Popeyes

This is absolutely my favorite place for fried chicken! The customer service is very good, too. However, I would give this place 4 stars since their sides (like macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, etc.) kinda disappoint me. Overall, I like this place :)

top notch fried chicken
this location rocks!

This is the only Popeye’s that is good in Portland. I would recommend that you stay away from the sides because they are mediocre at best. The chicken and fries have been consistent for me always.
The employees are not enthusiastic but remember they’re probably not making much money working there. I work in food service and it is a completely unappreciated job.
Go mardi gras mustard! and get some honey for that biscuit baby, it’s worth it.

Awesome food! Only reason I gave them 4 stars is they messed up my order but the food is so good. Will def go back.

Sweet Chichen.

***Eat the best and skip the rest.***
Gil E. below’s got it right: «the best fried chicken on the planet.»
Why fool around, when all you gotta do is drive over and get some.
No muss and no fuss.
My wife and I are spoiled, but none of the fancy restaurants that we’ve been to can compete with Popeyes on the fried chicken front.
Great staff. Crystal is especially helpful.
Wish they had a loyalty card program.
CONGRATS for doing such good work in a difficult business.

Without question, the best fried chicken on the planet. I have searched high and low and haven’t found a close second. Maybe it’s the chemicals, I don’t know. If someone can tell me a place with better chicken, I’ll pay them $ 1000 if I agree with them. The only problem is there are two in Northeast and none anywhere else in Portland. This is highly suspect, so if they’re looking for a new franchisee, I am available.

I’ve been to this place three times. Twice, I went in and ordered and got crappy service. The third time I had my Brother in Law, who’s Jamaican go in and he got top notch service. Just shows they’re racism. Whatever.

The service at this location sucks. I live in the neighborhood and try to avoid it. The chicken is good. Too bad that is the only highlight. What a difference from the New Orleans Popeyes. Very Sad…

love that chicken! Mostly the chicken tenders. People, I am a motherfucking connoisseur of chicken tenders and Popeye’s, this Popeye’s is the shit. 5 piece tenders only is all this motherfucker needs and that shit is on. Don’t waste your time with the other one down by Fremont. Come up to the one by Ainsworth. They’re open later and the food’s better. Straight up!

Popeye’s Chicken…
Because every once in awhile, you just have to have a bucket of chicken.
Whether its to feed an small army of Fried-​Chicken Enthusiasts, or its to satisfy some insatiable, slightly alcohol-​fueled need to eat 8 – 12 pieces of chicken all by yourself (perhaps while watching a late night «Robot Chicken» marathon).
Or maybe its just that you have an insatiable need to put the empty bucket on your head, don a hockey mask and prance around playing air-​guitar like Bucket head.
*One useful tidbit in my review today– they do have some slightly healthier choices available. These aren’t noted on the outside drive-​though window, but there is a small sign inside the restaurant that advertises slightly healthier, non batter, non breaded chicken wraps.
But why would you go to Popeye’s and not get the tasty fried chicken?
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go put the bucket on my head and practice. We’re getting the band together later.

My Guilty Pleasure.
It’s just so good.

Good sometimes must be fresh

Someone please fix the macaroni some of the worst I’ve ever had everything else was just fine.

Spicy fried chicken.
Mac and Cheese.
Biscuits.
Slaw.
The perfect thing to counteract all of that beer and whiskey I poured down my gullet for St. Patrick’s Day last night. As the ultimate hangover cure, Popeye’s is hard to beat.
There’s also a speedy drive-​thru, so no one will ever know you’re wearing pajamas and flip-​flops at 4:00 PM.

If you leave a bad review for Popeye’s, ya tastebuds must be shot to hell. That being said, The workers at this Popeye’s do fill the orders out fast and keep the shop really clean. The chicken is cooked, flavorful, and USDA label not hanging off the chicken, doused in seasoning trying to hide that fact, (referring to a bad experience I had at KFCs).
Only grip I could come up with, and this is just Popeye’s in general, quit hiding those tiny reject pieces up in my 6+ box orders, (like you think we don’t know whatcha’ doing). This Popeye’s gets a 4 from me because they compensate, throwing in a extra to make up for those tiny pieces, to count for the one big piece, so its all good.

Popeye’s offers the best chicken from a franchise joint. The spicy variety makes KFC weep with regret. The biscuits are so much better than what the colonel offers, too.
It’s tough to choose between the Cajun rice and the potatoes and gravy. I usually opt for the rice, but that gravy is hard to pass up.
This location seems to have the best service among the Portland locations. The employees at the other MLK restaurant are the most surly I’ve ever seen. They could care less if they serve you or if you come back.

