Can you even fathom the life altering experience of indulging yourself with all-you-can-eat Popeyes fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, Cajun rice, buttermilk biscuits, and red beans and rice?

Well, hopefully you experienced it at least once in your life, because now it's gone forever. One of our sister stations in Lafayette is reporting that the last remaining Popeyes buffet in the world has met its demise.

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DJ Digital reports that the buffet was closed when the pandemic hit because all Popeyes restaurants closed their dining room to customer foot traffic. He went on to say that when COVID restrictions were easing up in Lafayette, a manager told him that it was highly likely that the buffet would not return whenever the restaurant reopened its dining room.

Burger King Parent Restaurants International Acquires Popeyes For $1.8 Billion
(Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
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Months had passed since he talked to the Popeyes manager, so Digital again started asking around if the buffet was going to return. This time an employee told him that it was confirmed that the buffet was not returning and that the decision was final.

I lived in Arkansas for a cup of coffee back in the early 2000s. Jonesboro to be exact. There was a neighboring town about 20 or so miles away, the name of it escapes me and a Google search was no help, that had a Popeyes and Pizza Hut buffet in the same location. I kept hearing about this wonderful tale at work for months and finally decided to give it a try. It was like heaven, nothing like I have ever experienced before or since. I could almost hear the chorus of angels signing when I opened the door.

My plate was overflowing with supreme and pepperoni pizza, fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and everything else I could load up on it. Red beans and mashed potatoes were all over my pizza, I didn't care. There was marinara sauce on my fried chicken from the bread sticks, I didn't care. I'd never felt so alive and I was just living in the moment.

Burger King Parent Restaurants International Acquires Popeyes For $1.8 Billion
Joe Raedle, Getty Images
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A few years ago I had heard that the location in Lafayette was the last remaining Popeyes buffet in the world. So one weekend, I packed up the family in our mini van to take the pilgrimage down I-10 to checkout the goodness that was awaiting us. However, when we walked into the restaurant I would see that there were no lights on the buffet tables. I asked an employee when the buffet started and they said it only ran during lunch hours during the weekdays.  I was super bummed. Unfortunately, I never returned to eat there and now I'm kicking myself.

I know it might be weird to say this, but I will always remember eating at that Popeyes and Pizza Hut buffet combo. It was an experience, and I think that's what these companies don't understand. I would imagine the margins are small or even at a loss at an all-you-can-eat Popeyes buffet. But, it gets people talking and word of mouth advertising is way more effective than paid advertising on TV or billboards any day.

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