• On Monday, Wendy's brought back its spicy chicken nuggets in response to overwhelming demand from fans. 
• When I went to try the spicy nuggets at my local Wendy's, they were sold out. I called around until I found a Wendy's in Manhattan that still had them.
• After trying the spicy nuggets, I understood why they're so popular. They're as crispy and juicy as Wendy's regular chicken nuggets, but with a spicy kick that makes them positively addictive.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

They're back — and they're just as hot as ever.

On Monday, Wendy's brought back its spicy chicken nuggets after persistent calls from millions of fans. Wendy's removed the spicy nuggets from its menu in 2017, citing a lack of demand.

But when Wendy's posted on Twitter saying that if 2 million people liked a tweet it would bring spicy nuggets back, the tweet surpassed 2 million likes. True to its word, Wendy's brought its spicy chicken nuggets back.

Where there is a new menu item, there's also an opportunity to eat the new menu item. Just a week ago, I'd tried the chicken nuggets from six fast-food chains, and Wendy's won. So my expectations were pretty high.

Read more: I ate chicken nuggets from 6 fast-food chains, and the best were also the cheapest

I went to my regular Wendy's in Manhattan's Financial District to try the spicy chicken nuggets.

They were sold out already.

I called around and found another Wendy's still had spicy nuggets, so I hopped on the subway and brought two 10-piece nuggets back to Business Insider's office.

SEE ALSO: I ate 8 chicken sandwiches from fast-food chains, and the best was also the cheapest

The Spicy Chicken Nuggets look like normal Wendy's chicken nuggets, except with a red tinge.

Read more: I ate chicken nuggets from 6 fast-food chains, and the best were also the cheapest

They were hot and fresh, just like the plain nuggets I had earlier.

The spicy battered shell was crispy and the chicken inside was as flavorful and juicy as ever.

The spice didn't kick in until the bite settled. It builds pleasantly in the back of your throat.

They weren't overwhelmingly spicy. But they were far from mild.

They had a balanced, satisfying kick that made it easy to reach for one after another.

I ate way more of them than I should have.

But I wasn't the only one.

The power of the spicy chicken nugget is undeniable. Wendy's did its fans a solid by bringing them back. Let's hope they stay for good this time.

• Tyson's new Any'tizers Chicken Chips combine chicken and potato chips into one incredible snack.
• The chicken is shaped like a tortilla chip and comes in three classic chip flavors: BBQ, ranch, and cheddar and sour cream.
• You can buy the 55-piece frozen bag from your local grocery store.

• Visit INSIDER's homepage for more stories.

There are a ton of food mashups as of late — some that are totally genius and others we did not ask for and do not need (hey there, pumpkin spice cough drops).

Doughnut fries? Sure. Funfetti popcorn? Why not. Ramen-flavored Pringles? I'll leave that one alone. Now, Tyson is getting in on the fun with their latest creation: Tyson Any'tizers Chicken Chips.

Just like it sounds, this new mash-up combines chicken and potato chips — you know, in case you were ever torn between which one to grab as a snack. Shaped like a tortilla chip, they come in a bag of 55, perfect for sharing — or for a serious Netflix marathon.

Available now in the frozen aisle of grocery stores nationwide, the triangular chicken bites come in (personal opinion here) the top three flavors of potato chips: BBQ, ranch, and cheddar and sour cream. Made with all-white meat chicken raised with no antibiotics, each serving offers around 11 grams of protein. They can be made in the oven in 8–12 minutes or in the microwave in 30–75 seconds.

"The lines between snacking and meals are blurring," Colleen Hall, marketing director for the Tyson brand said in a press release. "Chicken Chips are a great option that can be enjoyed throughout the day and come in popular flavors that offer the perfect amount of crisp, inspired by chips, one of America's longstanding favorite snacks."

As a vegetarian, I offer no guesses as to how these taste, but Tyson sent some samples of both the ranch and BBQ flavors my way, so my husband and his friends gladly put them to the test.

While they said they kind of got the potato chip vibe, they more or less just tasted like flavored chicken nuggets. They put them in the microwave, but all of them agreed they would be better in the oven and likely more crunchy. While they did not taste the cheddar and sour cream, their favorite of the two they did taste was BBQ, as they said the ranch wasn't as strong of a flavor as they would have liked.

Overall, they say they enjoyed them and would buy them again, maybe trying the third flavor the next time.

Will you be stocking your kitchen with Tyson's new potato chip-inspired chicken chips?

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: This is the shortest route for a road trip across the US to see 50 national landmarks

• Chick-fil-A is the most popular chicken chain in America, according to a recent Market Force survey. But I don't get the hype. Its food is just OK.
• Popeyes just released a new chicken sandwich that competes with Chick-fil-A's most famous offering, and it's much better in every way.
• Not only is Popeyes' sandwich cheaper and bigger, but its chicken is crispier and juicier, its pickles are crunchier and tarter, and its bread is thicker and toastier.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

I confess: I just don't get the hype about Chick-fil-A.

I don't think it's terrible. I just don't think it's as amazing as everyone says it is.

Granted, my Chick-fil-A experience has been pretty limited. I've had its fries, and they aren't great. I've had its frozen desserts, which are also just OK. But Chick-fil-A is about the chicken, right? Chicken is what the chain is known for, specifically its chicken sandwich.

Read more: These are America's favorite fast-food chains, from Chick-fil-A to In-N-Out

So I expected the world from its chicken sandwich. Maybe that was the problem. Maybe I should have just given Chick-fil-A's chicken sandwich more space instead of pushing for something that wasn't meant to be.

This is where Popeyes comes in. Popeyes is more than a fresh-fried rebound, more than just a salt-of-the-earth Louisiana chain carving out a life in the North. Popeyes and I come from different worlds. In college, I passed by one of its restaurants every so often, never even thinking to enter.

Only after Popeyes released its new classic chicken sandwich did I realize just how much I was missing out on.

You should never settle.

True love is a chicken sandwich that makes you feel full, whole, and taken care of. It's a bun that envelops your chicken in a comforting embrace, a thick slab of juicy, crispy chicken that reminds you of a Southern city you've never been to, and pickles and mayo that thrill. True love is a chicken sandwich that makes you feel held.

I know Chick-fil-A's chicken sandwich has many lovers out there, but just hear me out. I'm going to show you why you, too, should never go back to Chick-fil-A — if there's a Popeyes in town.

SEE ALSO: I ate 8 chicken sandwiches from fast-food chains, and the best was also the cheapest

I went to a Chick-fil-A and a Popeyes in Manhattan and brought back a couple of their chicken sandwiches.

Popeyes' chicken sandwich costs $3.99 at the Manhattan location I went to.

It's hot and heavy.

Chick-fil-A's sandwich costs $4.99 at the Manhattan location I went to.

Even though it's a dollar more expensive, Chick-fil-A's sandwich is a lot smaller and lighter than Popeyes' sandwich.

Popeyes' sandwich is huge.

It's thick and there's lots of everything, but it holds together well.

It's a challenge to bite into, but it's the kind of challenge that puts butterflies in your stomach.

The fluffy bun gives way to the crispy chicken and the tart, crunchy pickle.

The sandwich is uniformly outstanding. One bite gets you a bit of everything. Everything is very good on its own and even better together.

And it holds together so well that in the end it's surprisingly easy to eat, even if it is quite thick.

Every bite of this sandwich tastes as good as the last. It also bears the thickest piece of chicken I've seen on a fried-chicken sandwich.

Read more: I ate chicken nuggets from 6 fast-food chains, and the best were also the cheapest

Chick-fil-A's sandwich is noticeably smaller, browner, and flatter than Popeyes' sandwich.

It also doesn't hold together very well. It's pretty much just a piece of chicken between two squished buns.

I suppose people like the sandwich for its simplicity.

To Chick-fil-A's credit, its chicken is fairly uniform.

It's also a much more manageable bite than Popeyes' sandwich.

But ultimately, it's a much less exciting one. The chicken isn't bad, but it isn't nearly as good as Popeyes' chicken, and there is nothing else giving the sandwich flavor.

Read more:These are the fast-food items people were obsessed with the year you were born

The sandwich will pretty much fall apart if you don't hold it together yourself. There's no mayo.

That's what Chick-fil-A sauce is for, presumably. But overall, the sandwich is just unexciting compared with its Popeyes counterpart.

Still not convinced? Let's put them next to each other.

On the left is Chick-fil-A's sandwich, and on the right is Popeyes' sandwich. Right off the bat, you can see a clear size difference.

Popeyes' sandwich looks as if it came straight from an advertisement. The bun is fluffy and shapely, and the chicken is tall, proud, and dappled with amber waves of crispy batter.

Meanwhile, Chick-fil-A's sandwich is less than photogenic. It's flat, and yes, there's chicken. But it just looks a lot less appealing than Popeyes' sandwich.

If we take the sandwiches apart, we can see just how much bigger and more interesting Popeyes' sandwich is.

Read more: I tried mac and cheese from 6 chains, and the winner blew away the competition

The giant rounds of pickle are glued to the toasted bun with a swipe of sticky mayo, which in turn glues the pickles and bun to the chicken.

Popeyes' chicken is perfect. It's battered for maximum crispiness yet somehow manages to be incredibly juicy on the inside.

Its pickles look and taste gourmet: big, thick, crunchy, sour, and fresh.

Meanwhile, Chick-fil-A's sandwich puts a dry bun next to a dry piece of chicken.

The pickles are underneath the chicken rather than on top of it, but they're so thin and wimpy that they might as well not be there.

Underneath the chicken in Popeyes' sandwich is another thin layer of mayo to glue it to the bottom bun.

Granted, Chick-fil-A's sandwich isn't all bad.

The chicken, for example, tastes pretty good. It's not nearly as crispy, juicy, or thick as Popeyes' chicken, but it's not bad.

Readmore:I ate the same meal at Texas Roadhouse, Outback Steakhouse, and LongHorn Steakhouse. Here's how they compared.

That's about it. The pickles are really just lip service, and the standard bun, though toasted, is nothing to text home about.

Popeyes' breading is so fresh that it can peel off if it's stuck to the bun. That might be a minus for some, but it's not for me.

