Everyone knows the Chick-fil-A basics.
They're as well-known for their controversies and their always-cheerful staff as they are
for their chicken, and they made headlines for a lot of good reasons, too.
Their popularity is only growing as they expand farther and farther across the US, so what
should you know before you head there again?
Every now and then, the chain does away with a beloved item, like their carrot and raisin
salad.
The restaurant regularly upgrades the menu and 2016 saw a swing to more healthy options.
In came the Egg White Grill and out went the beloved but less-than-healthy Cinnamon Cluster.
To many, it was a tragedy.
But the melancholy Chick-fil-A fan can take heart that the powers that be are as helpful
as they can be when discontinuing an item.
They have a Hall of Fame dedication on their website to the fallen foods, and to help mend
some broken hearts, they went as far as providing the cole slaw recipe gratis to soothe the
faithful.
Now, you can make at least one of your long-time but long-gone favorites right in your own
kitchen.
Thanks, Chick-fil-A!
Many a restaurant has tried to emulate Chick-fil-A, but not all copies are of the traditional
quick-serve variety.
Famed chef David Chang has quite the affinity for fast food, and decided to take a shot
at making his own recreation of the famous Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich.
At his "fairly quick" serve restaurant, Fuku, Chang went all-in and made a restaurant specializing
in chicken, and featured a Spicy Chicken sandwich just like the ones from Chick-fil-A.
Make no mistake, Chang has spoken publicly about drawing inspiration from Chick-fil-A.
So, how does it hold up against the original, according to taste tests?
Well, there are plenty of sites out there that have compared the two, and the final
verdict is really up to you.
Just remember, Chick-fil-A has a huge advantage: it isn't carrying a New York City price tag
of around $8.
There's a reason people like to call Chick-fil-A healthy fast food, and while it might be better
for you than other places, it's still fast food.
One thing that even the most ardent label-reader can't deny is that Chick-fil-A is indeed making
strides to improve their product and make it more accessible to those with allergies.
In 2017, they introduced a gluten-free bun, available with their grilled chicken.
The bun comes pre-sealed to avoid cross contamination, and you have to build it yourself.
Chick-fil-A has also taken steps to remove dyes and high-fructose corn syrup from their
standard buns, and switched from iodized salt to sea salt on their oh-so-popular fries in
2017.
In a continuing effort to improve, they pledged to only use cage-free eggs by 2026, reduce
sodium across the menu, and stop using chickens raised with antibiotics.
Rarely has a restaurant become so synonymous with a phrase that wasn't some catchy commercial
line, but CFA pulled it off with just a simple courtesy after they hand you your food.
"There's your un-sweet tea.
My Pleasure.
There's your Coke.
My pleasure.”
So where did it come from?
Chick-fil-A's version of the origin comes from founder Truett Cathy.
Upon a visit to a Ritz Carlton, the kindly Cathy thanked a Ritz employee who responded
with a simple, "My pleasure."
More heartfelt than a typical, "You're welcome," the phrase stuck with him.
The rest, as they say, is history.
S. Truett Cathy may have opened Chick-fil-A by himself, but when he founded the chain's
predecessor, the Dwarf House, he had a partner in his brother Ben Cathy.
The brothers first opened the Dwarf Grill, which later became the Dwarf House.
Just a few years later, on a Saturday after his shift at the Dwarf, Ben and his other
brother Horace planned a flight to Chattanooga.
Tragically, they never arrived.
Their plane crashed in Dalton, Georgia, just about 35 miles south of Chattanooga, and in
a moment, Truett lost two brothers, and his business partner.
Amazingly, he trudged on and less than 20 years later spun out his first Chick-fil-A.
It's easier than you might think to make Chick-fil-A's chicken at home.
There's a plethora of copycat recipes out there, and while lot of people assume that
since there's a pickle served with the chicken, the secret marinade is pickle juice.
It's not.
The ingredients have nary a reference to pickle juice, and what you're tasting is just plain
old vinegar.
There's also MSG and a milk-wash, and now you know enough to make your own when the
cravings hit on Sunday.