Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen — Restaurant in Saint Petersburg

The wait times in the drive thru are getting absurd. We went twice before and it was slow, but I understand that getting workers is hard right now, so a bit of a wait for hot food is fine. However, I tried once more recently and I regretted my decision.

Best advice: DO NOT get in the drive thru line if you don't have half an hour to spare, minimum.

You can't leave the line unless you have a car with high clearance due to the curbs (or there's nobody behind you). We were forced to wait for over an hour recently; it became apparent after waiting 15 minutes just to order without moving in line that the best option would have been to leave, but there were 3 cars behind us by then.

When it was my turn to order, the employee took my order with no estimated wait time or explanation as to the slow moving line. The line then did not move for another 15 minutes - at all. The same worker asked for my order THREE more times while I waited because they apparently thought a new customer must be there by now, but it was still me because the line was at a complete standstill.

When we finally got to the window after almost an hour stuck in line, we saw about 5 employees inside who did not appear to be doing much of anything. They were joking, laughing, and genuinely did not seem concerned about the fact that customers were stuck waiting for food in a fast food drive thru for 45 minutes - 1 hour. There was no apology or offer to discount the meal which would be standard in any other service industry.

I would have been happy to hear that there was a legitimate reason for the hold up, such as broken equipment, short-staffed, waiting for food to thaw before cooking...anything! But none of that seemed to be the case.

We were told at the window it would be another 5 minutes because they "just dropped fresh tenders" for us - it was another 12 minutes (yes, I counted, because it had already been almost an hour!).

Meanwhile, folks will walk into the store and walk out with their orders while you're still in line. I honestly wonder if the workers are protesting for some reason, such as low pay or bad conditions, poor treatment by management, etc. Maybe they are trying to tank the manager on duty for some reason. I really do not know. But there has to be something going on with this store.

I genuinely hope a regional manager or corporate person sees this because it is doing a disservice to the Popeyes' brand which is a shame. I have been a loyal customer for years but I cannot justify going to...

I know people only normally write reviews when they have a negative experience but, I can honestly say I am writing this review in hopes that district or regional will see it and make the proper adjustments to help this, my neighborhood store, step up their game. Overall my Popeyes experience has been a great one. I Love that Chicken from Popeyes, and personally, Chick-fil-A can't touch them (in the chicken sandwich department)! Those guys have mouth wash and hand lotion for Christ sake, who can compete with that? This particular Popeyes store however seems to be lacking a disciplined professional managerial staff. The manager on duty that I interacted with was polite and nice. She greeted me outside the store and I was allowed inside the dining room, only because I was on foot at the time. They were only taking drive thru orders I was told, because they were short staffed even though I counted at least five crew members actively working inside. The stores biggest issue appears to be that they all were severely under trained, and in need of proper leadership. The gentleman that took my order of one spicy chicken sandwich, (because they were out of my beloved beignets) had to find the button for the chicken sandwich! It's probably the most ordered item on the menu but it took at least 10 seconds for him to find it. The counter was full of receipts, cups, some napkins, and just down right clutter. The floor behind the counter was also littered with more receipts. My wait time was about the same as everyone else's, close to eternity. Again I'm seriously not attempting to be negative. The staff needs to be better trained in order for this store to be run more efficiently. BTW my spicy chicken sandwich turned out to be a regular chicken sandwich, that I had to walk back to the store to return. One item incorrectly delivered is a failure big time in my book but, I will continue to go to that store and I will continue to order my beloved...

Hello, I am a working woman who is 7 months pregnant. I support my family with the money I earn from DoorDash. When I went to pick up a customer order from Popeyes, the 2 women working there were very rude. They did not deliver the items even though they were ready. The last time I went, the order was on the screen and the packages were ready on the counter. I asked the staff 3 times to deliver the order but they did not. When I told them the 4th time the order was ready, they told me to wait in a stern tone. The customers finished and started to pick up the orders of the customers who came after me. They did not even look at me even though I told them it was my turn. I got angry and told them that the orders were ready and that I had been waiting for 20 minutes, they said they would not deliver the order and that I had to go outside. They said if I did not come out they would call the police. I just wanted my order. I went outside and wrote a letter to the customer service representative explaining the problem. They told me that they called the store and they did not answer the phone and that I had to pick up the order. I went back to the restaurant and the woman there did not bring the order again and said that the customer canceled the order. When I asked the customer she said she didn't cancel the order. The two women working in this restaurant are very bad and I had a lot of problems during my pregnancy because of them. The staff working in this restaurant should be changed. All I wanted was for them to give me the two packages that were ready behind the glass. Nothing else. It wouldn't have taken a second to do that but the staff ignored me. I waited over 20 minutes. It shouldn't have gotten to this point. Instead of prolonging it. They chose to argue and kicked me out of the store. But I have a friend who works at Popeyes General Manager. I will pass...