And Popeyes knows that the way to a woman's heart is a nice, thick slice of pickle. Its pickles add a pop of fresh tartness that elevates the already perfect chicken. Its bun, too, is toasted, buttery, fluffy, and thick.

Chick-fil-A's sandwich isn't bad. Just like everything else the chain offers, it's reliably OK. But Popeyes' sandwich is a handful of heaven. And even though it's much larger, it costs a dollar less.

But I get it. Love is often irrational. Those of you who love Chick-fil-A will probably go back time and again for its mediocre, overpriced chicken sandwich. And I won't blame you. The heart wants what it wants. That said, I know what my heart wants: Popeyes forever.

• Popeyes and Chick-fil-A are locked in a fried-chicken feud after Popeyes debuted a new chicken sandwich.
• On Monday, Popeyes responded "y'all good?" to an apparent subtweet from Chick-fil-A about its "original" chicken sandwich.
• People are rallying behind Popeyes' chicken sandwich, which was deemed the superior menu item by Business Insider's fast-food critic Irene Jiang.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Popeyes and Chick-fil-A are feuding on Twitter as a battle over chicken sandwiches reaches a boiling point.

Earlier in August, Popeyes added a chicken sandwich to the menu. It was an immediate hit, with Business Insider's Irene Jiang naming it No. 1 in her ranking of fried-chicken sandwiches.

Read more:I ate 8 chicken sandwiches from fast-food chains, and the best was also the cheapest

However, Chick-fil-A, the self-proclaimed inventor of the chicken sandwich, refused to accept the elevation of the new chicken sandwich without taking a stand.

"Bun + Chicken + Pickles = all the ❤️ for the original," Chick-fil-A tweeted on Monday.

Many took the message as a subtweet of Popeyes, as people are increasingly comparing the two chicken sandwiches.

Popeyes quote-tweeted it, adding: "... y'all good?"

The battle between the two chicken sandwiches has been a major topic of discussion on social media over the past week.

Jiang published a direct comparison of Chick-fil-A and Popeyes' sandwiches on Monday morning.

"Chick-fil-A's sandwich isn't bad. Just like everything else the chain offers, it's reliably OK," Jiang concluded. "But Popeyes' sandwich is a handful of heaven. And even though it's much larger, it costs a dollar less."

Read more:Popeyes' new chicken sandwich convinced us that we never need to go back to Chick-fil-A

Others agreed, crowning Popeyes the new king of chicken sandwiches.

Neither Popeyes nor Chick-fil-A immediately responded to Business Insider's request for comment on the social-media feud.

SEE ALSO: The church of chicken: The inside story of how Chick-fil-A used Christian values and a 'clone army' to build a booming business that's defying the retail apocalypse and taking over America

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Chick-fil-A and Popeyes are feuding on Twitter over which chain has the superior chicken sandwich.
• On Monday afternoon, Wendy's entered the fray, tweeting: "Y'all out here fighting about which of these fools has the second best chicken sandwich."
• Popeyes responded to the subtweet by calling Wendy's "thirsty."
• Meanwhile, Boston Market used Twitter to criticize Chick-fil-A's mac and cheese.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Wendy's is entering the Twitter battle over which fried-chicken sandwich reigns supreme.

On Monday, Chick-fil-A's apparent subtweet of Popeyes' new fried-chicken sandwich set off a social-media frenzy.

"Bun + Chicken + Pickles = all the ❤️ for the original," Chick-fil-A tweeted.

Popeyes — which recently rolled out a new fried-chicken sandwich — quote-tweeted it, adding: "... y'all good?"

Read more:Popeyes and Chick-fil-A are feuding on Twitter in a battle over which chicken sandwich reigns supreme

Twitter then exploded with a debate over the battle between Chick-fil-A and Popeyes fried-chicken sandwiches. Neither brand responded to Business Insider's request for further comment on the social-media feud.

Later on Monday, Wendy's decided that it needed to add its two cents to the chicken-sandwich conversation.

"Y'all out here fighting about which of these fools has the second best chicken sandwich," Wendy's tweeted on Monday afternoon.

Popeyes felt the need to respond to the second subtweet of the day.

"Sounds like someone just ate one of our biscuits. Cause y'all looking thirsty," Popeyes tweeted.

Wendy's quote-tweeted Popeyes' tweet, adding: "lol, guess that means the food's as dry as the jokes."

The battle continued on Monday night, with Popeyes quote-tweeting Carter Wilkinson, the teenager who received free Wendy's nuggets for life after being retweeted more than 3.4 million times.

Wilkinson had tweeted: "how many retweets to never tweet again?" Popeyes added: ". @Wendys even Carter wants you to stop."

Wendy's responded by mocking Popeyes for its technical difficulties posting the tweet, which it deleted multiple times before correctly formatting. 

Wendy's did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment on the feud. 

Unlike Popeyes, Chick-fil-A has kept a low profile on Twitter following Popeyes' quote tweet. Boston Market, however, decided to attack the chicken chain on another front: Chick-fil-A's new mac and cheese.

"Customer: Can I get something like Boston Market mac & cheese but mediocre? Other guys: My pleasure," Boston Market tweeted, a clear reference to Chick-fil-A's customer-service policies.

A representative for Boston Market said there was no "beef" between itself and Chick-fil-A. 

"We know our mac and cheese will always devour the competition, whether they're new to the game or stem from a self-proclaimed 'original,' which is why you caught us throwing it down, rotini style – and all in good fun, of course," the representative said in an email. "Just wait. We've got something cooking at the moment – and not just in our rotisserie ovens – that will reward our biggest mac and cheese fans in a pretty massive way." 

Chick-fil-A's rapid US expansion is perhaps making it a target. The chicken chain became the third-largest chain in the US by sales in 2018, with $10.46 billion in American system-wide sales, and it is steadily expanding, with plans to open its first store in Canada by the end of the year.

Business Insider's Irene Jiang has taste-tested fried-chicken sandwiches from Wendy's, Chick-fil-A, and Popeyes, as well as mac and cheese from Chick-fil-A and Boston Market, in recent weeks. Her verdict: Popeyes' chicken sandwich reigns supreme, but Chick-fil-A's mac and cheese edges out Boston Market's.

SEE ALSO: I tried mac and cheese from 6 fast-food chains, and Chick-fil-A's transcended the others with cheese I could actually see and taste

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Popeyes' new chicken sandwich kicked off a Twitter battle among fast-food brands.
• Chick-fil-A, Wendy's, Shake Shack, and Church's Chicken have used Twitter to defend the superiority of their chicken sandwiches.
• Bojangles' also tweeted that its chicken biscuit was better than any chicken sandwich — but it deleted the tweet.
• Chicken-sandwich competition has been heating up across America in recent months, in part because of Chick-fil-A's expansion.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The chicken-sandwich wars are escalating.

Chick-fil-A and Popeyes set off a chicken-sandwich debate on social media on Monday when Popeyes quote-tweeted an apparent subtweet from Chick-fil-A.

Popeyes recently rolled out a new chicken sandwich that has garnered comparisons to Chick-fil-A's iconic original, with some people saying they consider the new sandwich superior.

Read more:Popeyes and Chick-fil-A are feuding on Twitter in a battle over which chicken sandwich reigns supreme

Wendy's entered the Twitter feud later on Monday, tweeting, "Y'all out here fighting about which of these fools has the second best chicken sandwich."

Wendy's and Popeyes went back and forth on Monday, with Popeyes calling Wendy's "thirsty" and Wendy's describing Popeyes' food as "dry."

Wendy's, Popeyes, and Chick-fil-A did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment on the Twitter battles.

Read more:Wendy's jumps into the chicken-sandwich Twitter feud between Popeyes and Chick-fil-A

Other chicken chains have jumped into the fray to stake their claim to the superior chicken sandwich.

"If you're lookin' for a chicken sandwich (without the beef 😉), you know where to find us," Shake Shack tweeted on Monday.

Church's Chicken proclaimed the superiority of its chicken sandwich in a few tweets.

Bojangles', a chicken chain with a cult following in the South, entered the debate with a tweet on Monday afternoon saying that "everybody around here knows the best chicken sandwich is a chicken biscuit."

But by Monday evening, the tweet had been deleted. The TV writer and fast-food expert Bill Oakley noted that people had been responding to the tweet mocking the food as looking dry.

Bojangles' did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

The chicken-sandwich category is hotly contested in 2019.

As Chick-fil-A expands, other chains have taken note of its growth and are attempting to tap into the chicken-sandwich market.

Chick-fil-A was the third-largest chain in the US by sales in 2018, with $10.46 billion in American systemwide sales.

SEE ALSO: Every chain from McDonald's to Buffalo Wild Wings wants to be Chick-fil-A

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Popeyes locations are running out of chicken sandwiches because of high demand for the new menu item.
• The sandwich was an immediate hit, sparking a massive social-media debate over the best chicken sandwiches in fast food.
• Dozens of people reported on social media that as of Tuesday their local Popeyes had run out of chicken sandwiches.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Popeyes is facing a chicken-sandwich shortage following the rollout of its new menu item.

Last week, Popeyes added a chicken sandwich to the menu. It was an immediate hit, winning over Business Insider's fast-food critic Irene Jiang. Fans were quick to crown it the king of chicken sandwiches.

The debate over the Popeyes' chicken sandwich reached a boiling point this week as Popeyes feuded with its chicken-sandwich rivals Chick-fil-A and Wendy's on Twitter.

Read more:Popeyes and Chick-fil-A are feuding on Twitter in a battle over which chicken sandwich reigns supreme

The debate seems to be driving sales. And Popeyes is struggling to keep up with demand.

Dozens of people on social media have complained that their local Popeyes is sold out of chicken sandwiches.

Business Insider visited two Popeyes locations in Manhattan early Tuesday afternoon. Both were sold out of chicken sandwiches.

"Many of our restaurants have seen a high demand for the sandwich, with guests excited to give it a try," a representative for Popeyes said in an email to Business Insider. "A few restaurants have temporarily sold out of the sandwich, and we are working to make sure they receive more as soon as possible."

Irene Jiang contributed reporting.

