Popeyes chicken files more plans to build in northwest Rochester

Jeff Kiger, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn.
·2 min read

Jun. 29—ROCHESTER — At the risk of being known as the "Guy Who Cried

Popeyes,

" it looks like the popular fast food chicken chain is edging closer to building in Rochester.

I realize that I've been writing about Popeyes imminent arrival in Rochester since

January 2021.

Real estate deals and building permits show that Popeyes hopes to build two restaurants in the Med City.

In June 2022,

the Florida-based spicy chicken chain answered my questions about its prospects here with "Regarding Popeyes restaurants in Rochester, MN, these are currently slated for a late 2023 opening."

And yet anyone looking at the two spots — a north one at 5533 Villa Road NW between

Compcare

and Firestone Complete Auto Care and a south one on Apache Lane Southwest on the former site of the

Bakers Square restaurant

— can see no construction is happening ... yet.

Parikh Network, a national Popeyes franchisee that owns the 17 Minnesota locations, filed for a "Grading Full Build" permit for the proposed Villa Road Popeyes restaurant. That permit follows up the original Popeyes development plan for a 2,265-square-foot restaurant on that site filed in June 2021.

Does that "Full Build" permit mean that Popeyes will finally start moving dirt in Rochester this summer? Given my track record so far, I'll just answer my own question with "We'll see."

Adding to the confusion on Villa Road is construction that is underway on an open parcel across Chateau Road North from Compcare. That project is a 1,750-square-foot

Take 5 Oil Change

shop.

Take 5 Oil, which is based in Louisiana, in building its own pair of Rochester locations. Its south sibling will be built by Shoppes on Maine on the corner of 48th Street Southeast and Maine Avenue Southeast.

As for the plans for a southwest Popeyes on the Bakers Square site, no permits have been filed there recently. However, the company did respond to questions about Rochester in the plural, so there's no reason to believe that Popeye's original plan for that site has changed.

Meanwhile, anyone with a taste for spicy chicken now can hit some of Rochester's local restaurants, like the

Nashville Coop,

Birdie's at The Workshop Food Hall or either of the two Rooster's Barn and Grill locations.