Chick-Fil-A Makes Major Change to Some of Its Drive-Thrus in the US

Chick-fil-A has been making a major change to some of their drive-thrus, and customers might have already noticed it at their local restaurant. Over on Reddit, a user shared a photo from a Chick-fil-A drive-thru, revealing that the store had remodeled the window to function as a door. A Chick-fil-A employee can be seen standing in the drive-thru doorway, assisting a customer further up in line. It appears that the original window was simply converted into a door, so that employees could get in and out easier while helping customers, since the chain typically runs multiple drive-thru lines.

Noting how efficient the fast-food chain is, one Reddit user commented, "Around me most Chick-fil-A's near me at any time of day have a line constantly, but you can get in line, order, and have your food within 10 minutes. I've been the only person at a McDonald's and it took longer to get my food." Someone else replied, "Yeah, their logistics design and management is way ahead of any fast-food peers. They've been reconfiguring their drive thru lanes and parking lots at the ones near us. Business schools should be (and presumably are) studying them for operations research classes."

The drive-thru doors are not the first big, innovative charge we've seen from Chick-fil-A restaurants this year. previously it was revealed that many of the fast-food stores utilize conveyor systems to help get food out faster. Over on TikTok, a user who works at the fast-food chain shared a video of what happens in the back of the store after the food is prepared. "Our kitchen sends the food to the window using a conveyor belt to make things move faster," he wrote.

In the clip, we see the conveyor belt in action, carrying bags of Chick-fil-A orders to the employee working the drive-thru window. The bags are carried overhead and then lowered to where the employee is standing. Notably, not all Chick-fil-A stores operate with a conveyor belt system. KGPE CBS47, a Fresno, California affiliate of CBS News, reported on the TikTik clip and stated that a representative for the company confirmed that there are 30 stores, approximately, that utilize the conveyor belt system currently. That makes up roughly 1% of Chick-fil-A restaurants.

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