Popeyes Just Gave a Big Middle Finger to Chick-fil-A

Courtesy of Popeyes
Courtesy of Popeyes

Just when you thought the Great Chicken Sandwich War of 2019 had faded into nothing but a grease stain on your Twitter feed, Popeyes reignited its quarrel with Chick-fil-A on Monday with the official return date of its wildly popular chicken sandwich. The sandwich's much-awaited comeback on November 3 -- a Sunday -- is a clear middle finger to Chick-fil-A, which is famously closed on Sundays. You might say Popeyes is flipping it the bird. 

This is no subtle troll. Popeyes went out of its way to emphasize that November 3 falls on a Sunday. The Louisiana-style fried chicken chain even released a video (see below) showing a worker walk up to a highway food sign and add "OPEN SUNDAY" under Popeyes' logo -- right next to Chick-fil-A's "CLOSED SUNDAY." As if that weren't enough, a spokesperson for Popeyes provided Thrillist with a graphic advertising the return date, saying, "Y'all... The Sandwich is back. This Sunday. Yes. Sunday."

click to play video

Of course, it's worth pointing out that November 3 also happens to be National Sandwich Day, which is obviously very fitting. But there's no denying it: The announcement and release date are clear swipes at Chick-fil-A. The Great Chicken Sandwich War of 2019 isn't over after all. 

MORE: Does Popeyes really make the best fried chicken sandwich in fast food? We found out. 

It's unclear how Chick-fil-A will respond to Popeyes provocation as of early Monday morning. If history in any indication, though, it will likely result in some sort of subtweet. After all, a subtweet from Chick-fil-A about loving "the original" fried chicken sandwich is what prompted Popeyes to publicly smack it down with a "... y'all good?" in the first place, thus starting to the war. Chick-fil-A fans were incensed while Popeyes fans were galvanized. Insults were hurled. Jabs were made. Memes were meme'd. More fast food brands chimed in, the tweet went viral, and Popeyes earned a stupid amount of free publicity. 

Popeyes, however, may want to be careful. Is it really in a position to throw so much shade when it couldn't even keep its fried chicken sandwich in stock in the short weeks after it launched? How can a fried chicken chain run out of the ingredients for a fried chicken sandwich and not manage to bring it back for over two months? Meanwhile, Chick-fil-A has been slinging ever more of its iconic chicken sandwiches for years and years now, despite its questionable record on LGBTQ equality.

If Popeyes can't keep up with the demand for its sandwich this time, then it'll have to admit Chick-fil-A is the true winner.


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Tony Merevick is Senior News Editor at Thrillist. Send news tips to news@thrillist.com and follow him on Twitter @tonymerevick.