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Hi, Hoddlers!
I have the day right today.
Ramble of the Day
The Popeyes chicken sandwich, introduced last week in every American location last week, has taken over the country. It’s become hard to avoid. The Cartilage Free Captain writers’ room wouldn’t stop talking about it. I’ve seen tweet after tweet about it. I read an article from The New Yorker about it, and I’m pretty sure I saw it on the news this morning. I did the only thing that a meat eater in the United States would naturally do; I sought it, because The New Yorker’s Helen Rosner said it was “here to save America.”
I’d heard stories about demand being so high that locations ran out of supplies, so I called in advance. One place didn’t pick up; one did, only for me to get a rejection before I finished the word “chicken.” My older sister happened to be near a location that I called and heard nothing from, so I asked her to walk in and see if they had the sandwiches. They did, and so she picked up a classic chicken sandwich and a spicy one, which I was to split with my younger sister. On the side, we shared mashed potatoes and biscuits.
The sense of anticipation was truly enormous; the sandwich was all I could think about. I didn’t just want to taste it, I wanted to see it and I wanted to hold it. The moment I began unwrapping it was a special one; the moment I bit into it was more than that.
No one out there is kidding when they say it is a truly great sandwich, with perhaps the greatest fried chicken in America. One bite tells you all you need to know. The crisp is thick, crunchy, and seasoned; the meat in between is juicy, and the bite is big enough for a wide open mouth and a solid amount of chewing, and therefore enjoying. The sauce on the spicy one is tame for someone who has a high spice tolerance, but still very enjoyable and flavorful. It complements the chicken wonderfully, and so I do prefer it over the classic, but the classic is stellar, too. In each sandwich, the chicken is the star, and it shines so, so brightly.
The biscuits and mashed potatoes were also lovely, clearly the beneficiaries of a little bit of seasoning. It really was an experience that lived up to its billing, and I’m thrilled to have enjoyed it.
tl;dr: I really liked the Popeyes chicken sandwiches.
Links of the Day
Former Ghana and Bristol Rovers forward Junior Agogo has died aged 40.
Vincent Kompany will no longer be the Anderlecht coach on match days.
The Advertising Standards Agency has banned an advertisement from Football Index, a gambling app, for using images of players under the age of 25.
Juventus manager Maurizio Sarri has pneumonia and will miss the side’s first two matches of the season.
Today’s longer read: James Bentley on being a Bury fan and how the club is more than just its troubles for The Guardian