact. Yeah. Currently, Popeyes has at least 3,700 locations worldwide. OK. Some differences at Popeyes locations around the world. In China and Korea, the red beans and rice has been remixed into a dessert dish mixed with pineapples, sliced strawberries,

marshmallows, gummy bears, and a cherry and served over ice. Ooh! I mean that was every sense every additional ingredient was kind of... That sounds very Asian. Sure. That really does. I feel like also red bean dessert is very big. So maybe they're like why would red beans be savory? It really does. I feel like also red bean dessert is very big. Sure. Maybe they're like, why would red beans be savory?

What are the fish waffle things with the red bean paste? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, that's big. Yeah, so I feel like they see red bean and they're like, that's dessert time. Let's add some gummy bears. Yeah. That's the thing that weirds me out. Yeah, I was like, pineapples?

Okay, oh, gummy bears. Whoa, every additional ingredient. I try it. Yeah. I don't know if I'd be like, yeah, this is my shit, but I try it. No, yeah, yeah, I was like pineapples. Okay. Oh, gummy bears. Whoa. Every additional ingredient. I try it. Yeah. I don't know if I'd be like, yeah, this is my shit, but I try. Yeah. Yeah. I try it.

Uh, Popeyes in Turkey sells calamari. Whoa. In Singapore, the bestselling dish is the rock sugar honey lime chicken and elsewhere in Asia. The favorite is the Popeyes chicken burger. Oh, chicken burgers. Yeah. And that's it. You're all learned now.

It really puts into context everything that we experienced at Popeyes. You're like, I can make sense of it all now. I know. It's really like my mind is, yeah, the algorithms are coming together. Everything's locking into place. But, you know, yeah, when I sat down, little did I know I was sitting on a piece of history, American history. And that'll do it for this week's Eat Deets.

Okay, so we've covered the history. We have a review to give, but that's gonna be next week. Next week, we will talk about what it was like for us to be in Popeyes. Before we do that, we need to head to Yelp and see what other people thought about their experience at this very Popeyes. In this week's Yelp from Strangers. We need a little Yelp, a little Yelp, a little Yelp from Strangers. A one star, two star, three star, four by yi So get a little Yelp, a little Yelp, a little Yelp from strangers

A little Yelp, a little Yelp Give us those complaints while you literally white and die Yelp! Alright, this is Yelp from Strangers, our segment where we turn to Yelp and read out our favorite one, two, three, four, and five star Yelp reviews of the very Popeyes at which we dined. Two star review. All right, this is a two star review that I'm going to start us off with.

This is from TF from Burbank, California, which I like that thing stands for the fuck. The fuck? Yeah, not brave enough to say their full name. I see first name W March 9th, 2011. This is 13 years old. OK. TF writes, OK, for any viewers slash reviewers who read this, please don't be mad at me. Starting off strong. What I'm about to write is really just a heads up,

but I must let everyone know. This is very funny because it's starting off kind of tentative, but I'm looking at the page and that's a lot of text. And a lot of capital letters. So they're like, like, hey guys, just coming in, dropping in, just give a little heads up,

but I'm gonna write like a page. This is my life story. And I'm gonna write like a page. I'm gonna, this is my life story. Yeah. And I'm gonna be yelling for some of it. I've lived in Burbank for about 17 years. Okay. I've always gone to this Popeyes chain. It's always been satisfactory in quotes. But the food's been pretty good. I've had quick fun conversation with some of the staff throughout the years, namely, I believe he's the manager of the place, a short Hispanic man. Well, namely, but here's not his name at all.

Here's his race. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, I went there this past Monday, 3-7-11. When we drove into the parking lot, I was with my mother. We saw the manager outside of the restaurant with his Popeyes apron on and the plastic gloves he wears to serve chicken on in the restaurant parking lot, working on his black late 80s slash early 90s Mercedes Benz car with the hood up. I'm guessing those were in caps. Those are in caps.

Beautifully. I yell like I've never spoken words before when I'm reading caps. Oh yeah, no, it's great. And it gives the effect. They're like, he's using the same ones that he touched your chicken with in his up all, in his transmission or whatever.

I don't know, car. But I just love that like black late 80s, early 90s Mercedes Benzenz none of that info matters You could have just said car car. I mean every car is dirty. I'm sure every car. I don't want on the chicken Yeah, yeah, I repeat He had his serving food gloves on and his serving food apron on Our mouths were agape-ed.

Agape-ed? Agape-ed. Ooh, interesting. He looked at us sort of like, oops, and suddenly went back into the restaurant. My mom and I thought and said, OMG, I hope he's not gonna go back in the restaurant and serve chicken to us.

What happened? End of paragraph one. Cliffhanger. My mother was driving and parked the car only after we paused and looked at each other like, should we leave? After we had just witnessed this, after a few moments of pondering over should we,

should we not, and growling stomachs, we decided to give it a try. Growling stomachs? I mean, yeah, you can't refuse that. Mom went into the restaurant to order our dinner, and I remained in the car and said a quick prayer regarding the food. OK. According to her, when she went into the restaurant to order, he, the manager that was just working at his MB a minute ago, Mercedes Benz. Oh, right, right. Late 80s, early 90s.