Note: This rating is Popeye’s pitted against other late-​nite fast food eateries. If you can think of a late-​nite, FAST-​FOOD drive-​thru establishment better than Popeye’s, than pull up a chair and let’s hear your argument. ps: If you even think of arguing in favor of Jack in the Box or (ugh) Carl’s jr, please save yourself the embarrassment!!!
I’ve been going to this Popeye’s for over 20 years. Additionally, I’ve tried Popeye’s all across the US— esp. the South, and the East Coast.
Am I arguing this is the BEST spicy fried chicken ‘n’ fixin’s you’ll find anywhere in the known universe? Not necessarily. But let’s give some love to Popeye’s for what it IS, and what it provides:
1.) Hot, delicious chicken served up quick. Until Popeye’s, I thought KFC chicken and biscuits was the cat’s meow, and Church’s wasn’t far behind!
Popeye’s idea of «spicy» is pretty tame for my taste, but still surpasses the competition, and is easily dressed up w/​your home cajun rub…
And their biscuits? Sweet Lordy — if they don’t epitomize the term «Guilty Pleasure», then the term has no meaning whatsoever! Popeye’s buttery biscuits are the very guiltiest of pleasures, right up there with Maury Povich’s «Who’s your baby daddy» ;p
2.) Did I mention this particular Popeye’s franchise is open late? For all you 9 – 5’ers, this is a moot point. For the rest of us nite-​owls and night shifters, it is a CRUCIAL factor.
3.) Jambalaya— No joke, I absolutely LOVE their jambalaya, and get it pretty much every time I hit their drive thru. There are very few full service fancy-​schmancy restaurants that have better Jambalaya, IMHO. For certain, they completely blow away Montage’s waste-​of-​bumwipe version…
4.) Catfish! Dang— why oh why don’t more eateries— fast food or otherwise– offer catfish??? Other than sturgeon and swordfish, I have to say I love catfish above all other seafood and the scarcity and price of the other two makes catfish the clear winner for convenience! I already have a favorite All-​time Catfish dish (at Czaba’s), but am SO Sad to see that he has skipped town and might never return again.
[Is anybody else out there missing and loving Czaba’s, formerly of N. Lombard street? He definitely had his personal demons, but… Good Lord, could that man cook. Pourin’ one out for the homie…]
Where was I? Oh, the only real gripe I have for Popeye’s, and this seems to hold true for all their stores, at least in Oregon: Where in the ‘H’ are their collard greens?!? For YEARS I faithfully got ‘em every time I ordered, right along w/​the cat fish and jambalaya! WTF happened to the greens?!? Please oh please, somebody tell me they are bringing back the greens. Not to say they were the world’s best greens, but cooked w/​bacon/​sausage, they were EXCELLENT, and of course way better than NO GREENS AT ALL, which is exactly what you get @ KFC, etc…
Again, if anybody out there has a better candidate than Popeye’s to dethrone them from «Champions of late-​nite drive thru take out», I can’t wait to hear you plead your case…
Much love to the Popeye’s !!!

Popeye’s: It’s pretty good for not being popcorn chicken.
Maybe I won’t pitch that slogan to corporate.
Sure, the food’s good but what really makes this place a standout is the way they deal with customers. While I pride myself on being a good customer even at a fast food joint not everyone makes such an effort to take it easy on the poor wage slaves behind the counter.
So parked on the counter at a nice human-​standard eye level is a big flat screen monitor with your order on it. The staff know the menu, how much things cost, what comes with what and most importantly what you can do if, say, you want a number three but don’t need the drink.
This shouldn’t be rocket science but it’s something most fast food places, and Montage (and Pine State Biscuits), just can’t figure out. The staff is there to help the customer give the business money. Not to fulfill a vision, not to make snootiness part of the deal.
Come to think of it, the KFC down the street is pretty good, too. Maybe it’s a survival adaptation for the kind of neighborhood where cell phone companies advertise discounts for welfare recipients (SNAP, TANF, SSI *and* Medicaid).
Also, the Mardi Gras cheesecake is the best thing on the menu. Hot damn that’s good stuff!

Ok, people are gonna be all, like, «WTF is this dude giving 4 stars to Popeye’s for?» Well, let me tell you something, this shit is FOR REAL!
Yes, Popeye’s is fast food. Yes its fried chicken. Yes, it’s in «da hood». But, seriously, as far as fast food goes, this chicken is pretty dang good. Now, I have gone around Portland trying fried chicken elsewhere, like the Delta, and all that, but Popeye’s beats ‘em all. Portland just isn’t a good place for Soul Food, so Popeye’s rises to the top.
So you question why I dare give a fast food place a 4-​star? Fine, question me all you want. But prove to me there is better fried chicken in Portland. PROVE IT! NOW! Also, prove to me that I can get better fried chicken at 3am. Right, I thought so, you can’t.
Here is how I justify my ratings:
1^st star — the place is open all hours, has pretty fast service (although all the employees would rather be elsewhere at any given hour), is pretty clean for a fast food place in the hood, and the prices are reasonable.
2^nd star — The biscuits are always pretty fresh, even at 3am. A good biscuit is hard to find in PDX, unless you’re in line at Popeye’s. Plus, the fries are seasoned. With so many french-​fry options out there these days, you gotta get creative to stay ahead of the game. That is exactly what Popeye’s has done with its fries. They got spices n’ shit.
3d star — They offer their chicken SPICY, and spicy doesn’t mean drenched in some nasty sauce. They put the spicy UNDER the fried. That rules.
4^th star — bacon in the gravy. Yeah, that’s right, BACON in the M-F’in GRAVY!
Question: How do you make anything taste better?
Answer: Add bacon.
Now, go ahead and tell me that no fast food restaurant should be rated above a 2. Generally, I agree with you. BUT, this Popeye’s deserves a 4. Only this Popeye’s tho, the other location only rates a 1. Don’t ask me why, just avoid the other Popeye’s.
EDITED 7÷13÷07: An associate of mine just reminded me about Fryer Tuck in SW Portland. I must admit, they have better fried chicken than Popeye’s. I have been proven wrong. However, the Fryer Tuck experience is wholly different from the Popeye’s experience, and the utility of the restaurant is totally 100% different. Therefore, I will not change my 4-​star rating for Popeye’s. When I get a chance, I will review Fryer for what it is.