Customers queue for ‘18.5 hours’ as Popeyes opens first Scottish branch

Fans broke the record for the longest wait for the Louisiana chain's famous chicken by queuing overnight.

Customers queue for ‘18.5 hours’ as Popeyes opens first Scottish branch in Barrhead Popeyes UK

Scots have broken a record by queuing for 18.5 hours to be the first to get their hands on a Popeyes chicken sandwich.

The launch saw fans join queues for the grand opening from 4.30pm on Sunday, September 17, ahead of its opening on Monday morning.

The Barrhead branch marked the first Scottish location for the chain and the twelfth in the UK.

Popeyes has proven popular in its new locations, with customers queuing for 16 hours at Cardiff Bay earlier this year.

Fans queued for 18.5 hours ahead of the opening of Scotland's first Popeye's. Popeyes UK

Neil Williamson, chief operating officer at Popeyes UK, spoke on the response: “We thought customers queuing for 16 hours at Cardiff Bay last month would be impossible to beat, but the people of Scotland have set a record with our first customer turning up a whopping 18.5 hours before opening.

“We’re delighted with the response we’ve had to our first Scottish restaurant and look forward to serving our famous Louisiana Chicken to many more.”

Graham Welsh and John Russell were some of the first in the queue after arriving at 4.30pm and 7.30pm respectively the previous day.

Mr Russell said: “I’m a long-time fan of Popeyes. I’ve been checking the Popeyes Instagram for news of a Scottish opening for two years and dreaming about this launch so had to come down early to be one of the first in the queue.”

Another fan, Cynthia Holden, travelled for over an hour from Clackmannanshire to be one of the first to try the famous Louisiana chicken.

Ms Holden, originally from the US, said: “My first job was in Popeyes when I was 16 so I’m a lifelong fan. I’ve been hounding Popeyes on Twitter to learn of the Scottish opening and being here today didn’t disappoint. It was a little taste of home.”

Fans are expected to be queuing once again on Tuesday with the branch giving away free breakfast muffins to the first 25 cars and 25 pedestrians.

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