Was back in the... and black. It was black. It was black as well. It was back in the kitchen serving chicken, but this time no gloves at all, which is even worse. And serving food with what might be the same serving food apron on. Five exclamation points. Okay, okay. Obviously, he disposed of the serving food gloves he had

when he was working on his car, but did he wash his hands after disposing of the gloves before cooking and serving the chicken? Bare-handed, three question marks. Or did he just lose the gloves and start serving chicken? Three exclamation marks. Was the same apron he had on when he was working on his car? One question mark.

Or did he quickly put on a new one? Three question marks. I feel like I'm reading like the jacket of a, you know, extreme mystery novel. And you're going to buy this book. Yeah, and I'm like, oh my God, I gotta know. I gotta know. As I said earlier, I've come here many times before with usually no problems.

But this, three question marks, I don't know. At the end of the day, I did eat from this restaurant that day, and I lived to tell about it. Hell yeah, and write a whole page about it. However, just the afterthought of what I saw in terms of cleanliness makes me now question what else is going on there. I will definitely have to think twice now about returning.

I'm not recommending anyone to stop coming to the specific chain, but just be cautious. Be cautious. About the author. Just a heads up, yeah, yeah, really. Two stars from the same author who brought you the mystery under the bridge. Yeah, it's unfortunate that I think they saw that. That being said, I'm like, I think that's every restaurant, folks. It is. It really is.

But yeah, I also was like, well, maybe he's using the disposable gloves and could just pop on new ones, but I guess didn't happen. But he went barehanded. Barehanded. Did he even wash his hands? Three question marks. Maybe he's using the disposable gloves and could just pop on new ones, but I guess didn't happen. But he went barehanded. Barehanded. Did he even wash his hands? Three question marks. Yeah, I mean, interesting.

Interesting. That's a pretty funny thing. It sounds like they probably kept going back. Just a couple, nothing, growling stomachs can't prevent. I love that the takeaway is I'll probably roll the dice again. Right, right, right. But my conscience, I had to let you know. Yeah, yeah, and just proceed with caution

because that'll definitely change everything. But okay. I hope that car is fixed. I hope the car's okay. I hope the oil's changed and running smoothly. If you wanna look behind that pillow, I've got some Yelp reviews for you. Oh!

This whole time. One star review. Okay, so another Yelp review, this one from DQ. Woohoo! This whole time. One star review. Okay, so another Yelp review. This one from DQ. Dairy Queen. A competitor. Dairy Queen writing about the competition.

Hell yeah. It is, DQ is from South Pasadena. And this review is from May 4th, 2020. Interesting time. Puts a square in the pandemic. One star, though. One star. Yeah, of course, DQ is, like, taking him down a peg.

Yeah, yeah. All right, all right. They don't even serve any crossover items. Like, why is Dairy Queen coming for Popeyes? I know, they could do, like, a half-and-half one, like a, you know, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut thing. Yeah. Okay. Whoa whoa starting off strong forgettable staff do you want to remember this stuff honestly some of my favorite yelp reviews

just attack the staff's people oh no yeah i mean of course of course well i mean because these these are the unhinged people yeah the yelpers are running on Yelp, you know? Okay, forgettable staff, because apparently they want memorable staff, who apparently are easily overlooked in everyday life, but who during the quarantine exhibit their inner tyrant. Whoa. I like how they're like, you're forgettable and you're just trying to make a name for yourself. It's like an insult because they wanna be remembered.

Now, before you keep going, I just want you to picture this scene as though they are carrying like, carpenters like measuring tape with them. Yeah. I'm just picturing them like going around and like. Oh, definitely with like little binoculars on. Yeah, so proceed.

All right. I walked in and stood away from the cashier who, capital W for some reason, was helping a customer and perused the menu. While doing so, the cashier spoke in a low voice to a punchy young man. Use of punchy that I don't know. It feels very loaded. Yeah, yeah.

I'm like, I'm not using that word. Punchy young man who I believe was the manager. He then turned and asked, sir, can we help you? I replied that I was reading the menu. He replied, oh, with a period. Oh. Oh. That's like getting texted, K. Exactly, and then a period.

We were like, oh God, am I in trouble? The cashier sternly said, can you stand further back? Six feet is the distance we're supposed to stand from other people. I was standing about eight inches away from the cashier and yet the customer. And yet the customer. Look, these are a a labyrinth of grammar. Yeah, yeah, there's some there's some things here that I'm sure. I don't know what they mean.

I stepped three feet further, annoyed by the tones and the failure of the cashier and the manager to use the word please or thank you. Oh, DQ wanted a pleaser or thank you. This is again, May, 2020. This is like pretty intense time. Like we're not going out that often. We're not out of the woods.

In fact, we are entering the woods. Yeah, in fact, maybe deeper in the woods than we were a couple months earlier. Okay. After deciding what to order, I stood in line and was finally, all caps, asked by the cashier to step forward. I submitted my order and after doing so,

stepped away more than nine feet from the cashier. And this is interesting, they're using like... I like how it's like there's six feet, eight feet, nine feet, there's all these measurements. And I truly like to imagine they're like, one, two. Right, right. They're using their feet as a measure. I'm nine feet away.

