Review: Popeyes Beats McDonald's To The Punch With Tasty New Chicken Wraps

In the mid-1990s, perhaps taking a page out of the soft taco's successful playbook, sandwich wraps, and especially chicken-centric ones, burst onto the scene. Fast food chains often like to jump on trends and McDonald's tried to make a McWrap a thing. While it may have worked globally, it didn't stick around stateside. Fans demanded their return and McDonald's confirmed the notorious Snack Wrap would return sometime in 2025. Since the announcement, the hype has gone into hyper-overdrive. While the release date of the McDonald's Snack Wrap remains a teased mystery, Popeyes, a chain that actually specializes in chicken, out of the blue, has beaten McDonald's to the punch, and is releasing its own Chicken Wrap. If that wasn't enough, it's also rolling out a slew of Blueberry Beverages to wash it all down.

After surprisingly and deliciously dethroning Chick-fil-A as the king of chicken sandwiches, Popeyes is priming to be the belle of the wrap party with this opening salvo in the soon to be war. In a press release, chef Amy Alarcon, VP of Culinary Innovation at Popeyes said, "With our new Chicken Wraps, we've taken our iconic chicken tenders and wrapped them in something completely new, bringing all that craveable crunch in a fresh, portable way."

So, is this a wrap party invitation you should accept, or perhaps decline, with no regrets? The Takeout took a big bite out of these new Popeyes Chicken Wraps, and sips of the Blueberry drinks on day one to see where the truth lies.

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

The new 9-inch Popeyes Chicken Wraps can be ordered with a standard fried tender or a piece of Popeyes' blackened one, and come in three flavors — Classic with mayo, Honey Mustard, or Spicy with matching sauce flavors. The tender is accompanied by lettuce, shredded cheese, and pickles, all rolled up into a warm tortilla that is supposedly flavored to taste like the chain's famous biscuits. The Chicken Wraps will be joined by a bevy of new beverages — a Blueberry Lemonade, which can be ordered chilled or frozen, Blueberry Cane Sweet Tea, and Blueberry Unsweet Tea.

This isn't Popeyes' first wrap rodeo. In 2008, when the chain dropped "Chicken & Biscuits" from its brand name, and replaced it with "Louisiana Kitchen," it rolled out new products to show off what it was capable of cooking up. One of those items was the Loaded Chicken Wrap, which featured a fried white chicken strip, dressed in red beans and rice, and then wrapped up in a warm cheddar flavored tortilla. It lasted for at least a couple of years before the chain called a wrap on the wrap.

In 2023, Popeyes in Canada unveiled entree-sized Crispy Chicken Wraps, and today, various Chicken Wrap varieties reside on menus abroad in places like the U.K., France, Spain, Czech Republic, and Switzerland. The past is often prologue, but will Popeyes U.S.A.'s new venture in wraps create a yummy utopian future that's here to stay? One way to find out.

As of June 2, 2025, Popeyes is adding Chicken Wraps to its menu at participating nationwide locations, for a limited time only. They will be joined by the new lineup of Blueberry drinks, just in time to cool down for summer. These items can be ordered anytime Popeyes is open, while supplies last. Ordering options include in-store, at the counter, or at the drive-thru where available. Advanced ordering for pickup, dine-in, or delivery is available through Popeyes app or website. The Blackened Wraps are a digital exclusive, and can only be ordered online on the chain's website or app in advance.

Whichever version of the Popeyes Chicken Wrap you order, it comes in one size only, and the suggested retail price is $3.99, although price may vary per location, and can be higher via delivery. The Wraps are customizable, to remove the pickle and/or cheese. They can also be ordered as a regular combo with one regular side and small drink for $8.99, or a large one, which includes two regular sides and a large drink for $10.99. The Blueberry drinks can be chosen as one of those drinks in either combo, although a surcharge will apply. There is also a Wraps Bundle, where a customer can choose two wraps and a Blueberry beverage, or any of the other premium beverages, for $9.99.

There are four new drink options — Chilled Blueberry Lemonade, Frozen Blueberry Lemonade, Blueberry Cane Sweet Tea, and Blueberry Unsweet Tea. All four drinks are available in one size only, with the Blueberry Lemonades retailing for $3.99 each, and the Blueberry Teas for $2.99. For the two teas, and the chilled Blueberry Lemonade, you can specify how much ice you like, from an extra amount, or none whatsoever.

