The fried chicken craze that once sent customers sprinting to counters and forming lines around city blocks is now facing a sobering twist. Hen House Nashville filed for Chapter 11, marking a sharp contrast to the meteoric rise that has defined the sector over the past decade.
Fried chicken restaurants have become one of the hottest tickets in fast food in less than 10 years, transforming from comfort-food staples into cultural phenomena.
The Chicken Sandwich Wars That Changed Everything
The modern fried chicken explosion can be traced to a single moment in August 2019, when Popeyes launched its now-famous chicken sandwich. What followed was nothing short of culinary combat.
The debut ignited the so-called “chicken sandwich wars,” pulling Chick-fil-A into the spotlight as it reminded consumers that its own sandwich dated back to 1964. But nostalgia didn’t slow the frenzy. Popeyes locations across the country were overwhelmed, with customers waiting in snaking lines only to be met with handwritten signs announcing the sandwiches were sold out.
Scenes like these played out nationwide, as detailed at the time by The Washington Post in its review of the 2019 showdown.
