• last year
A brand new American fried chicken restaurant is opening its first store in Manchester this week.

Popeyes will officially open its doors at 11am on Thursday October 26, and queues are expected around the block for this popular chain.

The store is located in Piccadilly Gardens and is the 33rd of the franchise to open since Popeyes arrived in the UK in 2021.

The restaurant will be pulling out all the stops on opening day including giveaways to the first few people in the queue.

We were invited down before the launch to sample Popeyes unique menu and take a look at how they prepare their iconic shatter-crunch chicken.

We sampled a variety of items from the menu - including the classic chicken sandwich and the deluxe spicy chicken sandwich, a variety of the shatter-crunch chicken, hot wings, biscuits and gravy, mac and cheese and more - all with a selection of dipping sauces.

And we got a sneak peek inside the kitchen to watch the chicken being prepared, as well as a chance to make our very own classic chicken sandwich.
Transcript
00:00 "One of the main reasons we stand out is we bring that Louisiana thrill to our restaurant
00:05 with our bright, bold colours, our real happy staff and our great quality food."
00:09 A brand new American fried chicken restaurant is opening its first store in Manchester this week.
00:15 Popeyes will officially open its doors at 11am on Thursday 26th October,
00:21 and queues are expected around the block for this popular chain.
00:25 The store is located in Piccadilly Gardens and is the 33rd of the franchise to open
00:30 since Popeyes arrived in the UK in 2021. The restaurant will be pulling out all
00:36 the stops on opening day, including giveaways to the first few people in the queue.
00:41 We were invited down before the launch to sample Popeyes' unique menu and take a look
00:46 at how the iconic Chatter Crunch chicken is prepared.
00:50 "Welcome to Popeyes Manchester. We are bringing the Louisiana feel to Manchester.
00:54 Popeyes started off in New Orleans by a gentleman called Al Copeland in 1972.
00:58 We're really excited to be in Manchester. It's been a long time coming.
01:01 We've been waiting for the right site to land in and here we are.
01:05 We opened on Thursday 26th October. It was about finding the right location
01:09 and the right site and we're in the heart of the city centre now so we're really excited to be here.
01:13 Finding the right building was really important to make sure we deliver great service and great
01:17 product. Popeyes is a Louisiana style chicken with our Chatter Crunch coating. It's absolutely
01:22 amazing. Crispy and then moist on the inside. Really, really flavoursome, keeping the unique
01:27 flavour of Louisiana. Popeyes coming to the UK was inevitable and we were so excited.
01:32 We opened our first restaurant two years ago in November in London in Stratford and it was welcomed
01:37 with open arms. We had people flying from all over the UK, including Scotland, to join us on
01:41 the opening weekend there. So as we grow as a brand we're really excited to be a part of the UK
01:46 in different cities as well. One of the most important things is our products. Everything's
01:50 made fresh in store and it's all made by hand, so battered in each of the stations. Our team are
01:56 trained and they come two, three weeks early with the training team. They're on-boarded and they're
02:00 educated all about Popeyes and the importance of quality product and quality service.
02:04 We sampled a variety of items from the menu, including the classic chicken sandwich and the
02:10 deluxe spicy chicken sandwich. A variety of the Chatter Crunch chicken, hot wings, biscuits and
02:16 gravy, mac and cheese and more, all with a selection of dipping sauces. And we got a sneak peek inside
02:23 the kitchen to watch the chicken being prepared, as well as a chance to make our very own classic
02:29 chicken sandwich. I think Manchester are really looking forward to the vibe, but I think most
02:33 importantly they're looking forward to the food. A lot of people as we come further up north have
02:38 realised that Popeyes is a great brand and quality food, so I think they're really excited about
02:42 tasting that Louisiana chicken and that Chatter Crunch coating. I think we're really looking
02:46 forward to being a part of Manchester. We're really looking to meet you. We can't wait for
02:50 you guys to try our signature chicken and we look forward to seeing you on Thursday.

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