When is a chicken sandwich not a sandwich? When it is a burger so good people will kill to get it

This is a story about today’s America, touching as it does on issues of religion, gun crime, social media and “fake news”, as well as the country’s voracious appetite for lawsuits.

A chicken sandwich at a Popeyes restaurant in Kyle, Texas. Picture: AP

This is a story about today’s America, touching as it does on issues of religion, gun crime, social media and “fake news”, as well as the country’s voracious appetite for lawsuits.

It is also a very American story about a chicken burger. And how Americans will try to kill – actually kill another human being – to get one.

Over here, where they confuse the names of a lot of food and insist on calling main meals entrees and pizza a “pie”, they call it a chicken “sandwich”.

When Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen – which is a KFC-style fried chicken restaurant that out-KFCs KFC – entered the competitive handheld food market in August, expectations were high.

The chain had already been at the centre of the ultimate humble-brag controversy in 2017, after California restaurant Sweet Dixie Kitchen was caught repackaging its chicken for customers who ordered their chicken and waffles.

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen out-KFCs KFC, according to US correspondent Sarah Blake.

Even when called out in an online review, the owner declared “We PROUDLY SERVE Popeyes spicy tenders”, saying it equated with her ethos of sourcing the best produce for her diners.

Previously, the cult fast food chicken sandwich favourite was the one offered by Chick-fil-A and it is rare to pass a franchise without a long queue waiting for their version.

But the Southern fast food chain’s Baptist insistence on never opening on Sundays and comments opposing same-sex marriage from its bosses have taken away some of its lustre for young consumers.

There was no such barrier for Popeyes when it jumped into the market at the same price point of $US3.99 a burger, and after New Yorker food reviewer Helen Rosner tapped into the social media swirl around it’s new offering earlier this year, she started a stampede.

Popular Popeye's Louisiana chicken sandwich is so good people will kill for it

“Popeye’s fried chicken is fantastic,” Ms Rosner wrote in August, describing its crispy fillet, soft roll and pickles as “a combination so intense, so perfectly balanced, that they meld into one another to form a new, entirely coherent whole.”

Within days, there were reports Popeyes was running low on chicken sandwiches and customers who were turned away were getting seriously worked up.

A Texas man was so incensed he pulled out a gun and threatened workers in Houston in September.

This came a few days after a Tennessee diner sued Popeyes for $US50,000, claiming false advertising and “deceptive business practices”, adding in the cost of the $US1500 he spent driving to different franchises in a frantic search for the buzzed-about burger.

Sure enough, Popeyes soon announced they had indeed run out of stock, without ever really explaining how a fried chicken chain runs out of fried chicken.

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A chicken sandwich at a Popeyes restaurant in Kyle, Texas. Picture: AP

The outcry was such that cynics suggested the whole thing was a marketing trick, and there’s no doubt many customers were first timers who walked in wanting a sandwich and settled for a bucket of chicken pieces.

Two weeks ago, burger fans were thrilled with the announcement that it was back.

Your correspondent visited a suburban franchise on day two of sales and can attest to the demand.

The exhausted state of workers at the New Rochelle outlet was obvious in their tired eyes, rancorous customer service and a drive through lane holding up traffic on the main road outside.

As for the burger, a generous buttermilk and cayenne marinated fillet fried to a glassy crunch and squashed between a soft bun with thick pickles and spicy mayo: while it may have been worth the wait, it was definitely not worth dying for.

Originally published as When is a chicken sandwich not a sandwich? When it is a burger so good people will kill to get it