Bossman vs Roadman

August 3, 2024 5:06 AM

Short tiktok skits of chicken shop encounters with London slang. Sparkling water.

Robbery
Wings
Sauce, wherein bossman finally prevails.

posted by lucidium (13 comments total)

these are really great, what i’m really wondering is how he got to use the counters of so many different shops. also now i want to try some of the chicken shops in london that have names like “milwaukee chicken” inexplicably.
posted by dis_integration at 5:34 AM on August 3

Of these, “innit” was the only bit of London slang that I’m familiar with, so I was a bit perplexed until I reached “Sauce” and finally understood the game!
posted by moonmilk at 6:07 AM on August 3

So, this is the UK version of "You want tap or bottled watter?"
"Saratoga...no, man, I said 'bottled'."
posted by Smart Dalek at 6:08 AM on August 3 [1 favorite]

As a trans man in London, there's no sweeter moment than when the owner of the chicken shop calls you "bossman" rather than "darling". That's when you know you truly pass.
posted by fight or flight at 6:15 AM on August 3 [25 favorites]

> names like “milwaukee chicken” inexplicably

There's an impressive array of names, partially documented in this rather odd chart. KFC ran an ad campaign a while back riffing on the sheer number of [?]FC shops.
posted by lucidium at 7:29 AM on August 3 [4 favorites]

Pretty sure the first one is in a branch of Amigos, a chain that displays its cojones by sometimes opening a branch literally next door to Macdonalds.
posted by Hogshead at 8:04 AM on August 3

There's an impressive array of names, partially documented in this rather odd chart.

So tell me, is there really much difference, among all these? I grew up in Maryland and was quite amused, my first trip to Europe, how often I encountered 'Maryland Fried Chicken' on menus there.
posted by Rash at 9:05 AM on August 3

There is absolutely zero difference
posted by el_presidente at 9:20 AM on August 3

As a trans man in London, there's no sweeter moment than when the owner of the chicken shop calls you "bossman" rather than "darling". That's when you know you truly pass.


Indeed - being called 'boss' in a convenience store recently gave me gender euphoria for days.
posted by terretu at 9:21 AM on August 3 [4 favorites]

If you enjoy these, check out the Pengest Munch aka the Chicken Connoisseur.
posted by phigmov at 11:15 AM on August 3 [2 favorites]

This is a dramatization of the life of anglophone non-Londoners, what more fluent ESL people who arrived to the city and realized that not only textbooks lied and all the nice Penguin books are too proper but also their only major exposure to modern vernacular English is American (and that would be useless).

/True story - also verified by the comments in each vid.
posted by cendawanita at 11:17 AM on August 3

I grew up in Maryland and was quite amused, my first trip to Europe, how often I encountered 'Maryland Fried Chicken' on menus there.

There is a Maryland Fried Chicken chain around here that is actually quite good. And since the Delmarva peninsula is known for its chickens, that is not at all surprising.
posted by TedW at 12:27 PM on August 3

Indeed - being called 'boss' in a convenience store recently gave me gender euphoria for days.

Even as a cis male, there's something special about being called 'boss'.
posted by pipeski at 3:31 PM on August 3 [1 favorite]