Review: Popeyes' The Freddy Fazbear Crunch Menu Is Scary Good

Popeyes is looking to scare up some post-Halloween business with a curious collaboration with the sequel to Blumhouse's "Five Nights At Freddy's," that 2023 horror film about a haunted Chuck E. Cheese-like pizzeria whose animatronic animals are actually possessed murders (please don't make us elaborate more.) Inspired by the movie's titular character, the fried chicken chain has launched a limited time Freddy Fazbear Crunch Menu, featuring chicken tenders in a garlic parmesan rub, Cheesy Bites with a marinara dipping sauce, and a bloody-sounding (strawberry-flavored) Cupcake Cup.

It makes sense that pizza chains aren't lining up to sell tickets to this particular slasher flick. But when it comes to fast food movie tie-ins, the likes of McDonald's, Wendy's, and Burger King usually rule the roost. Popeyes has shied away from the spotlight of Hollywood, save for being named dropped in the Adam Sadler movie, "Little Nicky," and occasionally offering kids meal prizes that promote films like "Abominable," or "Angry Birds 2." Is Popeyes' Freddy Fazbear Crunch Menu a culinary cinematic masterpiece, or is it something horrifically schlocky? To find out, the Takeout took this menu out for a taste test on day one of its release. We're ready to make like Siskel and Ebert, eat with our hands, and decide whether this meal gets a thumbs up or a thumbs down. It's showtime!

Recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials, and products provided by the manufacturer.

In what is perhaps a first for Popeyes, the chain teamed up with a movie to present a meal based on its likeness. The limited time menu supports the December 5 release of "Five Nights At Freddy's 2." The film series has never been the feature of a fast food collaboration, although its main character, Freddy Fazbear, joined fellow film spooksters like Chucky, M3GAN, and The Grabber as Fanta soda can decorations this past Halloween.

This exclusive partnership is billed as the Freddy Fazbear Crunch Menu. It consists of Popeyes classic or spicy chicken tenders topped with a new garlic parmesan rub, garlic crusted Cheesy Bites served with a marinara dipping sauce, and a Cupcake Cup (which includes no garlic whatsoever.) The Bites are described as hand-breaded, garlic crusted cheese curds made with white cheddar cheese. The Cupcake Cup is a moist, strawberry-flavored cake topped with sweet pink icing. To the best of our knowledge, Popeyes has never previously sold cheese curds or marinara sauce, or had any ties to bears, real or animatronic.

In a statement, Amy Alarcon, VP of Culinary at Popeyes said, "At Popeyes, we love playing with bold flavors, and what better playground than the world of 'Five Nights at Freddy's'?" She added, "Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria is an iconic part of the film, so we had a blast re-imagining that fun, over-the-top energy through our menu. It's our way of giving fans a delicious taste of the movie's universe, where that iconic Popeyes flavor meets a little bit of nostalgic pizzeria mystery."

The Freddy Fazbear Crunch Menu will be available at participating Popeyes locations nationwide, starting November 17. It will be available anytime Popeyes is open for business, while supplies last, and for an unspecified limited time only.

The menu includes two combo options: the Freddy Fazbear Deluxe Box, and the Freddy Fazbear Box. The suggested retail prices are $12.99, and $7.99, respectively. Both combos come with three Popeyes classic or spicy chicken tenders topped with savory garlic parmesan rub, and garlic crusted Cheesy Bites, plus a side of marinara dipping sauce. The Deluxe box also comes with a Cupcake Cup, as well as a choice of drink. For those not ready to commit to an entire meal, the items can be ordered à la carte. The Cheesy Bites, and the Cupcake Cup each cost $3.99. Those prices, and availability will vary per location.

Customers can order the combos, and individual items directly in-store or at the drive-thru, where available. Advanced ordering for dine-in, pick-up, or even delivery can be placed through Popeyes' app, and via its official website.

An order of the mild garlic parm tenders nets 390 calories, 20 grams of fat, 9 grams of saturated fat, 65 milligrams of cholesterol, 1,590 milligrams of sodium, 20 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 1 gram of sugar, and 34 grams of protein. The spicy ones ring up at 400 calories, 17 grams of fat, 8 grams of saturated fat, 105 milligrams of cholesterol, 1,920 milligrams of sodium, 43 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 1 gram of sugar, and 35 grams of protein.

One order or serving of the Cheesy Bites will net an eater 620 calories, 50 grams of fat, 24 grams of saturated fat, 120 milligrams of cholesterol, 1,120 milligrams of sodium, 19 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 2 grams of sugar, and 24 grams of protein. One Cupcake Cup contains 370 calories, 12 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 260 milligrams of sodium, 60 grams of carbohydrates, 29 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.

