By David Clarey davidc@free-times.com
At this rate, the fast food fried chicken sandwich war may never end.
Last week, Southern chicken-and-biscuit eatery Bojangles, with 138 spots in South Carolina, launched its newest take on the ubiquitous item, Bo’s Chicken Sandwich. It joins almost every other fast food chain looking to capitalize on the immense popularity of the dish.
McDonald’s, KFC, Zaxby’s, Popeye’s and numerous others all have them and are pushing the product out with intense marketing campaigns. In Zaxby’s case, the chain is acknowledging it’s part of a trend, with the slogan “The Chicken Sandwich War Ain’t Over Yet.”
Bo’s Chicken Sandwich isn’t the chain’s first take on a fried chicken sandwich, Marshall Scarborough reminded me. He’s the chain’s chef and vice president of menu and culinary innovation, a post he’s held for roughly a year and a half.
Scarborough detailed that one of his first orders upon taking the job was to design this sandwich.
“It was really driven by customer demand. Customers are just evolving in their taste … and demanding a higher quality from restaurant brands like us,” he explained. “The first thing we did is (test) other chicken sandwiches. … Customers came back and told us they were interested in a simple chicken sandwich.”
