Gionfriddo (General Manager): "Our goal is to have more and more Italian suppliers."

Popeyes, the American fast-food chicken brand, has opened last Thursday its second restaurant in Rome on Via Nomentana. The Louisiana-based chain specializing in fried chicken has chosen the city center as its location this time. After cutting the ribbon last April at the Maximo Shopping Center (its first in a mall), "which is yielding excellent results," the restaurant has chosen a more central location, popular with students and young people, its primary target clientele.

As Davide Gionfriddo, General Manager of Popeyes Italy, explained to EFA News, "The outlook in Rome is for continued growth, which has been a hallmark of our operations since we entered the country in November 2024. We'll have two new openings in Rome by the end of the year, and the goal is to have at least a dozen restaurants in the capital city by the end of 2026. This demonstrates the brand's commitment to a city that is strategic for our development in the country."

Popeyes' philosophy, Gionfriddo continues, is to make "decent fried chicken: it seems obvious, but it isn't. Doing things well is in our DNA. We take all the time to marinate our chicken (12 hours), all the time to bread it from the moment the customer requests it." Popeyes' chicken is "crispy on the outside but juicy on the inside," the General Manager emphasizes. "Our goal is to have more and more Italian suppliers. Chicken is certainly strategic for us. We are working to have Italian chicken in the next few months. Here too, we are taking all the time to find the best possible supplier, carrying out all the necessary checks to ensure we are giving our customers the best chicken."

As for price, Gionfriddo adds, "We have a completely transversal positioning: our flagship product costs just over 6 euros, and a full menu, including chicken, fries, and a drink (which you can refill as many times as you like), costs just over 8 euros. It's absolutely a price for everyone, and we want it to be accessible to everyone precisely because everyone should experience the deliciousness of our chicken."

Popeyes was founded in 1972 in Arabi, a suburb of New Orleans, Louisiana, by Al Copeland , who wanted to create an alternative to traditional fried chicken. Popeyes fried chicken is characterized by Cajun and Creole spices, typical of Louisiana cuisine, making it absolutely unique and unmistakable. The Popeyes menu in Rome features a primarily chicken-based menu—a protein that is growing rapidly among young people—and the Chicken Sandwich will certainly be a must.

The new restaurant on Via Nomentana will employ over 25 people. Popeyes will thus create more than 180 jobs in Rome and the surrounding province, confirming its investment in the capital and its strategic role in the company's development plan, concludes General Manager Gionfridda . Popeyes restaurants in Italy currently employ approximately 170 people. With openings planned for the end of 2025, the brand expects to create over 180 new jobs, reaching a total of over 350 employees nationwide. The three-year goal is to exceed 50 restaurants nationwide and employ more than 1,000 people.