St-Hubert sale flares frenzy of rotisserie-related tweets

News that Quebec's iconic rotisserie chicken chain, St-Hubert, is being sold to the company that owns Swiss Chalet has sparked a frenzy of social reaction online.

Swiss Chalet owners Cara buying iconic Quebec chicken chain for $537M

Haydn Watters CBC News Posted: Mar 31, 2016 2:47 PM EDT | Last Updated: March 31, 2016

The iconic Quebec-based St-Hubert restaurant chain has agreed to be acquired by Cara, the owner of the Swiss Chalet empire, for $537 million. (Peter McCabe/Canadian Press)

News that Quebec's iconic rotisserie chicken chain, St-Hubert, is being sold to the company that owns Swiss Chalethas sparked a frenzy of reaction online.

Cara made the announcement Thursday morning, saying it had struck a $537 million deal to scoop up the 120 St-Hubert restaurants, as well as two food manufacturing plants, two distribution centres and the company's real estate portfolio.

The result is a massive chicken conglomerate, run byCara, which also own Harvey's, Kelsey's, East Side Mario's and New York Fires.

Soon after Cara crowed, St-Hubert started trending across the country onTwitter, prompting responsefrom politicians, diehard St-Hubert fans and chicken enthusiasts in general.

The news hit some of the Twittersphere hard.

Quebecers were quick to point out their skepticism about the sale.

This is the most stunning move between rivals since the Sens traded for Dion Phaneuf. https://t.co/Vptyw9TZ4o
—@ian_mendes

NO THEY ARE GOING TO RUIN ST-HUBERT
—@politicspeonies

It's been a terrible year, but the news that Swiss Chalet is buying St. Hubert might just finish me off.

Farewell, cruel world...
—@TaoofStieb

It even inspired some swiftly creatededitorial cartoons.

Terry Mosher. the political cartoonist who draws under the penname Aislinfor the Montreal Gazette, sketched up this illustration when he read about the deal Thursday morning.

Not a Gazette cartoon. Just a reaction to a news item I just read pic.twitter.com/4voC2IaCwI
—@TerryMosher1

There were a few jabs at the quality of St-Hubert.

Perhaps under new management, #StHubert might actually start cooking their chickens. #itsalive #SwissChalet #dontmesswiththesaucetho
—@richdeschamps

All this talk about St-Hubert and Chicken makes me realize that there arent enough people in Quebec who realize St-Hubert is awful.
—@garytalmeida

I hope this is the end of St-Hubert passing off half a hamburger bun as a dinner roll. https://t.co/Snq1Y9B11G
—@kandisebrown

That cooked up a spirited debate over which chain had the better sauce.

St-Hubert is known for itsgravy sauce it is sold in grocery stores and apparentlyalsowith boxed wine but Swiss Chalet has its famed Chalet Sauce.

Several Twitter users found themselves embroiled in a war of the sauces.

@emilydawnlove I always thought the St. Hubert sauce was better than Swiss Chalets.
—@RusselProuse34

@SwissChaletCA please don't mess with the sauce at St Hubert, it's nice to have a choice when you want one.
—@pjholowatenko

Okay. Just don't mess the @sthubert sauce. Leave the sauce alone. Please. https://t.co/DoEBsryxdW
—@romillakarnick

@Newmie52 @DanDelmar St-Hubert sauce is a thing of beauty. I drink it straight from the container!
—@lesleychestrman

Others didn't really see the difference.

Plot Twist: #StHubert was always Swiss Chalet.
—@BrockPapers

The deal prompted hopes that St-Hubert would expand to other parts of the country.

Currently, there are a handful of St-Hubert locations outside of Quebec, including some in the Ottawa-area, one in Cornwall, Ont. and a few in New Brunswick.

. @sthubert Please come to Toronto Ps: Did I tell you that each trip to Montreal, we bring back chicken/SAUCE for the kids?
—@karimacatherine

All I want to know is whether this means I'll get St Hubert in Alberta soon. Can somebody tell me that?
—@andrew_leach

With this new acquisition, does that mean @sthubert is coming to #Toronto and the rest of Canada? *crosses fingers*
—@JennAndTheCity

Even St-Hubert's Twitter account helped stoke the wishful expansionthoughts.

@NikiKerimova This transaction will allow us to explore the possibility of developing #StHubert outside of Quebec.
—@sthubert

It's a bizarreobsession that this Twitter user summed up perfectly.

I had no idea Canadians felt so strongly about #StHubert sauce. Along with the ketchup thing, I think we have a condiment fixation.
—@JakeAReid

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