It was never widely heralded, and thus the number of participating locations at its peak is difficult to determine, but at one point in time, many Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen outlets across the United States once operated full-service buffets. They offered all of the most popular and famous mains and sides sold by the Cajun-inspired, poultry-forward chain. For one price (not much more than that of a combo meal), customers could select and consume as much as they liked from a hot bar featuring spicy, bone-in fried chicken, less-fiery regular chicken, biscuits, french fries, red beans and rice, rice dressing, macaroni and cheese, and mashed potatoes and gravy. Some Popeyes stores set out big metal pans of cheap-to-produce items not normally found on the regular menu, including tacos and spaghetti.
As of 2010, just three buffets remained in the nationwide Popeyes network with stores in Huntsville, Alabama; Panama City, Florida; and Lafayette, Louisiana. Just seven years later, only the Lafayette location still had the all-you-can-eat, self-serve buffet at a per-person cost of $10. The pandemic would ultimately spell the end of that holdout and the Popeyes buffet in general. After a management change, virus-reduction concerns, and the removal of an outdoor banner advertising all-you-can-eat chicken, the Lafayette buffet went cold in late 2021.