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signmeuptoo94
Bless you Howie
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
NanoParticle

signmeuptoo94

Premium Member

Popeyes, good but not the same

I know I am up here in CT, not TX or LA, but I was excited to see a Popeyes and to actually get to eat there. And it was ok, but...

The pickled jalapenos were barely hotter than bell peppers and worse, the dirty rice (girl there "corrected me" telling me it isn't dirty rice, it is CAJUN rice, silly me!) was horrible. I make dirty rice all the time, usually from a Zatarrans package, but sometimes from scratch, and love it, so how could they mess up something so simple. The rice was all mushy like it had been cooked and then recooked with added water, and it was mealy, and the flavor was off.

When I went up to complain, they didn't offer me anything to fix it and that is when the young girl had the audacity to correct me, adding insult to injury.

I suspect the dirty rice was kept for too long and they knew it. The peppers, well, let's face it, few people can actually tolerate Texas spicy. I can, but I lived in TX for over half my life.

I plan on returning there because the chicken was ok, not as good as I remember from down at the Gulf Coast, but still better than KFC for sure. This is something I cannot eat every day because it isn't healthful food and worse, it has dairy in it, and I am allergic.

The KFC near me has employees with an attitude. I know the job sucks, but being snotty when I'm being friendly and patient, man.

Has anyone else had bad dirty rice from Popeyes? The one time I ate at a Bojangles in TN it was good, and the chicken was better than Popeyes, but they closed the location and moved it to Nashville.

Should I tell corporate about this, would that make any difference? I don't like getting people in trouble, but clearly they were selling food past its prime and that is just plain gross. I took only one spoon of the rice and spit it out. And Boudin and dirty rice are two of my favorite foods. Pass the saltines and cayenne sauce!

TypeO
Premium Member
join:2002-06-06
Colorado

TypeO

Premium Member

I think that you should complain, especially since you have had the real thing. That stuff should be as good as any Popeyes in the south. If the employees in your local restaurant are not doing their job it reflects on the rest of the chain.

BTW, the next time you go back, be sure and tell them that its dirty rice (or rice dressing), not Cajun rice.
PrntRhd
Premium Member
join:2004-11-03
Fairfield, CA

2 edits

PrntRhd to signmeuptoo94

Premium Member

to signmeuptoo94
For any franchise restaurant chain that grows too fast, keeping the quality consistent is very difficult. (One thing McDonald's and Starbucks does right is their consistent quality.)
I would advise their home office but approach it a different way. Ask them why there is such a difference in the quality between locations.

I personally choose red beans and rice over the cajun rice/dirty rice due to the moisture variations with drier rice dishes, it is much harder to control the quality of the drier items and the staff will easily get it wrong if not acquainted with the real deal and how it is supposed to be prepared. CT staff likely never get sent to Louisiana or Texas to see how this regional food is supposed to taste.

Of course they are not the only chain with issues. Calling Taco Bell items "Mexican" cuisine is a similar situation, very few people from Mexico or the Southwest states would say TB is even close to a representation of real Mexican food.

And Popeyes calls it "cajun rice" on their menu boards, BTW.

signmeuptoo94
Bless you Howie
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
NanoParticle

signmeuptoo94

Premium Member

Oh believe me, having lived in CA, NM, AZ, TX... Yeah, I know real Mexican, had many friends and GFs from there, too. There is this place in Tucson that does the pot of meat and veggies in a burrito that is to die for, served with escabesh!

And then there is Subway. Back in its first days, here in CT, where they are based IIRC (or at least used to be) more of the sandwiches had names of subway trains. And the topings where CT centric. But the bread, well, that was always ok, but not the best, Nardelli's is the best local chain. By far the best. I am not sure, but I think they use Melitis bread.

Another LA/TX authentic chain is Schlottsky's, close to the real thing, good bread, unlike anyone else's. Muffalettas. (spelling here.)

dvd536
as Mr. Pink as they come
Premium Member
join:2001-04-27
Phoenix, AZ

dvd536 to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
I 'gree with you signmeuptoo. they don't live up to their online hype much like 5 guys was an equal disappointment.

most likely they were cutting corners. no better than churches IMHO.
dvd536

dvd536 to PrntRhd

Premium Member

to PrntRhd
said by PrntRhd:

(One thing McDonald's and Starbucks does right is their consistent quality.)

quality at mc d's? pullllllease. they're the posterchild of chintzy portions and no taste crap. wash it all down with a fountain drink that the syrup is turned down so low it doesn't even come close to the bottled counterpart!!1
dvd536

dvd536 to signmeuptoo94

Premium Member

to signmeuptoo94
said by signmeuptoo94:

Oh believe me, having lived in CA, NM, AZ, TX... Yeah, I know real Mexican, had many friends and GFs from there, too. There is this place in Tucson that does the pot of meat and veggies in a burrito that is to die for, served with escabesh!

Sounds like a mom and pop where corporate GREED doesn't enter the equation.

