06/03/2026
I’m always down for some saucy nuggets, and when Runza Restaurants announced they were releasing new Saucy Popcorn Chicken today, I had a 2-word response:
“Say less.”
The quality of the chicken was high, as it was still pretty moist. The batter/chicken ratio is nearly 50/50, but that’s ok because the batter gives the chicken nubs a fluffy, savory exterior. The sauce robbed it off much crispy texture, but these sauces made up for any loss of crunch worth it. The three new flavors, in order of my preference:
1. Golden BBQ: imagine a BBQ sauce combined with honey mustard. It’s creamy, sweet, and has a bit of tang. It tastes like a backyard BBQ, but in crispy chicken form.
2. Garlic Parmesan: Sharp, nutty cheese combines with bold, aromatic garlic for a flavorful bite. And though the garlic is present, you don’t need 18 breath mints after eating these.
3. Sweet Chili: it’s mostly sweet, but if you look for it, there’s a little heat on the back end.
The perfect thing to wash it all down was Runza’s new Dr. Pepper Shake, which combines the creamy richness of ice cream with the soda’s fruity, vanilla flavor.
Runza already serves some of fast food’s best burgers, sandwiches, and ranch dressing. Now we can add fried chicken to that list.
