TikTok has become notorious for making people famous. In a recent viral video, a deli has become popular because of a viral video referencing their chicken salad.
It Is Indeed A Chicken Salad
The words “it’s a chicken salad” have had social media in a chokehold, and now, people are flooding the doors of East 81st St. Deli in Cleveland, Ohio, to try the delicacy that triggered this recent sensation.
The clip shows Tanisha Godfrey enjoying a chicken when she suddenly says, “Y’all better come up here and get one of these.”
Although the video might seem basic to some, people quickly gravitated to its content. The person filming the video asks Godfrey what she is eating, and she promptly responds, “It’s a chicken salad,” and then proceeds to share what is in the delicacy and, most importantly, where she got it.
Godfrey then goes into detail about what is in her food
“I got chicken, pickles, banana peppers, bell peppers, tomatoes, onions …,” she enthusiastically says.
@onlynishaa_ fyp chickensalad clevelandsalads 81stdeli onlynishaa__
@lizzo S/O oh my soul in NC… YALL kept messing up my delivery but it was bussin 😖🤠
Although the video was posted earlier in the fall, it only started gaining traction in October and has since amassed a mega viewership of over 17 million, with celebrities like Lizzo and Tia Mowry also getting in on the action.
The social media reactions and viral views have enabled the deli to grow its business. Wael Herbawi, the owner of the deli, told TODAY that ever since the video got the attention of multiple people, his business has tremendously grown. Herbawi has since shared a slew of TikToks showcasing people coking into the establishment to buy food.
In a conversation with TODAY, Godfrey told the publication that the viral video was unplanned and organic, and she did not make the video with the knowledge that it would eventually go viral.’
“We did not expect that at all,” said Godfrey. “I had got off work. Because it was hot, I was like, I don’t want anything heavy. So I stopped at the store like I normally do. And I was like, ‘Hey, you guys make salad now, right? And (Herbawi) was like, ‘Yes.’ So I was like, ‘Can I get a chicken salad?’ and I gave him the extra things to put in. And once he was done, it was a beautiful salad. So he said, ‘Hey, let’s make a TikTok.’ And that’s where it started,” Godfrey stated.
Although many would unassumingly view the video as regular social media content, in the world of social media, you just don’t know what might go viral.