SEE ALSO: Shake Shack, Church's Chicken, and Wendy's join the battle between Popeyes and Chick-fil-A over the superior chicken sandwich

DON'T MISS: Popeyes' new chicken sandwich convinced us that we never need to go back to Chick-fil-A

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• McDonald's is preparing to launch its own spicy chicken sandwich in mid-September. 
• The fast-food giant will debut a spicy BBQ sandwich and spicy BBQ glazed tenders, according to documents shared with Business Insider. 
• McDonald's spicy chicken sandwich launch will come on the heels of a massive chicken sandwich debate between chains including Popeyes, Chick-fil-A, and Wendy's. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

McDonald's is preparing for its entry into the spicy chicken sandwich wars. 

The fast-food chain is planning to launch a spicy BBQ sandwich in mid-September, according to leaked documents shared with Business Insider in June. The sandwich will be accompanied by spicy BBQ glazed tenders. 

"Hold tight, because McDonald's is bringing the heat starting in September," a McDonald's representative said in an email to Business Insider in June. 

Both menu items are variations on McDonald's buttermilk crispy chicken, adding a Southwestern sauce to the sandwich and tenders. According to one McDonald's employee, the menu items come after years of customer demands for a spicy chicken sandwich at the chain. 

The limited-time offer will come on the heels of a massive chicken sandwich debate. 

Last week, Popeyes rolled out a new chicken sandwich, available with or without spice. The sandwich was an immediate hit, inspiring intense debate on whether it could be the best version of the fast-food chicken sandwich available in the US. 

Read more:I ate spicy chicken sandwiches from Chick-fil-A, Popeyes, and Wendy's, and Popeyes' was majorly disappointing

Soon, Popeyes, Chick-fil-A, Wendy's, and more were sparring online. Twitter users were quick to take sides in the chicken sandwich throwdown. 

If the chicken sandwich debate feels like it came out of nowhere, think again. Chick-fil-A's recent growth is forcing chains across the US to up their chicken sandwich game, with a number of chains doubling down on testing and adding new menu items in recent months. 

In addition to Popeyes, Buffalo Wild Wings and Cracker Barrel rolled out new chicken sandwiches in recent months. CNBC reported in July that McDonald's franchisees are pushing the company to make developing a new chicken sandwich the chain's "top priority." 

"Chick Fil A's results demonstrate the power of chicken," McDonald's National Owners Association board said in an email obtained by CNBC's Amelia Lucas.

If you're a McDonald's employee or franchisee with a story to share, email ktaylor@businessinsider.com. 

SEE ALSO: Every chain from McDonald's to Buffalo Wild Wings wants to be Chick-fil-A

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Popeyes has introduced a new chicken sandwich that's getting rave reviews and positive comparisons to Chick-fil-A.
• As a long-time Chick-Fil-A fan, I wanted to compare the overall meal at Popeyes to what I already knew and loved.
• While the food was surprisingly good, the overall experience at Popeyes lags far behind what I have come to expect at Chick-fil-A.

Popeyes and Chick-fil-A are suddenly and unexpectedly embroiled in a chicken feud.

The two franchises traditionally sell relatively different fare — Popeyes focuses on Cajun-influenced chicken with an emphasis on fried chicken pieces, while Chick-fil-A is known for sandwiches and tenders. All that changed last week when Popeyes rolled out its new chicken sandwich, available in both a classic and spicy version.

The sandwich is so new that the company didn't add it to itsweb site's menu for at least a week, though Popeyes took the time to engage in aweirdly fascinating Twitter exchange with rival Chick-fil-A.

Read more: I ate spicy chicken sandwiches from Chick-fil-A, Popeyes, and Wendy's, and Popeyes' was majorly disappointing

As a committed Chick-fil-A fan, I tend to have lunch there at least once a week, usually enjoying either a spicy chicken sandwich or Chick-n-Strips.

But whether out of convenience or a weird aversion to the name, I've never been through the doors of one — not even once. But when Business Insider's Irene Jiang gushed about how much better the new sandwich was compared to Chick-fil-A's old standby, I had to taste it for myself.

Rather than just comparing the two sandwiches, I took a different approach: I wanted to know what the overall experience of eating at Popeyes was like, and how it compares to my more familiar Chick-fil-A dining experience.

SEE ALSO: Popeyes' new chicken sandwich convinced us that we never need to go back to Chick-fil-A

There are perhaps a dozen Popeyes in the greater LA area, but none are near me on the west side of the city, so I had to drive about a half hour to reach the closest one. Positioned at the corner of a strip mall, the street-side entrance is about what you’d expect — it’s clean and attractive.

But to get there from the parking lot, you have to carefully navigate past a line of traffic at the drive-through.

Wanting the best overall Popeyes experience, I checked Yelp to see which one to drive to. Unfortunately, crowdsourced reviews have not been kind to Popeyes in LA. They’re pretty much all 1.5 or 2 stars, which was not super encouraging.

Stepping inside though, I immediately doubted the online reviews. The first thing you see is a charming rack of jars with decorative beans, rice, and spices designed to visually divide the register from the dining area.

But despite multiple registers and a line of only about three people ahead of me, I had to wait more than 15 minutes for my order to be taken. It was unclear why nothing was happening.

Before I left home, I had installed the Popeyes app. I was hoping I’d love the food and could start building points in a reward program right away. I diligently use apps for Chick-fil-A app and Jimmy John’s because those chains award points for free food just for scanning the app at the register. Alas, Popeyes has no such promotion program.

The menu was a mix of familiar and tantalizingly different. For someone used to seeing nothing but burgers and chicken on illuminated menus, it was cool seeing shrimp as well as New Orleans staples like red beans & rice and jambalaya.

Finally reaching the register, I decided to try a Popeyes version of the meal I know best from Chick-fil-A. I ordered the new chicken sandwich (the spicy version, of course) meal, which included Cajun fries and a soda. How are the deserts? Let’s find out. I added a pecan pie. I wanted apple, but they were sold out.

The total came to a reasonable $10.06, which is exactly 71 cents cheaper than a similar lunch at Chick-fil-A: chicken sandwich, waffle fries, soda, and a cookie for dessert.

While I waited for my meal, I noticed the overall upkeep of the restaurant left a little to be desired. The restrooms were out of order. The floor was stickier than a run-down movie theater. Although the ambiance isn't the most important thing for a fast-food restaurant, the service did stand in contrast to Chick-fil-A, where employees famously say "my pleasure" and offer to refill your drink for you.

The food has arrived! I was eating in, but the meal was delivered in a to-go bag anyway. I didn’t see trays in use at any of the other tables, so perhaps they don’t have any.

Here’s my meal: the spicy chicken sandwich, Cajun fries, and a pecan pie.

Okay, let’s get this out of the way right up front: the fries are amazing. Hot, crisp, and spicy, they had a wonderful outer crispness and soft mashed-potato-like inner texture which I knew would not be nearly as good cold, so I ate pretty much all of them right away.

They were delicious on their own, without dipping them in anything. In fact, ketchup would have ruined the salty, spicy flavor. In comparison, the reason I dip Chick-fil-A fries in ranch dressing is so they’ll taste like something.

The sandwich looks pretty good. My first observation is that it’s noticeably larger and more full-bodied than the Chick-fil-A version I’m used to eating. Thanks to a generously thick cut of bird, it has some heft.

Not only is there a nice, tangy mayo dressing on this sandwich, but it’s super crunchy. Not a half-hearted crunch, like it’s been slowly melding with the brioche bun into sogginess under a heat lamp for a while. Nope, this chicken commits to the crunch with each satisfying bite.

It’s not just moist — it’s downright juicy. And spicy, too, with a kick that hits you from the very first bite. The overall flavor, juiciness, and crunch made this a better sandwich than I’ve ever had at Chick-fil-A. My favorite chicken sandwich ever? Yeah, probably.

Something I appreciate about Popeyes: the soda dispenser is self-serve. Yes, that’s no doubt why the floor is so sticky, but at least you can get a refill in a hurry. At Chick-fil-A, getting a refill is free, but it’s only marginally less time-consuming than waiting in line at the DMV.

My bag featured three kinds of condiments: honey (probably best for the biscuit, which I didn’t order), hot sauce (which I didn’t need — this sandwich was satisfyingly spicy) and ketchup, which would be a travesty to apply to these awesome Cajun fries.

Reminiscent of a Burger King dessert, this pie is shaped like an old fashioned triangle of pie. It looks promising, with a thick filling and generous layer of pecans on top. But the single biggest sensation you get from this pie is “cold.”

The filling was too sweet — to the point of being cloying — which meant I was unable to finish the entire slice. On the plus side, the crust was buttery and a little bit flakey, but that wasn’t enough to salvage what was a regrettable misfire.

Popeyes is a bit of a mixed bag. My meal — at least, the sandwich and fries — was delicious and worth a return trip. It’s hard to overstate how refreshingly delicious the chicken sandwich turned out to be. But I missed the ambiance of Chick-fil-A, and the lack of flourishes like a rewards program was disappointing. I may return to Popeyes for some more chicken sandwich goodness, but I probably won’t make a regular habit out of eating there.

• Popeyes' chicken sandwich has exploded onto the fast-food scene, sparking "chicken wars" online and selling out at locations across the US. 
• Jose Cil, the CEO of Restaurant Brands International, parent company of Burger King, Popeyes, and Tim Hortons, told Business Insider that Popeyes spent more than 12 months creating the chicken sandwich. 
• Cil says people want fried chicken more than ever. Chicken tender sales are up at Popeyes, and there's been increased demand for chicken sandwiches at Burger King. 
• "There are long queues in the restaurants, the drive-thrus are being stacked up — there's a lot of anticipation," Cil said. "We just need to make sure we deliver it well consistently in every restaurant, every day." 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

It's been a busy week for Jose Cil. 

The CEO of Restaurant Brands International, parent company of Burger King, Popeyes, and Tim Hortons, sat down with Business Insider on Friday on the heels of the wild success of Popeyes' new chicken sandwich. 

Cil said that Popeyes expected that people would love the chicken sandwich when they tried it, so early positive reviews last week did not come as a surprise. However, he admitted that the chicken sandwich battles on Twitter "exceeded our expectations a bit." 