The Classic version of the new Popeyes Chicken Wrap featured a single one of the chain's usual lengthy, and beautifully breaded fried chicken tenders, which poked its head out of the tri-folded tortilla. Even though they were labeled, once I unwrapped all three and laid them on a table, I had trouble figuring out which was actually which. Further unwrapping of the tortilla didn't seem to solve the mystery. Underneath the substantial tender was a single, yet solidly crunchy pickle slice, and a smattering of lettuce shards and flecks of shredded cheese, plus a decent amount of the sauce.

From the pictures on the app, the spicy sauce appeared to be darkened orange, but in reality appeared to hue closer to the honey mustard's dirty yellow. Since the wraps outwardly all seemed identical, it almost turned into a blind taste test. First up turned out to be the Spicy one. Popeyes is known for its spicy chicken, so I still found it surprising that the spice here was delivered in sauce form. The chicken remained mild, but the sauce added a really nice and lean amount of smoky zing and pep rather than a temperature riser.

The next wrap turned out to be the Honey Mustard one. While I knew there was a good amount of the dressing included, it somehow didn't fully let its sweet but pungent magic do its usual work. Maybe the Spicy wrap was a hard act to follow, but alas, the Honey Mustard one still was a good tasting wrap. That left the standard wrap outfitted with mayo to bring up the rear in this tasting. The mayo seemed to be more of a paste than a flavor enhancer, but in a way, allowed the other elements of the wrap to stand out. It reminded me of just how good quality Popeyes tenders truly are, and how they also taste great in other handy forms.

Before we delve into the Blackened Chicken Wraps themselves, let's address something you probably didn't know — Popeyes Blackened Chicken tenders in general are awesome. These non-breaded strips of chicken, which are lovingly Cajun-seasoned, first debuted in 2011 and have quietly been one of fast food's best kept delicious secrets ever since. If the breaded fingers worked in a tortilla wrap, the same should hold true for the blackened ones. They pretty much looked the same as their brethren wraps, although they were a little bit more modest in size and weight. Still, these were no puny pocket snacks.

I actually ran into the same issue of differentiating these Blackened Wraps between each other, as I had with the Classic ones, but a simple taste of each cleared everything right up. Randomly, the flavors were tested in the same exact order. Here, the Spicy version turned into a different beast as it was competing with the coarse seasonings that coat the slab of chicken. It was both a peppy and peppery affair which called for more sips of a beverage to clear the air over the other five wraps.

Having felt that the Honey Mustard Classic Wrap was a slight step down from the Spicy one, the opposite actually proved true with the Blackened versions. Here, the honey mustard sauce acted as the perfect juxtaposition of flavor to offset that signature set of the Louisiana-like spice blend entrenched on the chicken. It added up to be quite a chicken winner. The good old mayo one here produced similar results to the Classic one — a backseat helper, letting the tender do most of the flavor driving. All and all, there are no losers here in these three wraps.

This summer, blueberry has been tapped as the fruit to headline Popeyes' premium tea and lemonade beverages. Blueberry isn't a common fruit that lends itself to a standalone drink. Come to think of it, the only berry drink that has proved itself worthy over time is cranberry. Alas, here we are, and before me were two forms of Blueberry Lemonade — chilled and frozen.

The Chilled Blueberry Lemonade had the blueberry syrup squirted into the bottom of the cup. The employee then handed me the cup to fill up the ice to my liking, before handing it back for her to drop in the promised lemonade. Without stirring it, the drink stood out with a gorgeous ombré of colors, which goes from light at the top to dark at the bottom, and in between running the gamut with all kinds of shades of pink and purple. When I finally stirred it with my straw, the drink settled on a lovely shade of pink that was warming me up for a sip. The allure of its appearance thankfully gave way to a delicious drink. The succulently sweet and tart lemonade predominantly was the main attraction of this beverage, but hints of the blueberry syrup were able to make a bit of delightful flavor noise here and there.

The Frozen version also began life with a pool of blueberry syrup at the bottom before the Popeyes employee pulled the lever and filled out the cup with its slushy lemonade concoction. Its color was a solid one, a warm hot pink that had its own allure to it. One sip and my mouth was instantly sent to the stratosphere of happiness. The tiny chips of ice served up a drink that was not only colder and more refreshing, but also added a fun texture to take in this treat and beat the heat.