TheBionic
Funkier than a mohair disco ball.
Premium Member
join:2009-07-06
united state

TheBionic to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
I agree with PrntRhd See Profile and suggest the red beans and rice. I too have had the dirty rice at Popeye's and it's pretty bad. Love the red beans and rice though. That said you probably have way more experience in Popeye's than I do since there isn't one anywhere near me and you used to eat there all the time. I haven't had Popeye's in many years.

RockCake
Premium Member
join:2005-07-12
Woodbridge, VA

RockCake to signmeuptoo94

Premium Member

to signmeuptoo94
The dirty/cajun rice at my local Popeyes had NO flavor. At all.
And their biscuits weren't as good as they used to be (too dry), they must've changed the recipe.
Didn't Popeyes used to make their biscuits on site?

DarkLogix
Texan and Proud
Premium Member
join:2008-10-23
Baytown, TX

DarkLogix

Premium Member

They do, I've seen them before when I uset to buy chicken there for lunch.

The important thing is that the biscuits are put directly into the box with the chicken.
Happydude32
Premium Member
join:2005-07-16

Happydude32 to signmeuptoo94

Premium Member

to signmeuptoo94
Popeye’s is one place I always wanted to go, and finally did a few months ago. We have no Popeye’s in Buffalo, there are two in the Rochester area, one is in the shopping district of a really nice upper class suburb, and the other is the ghetto of the city. Needless to say I didn’t feel like getting shot, stabbed or mugged, so I stopped in to the one in the suburbs. I have to say I love it! The chicken is so much better then KFC. And nice and crispy, which I like. The mild is nice, but the hot is even better. And the biscuits, oh my god those are the best fuckin biscuits I have ever had! The fries are alright, could be better, but not those potato wedge things KFC has, which is a good thing.

I’ve been back 5 or 6 times now. Once I didn’t get anything since their credit card terminals were down, once I got two free extra pieces of chicken and an extra free biscuit due to having to wait so long fo the order to be ready. I’ve only had the chicken, both actual pieces and strips. The other stuff on the menu does nothing for me. I cannot comment on the rice, I won't touch the stuff since 1) to me rice has no taste and 2) I don’t feel like eating something that looks like maggots.

Mannus
Premium Member
join:2005-10-25
Fort Wayne, IN

Mannus to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
The Popeyes here is ok. Chicken seems kinds small compared to Lee's(my favorite). The red beans and rice is good and the biscuits are ok also. Their prices seems to be lower than Lee's or KFC(which just doesn't taste right).

Lee's here has the best biscuits by far and the best tasting chicken of the chain stores. There are some hole in the wall joints that have good food/chicken also.
PrntRhd
Premium Member
join:2004-11-03
Fairfield, CA

PrntRhd to dvd536

Premium Member

to dvd536
said by dvd536:

said by PrntRhd:

(One thing McDonald's and Starbucks does right is their consistent quality.)

quality at mc d's? pullllllease. they're the posterchild of chintzy portions and no taste crap. wash it all down with a fountain drink that the syrup is turned down so low it doesn't even come close to the bottled counterpart!!1

The quality is the same from location to location nationwide, I did not mean the quality was amazing.

Santa Fe
BUT.....I Digress!

join:2000-08-22
Freight Yard

Santa Fe to signmeuptoo94

to signmeuptoo94
We had 2 Popeye's here a few years ago & they closed. Now we got another one that just opened & this one is NOWHERE as good as the original stores. Bummer.

DarkLogix
Texan and Proud
Premium Member
join:2008-10-23
Baytown, TX

DarkLogix

Premium Member

You should have bought more at the old one, maybe with more business they'd have stayed in business.

r81984
Fair and Balanced
Premium Member
join:2001-11-14
Katy, TX

r81984 to dvd536

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to dvd536
said by dvd536:

said by PrntRhd:

(One thing McDonald's and Starbucks does right is their consistent quality.)

quality at mc d's? pullllllease. they're the posterchild of chintzy portions and no taste crap. wash it all down with a fountain drink that the syrup is turned down so low it doesn't even come close to the bottled counterpart!!1

Actually McDs is a posterchild of standarization, cleanliness, efficiency, and food consistency.
They also take complaints seriously. If you call the corporate, they will get on the ass of the manager/owner of the restaurant with your complaint to quickly fix the issue and give you free stuff to make up for it.

Of course quality and taste can be debated and it is completely unhealthy, but McDs are the experts at fast food consistency and efficiency.

Pauly
join:2004-05-29
canada

Pauly to signmeuptoo94

Member

to signmeuptoo94
Up here in Canada, popeyes is suppsesedely known for their hallall chicken. there are some that are hallal and some arent, but the ones that arent are beign boycotted by the muslim community, but there is nothing in the agreement with poppeyes canada and the franchizee telling them they need to buy hallal chickens so they get their chicken from other farms, if i was them i would do what ever i want too its their business after all.

pcdebb
birdbrain
Premium Member
join:2000-12-03
Brandon, FL
ARRIS DG1670

pcdebb to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
i worked at Popeye's back in high school, and alot of the stuff was made fresh. the biscuits were the absolute best, made from scratch. they come to the restaurant precut and frozen now. I can only imagine the cajun rice is made different now too. Not sure how it's made now, but it tastes alot different now.