"There was a lot of back and forth, the so-called 'hashtag chicken wars,'" Cil said. "We were right in the middle of it." 

Read more:Popeyes is selling out of chicken sandwiches as the frenzy over the new menu item reaches a fever pitch

Wendy's, Popeyes, Chick-fil-A, and other chains were duking it out online over which brands served the best chicken sandwich. Customers were quick to take sides, with many supporting Popeyes' sandwich as the new king of chicken. Cil said his favorite response was from a woman who said her body "went limp" after the first bite. 

According to Cil, Popeyes has been working on developing the chicken sandwich for more than a year, from the test kitchen, to getting new equipment in stores, to developing a marketing campaign.

In 2019, customers want fried chicken more than ever before. Cil said Popeyes has seen climbing boneless chicken sales as customers clamor for chicken tenders. Chicken sandwich sales have also been rising at sister brand Burger King. 

In fast food, a quality burger is no longer enough to compete. In addition to Popeyes, Buffalo Wild Wings and Cracker Barrel have also rolled out new chicken sandwiches in recent months. McDonald's is planning to launch a spicy BBQ sandwich in mid-September, according to leaked documents shared with Business Insider in June. 

Still, the hype has its consequences. Popeyes locations across the US have reported shortages as massive crowds of people descend upon the locations. 

"There are long queues in the restaurants, the drive-thrus are being stacked up — there's a lot of anticipation," Cil said. "We just need to make sure we deliver it well consistently in every restaurant, every day." 

Cil said that it has been a "tough week" for many workers in stores. 

"They've worked really hard, and actually the success that we've seen with the launch of the chicken sandwich is really a success that's been driven by our franchise partners as well as our team members and the restaurants," he said. 

SEE ALSO: Wendy's jumps into the chicken-sandwich Twitter feud between Popeyes and Chick-fil-A

Join the conversation about this story »

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• A fried deep dish BBQ chickenpizza is breaking the internet — and even Chrissy Teigen wants to try it.
• The recipe video, which was originally posted by Twisted, went viral on Twitter as social media users went wild over the indulgent creation, which is dubbed the "Deep Fried BBQ Chicken Pizzadilla." 
• Insider spoke with Twitter user @_kurlykay, who posted the video after spotting it on her Instagram feed, as well as Tom Jackson, the co-head of Twisted. 
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

A fried deep dish BBQ chicken pizza is breaking the internet — and even Chrissy Teigen wants to try it.

A video of the dish being made was originally published to Twisted Food, a UK food website, under the name "Deep Fried BBQ Chicken Pizzadilla."

Twitter user @_kurlykay, who goes by K, then shared the video on Thursday after spotting it on her Instagram feed. The viral clip shows the elaborate pizzadilla-making process, which the recipe suggests could take up to three hours.

The faceless cook begins by mixing six spices and oil, covering six chicken breasts in the marinade. The chicken is baked for an hour, then shredded by hand. The shredded chicken is placed into a bowl, along with chopped bacon, BBQ sauce, and green and red onions.

Next, the cook assembles a tortilla and cheese quesadilla — which is so large that it looks more like a savory cake — using the shredded chicken mixture as filling. The whole thing then goes into the fridge to chill for one hour. While it chills, the cook assembles a sour cream and mayonnaise dip with various spices for dipping.

Once the quesadilla has chilled, it's cut into six slices that are coated in flour, egg, and breadcrumbs, then deep fried. After the slices turn golden brown, they're shaped into a pizza, coated in sauce and cheese, covered with pepperoni, and grilled for five minutes. The end result is...intimidating.  

"I posted it because everyone else had to see the madness," K told Insider. "These videos are a guilty pleasure of mine but this was just next level."

K's first tweet about the video was later quoted by Yashar Ali, which helped the clip go viral.

Even Chrissy Teigen weighed in on the viral culinary creation, writing that she would eat "that bbq chicken stuffed tortilla pizza thing."

"I didn't think it would go that far to be honest," K told Insider. "But the response has been hilarious."

K said her "inner foodie" tells her to try everything at least once, but she'll probably be skipping out on this particular meal.

"I think this is the exception to the rule," she said. 

While Twisted Food's website lists a cooking time of 45 minutes, many social media users were doubtful of the timeframe — especially considering that steps one and four of the 11-step recipe involve over an hour and 20 minutes of baking time. 

Shay Spence, the food editor at People, recreated the meal and said the entire cooking process took him a little over six hours and $80 worth of ingredients.

Other social media users had strong opinions on the pizzadilla as well. 

Read more:This fried hot dog has a fried chicken bun

Insider spoke to Tom Jackson, co-head at Twisted, about the viral pizzadilla. 

"Twisted is the home of outrageous, fun, unserious food, so we're over the moon to see our Pizzadilla carrying the torch for us, and for Britain," Jackson told Insider. "To us, Twisted is a way of life. Throw out the rule book, cook some rad food with your mates and have a laugh."

Jackson said that cooking and eating should be fun, and that the Twisted staff had a lot of fun putting the recipe together.

"Not all of our recipes are as crazy as this, and the videos are just a small part of what we do," he explained. "Twisted is an ethos, we encourage an irreverent attitude to life, we encourage people to experiment and break the rules and to approach food and cooking with the tongue firmly in the cheek."

Jackson said it was great to hear that Chrissy Teigen is a fan. 

"She can come round for a pizzadilla any time," he said. "Provided she's up for doing the washing up."

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• INSIDER's Herrine Ro and Alana Yzola travel to Buffalo, New York in search of the best chicken wings.
• They visit Anchor Bar, Duff's Famous Wings, Bar Bill & Tavern, and Gabriel's Gate.
• The two hosts declare Duff's Famous Wings as the best of the best place to get buffalo wings.

Following is a transcript of the video.

Alana: Can I just, like, lick the sauce off this plate?

Hey guys, I'm Alana.

Herrine: Hi, I'm Herrine.

Alana: And today we are in Buffalo, New York, to find the best Buffalo wings in the city.

Herrine: Now, if the name doesn't give it away, Buffalo is the birthplace of Buffalo wings. In fact, they don't call them Buffalo wings here. They just call them chicken wings, and today we are going to be starting our journey by visiting four places, one of which actually invented the Buffalo wing, and three others that are just highly revered local favorite spots to get chicken wings.

Alana: Right, and me and Herrine love our spice, but to make it fair, we're only gonna order medium in all four spots. Then afterwards we're gonna decide which Buffalo wing is..

Both: The best of the best.

Herrine: Alright, let's do it.

Alana: Let's go.

Alana: For our first stop, we had to visit the original Anchor Bar.

Herrine: We want a crispy wing with a juicy inside and a sauce that is decadent, yet still tangy, yet still has a bite and a kick.

Michelle: People love to come to the Anchor Bar to eat our chicken wings, 'cause they originated here.

Customer: I'm in sales, and whenever I have customers that come in from out of town, of course, because we're from Buffalo, they think of chicken wings, and I bring them here.

Michelle: A great Buffalo sauce is ours at the Anchor Bar. It's the original. It's the one that was created in 1964. Teressa Bellissimo was the mom, cooking in the kitchen, and Dominic was the son, bartending at the bar, and his friends came in about, like, 2 in the morning and were hungry. Dominic asked Teressa if she could make something, and the wings were sitting next to the stock of the soup. She took those, fried them up, made some sauce. She was Italian, so she made some nice sauce and seasoned them with the sauce, and we always say the rest is history from there.

Some restaurants tend to just do a hot-sauce-and-butter mixture, but a true Buffalo sauce is a cayenne blend of seasonings, and the original Buffalo sauce is a medium sauce.

Herrine: As a Buffalo-wing lover, this is a pilgrimage we needed to take.

Alana: Yeah.

Herrine: Dig in?

Alana: Yeah.

Herrine: Visually, looks like the Buffalo wings we grew up eating.

Alana: Yeah.

Herrine: Cheers.

Alana: Ooh, it has a nice heat.

Herrine: I don't get the heat.

Alana: Really? You don't get the heat? You sure?

Herrine: I got the heat.

Alana: So what are your thoughts on the wing?

Herrine: I love the wings. I think the sauce is really, really good. I mean, there's nothing else that I've tried in the past that compares to this. It's not as, like, buttery as I was expecting it to be. It's...

Alana: It has a bite to it.

Herrine: It has a bite to it. The heat kind of crawls. The one thing that I will say, though, is I wish that the skin was a little bit crispier than it is.

Alana: Right.

Herrine: Like, right here, maybe this is just one wing, but I feel like it's a little soggy. What about you?

Alana: So it was just very juicy to me, on the inside, which is super important to me, and I love this spice. This is a medium. The only thing, I agree, I need my crunch. I'm not getting my crunch.

Herrine: Yeah, but that sauce is everything. That sauce is so good.

Now, the next stop that we're going to is an unofficial-official competitor of this place.

Alana: Ooh.

Herrine: Our second stop is Duff's Famous Wings. They're famous for their award-winning sauce that hasn't changed for over 40 years.

Joe: We've won...

Ron: Everything. All the awards are on the wall. All the awards are on the ceiling.

Joe: We've been winning local awards for chicken wings since...

Ron: Forever.

Joe: The rivalry between us and Anchor Bar, which, obviously, invented the wings, I think is more of a city rivalry. The city has pitted us against each other. Most people feel like Duff's is more of a local favorite than Anchor Bar, because Anchor Bar, I think, is more of a tourist trap.

Customer #1: We're students from U of B, and they're the best wings I've had, so we always gotta stop by.

Customer #2: Nothing compares.

Customer #1: Nothing compares.

Joe: It's the oldest family-owned chicken-wing restaurant in America.

Ron: I'll take his word for that. About '64, the wings went crazy, from Anchor Bar to everywhere. And so we thought we'd put it in just to have a little snack food for our drinking crowd.

Joe: So what makes our chicken wings different from a lot of other places: We order a certain size of chicken wings, and there's a specific size of a wing that we want when we bring them into the restaurant. So then, when we get these wings in, they go through a meticulous sorting effort from our prepper. A lot of wings don't make the cut.Once they're prepped, we end up taking them to the kitchen, frying them for a perfect amount of time.

