Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen is getting ready to bring its famous fried chicken to Lowell, with a new location expected to open early next year.
The Louisiana-born fast-food chain is currently under construction at 190 Plain Street, where a 2,112-square-foot restaurant is taking shape on the site of a former Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) lodge and parking lot. The building is part of a larger commercial redevelopment that will also bring a Chipotle Mexican Grill and a third, yet-to-be-identified restaurant to the property.
Sanitary Code Enforcement Inspector Matt Sheehan shared an update on the projects during the Lowell Board of Health’s November 4 meeting at City Hall, noting that Popeyes is expected to open after the start of 2027. “They started painting the facade and then I think they’ll start working inside,” said Sheehan during his monthly development services report.
According to Inside Lowell, a recent visit to the site found the Popeyes building complete, with construction crews grading the remaining two parcels. Chipotle is planned for a separate space at 198 Plain Street, measuring more than 2,000 square feet. The third building, also expected to span approximately 2,000 square feet, will occupy the former parking lot between the two sites.
All three restaurants are planned to offer dine-in and takeout service, along with drive-through windows. Each drive-through is designed to accommodate up to 10 vehicles, with additional spaces and bypass lanes intended to prevent traffic from backing up onto Plain Street.
The redevelopment first came before the Lowell Planning Board in March 2022, when New Jersey-based Lowell Development, LLC presented its plans to transform the properties at 190 and 198 Plain Street. The Planning Board unanimously approved the special permits and site plan in December 2023, subject to conditions that included vegetative screening between the restaurants and the neighboring residential area, as well as traffic-related requirements.
Behind the Popeyes expansion is Parikh Network, a New Jersey-based multi-unit restaurant franchise group led by brothers Ashish Parikh, CEO, and Amish Parikh, president. The company is among the largest Popeyes franchise operators in the country, with a portfolio of more than 100 Popeyes restaurants and over 300 restaurants across 13 states, according to Amish’s LinkedIn profile.
Founded in 1972, Popeyes has built a following for its Louisiana-inspired fried chicken, particularly its signature chicken sandwich. The menu features bone-in chicken, wings, tenders, and sandwiches, alongside Southern-inspired sides such as Cajun fries, biscuits, and red beans and rice. Today, the brand operates more than 3,000 restaurants worldwide.
The Lowell opening is one of several Popeyes expansions planned for Greater Boston. Separate franchisee Rahman Hashimi previously told What Now Boston that he hopes to bring 15 locations to the region over the next few years.
