Popeyes Vs Long John Silver's Vs Captain D's: Which Is The Better Chain For Fried Shrimp?

Fried shrimp are the chicken nuggets of the seafood world, and as such, are a great option for a quick, easy meal or on-the-go snack from a fast food drive-thru. However, seafood is more delicate and prone to spoilage than, say, chicken or beef. This key difference can be traced back to the animals themselves. Land animals have microbiomes accustomed to higher temperatures, so refrigeration is more effective at keeping harmful bacteria at bay. Fish and crustaceans, like shrimp, naturally live in cold temperatures. The bacteria and enzymes of seafood are in their element, so to speak, which can lead to quicker spoiling, even in refrigeration.

All of this boils down to the reality that, for many people, fast food seafood can conjure strong feelings of trepidation. Case in point: When I told my friends and family I was embarking on a taste-testing experiment of fast food fried shrimp, I got more furrowed brows and grimaces than excitement. But to brush off fried shrimp is to deny oneself a tasty treat that is slightly sweet, a bit briney, and the perfect accompaniment to a side of hush puppies, coleslaw, and, if you're like me, a very horseradishy cocktail sauce.

For all the flak fast food shrimp gets, I wanted to finally determine once and for all: Which restaurant does it best? Popeyes, Long John Silver's, or Captain D's? I dive into how I selected, judged, and ranked my six fried shrimp options in the methodology slide at the end of this article. However, I will say straight out of the gate: My final answer surprised even me.

I began my taste-testing experiment with the oldest of the three fast food chains: Captain D's, which opened on August 15, 1969, in Donelson, Tennessee. Among Captain D's menu items, I tried the chain's regular D'Lish popcorn shrimp first. The smell was delicious: oceanic, a little sweet, the faint scent of fried breading. So far, so good, although I'll admit that I'm always a little skeptical of popcorn shrimp, since it's often not deveined. Some people don't mind it. Personally, I can't stop thinking about what that gritty texture is while I eat the shrimp.

Like I suspected, it still had its veins intact. I was also surprised to find that the overwhelming flavor was the breading, not the seafood itself. I noticed the breading looked darker than I would have expected, but I had never tried this item before, so I was operating purely on assumption. Based on the flavor, I would suspect that the dark tint of the breading was an overwhelming amount of grease, since that was one of the most prominent flavor features. The texture was pleasant: Crunchy, bite-sized morsels that you could easily make into a whole meal or keep as a snack if you're partial to breading.

I had high hopes for Captain D's Old Bay popcorn shrimp because I'm a huge fan of Old Bay and all of its surprising uses. This classic blend of herbs and spices includes celery, pepper, and paprika, among others, but it's the celery salt that really contributes to this spice blend's signature flavor. The brightness of the celery is a fantastic accompaniment to the sweet-salty flavors of seafood, so I was excited to try popcorn shrimp that was promised to be coated in the tasty seasoning.

After trying it, I was confused why Captain D's would go through the extra trouble of offering a different version of its popcorn shrimp when it tastes exactly the same. The flavor was so mild that I had to look closely at my shrimp to make sure that there was actually Old Bay on it. This might be a location-specific issue, though. Nevertheless, the Old Bay popcorn shrimp I received tasted more like greasy breading than seafood or Old Bay, which was a similar experience to the one I had with the chain's regular offering.

In addition to trying its popcorn shrimp varieties, I also wanted to taste-test Captain D's butterfly shrimp, which refers to a specific technique when cutting the crustaceans. To properly butterfly shrimp, a whole shrimp is sliced down the back and flattened, creating a fanned out shape that almost looks like butterfly wings. This variety gives you more bang for your buck than popcorn-style because it is larger and therefore has more meat.

I encountered the same issue with Captain D's butterfly shrimp as I did with its other options. The flavor of the breading is overwhelmingly bland, which ends up overpowering the fairly decent seafood flavor. The shrimp itself had a satisfying snap that you hope to get from the tasty crustacean, but something about the breading threw the whole flavor off. The taste of it lodges into the sides of your mouth, coating it in a way that makes me suspect the issue might have to do with the amount of cornstarch the fast food chain uses.

