from The New York Times

A Popeyes Chicken Sandwich and a Tactic to Set Off a Twitter Roar

“Look at how much attention they’re getting — it’s impressive,” the executive editor of a trade magazine said.

Chick-fil-A, above, took on its rival Popeyes in a social-media match this week. 
Chick-fil-A, above, took on its rival Popeyes in a social-media match this week. Credit: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg

By David Yaffe-Bellany

The first Popeyes tweet seemed innocent enough — a photograph of the chain’s new fried-chicken sandwich (chicken breast, brioche bun, pickles, sauce) beneath an artfully garbled caption: “So. Good. Forgot. How. Speak.”

But as a social media battle has captivated the internet this week and generated long lines at Popeyes locations across the country, that tweet from last week now has the feel of an opening salvo. Things grew heated on Tuesday, when Chick-fil-A tweeted what appeared to be a coded response to the Popeyes announcement, extolling the virtues of its “original” chicken sandwich.

Popeyes replied a few hours later: “…y’all good?” 

Soon, the “passive-aggressive chicken sandwich debate,” as one news article put it, had escalated into a Twitter battle royal, as other fast-food companies started promoting their own sandwiches. Shake Shack tried to rise above the fray, promising a chicken sandwich “without the beef.”

As the Twitter commotion intensified, the Popeyes chicken sandwich reportedly sold out at some locations.

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