Chick-fil-A has a relatively small menu, and it adheres to a rigorous testing process that begins
in its centralized test kitchen. However, even Chick-fil-A has had some menu items that just
missed the mark. Here are some of the biggest flops in the history of this fast food chain.
Fans of Burger King's cult-favorite Cini-Minis might be disappointed to learn that Chick-fil-A
almost rolled out a similar option as part of its beloved breakfast menu.
Chick-fil-A's Biscuit Cinnamon Rolls combined the chain's well-known biscuit dough with cinnamon,
butter, and sugar before being topped with a drizzle of vanilla icing.
Based on how good Chick-fil-A's freshly baked biscuits are, it seems likely that
this combination would have yielded a breakfast pastry so delicious that even
the chain's naysayers might have weathered their guilt and broken ranks to try them.
So, why are we not all lamenting the fact that it's impossible to get Chick-fil-A's Biscuit
Cinnamon Rolls on a Sunday? It's because this is one of several items that, while promising,
never made it past the testing phase. While these breakfast goodies did make it to select locations
and received rave reviews from customers, pulling Biscuit Cinnamon Rolls from the menu was not about
taste. Chick-fil-A is known for having a high level of consistency across all locations, and
this item was just too complicated for every store to pull off at the same high level every time.
"There's a lot that goes into making Chick-fil-A biscuits."
This failed menu item might sound familiar if you frequent Chick-fil-A. The Rosemary
Garlic Flatbread Wrap was actually the original inspiration for the now-popular Grilled Cool Wrap,
which is widely considered to be one of the healthiest options on the fried chicken
chain's menu. This sandwich made it out of the test kitchen and was trialed in three cities:
Memphis, Tennessee; Orlando, Florida; and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. These taste tests had an
interesting twist that we think could have had a major impact on the success of the sandwich:
Customers who tried it had no idea that the wrap was from Chick-fil-A!
Chef Shona Jonson told The Chicken Wire:
"It was very polarizing. [...] There were lovers, and there were haters."
According to Thrillist, Chick-fil-A can lay claim to the honor of making the best chicken nuggets.
When the culinary development team behind the brand started looking for ways to get creative
with the beloved nuggets, it's not surprising that they decided to try making a quesadilla. However,
this is one menu item that never even made it into select locations for taste testing.
Chick-fil-A's Chicken Quesadilla was such a flop, it never even left the test kitchen.
There isn't a ton of information available about the Chicken Quesadilla, but apparently,
the original version contained chicken nuggets and melted cheese inside of a large flour tortilla.
The Chicken Wire says that the reason this one stalled before taste testing
was the fact that it took too long to make. However, you can still order a
Chicken Quesadilla at most Chick-fil-A locations by hacking the secret menu.
If you want something that feels more like a legitimate quesadilla,
order grilled chicken and melted cheese in a flour tortilla, which they should have on hand because
it's used for the Hash Brown Scramble Burrito at breakfast. Want to taste something more like
what the test kitchen chefs had in mind? Just swap that grilled chicken for chicken nuggets.
The Cranberry Orange Bagel is quite possibly one of the weirdest ideas the team at Chick-fil-A
has ever come up with, and that's exactly why you won't find it on menus at any location.
Back in 2006, the chefs were working on a new spin on chicken-centric breakfast
sandwiches. They started with a square-shaped cranberry orange
bagel. This innovative bagel was strange enough on its own, but then a chicken fillet and a
side of cream cheese were added to create a sandwich that was, apparently, pretty good.
Chef Christy Cook told The Chicken Wire:
"It was just so far out there, ahead of its time.
Often that's what happens. The market isn't ready for it.”
After they scrapped the Cranberry Orange Bagel, the Chick-fil-A team had a hit with the next
iteration: The Chicken Egg & Cheese Bagel. A spin on the ever-popular bacon egg & cheese,
this one is served on a sunflower multigrain bagel.
Sometimes, even the most beloved, cult-favorite menu items don't make it in the long run.
Chick-fil-A's Carrot Raisin Salad is a prime example of this phenomenon.
Apparently, this side dish was inspired by one of founder Truett Cathy's family recipes.
Southern Living refers to it as "a side dish that practically doubles as a dessert."
Before the magazine's staff even heard the news, they had tried to reverse-engineer
their own version but said they could never get it to be quite as good as the original.
Since then, The Chicken Wire has released the official recipe,
so those who miss the Chick-fil-A staple can make a pretty close approximation at home.
And if that's not enough, die-hard fans can make a pilgrimage to Truett's Grill
and Dwarf House, located in Georgia. As Chick-fil-A's heritage restaurants,
they serve Carrot Raisin Salad just the way Truett Cathy himself would have made it.
Not every chicken-centric dish that Chick-fil-A tries out is a runaway success. Their Chicken
Salad Sandwich was once a classic menu item, but it ultimately fell victim to changing tastes.
In 2017, Today reported that the beloved sandwich was leaving menus. The company
told Today that the decision to remove the item wasn't an easy one, stating,
"We know that many of our customers loved our Chicken Salad, but we have also heard from
guests that they are looking for new tastes and fresh flavors on the menu in our restaurants."
As with many of the other sorely missed discontinued menu items,
the recipe for the Chick-fil-A Chicken Salad Sandwich is available on The Chicken Wire,
so you can whip up your own version at home. Since removing this one from the menu,
the chain has mostly doubled down on its fried chicken offerings, with only a few
grilled chicken options available for those who might be slightly more health-conscious.
“The chicken’s amazing guys. Eat more chicken!”
While this one isn't a menu item, it was a big flop for Chick-fil-A just the same.
According to a report by Business Insider, Chick-fil-A's expansion into the United Kingdom
was fraught from the start. The first UK location at The Oracle shopping centre in Reading closed
after only a brief six-month period. Although American audiences don't seem to mind the chain's
sometimes controversial social and political stances, overseas, customers were quick to show
their outrage. Chick-fil-A remained optimistic, however, and opened a second location in Scotland.
All of the UK locations were technically executed as branded pop-ups with limited menus,
so the chain could feel things out before committing to a full-blown expansion plan.
However, ambitions of success in the United Kingdom were eventually thwarted in 2020.
LGBTQ activists and members of Parliament banded together to circulate petitions
and boycotts. The last location in the UK closed in January 18, 2020,
and we don't expect to see another attempt at cracking that market any time soon.
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