Tri-Cities is finally getting its first Popeyes restaurant
A Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen is coming to a major Tri-Cities intersection.
The popular fast-food restaurant chain has plans to build along Highway 395 near Clearwater Avenue and Vista Way, according to site plans submitted to the city of Kennewick.
The 2,333-square-foot restaurant with a drive-thru will be built at the former lot of West Coast Auto Dealers, which will be demolished.
It was the site of two previous restaurants, Fat Olives (now in Richland) and The Country Gentleman (now CG Public House in west Kennewick.)
The Popeyes will be built next to the Econo Lodge and a Roaster’s Coffee outlet.
The chain that’s best known for its crispy fried chicken also serves chicken nuggets and tenders, as well as sides of cajun fries, coleslaw and red beans and rice.
Notably, after Popeyes introduced a crispy chicken sandwich in 2019, a social media frenzy started on whether that sandwich or Chick-fil-A’s was the better version.
The so-called “Chicken Sandwich Wars” prompted more than a dozen fast-food chains to introduce chicken sandwiches to their own menus.
The Kennewick restaurant is being designed by 2812 Architecture based in Everett.
Popeyes has 25 locations in Washington with the closest in Sunnyside. Yakima also has a Popeyes, which has more than 3,000 restaurants worldwide.
It’s unclear if the Kennewick outlet will be company-owned or a franchise.
Restaurant Brands International, the parent company of Burger King and Tim Hortons coffee chain, bought the Popeyes chain in 2017 for $1.8 billion.
A Popeyes company spokesperson could not reached Monday about its Tri-Cities plans.
This story was originally published September 13, 2021 at 12:28 PM.