Ron: One of my things was don't be cheap on the sauce. So a lot of people would come in from eating other places, and they would say, "This medium is hot!"

Joe: A lot of places add cold sauce to hot wings, and that makes no sense. So our sauce is always being heated. The cooks are making sauce from scratch, pretty much for every order. They use a base hot sauce and then adjust with butter. When they come out, because the sauce is hot, it creates this, like, huge plume of steam.

Herrine: You would think that we would be kind of sick and tired of chicken wings because we went to the first stop and ate so much, but I'm so excited for this. The steam is just billowing, basically, and it looks stunning.

Alana: First of all, these are the medium, and I already smell the spices coming off of this.

Herrine: Yeah.

Alana: At the medium level.

Herrine: The acidity, the tanginess, it's like, wham, bam, in your face.

That's very good sauce.

Alana: Yeah, is it?

Herrine: That's such good sauce. That's such good sauce!

Alana: Oh wow. OK, there's definitely some heat on this, but the flavor is still there. It's not just pure... Are you OK?

Herrine: No, I'm not.

Alana: It creeps up on you. The spice does creep on you.

Herrine: I'm not getting any creep. Nope, not getting any creep.

Alana: It's a lot smoother than I'm used to, you know?

♪ "They ask you how you are, and you just have to say that you're fine."♪ 

Herrine: It's so good.

Alana: Favorite thing about this wing is how juicy the actual meat is under the crispy exterior.

Herrine: It's still crispy. Every nook and cranny of the wing is just doused in sauce, and it still retains its crispiness even though it's kind of been sitting here for a few minutes. I don't know. This sauce might be the deal-maker here.

Alana: Yeah. I would say I have a high spice tolerance. This is a good medium. So we've had Duff's wings. We've also had Anchor Bar wings. Which do you think is better?

Herrine: I think I have my personal favorite, what I think is better, but I'm not gonna reveal it to you just yet.

Alana: OK, all right. Herrine: What about you?

Alana: I don't know. I think I have one too and I have a feeling what you're gonna say.

Herrine: I think we're gonna agree.

Alana: I think we are. I think for the first time...

Herrine: For the first time ever.

Alana: Our third stop is Gabriel's Gate, a staple restaurant situated in historic Allentown. The menu has a spread of American flare, but the wings are the talk of the town.

Herrine: This is Chef Wayne Mosby. He's been working at Gabriel's Gate for over 20 years.

Why are the chicken wings here the best?

Mosby: The secret of what we do before we toss them, and the way we cook them, and everything is timed. Everything stays the same. The only things change is the day and the time.

Herrine:  You're very proud of your wings.

Mosby: Oh yeah. We stand behind them. Put a lot of pride, a lot of love into them.

We're gonna pull them up out of the grease, gonna add a little margarine to it, turn around, we're gonna add a little bit of Frank's hot sauce, toss them around in the bowl, and plate them up. Add a little bit of our extra-secret sauce to it, and there you have some of our best famous chicken wings.

Herrine: All the other places that we went to have really, really high reviews, and this place also does too, it's just...

Alana: Hearing it from locals.

Herrine: Locals. This was the locals' favorite.

Herrine: The moment these wings came to our table, it was like a plume of steam, kind of like Duff's.

Alana: Yeah. Herrine: But the heat, the acidity, it just hits your nostrils.

Alana: In your nostrils.

Herrine: Right away.

Alana: Oh my God, it smells so good. And we only ordered the medium.

Herrine: I know.

Alana: So imagine the spicier ones, like, I already smell the spices coming off of this.

Herrine: And they're saucy.

Alana: Ahh, yes.

Herrine: They're real saucy.

Alana: They don't hold back.

Herrine: But I do wanna point out that some wings are not...

Alana: Uniform. Herrine: ...uniform.

Alana: But I kind of like that. It's kind of, like, charming, a little bit.

Herrine: I got bone. That's why I don't like... I like consistency.

Alana: Can I just, like, lick the sauce off this plate? Oh my God! I see why this is recommended, man. Like, this sauce, I'm sorry, it's unparalleled, I'm gonna be honest.

Herrine: I was a little apprehensive.

Alana: Yeah. Herrine: Because I thought that so much sauce would not allow the wings to be crispy.

Alana: It's so crispy. And the chicken is juicy.

Herrine: Less juicy than other places.

Alana: Yes, it's less juicy than other places, but it's still really juicy.

Herrine: But still pretty juicy. Of all the places we've been to, the medium here is the spiciest.

Alana: So far, I think that these are the most flavorful mediums that we've had. Flavor alone. Not talking about the consistency.

Herrine: When it comes to flavor, I think this has more of a vinegar taste. But one other place comes to mind when it comes to, like, bold flavors.

Alana: OK, I know exactly what you're talking about.

Alana: Our final stop is Bar-Bill Tavern. It's a popular restaurant equally famous for its beef on weck as it is for its chicken wings.

Clark: So at the Bar-Bill, what's unique is that you can have both Buffalo specialties at one visit. So beef on weck and the chicken wing, neither of which we invented here at the Bar-Bill. We just like to say we've perfected both.

Customer: I literally pretty much bought a house here because of the Bar-Bill. Basically, the pleasure dome of all wings.

Clark: Bar-Bill was founded in 1967, and my wife's Uncle Joe was a mechanical engineer at Bell Aerospace, and he actually had no restaurant experience but always wanted to run a bar. Bought this bar and basically made it what it is today.

He was very technical when it came to how he made chicken wings. So instead of pouring the chicken wings into a bowl is that we apply the sauce with a paintbrush, so you get the same amount of sauce on each side of the chicken wing. So each time you bite into a Bar-Bill chicken wing, the flavor is exactly the same. Our medium flavor is really unique and really special but holds true to the original Buffalo formula, incorporating Frank's hot sauce.

The wings do not sit in sauce. They actually are presented five flats, five wings, so you get to, you know, experience, you know, the chicken wing in an extra, you know, what we could consider a reverent way.

Alana: OK, this is our last stop.

Herrine: I'm chickened out.

Alana: My insides hate me.

Herrine: Yeah. Oh yeah.

Alana: Alright, we've gotta do this.

Herrine: I'm really curious to see how the hand-painted aspect of it will, like, add to the actual wing, or if it doesn't. I don't know.

Alana: Right. Like, the plating itself is gorgeous.

Herrine: Beautiful.

Alana: They look like they put a lot of care into each and every wing. Hello?

Herrine: I have to get my vegetable intake somehow or another. Sorry, folks, I need that fiber.

Alana: Oh! It's like there's sauce on every inch, every crevice of this wing.

Herrine: I don't know where the heat is.

Alana: Yeah.

Herrine: I think this wing is probably one of the crispiest wings we've had.

Alana: Right, and I'm hearing the crunch every time I take a bite, which isn't usually possible with super-saucy wings, because, you know, the sauce kind of, like, lessens the crunch factor.

Herrine: That's the thing. I want more sauce on these wings. They're crispy, but the sauce is so good I want more of it.

Alana: Yeah. I think I agree with you on that one.

Herrine: I think if we were to do this trip over again, we would've just gotten spicier wings, 'cause I feel like we just both like spicier wings.

Alana: Sorry, just the thought of doing this trip over again is hurting me.

Herrine: Oh yeah, absolutely. No, we will not do this again.

Alana: No.

Herrine: We will do this maybe at another time on leisure, but we will be only going to one place instead of, like, 10. Five. Four. We went to four.

There's a torrential downpour outside, so we couldn't do our conclusion outside. We're actually stuck in an airport waiting for our flight. But we have a decision to make.

Alana: Yep. Um, going in, I thought one thing. My mind completely changed. However, I'm really confident with my decision.

Herrine: I am too.

Alana: Alright. Let's go for it.

Herrine: Alright, let's do it.

Alana: One, two, three... Knew it.

Herrine: We finally agree.

Alana: Finally.

Herrine: That means something.

Alana: When I first went in there, I'm like, how can anything beat Anchor Bar? Because, you know, they invented the Buffalo wing. For me, Duff's just hit all my markers. It was super crispy on the outside, super juicy on the inside, and the sauce...

Herrine: It was saucy.

Alana: Everywhere.

Herrine: That did it for me. I was torn between Gabriel's Gate and Duff's.

Alana: Yeah.

Herrine: Because they're both very saucy wings, but Duff's had a little bit more of a point for me, because they actually made their sauces from scratch. And also the wings at Gabriel's Gate are not as...

Alana: Uniform.

Herrine: Uniform.

Alana: You don't know what you're gonna get.

Herrine: Exactly.

Alana: The painting was cute, the selection was cute at Bar-Bill's.

Herrine: Yeah, it tasted familiar.

Alana: The taste is familiar, but I wanted to be wowed.

Herrine: It was...yeah.

Alana: Duff's did it for me.

Herrine: Yeah, that was a good way of putting it. So here you have it. Duff's is our winner.

Alana: We made our choice of Duff's. Let us know if you think we should have picked another spot.

Herrine: Or if it was a place that we actually just didn't end up visiting. Let us know in the comment section below.

Both: Bye!

Herrine: Twice now. Twice! Our flight got canceled twice now!

We're just, we're stuck in Buffalo now. We're gonna live here now, I guess. We have no other option.

Alana: I just don't want them to not put me in first class.

Join the conversation about this story »

• Popeyes and Chick-fil-A engaged in a Twitter battle last week over which chain's chicken sandwich was superior, following the rollout of Popeyes' new chicken sandwich.
• The social-media feud went viral, fueling huge numbers of orders and a shortage of the sandwich at many Popeyes locations.
• Many employees at Popeyes are working extra hours — some over 60 a week — to handle the demand. One employee said he was "working like a slave in the back" to fill sandwich orders during an 11-hour shift on Saturday.
• Five Popeyes employees who spoke with Business Insider described long hours, massive crowds, and threats from hungry, angry customers.
• "Popeyes restaurants experienced unprecedented volumes over the last couple of weeks. All restaurant employees have worked very hard. We are very grateful for all that they do for Popeyes guests," a Popeyes representative said in a statement to Business Insider.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

When Popeyes launched its chicken sandwich in early August, nobody expected it to go this far.