Long John Silver's first opened its doors on August 18, 1969, in Lexington, Kentucky (interestingly, this was only three days after Captain D's first opened a few hours away in Tennessee). Personally, this has always been the fast food chain I most closely associate with seafood. I've lived in places where Long John Silver's is the go-to seafood fast food spot for so long that other restaurant options, like Captain D's or Popeyes, were newer to me.

All in all though, that brand ubiquity wasn't enough to convince me the shrimp was anything to write home about. The first thing I noticed when opening my container of Long John Silver's battered shrimp was that the tails weren't fried, which I always appreciate because it makes it easier to know where to stop munching. I would describe the flavor as okay. The breading was thin, almost like the breading of a McDonald's chicken nugget, which allowed the flavor of the seafood to come through. The shrimp was firm, deveined, and had the umami flavor that one would expect from an order of battered crustaceans — a perfectly decent choice.

Whereas I found the breading on Long John Silver's battered shrimp to be remarkably thin, I thought that the fast food chain's popcorn-style option perfected its breading-to-crustacean ratio. The breading still tasted the same — floury, a little greasy (it is fast food, after all), with mild seasoning (think: salt and pepper) — but it was a little more substantial texture-wise, which made for a more satisfying crunch when snacking on the fried bites.

Like most popcorn shrimp varieties, Long John Silver's doesn't devein its crustaceans. However, I found the morsels to be so tiny that I didn't even notice, which is noteworthy, considering I won't typically eat shrimp that isn't deveined. The flavor was just the right blend of salty and sweet, and I was surprised at how many pieces came in one order. I'll admit that my expectations weren't particularly high when taste-testing this fast food chain's popcorn shrimp, but wherever I placed the bar in my own head, Long John Silver's surpassed it.

Popeyes was an outlier in my shrimp taste-testing deep dive because I think of it as a chicken restaurant, thanks to the earworm jingle "Looove that chicken from Popeyes." Nevertheless, I love Southern-style cooking, and I know from eating some of the other best menu items at Popeyes that the fast food chain doesn't skimp on seasoning, which I appreciate. At first glance, I thought that Popeyes butterfly shrimp was the most aesthetically pleasing. The shrimp were large, uniform, and coated in a delectably crunchy looking breading.

The flavor certainly delivered, too. True to fashion, Popeyes' breading was flavorful and peppery, and I tasted more flour than grease, which was a pleasant change of pace. If anything, I found the breading to be more reminiscent of biscuits than, say, a deep fryer. The shrimp itself was firm, snappy, and just the right blend of sweet and salty. In fact, this shrimp tasted more like something I would expect from a nicer restaurant, not something I can pick up in the drive-thru 10 minutes from my house.

Like I suggested at the beginning of this article, I was surprised to find that the best fried shrimp came from Popeyes, a restaurant I don't typically associate with seafood. I assumed Long John Silver's or Captain D's would come out ahead because these chains have had decades to perfect their recipes. However, Popeyes pulled ahead in the end. From the crunchy, flavorful breading to the firm and fresh shrimp, Popeyes was really a no-brainer.

One potential downside — that might be specific to my Popeyes location — is that I wasn't able to order the butterfly shrimp a la carte. I had to order the whole meal. Of course, as someone who loves Popeyes biscuits and red beans and rice, I didn't have that much to complain about. Ordering it this way is a little pricier, but if you're going to opt for fast food seafood, you might as well go with the best option for your taste buds' and stomach's sake.

To conduct my taste-testing experiment, I picked out all the fried shrimp options available at Captain D's, Long John Silver's, and Popeyes in my area. Other varieties, like grilled shrimp, were avoided, as were additional sauces. I taste-tested all of the menu items hot, within 30 minutes of purchasing (the Long John Silver's was a little further from my house).

I judged the fried shrimp based on the flavor and texture of the breading and on the flavor, texture, and appearance of the seafood itself. Because most of the options were comparable in price, this wasn't a major consideration in my rankings.