Initially, I wasn't sure if these garlic parm tenders were new, or just chicken tender versions of Popeyes' saucy (and excellent) garlic parm wings. Upon opening the box, I was surprised to find a trio of tenders not drowning in white sauce. Instead, the breaded chicken was seasoned with a green garnish, perhaps containing flakes of oregano. A quick whiff revealed that they mainly smelled like fried chicken, and a feel test left my fingers moist with grease. As I took the golden beauties flecked with green out of the box, I noted that the tenders were generously long. They almost looked like a bunch of legless, scaly alligators.

After my first observations were complete, it was finally time to dig in. The flaky crunch of the tenders immediately made a textural, and tasty, impact. But as my mouth hunted for the namesake flavors of garlic, and parmesan cheese, it was left confused, albeit not unpleasantly so. The former seemed to be hinted at, and the latter not exactly present. Instead, I found notes of lemon on the tender chicken, which in turn added a lovely dash of zest.

While I ordered both mild, and spicy tenders, neither brought any fire to the proceedings. That mattered very little, as these seasoned tenders were a nice departure from saucy wings. I didn't even have to bother with adding flavor via my favorite fast food dipping sauces.

The Cheesy Bites took on various shapes, and sizes, but they all kind of looked like fried scallops topped with oregano flakes. It was hard to tell how many Cheesy Bites were in my order, as much of the cheese had escaped the fried shells, making the Bites stick together. A rough count netted about 13 or so. And the main essence my nasal passages detected wasn't fried breading, but the garlic on the exterior, and warm cheese within.

The outer coating is unlike that of Popeyes' chicken products — less flaky, and more robust, almost like a hushpuppy. The cheese on the inside has a more solid shape, with a rubbery consistency that is exactly what one would be looking for in a cheese curd. The amount of cheese within the fried shell is also commendable. One bite, and I was 1000% on board with these Cheesy Bites' existence on Earth.

While none of my tenders had any spice to them, the Cheesy Bites sure did. The pinch of jalapeño I detected added a punch that wasn't exactly needed, but appreciated nonetheless. These tasted so great on their own that I almost forgot about the side cup of marinara sauce they came with. It was served cold, and had the expected flavor of tomato paste, but also plenty of garlic, oregano, and basil. The coolness of the sauce added a nice temperature juxtaposition when I dipped the spiced Bites into it.

Considering Popeyes secretly serves the best fast food desserts, I had to know: Would this new Cupcake Cup take the cake, or be more worthy of a Razzie Award? It came in a black plastic ramekin, topped with a cute pink topper. When I popped off that top, I couldn't get over the appearance. Not to be crass, but it looked like a nipple, complete with surrounding areola. While I tried to move past that, recasting it as the wide-eyed pupil of one of the film's other characters, like Chica The Chicken, the visual damage had been done. Once you see that, you can't unsee it.

The smell test was another immediate failure. It had the manufactured odor of strawberry, more appropriate for an air freshener than a dessert. This came solely from the thin layer of pink icing on top. It kind of looked like slime, and like it had been sitting out for days before eventually solidifying. The artificial taste of it almost made me want to halt the proceedings.

Things got much better once I penetrated the top, and got to the soft, moist cake that made up the treat's base. It was not unlike a vanilla cake you'd order for a birthday party from your local grocery store. When the icing was eaten in conjunction with the cake, it was better, but still not Oscar-worthy.

From Popeyes' pickle menu to its super saucy wings, I love what the chicken chain has been bringing to the table over the past few years. These latest offerings, headlined by the garlic parmesan tenders, and the Cheesy Bites, are yet another winner for dinner from the Louisiana Kitchen. I still have no interest in the "Five Nights at Freddy's" movie franchise, and would rather eat crappy pizza with the defunct animatronic animals from Chuck E. Cheese than bring anything made by Blumhouse into my house. But if Popeyes needed the excuse to promote this awesome product, I suppose I owe Freddy a debt of gratitude.

The Cupcake Cup isn't exactly a showstopper, but I did discover that it's much more enjoyable if you microwave it, and then mix the strawberry topping into the cake. You can never go wrong with Popeyes' tenders and, similar to this year's Popeyes Louisiana Garlic Wings, they serve as an excellent base for the new garlic parmesan seasoning. But the real star of this show are the Cheesy Bites. Yes, it's kind of impossible to screw up the awesomeness of cheese curds. It's a gob of squishy cheese packed into a golden fried skin, after all. But Popeyes does right by this product, and its customers, who finally get a chance to try the chain's take on cheese curds. Like fried pickles before them, these Cheesy Bites deserve permanent menu status. Even if that doesn't happen, I guess the show must go on, and I look forward to more coming attractions.