Santa Fe
BUT.....I Digress!

join:2000-08-22
Freight Yard

Santa Fe to DarkLogix

to DarkLogix
said by DarkLogix:

You should have bought more at the old one, maybe with more business they'd have stayed in business.

I did, but evidently not enough customers were returning.

AMDUSER
Premium Member
join:2003-05-28
Earth,
ARRIS CM8200
ARRIS SB6183

1 edit

AMDUSER to r81984

Premium Member

to r81984
OT:
So will Applebees... even if it is a franchise owed location [they burned the food- was carside to go and it was missing something].. called the place up.. said they would send a coupon [...They blew it off].

A few weeks later... called up Applebees main office- took my information and a day or so later the manager of that location called my house- a few days later a couple coupons arrived.
It was just that location, as I have went to other locations w/o any problems..

On topic:
I wish they didn't close the Popeyes that used to be near my house... unfortuanately.

jadinolf
I love you Fred
Premium Member
join:2005-07-09
Ojai, CA

jadinolf to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
Only been to one in my life.

Is their food worthy of our time?

signmeuptoo94
Bless you Howie
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
NanoParticle

signmeuptoo94

Premium Member

No, it's petty just like anything I guess. But if someone offers a product and quality but doesn't deliver, it seems worth saying something...
older dog
Premium Member
join:2005-06-09

older dog to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
This thread lead to my seeking out a Popeyes, I went to the one in Troy N.Y.
I usually have chicken as an ingredient and not as the main dish itself.
The Cajun chicken is now my favorite fast food, I ate every last bit of it.

signmeuptoo94
Bless you Howie
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
NanoParticle

1 recommendation

signmeuptoo94

Premium Member

Yeah, its good. My sister (one of them) is very anti fast food, and yet she'll eat at Popeyes.

If you ever want to make good homemade fried chicken:

1. Make sure when you bread and batter the chicken it is ice cold, wash the chicken and paper towel dry it off, then dredge in flour and then in batter.

2. Use Tony Cacheri's seasonig to spice up the chicken and batter, sprinkle it on the the chicken first, and mix it into the batter.

3. Use a heavy cast iron pan or deep fat fryer. Residual heat is important (if you don't know what I am talking about, google it, when deep frying, it is important). Make sure it is deep enough that the chicken doesn't touch the bottom of the pan while frying because it will burn and taste bad. In other words, you need a deep pan and deep oil.

4. Use buttermilk.

5. Peanut oil is good for higher heat and flavor.

Keep a fire extinguisher for oil fires around because a flash fire from fat or oil is explosive and you can't put it out with water, trying to do so can kill you as well as burn your house down. Use caution and never leave a fryer alone, when frying chicken, make sure you have nothing else to distract you.
Secyurityet
Premium Member
join:2012-01-07
untied state

Secyurityet to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
And they have the best fast food red beans and rice. In.The.World.

Really.

Anonymous_
Anonymous
Premium Member
join:2004-06-21
127.0.0.1

Anonymous_ to PrntRhd

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to PrntRhd
said by PrntRhd:

For any franchise restaurant chain that grows too fast, keeping the quality consistent is very difficult. (One thing McDonald's and Starbucks does right is their consistent quality.

Not true I had the "new" Hot n’ Spicy Chicken Sandwich It was not the same as the one I bought in a Utah testing location..

talk about consistent quality.

J E F F4
Whatta Ya Think About Dat?
Premium Member
join:2004-04-01
Kitchener, ON

J E F F4 to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
Popeye's here isn't the same either. I think the more north you go the less 'original' it is. When it first opened it was terrific. Now it's like 'meh'. I suppose it's a good treat once in a while.

craig70130
Premium Member
join:2004-04-27
New Orleans, LA

craig70130 to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
When I lived in Minneapolis, the one Popeyes they had/have tasted just like it does down here. Only difference is here they sell 80+% spicy to mild. Up there it was the opposite. Often I had to wait for them to cook spicy.

Jalapenos must be an option - none of the stores here have them. Church's does but not popeyes. (same parent company)

I think their rice has always been nasty.

The Pig
I know you want to be me
Premium Member
join:2009-09-11

The Pig to signmeuptoo94

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to signmeuptoo94
The Popeyes here closed a few years ago, due to lack of business!
PrntRhd
Premium Member
join:2004-11-03
Fairfield, CA

1 edit

PrntRhd to craig70130

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to craig70130

said by craig70130 See Profile
Jalapenos must be an option - none of the stores here have them. Church's does but not popeyes. (same parent company)

I think their rice has always been nasty.
[/BQUOTE :



Not quite true, AFC the parent company sold Church's in 2004, and they were run separately before the sale.