Following the rollout of the new menu item, Popeyes and Chick-fil-A engaged in a Twitter battle over which chain had the better sandwich. Even Wendy's got in on the action, but stalwart Popeyes fans rose to defend the sandwich that was crowned No. 1 by Business Insider's fast-food critic Irene Jiang in a chicken-sandwich head-to-head.

The Twitter feud and ensuing hype prompted a massive uptick in chicken-sandwich orders at Popeyes, causing a shortage of the item at many locations.

Read more: Popeyes is selling out of chicken sandwiches as the frenzy over the new menu item reaches a fever pitch

For Popeyes and Chick-fil-A, the chicken-sandwich war still rages. And at the front lines of the battle are the employees — managers, sandwich makers, shift leaders, and cashiers — some of whom are working more than 60-hour weeks and many days without breaks to quell the public's craving for chicken sandwiches.

Business Insider spoke with five Popeyes employees across the US about working at the chain during the so-called chicken wars. Workers said they were overwhelmed and exhausted, and many are considering quitting their jobs.

"I was working like a slave in the back prepping the buns with pickles and the spicy mayo," said an 18-year-old Popeyes crew member in Orange County, California.

This employee and other Popeyes' workers have been granted anonymity to allow them to speak frankly about working conditions and the situation more generally at Popeyes. The Orange County employee estimated that he made at least 600 sandwiches on Saturday during an 11-hour shift. One order consisted of 35 spicy chicken sandwiches.

"Popeyes restaurants experienced unprecedented volumes over the last couple of weeks. All restaurant employees have worked very hard. We are very grateful for all that they do for Popeyes guests," a Popeyes representative said in a statement to Business Insider.

'Everyone wanted to quit'

Employees told Business Insider that when the chicken sandwich was rolled out, the response was almost immediate and overwhelming.

"Everyone wanted to quit so bad because it was that bad," the Popeyes crew member in Orange County said. "We have never seen it get this insanely busy."

The employee said his location sold out of the chicken sandwich at about 6 p.m. the first day. The next day, it was sold out by midday.

"My experience at Popeyes has been fine till this sandwich has come," he said.

One person who worked at a Popeyes location in Newark, New Jersey, told Business Insider that she actually did quit last Wednesday "in the middle of making two sandwiches." Crowds had been building at her location as the viral debate over who had the superior chicken sandwich raged.

"The issue with Popeyes or any fast food is the treatment and the amount of pay that a worker gets," the now-former employee said, adding that "the added demand increased the amount of work tenfold, while I still get paid next to nothing."

A part-time employee in a West Coast Popeyes said she and her coworkers usually didn't take breaks until a minimum of four to five hours into their shifts.

"My coworkers said that there's been nights that they go home at 2 a.m. when closing is at 11," the employee said.

A high-school senior, the employee said her shifts had generally been bearable, though she has considered quitting if the store remains as busy at it has recently been.

Popeyes workers say the situation is getting dangerous in some locations

In some cases, the work environment at Popeyes has become dangerous.

"I had customers nearly fight some of my coworkers because they were told that we were not serving the sandwich because we had ran out," a manager at an East Coast Popeyes said.

She said the lines at her location were like nothing she had ever experienced at work.

"You would think at the Popeyes I work in that there was a concert going on," she added.

"I had an instance where a customer was threatening to assault me when I was taking out trash," a California employee said. "A customer sees me and shouts: 'Do we have a problem or what! Why no sandwiches! You guys are the third Popeyes to say so! You better stop looking at me or else!' I was looking at the line."

The employee added that it was not uncommon for workers to go entire shifts without taking a break, saying that one coworker worked 65 hours over six days. The employee said their restaurant had shifted to mostly focusing on completing orders, neglecting certain tasks like sweeping and washing dishes for the time being. The employee said many workers were looking for new jobs.

"It's pretty stressful," the employee said.

Popeyes' CEO says it was a 'tough week' for workers

For many employees, the sudden, overwhelming response to the new menu item was strange, considering that the chicken sandwich had already been served in many locations for about a year.

In fact, when Business Insider went to taste-test chicken sandwiches in early August, before the new sandwich was officially announced, a Manhattan location was serving it.

Now, getting a chicken sandwich is much more difficult. Reports of chicken-sandwich shortages continued on Tuesday, sparking concerns that it might be a longer-term problem.

When Business Insider spoke last Friday with Jose Cil, the CEO of Popeyes' parent company, Restaurant Brands International, he acknowledged that it had been a "tough week" for many workers in stores.

"They've worked really hard, and actually the success that we've seen with the launch of the chicken sandwich is really a success that's been driven by our franchise partners as well as our team members and the restaurants," he said.

If you're a fast-food employee with a story to share, email retail@businessinsider.com.

SEE ALSO: The CEO of Popeyes' parent company breaks down the massive success of its chicken sandwich

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Kentucky Fried Chicken is testing new meatless, plant-based meals in partnership with Beyond Meat. Its tasting event in Atlanta sold out in less than five hours. 
• Although people are turning to plant-based food as a healthier option, the highly-processed meat substitute isn't actually much healthier than KFC's regular fried chicken.
• However, a shift to plant-based protein overall could be better for the environment. 
• Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

Kentucky Fried Chicken is the latest fast-food company to dive into the plant-based "meat" market, launching its first-ever Beyond Fried Chicken products at its Atlanta test kitchen this week. 

Although the plant-based options are slightly lower in calories and fat, they're still not much better for you than the traditional meat option, a nutritionist told Insider.

Strict vegetarians and vegans may be out of luck, too. Although the trial run used a dedicated fryer for the meatless items, it's not clear if they'll be prepared alongside real chicken if KFC makes them a permanent addition to the menu. 

Read more: I tasted KFC's meatless fried 'chicken' dishes and even though they look like the real thing, they didn't taste like it

But there may still be reason to swap out your chicken dinner for a plant-based version — it's healthier for the planet. 

Here's what else you need to know about whether it's worth going meatless for your next chicken run. 

Beyond Fried Chicken replaces the poultry with pea protein

Although it's not clear what the exact recipe for Beyond Meat's proprietary KFC collaboration is, the new meatless "chicken" is a blend of soy protein, pea protein, rice flour, and carrot fiber, plus a bunch of seasonings and food additives like yeast extract, vegetable oils, salt, onion powder, and garlic powder, according to Today.

These ingredients alone can be healthy. Pea protein, derived from yellow peas, contains all nine of the essential amino acids your body needs. It's also high in iron. And, although some people worry that soy can interfere with hormones like testosterone or estrogen, research doesn't back that up — it's fine for most people.

Vegetable oils can be OK too, especially in moderation, although some are better than others based on how much saturated fat they contain. 

But the fact that the faux chicken is processed and fried means it's not exactly a health food. 

"Processed foods, whether they're meat-based or plant based, aren't a nutritional need in our diet, especially when they involve low-quality oils," Whitney Stuart, a board-certified and licensed dietitian-nutritionist, told Insider. (It's not clear what kind of oil KFC uses in its products.) 

If calories and fat are your concern, going with the Beyond Fried Chicken isn't going to help you much, either. It only has 10 fewer calories and one less gram of fat.

One of the meatless nuggets weights in at 60 calories, 3 grams of fat, and 5 grams of protein, Marketwatch reported.  A comparable serving of KFC extra-crispy chicken tenders is about 70 calories, 4 grams of fat, and 5 grams of protein, according to the company's website. Both the chicken and plant-based meals have similar levels of sodium. 

"Our goal for nutrition in plant-based food is whole vegetables, fresh or frozen, in their natural form, not in processed patty," Stuart said. "At the end of the day, we're aiming for a natural, whole food, and this isn't it."

Swapping out chicken for plant protein could be better for the planet, however

Research has shown meat production to be a major threat to the environment. Animal farming produces large amounts of greenhouse gasses like carbon dioxide, and farmland competes for space with natural ecosystems like forests. Although chicken and other poultry isn't as damaging as red meats like beef, it's still a part of industrial agriculture.

A major study from the Lancet has found that shifting toward a plant-based diet could make a huge difference. "Food is the single strongest lever to optimize human health and environmental sustainability on Earth," according to a summary of the research. 

But research isn't yet clear on how meat substitutes, especially highly-processed ones like Beyond Fried Chicken, play a role. Research on the Impossible Burger has found that it generates 90% less greenhouse gas emissions and requires 46% less energy, 99% less water, and 93% less land use that beef burgers.

Chicken is considerably better for the environment than beef, however, producing fewer greenhouse gasses. So, opting for a meatless chicken is likely less impactful than going for faux beef. 

Still, producing chicken uses more land and water, and produces more emissions, than crops, and the average American could cut their impact in half by eating less meat and dairy overall, according to the World Resources Institute. Going meatless when you can, then, isn't a lost cause. 

Moderation in both real and faux-meat meals is key to health

Stuart said that the bottom line it won't hurt your health to occasionally indulge in fast food, whether it's plant or animal based.

This is in line with advice that beef substitutes, like the Impossible Burger or Beyond Meat, are a fine choice in moderation, as nutritionists previously told Insider. 

"There is absolutely room for all types of foods in your diet. Choose the one that most satisfies your craving at that time," Stuart said. 

Read more: 

Burger King is taking the Impossible Whopper national and says it's looking into other plant-based 'meat' items

Beyond Meat's CEO says it's 75% of the way towards matching animal meat

UBS predicts plant-based meat sales could grow by more than 25% a year to $85 billion by 2030

Join the conversation about this story »

• A man from East Ridge, Tennessee, has filed a civil summons in Hamilton County General Sessions Court after having a less-than-savory Popeyes experience.
• Craig Barr is suing the fast-food chain for $5,000 in damages, WTVC, a local news channel, reported on Thursday.
• Barr said a man who said he was a Popeyes employee posted a "black list" ad on Craigslist offering to sell a chicken sandwich for $24 after the store sold out. The man took his money but never delivered the sandwich, Barr said.
• Barr also said that his car sustained $1,500 worth of damage to the tires and rims on his way to Popeyes locations to get a sandwich and that his friends made fun of him.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

People are going to great lengths to try the new Popeyes chicken sandwich, which debuted earlier this month and led to a Twitter feud with Chick-fil-A. Indeed, people have gone so very far that Popeyes has been selling out of the sandwiches.

