Sandy's Gets a Chicken Sandwich – January 1970

It seems like chicken sandwiches were in the news a lot last year.

Popeyes rolled out their chicken sandwich in August, only to run out of chicken a few weeks later and remove the item from its menu. When the chain returned the popular sandwich to its menu in October, it did it on a Sunday, needling Chick-fil-A (whose restaurants are closed on the Sabbath). And McDonald's is reportedly working on a new crispy chicken sandwich.

Anyway, it seems like a lot of clucking over a fast food item that's been around for a long time.

Sandy's, the Scottish-themed fast food restaurant chain, launched its own chicken sandwich locally back in January 1970, as noted in the advertisement below. It appeared in the Journal back on January 5, 1970.

It's interesting that the details as to how the chicken was going to be prepared in the new equipment was a secret. Floyd Ferner, the manager of the Sandy's on Meister only revealed that "the chicken is prepared in a hermetically sealed unit."

Hey, isn't that how Carnac the Magnificent's envelopes were sealed in a mayonnaise jar on the Tonight Show?

Anyway, I personally think the Chick-fil-A Chicken Sandwich is superior to the others. Why? It usually arrives hot and juicy in its little foil wrapper; the pickles are a nice touch and the sandwich is priced just right. Plus you get the famous Chick-fil-A courteous service (as opposed to the disinterested service you get at many other fast food joints with the exception of Taco Bell).

But I’ve also eaten and enjoyed the Wendy’s Spicy Chicken Sandwich for years too. To each his own, I guess.