Yeah. They know exactly. Which, you've been in this, Popeyes. I don't think you could. You're right. You'd be at the window. Yeah, I don't think there's nine feet of open space there. Yeah.

Unless they change things. No. You're right. What? Nine feet. OK. from the cashier. Though there were two other customers also waiting, the manager told me to step outside and wait for my order. Fair enough.

Again, a lot of outside space. That's fine. Yeah. Like in this time, I lived through this time. I remember these days. Right. You don't want to be in that little box. I want to wait outside.

Yeah, yeah, you barely, yeah, you you prefer not to even have to go inside. And what month is this? May. Yeah, it's warm, it's nice. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Very nice, not too hot, too. We're not sending you out in the cold.

No, we're at Burbank. You're from South Pasadena. Okay. So yeah, I stepped outside. About five minutes later, the two customers who had been awaiting in the store were also told to wait outside. The young woman was irritated, possibly because the manager, like the cashier, lacks all professional acumen. Wow. Well, they have tyranny. Yeah, yeah. Inner tyranny.

And doesn't understand the importance of using the words, please and thank you to people who bring business to Popeyes. Again, with these that these and that's. That's some Karen energy right there. Yeah, yeah. We pay your paycheck. Right, right, right, okay. I waited 15 minutes for my order. The service is slow while the employees at this location maintain an air of self-importance. What does she want?

Does she want them like, is this a she? Oh, we don't know. This is Dairy Queen. Her Highness herself. Her Royalty. Does she expect them to like cower their heads and like, oh yes ma'am, like avert your gaze. Do not speak in the spoken to. Yeah.

Yeah, for sure. These are her squires. What's the expectation? They are also curt and seemingly dismissive. Popeyes should train their employees about the importance of creating a positive customer service experience. Reading this now too is like especially hilarious

because it's like, that was the deepest darkest times. Like, you know, May 2020, I'm like, I don't think anybody wanted to interact with people, let alone smile and say please and thank you. I think everybody was like, please stay away from me. I don't wanna die and kill my grandmother. I'm making your food. I know. We're also trying to keep a distance from one another back here.

Yeah, I know. And they're probably like, I don't want to infect like all my family and kill them. Yeah. But yeah. OK. DQ. One star. One star. You can go download our full Yelp from Strangers segment at our Patreon. The link for that is in the description of this episode, or you can go to patreon.com slash fine dining podcast. And we're now offering a one week free trial. So what do you have to lose?

Go check it out. People have wild opinions and we get to read, oh, so many of them. Thanks. Okay, so we've covered Yelp reviews, we've covered the history. We're all good to go. One week's time, we are gonna head into our review

of the restaurant. But in the meantime, Sierra are gonna head into our review of the restaurant. But in the meantime, Sierra, thanks so much for coming on this week. Amazing. Thank you for having me. It was a dream to kind of hear all about Popeyes and really expand my universe. It was a dream. The PCU.

I love that. I love the PCU. I love this idea of just like all I've wanted to know. It's been a lifelong dream of mine and I've accomplished it. I can die now. Is there anything you want to plug, tell people where they can follow you, all that good stuff? Of course, yeah, thank you.

So I do have a new special out. It's called Funt as we mentioned. It is out on Apple TV, Amazon Prime, On Demand. And you can find it if you either Google Sierra Cotto font or on my website Sierra Cotto.com. My last name is spelled K a T O W. Also follow me on Instagram, which is my name at Sierra Cotto. And I also do a Top Chef watch podcast with a couple of friends. And we're also pivoting to MasterChef as Top Chef wraps up called, it's gonna be, it is called TV Chef Fantasy League.

And we have new episodes every week. So yeah, if you're also into that kind of food, listen. Amazing. Thank you so much. Awesome. Well, thanks for coming on. You can follow me on social media at Fine Dining Podcast on Instagram and TikTok.

Check out my website. I send out a newsletter about each new episode every week, finddiningpodcast.com. And yeah, I have Patreon if you want an exclusive episode every month. This month coming up, I've got Sarku Japan, one of my favorite little food court spots that I grew up with and I have a very endearing love for it, so that'll come through in that episode. But yeah, hang out until next week. We're just going to be sitting here waiting on our table. Thanks for watching. Have a fine day!

Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. This step is done and we had some fun now. We're waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table.

Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. The step is done and we had some fun. Now we're waiting on our table, waiting on our table. Join us next time, we're stuck in line. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table. We're so hungry, tummy's grumbling. Waiting on our table, waiting on our table.

We gotta continue our search for mediocrity Yeah Waiting on a table, waiting on a table We'll be waiting and dissipating Waiting on a table, waiting on a table We're swimming in this week, we're digging in Cause we're waiting on a table, waiting on our table We've got an appetite, but just sit tight cause we're waiting on our table, waiting on our table

Search will continue when we see you next week He, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he, he But I'm gonna let her know Waiting on her table