And perhaps no one is more upset about it than a man from East Ridge, Tennessee, who filed a civil summons in Hamilton County General Sessions Court after having a less-than-savory Popeyes experience.

Craig Barr is suing the fast-food chain for $5,000 in damages, WTVC, a local news channel, reported on Thursday. Barr claims he fell victim to "false advertising" and "deceptive business practices by entity to public."

Read more:A teen registered people to vote while they waited in line to try the new Popeyes chicken sandwich

Barr said his car sustained $1,500 of damage to the tires and rims while he was driving to Popeyes locations trying to get a sandwich, NBC News reported.

Barr said he then answered a "black list" Craigslist ad posted by a man who said he worked for Popeyes, WTVC reported. Though the store was sold out of sandwiches, the man said he had stashed chicken sandwiches in the back and would sell them for $24 each, Barr said.

Barr said he paid the man $5 for the sandwich and an additional $20 but never got the sandwich, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reported.

"I got scammed," Barr told the Times Free Press.

In the lawsuit, he said that his friends laughed at him and that the whole ordeal left him feeling "humiliated."

"I can't get happy; I have this sandwich on my mind. I can't think straight," he told the Times Free Press. "It just consumes you."

Barr, who is representing himself, has a court date set for October 28.

• Read more:
• Shake Shack, Church's Chicken, and Wendy's join the battle between Popeyes and Chick-fil-A over the superior chicken sandwich
• 'I was working like a slave': Exhausted Popeyes employees describe a harrowing situation amid chicken-sandwich chaos, including working 60-hour weeks and shifts with no breaks
• A Chick-fil-A employee gave out chicken sandwiches to 'stressed out' Popeyes workers amid viral battle between the 2 chains
• Popeyes is sold out of chicken sandwiches nationwide after selling through a batch in 2 weeks that was supposed to last until October

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: We tried a stuffed chicken parmesan pizza weighing 7 pounds

• When we tried the Popeyes chicken Po' Boy earlier in 2019, we were impressed. But not impressed enough to declare Popeyes the overall chicken chain winner in a comparison with Chick fil A and KFC at the time. 
• But in August, after Popeyes revealed its new fried chicken sandwich, we declared it the best chicken sandwich in a showdown between eight fast-food chains.
• It even beat out Chick-fil-A's iconic chicken sandwich, which is saying a lot.
• The new fried chicken sandwich has become such a massive hit that it's currently sold out in stores across the US. Meanwhile, Popeyes' signature Chicken Po' Boy, originally released in the US in 2003, is now officially discontinued.
• So what's the difference between Popeyes' old chicken sandwich and its new one? And is the new sandwich really that much better?
• In short, yes!
• Here's why Popeyes' new fried chicken sandwich is far superior to its older Po' Boy chicken sandwich.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

SEE ALSO: Popeyes' new chicken sandwich convinced us that we never need to go back to Chick-fil-A

DON'T MISS: 'I was working like a slave': Exhausted Popeyes employees describe a harrowing situation amid chicken-sandwich chaos, including working 60-hour weeks and shifts with no breaks

The Popeyes Po' Boy was essentially some chicken tenders slapped on a bun.

But the fried chicken sandwich is a cut above the Po' Boy. It features a fat, juicy, crispy fried chicken breast as opposed to longer chicken tenders.

The fried chicken sandwich we purchased came packaged in an easy-to-handle sleeve ...

... while the Po' Boy came simply tucked inside a thin sheet of wrapping paper.

One of the most noticeable differences between the two items is the bun. Popeyes' new chicken sandwich comes with a more traditional, fluffy brioche bun ...

... whereas the Po' Boy came on a longer French baguette, the hardness of which made it much less thrilling to sink your teeth into.

The new fried chicken sandwich comes with the chain's exquisite crispy chicken, a nice, crunchy pickle, and mayo.

The Po' Boy came similarly dressed — two breaded chicken tenders lay nestled alongside lettuce, pickles, and mayo.

The chicken sandwich is huge, in a word — it's thick and heavy, but surprisingly easy to eat. Every bite is as good as the last.

A bite out of the 'ole Po' Boy is nowhere near unenjoyable, but this is where Popeyes has elevated its take on the chicken sandwich item.

The shining star of the Po' Boy was the fact that it had Popeyes' crispy, delectable chicken wrapped up inside of it. It didn't have too much else going for it.

But the new chicken sandwich is the perfectly-sized, easy to eat, crispy chicken masterpiece that fast food diners will — and have already begun to — appreciate. In short, it's the whole packaged that makes it far superior.

Source: Business Insider

You've had a good run, Po' Boy.

But we agree that it's time to step aside for the new chicken sandwich — that is, whenever it comes back in stock.

• Popeyes' new chicken sandwich set off a chicken sandwich war that engulfed America. 
• Debate over chicken sandwiches dominated social media, while Popeyes locations were mobbed with angry crowds seeking sold-out sandwiches.
• Two weeks after the sandwich's launch, Popeyes announced it was officially sold out. 
• Read on for the highs and lows of the Chicken Sandwich War of 2019.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Where were you during the Chicken Sandwich War of 2019?

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of deep-fried madness for fast-food chicken chains. Popeyes has undeniably been at the center of the chaos, thanks to its remarkably good chicken sandwich.

It was a sandwich that launched a thousand Twitter battles. A menu item that ruined thousands of Popeyes workers' weeks. And, unbeknownst to many, a sandwich that many customers had been quietly enjoying for weeks. 

Then, on Tuesday, it was all over — for now. Popeyes officially announced the chicken sandwich sold out, only two weeks after its launch. 

Here is the full story of the rise and fall of the most hyped menu item of the year. 

The birth of Popeyes' chicken sandwich

The chicken sandwich is experiencing a moment in fast food.

This moment began well before Popeyes' new sandwich appeared on menus. Chick-fil-A — which became the third largest chain in the US by sales in 2018, despite having far fewer locations than most rivals — has seen incredible success with its chicken sandwich, something that sparked interest in competitors.

Buffalo Wild Wings and Cracker Barrel started testing new chicken sandwiches. McDonald's franchisees called on the corporate office to make developing a top-tier chicken sandwich its top priority. And Popeyes began developing its own sandwich.

Read more:Every chain from McDonald's to Buffalo Wild Wings wants to be Chick-fil-A

Jose Cil, CEO of Restaurant Brands International, the parent company of Popeyes, Burger King, and Tim Hortons, said that the company noticed growing boneless chicken sales. At Popeyes, more people were buying tenders. At Burger King, chicken sandwich sales were up. It was time, executives decided, for Popeyes to have a chicken sandwich of its own. 

"It's a segment within quick service that we think is growing and growing for the long term," Cil recently told Business Insider.

"It's not just a trend here in the US, we think it's a growing trend in Europe," Cil added. "It's a growing trend in Asia and Latin America." 

The launch of a legend 

A number of Popeyes locations started serving the sandwich earlier in 2019, revamping locations to add new equipment, including toasters. In early August, Business Insider's Irene Jiang happened to order the sandwich at Popeyes while conducting a chicken sandwich taste test. 

Before the hype, Jiang had the chance to give the Popeyes chicken sandwich a clear-eyed, unbiased review. In her unclouded judgement, Popeyes had created a chicken sandwich that far outpaced the rivals' offerings. 

"The chicken was incomparably crispy, juicy, and fresh, and all the elements of the sandwich were well balanced," Jiang reported. "Each bite was bursting with flavor. And its price tag is also the most appealing — at $4, it's the cheapest sandwich in the lineup." 

Read more:I ate 8 chicken sandwiches from fast-food chains, and the best was also the cheapest

A few weeks later, Popeyes announced it was launching the chicken sandwich at locations across the US.

Overall, the launch on Monday, August 12 was a pretty standard affair. The chain debuted the sandwich at Sweet Dixie Kitchen, a trendy Los Angeles restaurant that previously served chicken sandwiches using fried chicken from Popeyes. Popeyes fans seemed excited, but there was no reason to believe the sandwich would be something the majority of the US would think that much about. 

Then the tweets began. 

The tweet heard 'round the world 

Most of early social media support of Popeyes' chicken sandwich appears to have been a grassroots movement, a rarity in the sea of influencers and sponsored content. 

Customers took to Twitter to sing praises of the Popeyes chicken sandwich. Many set it up as a rival to the reigning chicken-sandwich king Chick-fil-A, which proudly claims the title of the inventor of the chicken sandwich. 

Then, Chick-fil-A — normally a chain with a decidedly uncontroversial social media presence, in comparison to feistier brands like Wendy's — decided to wade into the Twitter battle itself. Its weapon of choice: the subtweet. 

"Bun + Chicken + Pickles = all the ❤️ for the original," Chick-fil-A tweeted on Monday, August 19, a week after the debut of Popeyes' chicken sandwich. 

Popeyes quote-tweeted it, adding: "... y'all good?"

Bruno Cardinali, a marketing executive for Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, told The New York Times that the team spent 15 minutes putting together the tweet. And, according to Cardinali, it was this tweet that truly set off the chicken sandwich wars and Popeyes' personal chicken sandwich chaos. 

Deb Gabor, CEO of brand strategy consultancy Sol Marketing, told Business Insider that Popeyes benefitted from the comparisons to Chick-fil-A, a chicken chain with a polarizing reputation. 

"Popeyes was able to attract so many customers largely through social media and word of mouth because not only did they launch a new product that customers legitimately loved, they got a 'dialogue' started about the chicken sandwiches themselves that rapidly snowballed into a larger conversation about values and beliefs when they took a direct shot at Chick-Fil-A," Gabor said. 

Read more:Popeyes and Chick-fil-A are feuding on Twitter in a battle over which chicken sandwich reigns supreme

Wendy's, Church's Chicken, Shake Shack, and more chains waded into the social media battle over who had the superior chicken sandwich. (After its subtweet, Chick-fil-A went quiet.)

Customers jumped into the debate, which quickly escalated into the #ChickenSandwichWars. And, these customers began showing up to Popeyes in droves. 

