Review: Popeyes - Chicken Nuggets

Popeyes' Chicken Nuggets feature white meat chicken breast pieces that are seasoned, battered, and breaded in buttermilk, and then deep-fried.

 I paid $3.99 for an 8-piece order and went with their Blackened Ranch for dipping.

The pieces were fairly irregular in shape and size (one of the larger pieces was basically a mini version of one of their tenders). I actually got 9 pieces however.

The chicken was well brined with a moist, salted flavor underneath a light, flaky, and crispy breading. There wasn't much in the way of herbs or other seasonings to the crust or chicken, which is great for dipping but made for rather plain eating of the nuggets by themselves.

I also bought a Popeyes' Chicken Sandwich to compare the breast filet to the nuggets and realized that it's the bells and whistles (plus price and size of the filet) that makes Popeyes' Chicken Sandwich so popular. It flavor of the pickle and slight richness of the bun gave the sandwich that extra "oomph." The filet by itself, while super crispy and juicy, was similarly pretty plain in flavor.

When it comes down to it, Popeyes' Chicken Nuggets offer a smaller, bite-sized (or two bite-sized) version of their chicken filet in their infamous Chicken Sandwich, which in turn is a meatier, juicier version of their chicken tenders. They're enjoyable and great for dipping but I can't help but wonder if they'd be even better if Popeyes includes some of the pickles from the sandwich on top.