Best Fast Food Chicken Sandwich Special Order from Familiar Place

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

Popeye’s Spicy Chicken Sandwich vs. Chick-fil-A’s Chicken Sandwich (special order, see below)

It’s finally time for me to make a local, almost parallel comparison between the nation’s two most popular fast food chicken sandwiches. The Chick-fil-A double-battered sandwich

I am going to break it down in several categories, weighing in on my experience from the time I walked into the restaurant and follow through with a detailed review of each sandwich.

Both were ordered very recently in Anderson, with the Chick-fil-A location being on Greenville Street.

THE CHALLENGE: This is a comparison of the regular Popeye’s Spicy Chicken Sandwich vs. the Chick-fil-A regular sandwich special ordered as double battered (which is as simple as asking for it when you order. Do not order at drive through, where this special order is not available for obvious reasons.)

Popye's Spicy Chicken SandwichTIME WAITING TO ORDER: First, I was a little surprised at the average speed of service both places. When I visited Popeye’s at 6:30 p.m. on a Monday night, a was behind a line of eight other customers, with one register open. Time waiting in line to order was just under 10 minutes. At Chick-fil-A, I arrived on a Tuesday at 4:50 p.m., and got in a line with four customers in front of me, including one at each of the two open registers. It’s possible they were training new employees, but for whatever reason I waited in line for eight minutes to order my sandwich. That said, the service was much friendlier at Chick-fil-A, especially given my order (see below). But based on my visits, Time to Order Winner: Tie

TIME WAITING FOR SANDWICH: Next was the wait time for the sandwich. The Popeye’s was a standard order sandwich, and it took just over 10 minutes to get my order. Not fast, but acceptable. Chick-fil-A’s special-order double-battered sandwich also took just over 10 minutes, which is fast considering it takes the kitchen more time to prepare and cook. I will note that waiting at Chick-fil-A was more pleasant due to not only there being more space, but the level of cleanliness. The tables at Popeye’s were not clean, the place was very busy, but I didn’t notice anyone checking tables while I was there. Chick-fil-A was not as busy, but one of their trademarks is somebody constantly wandering the dining area cleaning tables, and it was evident. All of the empty tables were clean. Wait for SandwichPopeye's bun is very good. Winner: Chick-fil-A, with bonus points for cleanliness.

The BATTLE OF TWO SANDWICHES: Now for the main event.

Here’s what’s good about each sandwich, and what could be better, beginning with the Popeye’s Spicy Chicken Sandwich. Right away it’s hard to miss the superior brioche bun at Popeye’s. It’s slightly sweet and fresh, almost out-of-the-oven flavor is the best I’ve had on any fast food sandwich, including burgers. The chicken was a generous portion, and thick but not dry. It tasted like a piece of fried chicken as opposed to a boneless chicken patty. The crust is tasty, with a satisfying crunch in every bit. The spicy sauce is not really very hot, but full of rich flavors. Mine was skimpy on the sauce and that gave me a chance to taste the edge bites which were without sauce, and they were good as well. Skip the pickles. The ones on my sandwich were bland and soggy, actually detracting from the flavor of a good sandwich.

The double-battered Chick-fil-A starts from behind in the battle with a mushy bun that is mushier from even a brief minute inside the foil-lined bags. I remember the first time I ate a Chick-fil-A sandwich in 1966 at an Atlanta Braves game, and the sandwiches were in plain white foil-lined pouches and the buns soggy. The flavor of the buns is not bad, just ordinary. If you can get one extra toasted and not bagged in the foil pouch, it would be better. I will ask next time for that as my special order. As you can see in the photo, a double-battered Chick-fil-A sandwich is a thing to behold. Like the competitor, it also boasts a large, generous portion of thick and juicy chicken. But unlike ordering a regular Chick-fil-A sandwich is hit or miss when it comes to crust and crunch, a double-battered Chick-fil-A sandwich is what God intended Truett Cathy to pioneer. It is, I dare say, downright beautiful. Sticking out of the pedestrian bun is a crusty sandwich which needs no extra sauce. Satisfying flavor and crunch, enhanced by great pickles, this sandwich is the one to rule them all (This review is only a comparison of the two best, though I have tried the other fast food chicken sandwiches and they don’t begin to compare, and thus are not a part of this conversation.) You can add any of the pretty good sauces Chick-fil-A offers if you want, but there is not a need on this sandwich. Something about the extra level of crust give so much extra flavor to the double battered sandwich that you have to experience it to fully understand. TASTE TEST AND OVERALL WINNER: Chick-fil-A double-battered sandwich.It's worth going inside and waiting on this amazing sandwich.

Final Thoughts: Keep in mind I intentionally not to compare the regular Chick-fil-A sandwich to the Popeye’s Spicy sandwich. Popeye’s might have edged out as the winner in that side-by-side taste test, but the double-battered Chick-fil-A sandwich is superior and king of the fast food chicken sandwiches. I also chose not I did not get into side dishes in this review. Popeye’s has a much broader variety of sides, including cole slaw, something Chick-fil-A sadly discontinued along with their amazing carrot and raisin salad. The iced teas at both were so close it’s hard to choose a winner. My biggest fear in crowning a special-order sandwich chicken king is that they might get so overwhelmed with requests, they stop offering it (my son who lives in Reston, Va., has already been told there is no such sandwich). And as I said, you cannot order it via drive through. If you want the extra breading and crunch in the car, hit Popeye’s. But if you are craving the best fast food chicken sandwich, something that is quite filling with no sides, visit Chick-fil-A and ask for a double-battered chicken sandwich. You can thank me later.