The descent into fried-chicken chaos

The first sign that people might be getting too excited about Popeyes' chicken sandwich came on Tuesday. 

Foot traffic tracker Placer.ai found that visits to Popeyes skyrocketed above the summer baseline average by 67.6% on Tuesday and 103.3% on Wednesday. Locations across the country began running out of sandwiches. Workers were forced to deal with angry mobs of customers looking for their chicken-sandwich fix. 

On Wednesday, one Popeyes employee at a Newark, New Jersey location decided she had enough. She told Business Insider she decided to quit, walking out in the middle of making two chicken sandwiches. 

"The issue with Popeyes or any fast food is the treatment and the amount of pay that a worker gets," the now-former employee said, adding that "the added demand increased the amount of work tenfold, while I still get paid next to nothing."

The week after Popeyes kicked off the chicken sandwich wars, five employees from across the US told Busines Insider that they were putting in long hours, with many working overtime. One employee said their restaurant had shifted to mostly focusing on completing orders, neglecting certain tasks like sweeping and washing dishes for the time being. 

"I was working like a slave in the back prepping the buns with pickles and the spicy mayo," said an 18-year-old Popeyes crew member in Orange County, California, estimating that he made at least 600 sandwiches on the Saturday after Popeyes' tweet during an 11-hour shift. 

Read more:Exhausted Popeyes employees describe a harrowing situation amid chicken-sandwich chaos, including working 60-hour weeks and shifts with no breaks

As workers struggled to keep up with demand in stores, Popeyes executives were realizing that shortages were a national problem. Locations across the US were supposed to have enough materials to last them until the end of September. Instead, restaurants were almost entirely sold out after less than two weeks. 

The death of Popeyes' sandwich — for now

On Tuesday, August 27, just two weeks after Popeyes debuted the new menu item, the chain announced that it was officially off the menu. 

"We love that you love The Sandwich," the company tweeted. "Unfortunately we're sold out (for now)."

"We, along with our suppliers, are working tirelessly to bring the new sandwich back to guests as soon as possible," the company said in a statement to Business Insider. 

One worker told Business Insider that the issue wasn't chicken at her location — it was the lack of buns. Popeyes executives told The Times that locations ran out of the particular cut of breast meat used to make the sandwich, and that the chain will be recruiting new suppliers. 

"We are working with suppliers of all components of our sandwich to build up our supply in order to bring back the chicken sandwich as soon as possible," a Popeyes representative said in an email to Business Insider. 

It seems unlikely that The Sandwich 2.0 will capture the same explosive energy of the Chicken Sandwich War. The past two weeks have been one of the most out-of-control reactions to a new menu item that this reporter has seen in six years of covering fast food. No country can continue to hype a chicken sandwich this aggressively for much longer. 

Then again, it's a really good sandwich.

SEE ALSO: The inside story of how Chick-fil-A used Christian values and a 'clone army' to build a booming business that's defying the retail apocalypse and taking over America

Join the conversation about this story »

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• British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday made an awkward joke about "chlorinated chickens" while meeting with Vice President Mike Pence in London. 
• The joke reportedly left the room "visibly befuddled."
• Johnson's joke was in reference to the US practice of rinsing meat in chlorine toward the end of the production process to protect consumers from certain pathogens. 
• Johnson's exchange with Pence comes amid a rough week for the British prime minister, in which he's suffered major defeats in Parliament that have derailed his plans for Brexit.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday made a joke about chickens while meeting with Vice President Mike Pence at No. 10 Downing Street that left the room "visibly befuddled,"The Associated Press reported. 

As Pence told Johnson that the US was ready to negotiate a free-trade agreement with the UK, the prime minister responded with enthusiasm but also said he wanted to ensure any deal was one that works for "all sides." 

"Mike, it's fantastic to have you here," Johnson said. "And we will drive that free-trade agreement forward. Of course, the US economy is a wonderful, massive opportunity for UK folks."

Johnson went on to express dismay that people in the US "don't eat any British lamb or beef or haggis from Scotland."

"And I know that you guys are pretty tough negotiators," Johnson said. "So we're going to work very hard to make sure that that free-trade deal is one that works for all sides."

Before launching into his joke about chickens, Johnson then added that the UK would not accept any deal that could weaken the state-funded National Health Service.

"We're not too keen on that chlorinated chicken, either," the British prime minister said. "We have a gigantic chlorinated chicken of our own here on the opposition benches."

Read more: What happens now MPs have voted to delay Brexit until 2020?

In addition to using it as a means of insulting his political opponents, Johnson's jocular chicken comment was made in reference to the US practice of rinsing meat with chlorine toward the end of the production process to protect consumers from pathogens such as salmonella and campylobacter.

The topic has come up repeatedly in conversations on a US-UK trade deal. There are concerns that chlorine rinsing permits lower hygiene standards at other points in the production process. In March, US Ambassador to the UK Woody Johnson dismissed such concerns as "inflammatory and misleading."

Boris Johnson's exchange with Pence comes amid a rough week for the British prime minister, in which he's suffered major defeats in Parliament that have derailed his plans for Brexit and even seen his own brother abandon him and resign from the UK government over the prime minister's agenda.

SEE ALSO: Boris Johnson's own brother dramatically quit as an MP and government minister, accusing him of trashing the national interest

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• Chicken sandwiches are the new battlefield for fast-food titans like Popeyes and Chick-fil-A.
• McDonald's just released its latest contender in the Chicken Wars: a spicy BBQ chicken sandwich and spicy BBQ glazed tenders.
• I tried both the sandwich and the tenders, and neither justified their existence on McDonald's menu.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

On Wednesday, McDonald's entered into the Chicken Wars with a new spicy BBQ chicken sandwich.

McDonald's sent its contestant into battle on the heels of the release of Popeyes' chicken sandwich, which ignited a massive Twitter war and caused no shortage of real-world chaos when it ran out. 

Spicy chicken is all the rage these days — Wendy's spicy chicken nuggets returned to a resounding fan welcome — so I went to McDonald's to try its new peppery poultry. But, I wasn't lovin' it.

Read more:Popeyes' new chicken sandwich convinced us that we never need to go back to Chick-fil-A

McDonald's spicy BBQ chicken sandwich should have stayed in the test kitchen where it belongs. Its accompanying spicy BBQ chicken tenders were even more disappointing.

Here's why:

SEE ALSO: I tried chicken sandwiches from 8 major chains, and Popeyes' was a major standout for several reasons

I went to the McDonald's across the street from Business Insider's Manhattan office. I ordered a four-piece spicy BBQ glazed tenders and a spicy BBQ chicken sandwich.

The spicy chicken sandwich came on a sesame bun, which I thought was an odd choice for a chicken sandwich. Its non-spicy counterpart, the buttermilk crispy chicken, comes on a lovely potato brioche.

Read more:I ate 8 chicken sandwiches from fast-food chains, and the best was also the cheapest

Upon opening up the sandwich, I was faced with even more confusion. The sandwich had not one, but two pieces of fried chicken — not spicy. In addition to two flaccid pickle rounds, there was a smattering of onion slices.

The BBQ sauce on top was less than generous, which made me nervous because it's the only thing giving this sandwich any flavor.

This odd combination of ingredients made me wonder what exactly McDonald's was going for with this sandwich.

The chicken was nice and crispy, but the continental shift between the two pieces was annoying. It was also nowhere near as juicy, fresh, and flavorful as Popeyes' chicken.

The pickles were sadly imperceptible, and the presence of the onions was just confusing. What were onions doing on a chicken sandwich? Moreover, this simply wasn't spicy. At all. It just tasted weakly of BBQ sauce.

It was like McDonald's slapped two chicken tenders on a bun with some onion slivers and BBQ sauce. I wondered why McDonald's had even bothered to release it.

So many fans have been clamoring for the return of the Spicy McChicken. Why not just answer their call? Or at least put the spice in the chicken batter like Chick-fil-A does?

Read more:I compared the legendary McChicken with 4 cheap sandwiches from other fast-food chains, and it proved the original is still the best

The new spicy BBQ glazed tenders told a similarly sad story.

They emitted a strong, alluring smell while in the bag, but when I took them out, they looked less than appetizing.

These were essentially McDonald's buttermilk crispy tenders drenched in what can only be described as "plain ol' barbecue sauce."

I was suspicious that all this sauce wouldn't bode well for the crispiness of the tenders.

And I was right. This tender didn't have the texture of something that's been fried even though it had indeed been fried. I tasted nothing but sauce and lean white meat.

These mild, middling tenders are no threat to anyone, much less to Popeyes. I still have hope that McDonald's will come out with a better kind of spicy chicken, one where the spice is in the batter or the marinade. Until then, I'm getting my spicy fix elsewhere.

• Popeyes is rolling out a BYOB — Bring Your Own Bun — policy after selling out of its new chicken sandwich.
• Customers are instructed to order the three-piece tenders and place the chicken between the bun that they bought themselves. 
• "We are working with suppliers of all components of our sandwich to build up our supply in order to bring back the chicken sandwich as soon as possible," a Popeyes representative told Business Insider.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Popeyes is rolling out a BYOB — Bring Your Own Bun — policy after running out of its instantly famous chicken sandwich. 

On Thursday, the chain announced a new "Bring Your Own Bun" initiative hoping to tide over customers seeking the sandwich. Customers will simply order the three-piece tenders and place the chicken between the pre-bought bun.

Read more: Exhausted Popeyes employees describe a harrowing situation amid chicken-sandwich chaos, including working 60-hour weeks and shifts with no breaks 

It's not a perfect fix. To make the sandwich, Popeyes used a particular cut of breast meat that is not currently sold at the chain. 

"We are working with suppliers of all components of our sandwich to build up our supply in order to bring back the chicken sandwich as soon as possible," a Popeyes representative told Business Insider.

Popeyes launched its chicken sandwich in August.

The sandwich inspired massive debate and convinced customers to swarm to their nearest Popeyes locations. In two weeks, the chain had sold out of the supply that was intended to last two months. 

SEE ALSO: Social-media battles, massive crowds, and overworked employees: Inside the rise and fall of Popeyes' chicken sandwich

Join the conversation about this story »

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