Chick-fil-A acquiesced to customer outrage over its recent announcement to pull the popular side salad option from the menu, reversing course and promising to keep the somewhat healthier item in restaurants.
The Christian-focused fast-food chain had originally planned on discontinuing side salads beginning April 3rd.
“At Chick-fil-A, our guests come first. Based on feedback, we have decided not to proceed with removing our Side Salad from the menu. We will continue serving the item at participating restaurant locations and hope customers continue to enjoy this menu offering,” the fast food chain related, as reported by FOX Business.
It wasn’t that long ago that Chick-fil-A was preparing to sunset one of the few green food items seen in the fast food industry. In late March, the Atlanta-based company issued a tweet suggesting that keeping salads was no longer a viable option if it also wanted to keep serving quality food.
Spring is here, and we are taking the opportunity to refresh our menu. Starting April 3rd, our Side Salad will no longer be offered on the Chick-fil-A menu. We want to continue providing you with quality food and service. We apologize for the inconvenience. pic.twitter.com/7PIyMYfEF2
— CFA Seguin Rd/FM 78 (@CFASeguinRdFM78) March 21, 2023
“Spring is here, and we are taking the opportunity to refresh our menu. Starting April 3rd, our Side Salad will no longer be offered on the Chick-fil-A menu. We want to continue providing you with quality food and service. We apologize for the inconvenience.
The company also released a statement to FOX Television Stations, saying: “Serving guests is at the heart of all we do at Chick-fil-A. In order for our Restaurant Team Members to continue to deliver quality food and signature hospitality, at times we have to make difficult decisions to help simplify our menu.”
At the same time, the company reported it would increase the size of the Kale Crunch Side to large, which will allow customers to continue enjoying a Chick-fil-A salad in some form.
Reddit users even created a thread where they could lament the loss of the beloved side salad.
One Reddit user said, “Of the past items that have been discontinued, this one hits me the most. It’s a decent salad for a meal vs. the entree ones which are really too large. I’ll get over it though.”
Another said, “I really wish we still had cole slaw as an option. I am pretty much over the waffle fries. They just don’t taste as good as I remember. Less salt these days? I was excited about the macaroni, and while it has the right texture, it is just bland. Their side salads are the best in the industry. So fresh and tasty dressing. What a loss.”
Another Reddit user voiced his frustration with the decision, “Wtf I loved the side salad, cut up some nuggets on it and it’s the perfectly portioned salad, the entree ones are too large and it saves me like $5 when I do it the way I do. They probably just want to push us into spending more money on the entree ones if we want salad.”
Chick-fil-A has also announced that it will be testing a new cauliflower sandwich in several markets. As Fox reported, the “market tests for the cauliflower sandwich come after almost four years of in-house development.”
Fox also noted that additional menu changes are afoot as the winter months cede to spring. The chain will be welcoming back its Watermelon Mint Lemonade, as well as rolling out a new Watermelon Mint Sunjoy, Watermelon Mint Frosted Lemonade and Watermelon Mint Iced Tea.
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