It's hard to compete with Lemonades, but Iced Teas have their place, and certainly many fans. There are two new options here for the taking — Blueberry Cane Sweet Tea, and Blueberry Unsweet Tea. My preconceived notions told me the former would be much better than the latter, and the end result proved once again it's best to not think ahead. However, it is always best to order ahead when possible!

I started with the dark brown Blueberry Cane Sweet Tea, and I was immediately taken aback by this one. It's not a revolting drink at all, it's just one that's hard to embrace whatsoever. Even though there was visibly plenty of ice in my cup, its taste somehow gave off vibes that it was a warm drink. Everything somehow felt overly strong here, like there's too much blueberry, too much cane sugar, and too much tea all working overtime under one hood. This combo became a triple threat, but not in a good way.

I found relief in the Blueberry Unsweet Tea. This one appeared lighter in its color, and thankfully in its taste. Not sure if the cane sugar was the main culprit stymying the sweet tea, but it's the missing ingredient here, and in turn made for a really refreshing beverage. The blueberry flavoring punched up the taste of the standard tea, and it shined as a simple sipper.

The anticipation for the return of McDonald's Snack Wrap is reaching a fever pitch, but Popeyes is quieting the crowds by being the first to the playing field with its own set of hearty Chicken Wraps, which in their own way will have people taking. With six options to choose from, which are more entree than snack, there is truly something for everyone, unless you are a vegetarian.

It's a shame the Blackened Tender versions of the wraps can only be acquired by ordering online or the app, as it's a worthy everyday option that many may not be aware of. The casual in-store buyers won't be able to see it on the digital screen menu and will miss out on the delicious combo of honey mustard paired up with the raging-Cajun seasoned tenders. That is my pick for the one to order on the Blackened end, and for the Classic breaded one, spice up your life and go with the Spicy one. I'm hoping more flavors may be in our future, as I guarantee a wrap drenched in Popeyes' luscious Blackened Ranch sauce is a surefire hit.

Before we leave this space, I keep forgetting that the tortilla was supposed to capture some sort of flavoring of Popeyes' incredible biscuits. They didn't prove to be that way in case of smell, texture, or taste, but in the end, it didn't matter. An actual wrap doesn't need to be some shooting star, but mainly a plain vessel that is supposed to easily bring a bunch of food elements together and softly deliver them to our mouths. Even Tom Cruise would say this is a mission accomplished.

Popeyes food has always been very flavorful, and in the last handful of years, that has also applied to its drink lineup. The chain has been infusing its iced teas and lemonades with all kinds of fun fruit flavorings, and in a briny and brilliant twist, even made Pickle Lemonade work. Blueberry proves to be another fantastic fruity flavor to incorporate, well, at least in three out of the four new drinks.

Skip the Cane Sugar Tea version, but please have a go at the other three. The Unsweetened one is a good option for those who don't want to delve too deep, but great awaits those who do with the Chilled and Frozen Blueberry Lemonades. The Frozen one is the best of the lot, but best enjoyed right away. I actually took my leftover drinks home and by the time the frozen aspects of the drink melted away, it essentially tasted exactly like the Chilled version. Since the blueberry flavoring is merely a syrup squirted into a cup, I'm wondering what it would be like mixed in with one of the sodas Popeyes has on tap. A blueberry Sprite sounds quite amazing, right?

On the very first day of their release, I headed to my nearest Popeyes location to try its new Chicken Wraps. Some wraps and drinks were supplied by Popeyes for this review, and others were purchased by me. All were sipped and eaten on site, to maximize their potential for this chew & review and sip & saw. Further tastes were conducted at home, with my leftovers.

The six wraps and four drinks were taste tested by myself, and my opinions of them were formed based on my own personal tastes, past experiences with Popeyes products, and present experience with these wraps. The ultimate criteria to decide this chew & review and sip & say included flavor, appearance, texture, aroma, familiarity, uniqueness, value, overall lovability, and likelihood I would order them again. The short answer is ... please RSVP for the Popeyes Wrap party. I'll await the invitation for McDonald's and see how the war rages from there. Until then, it's a ... wrap (sorry).