Chick-fil-A Opens its First All-Digital Restaurant

Earlier this year, Chick-Fil-A opened its first mobile pickup location in New York City. The restaurant, which is located in a residential neighborhood of the Upper East Side of Manhattan, is a digitally focused unit with no seating, no ordering kiosks, and no front-of-house staff.

The new prototype is designed to fit seamlessly in urban areas with heavy foot traffic that may lack the space for traditional drive-thru pickup orders. Digital orders make up more than half of a store's sales in some markets, and New York City's number of mobile orders is even greater. The concept caters to customers seeking speed and convenience.

“When I opened my first restaurant in 2019, it was mostly dine-in,” said the location's owner-operator Jared Caldwell. “But then Covid happened, and we morphed into delivery and takeout. Customers were ordering ahead, delivery drivers were coming in and it became a different business.”

The new model is 3,500 square feet with an interior space, but no dining room. It includes a standard kitchen and staging area where guests can pick up their meals after placing orders online or through the Chick-fil-A app. Customers can also request their food to be delivered, with the company working with third-party services that often arrive by foot or bike. The inside of the restaurant also includes status boards for mobile and delivery orders to provide estimated wait times for when their food will be ready.

After an order is placed online, the restaurant is alerted by geofencing to know when a guest or delivery person is on their way. Location services must be enabled on the app, which can track an arrival from a few blocks or minutes away. This feature ensures the food is fresh and hot upon arrival.

The front of restaurant is divided into two halves, with deliveries going to the left side and customers picking up their orders on the right. The two sides prevent a logjam of guests and delivery people converging in the same area during busy times. The kitchen and back-of-house area is similar to other Chick-fil-A restaurants, albeit with a smaller footprint.

With so much of the ordering process becoming automated, Chick-Fil-A wanted to make sure it didn't lose its signature brand of customer service. Kitchen workers greet and engage with guests when they come to the counter to pick up their food. For people coming into the restaurant and wanting to place an order, a staff member will point them to a QR code in the store that takes them online.

“At Chick-fil-A, we are always looking for ways to innovate and enhance the guest experience,” said Nathaniel Cates, senior principal design lead for Chick-fil-A. “While digital concepts are becoming more prevalent, it’s important that we evolve in a uniquely Chick-fil-A way – meeting the changing needs of our customers without compromising the signature service and care they’ve grown to know and love.”

Chick-Fil-A is also planning on debuting an elevated drive-thru concept later this year. It will include the same technology but will not be in an urban location.

The full article about Chick-Fil-A's first all-digital restaurant can be found here.