Popeyes opens its first restaurant in Britain this weekend – with hundreds more to follow

Popeyes, a US fast food chain, is opening its first store in the UK on Saturday.

The chain, one of the main players in the US fried chicken sandwich wars, plans to expand quickly in Britain.

Popeyes is best known for its 12-hourMarinated Fried Chicken. Fans lined up for hours last year when a counter was opened in the mall.

The fried chicken market in the UK is still underdeveloped according to the CEO of Popeyes UK.

Josh Ong/Insider

Backed by its owner Restaurant Brands International, which also controls Burger King and Tim Hortons in the UK, Crowley told Insider that Popeyes was the "right brand at the right time." 

Strong demand for its products from British consumers helped the Stratford outlet become the most profitable globally.

There will be eight Popeyes restaurants in the UK by the end of the year.

Finding the right locations is important. We take it one restaurant at a time.

Josh Ong/Insider

Popeyes sees drive-throughs as a huge opportunity in the UK.

He said that drive-throughs are important to its business in the US and will be central to its British expansion. By 2031, the company wants to have 350 UK restaurants.

Popeyes wanted to keep prices in check by cutting overheads and not reducing quality.

Chicken breading and fresh pickles are signature items of each restaurant.

We are good at finding a way. We've gotten through the epidemic. "Now, we will get through this," he said.