Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Chick-fil-A Premier Night!

It's been a long time coming, but our town is finally getting it's own Chick-fil-A! And CFA happens to be my MOST FAVORITE fast food restaurant ever! Usually I shun fast food (excluding sandwich shops), but I will leap at the chance to visit CFA.

Even though the restaurant doesn't officially open until Thursday, my husband and I got to attend the invitation-only premier night on Tuesday. How did we get a sneak peek at the new CFA? Well, I was selected as one of the "Raving Fans" after I submitted this brief, masterful essay:

"My husband hates eating at Chick-fil-A with me. Could be because it takes me so long to eat! I savor every bite of chicken, drink every drop of the lemonade, and debate whether to get ice cream. I became addicted to Chick-fil-A in college when I ate there three times a week. It’s been hard living in Gaffney—my husband and I make sure to schedule a Chick-fil-A stop on all our road trips. I like supporting Chick-fil-A because the company sticks to its values, helps out in the community, and takes care of its employees. No other fast food restaurant has better food or customer service."

Of course, my essay didn't cover all the reasons why I'm a fan since it was limited to 100 words. I had to leave out that simply thinking of a chicken sandwich with pickles and a diet lemonade brings a smile to my face... The cow mascots are super cute... How I respect the fact that the company sticks to its values (not being open on Sundays is one example.)

Okay, back to the premier recap! We arrived just after 6 p.m., and had to park at the back of the very crowded parking lot since we weren't the only "raving fans." The two of us huddled under a mini-umbrella as we dashed from the Rav4 to the red carpet leading into the restaurant (after arriving soaking wet wearing white pants didn't seem like such a good idea). We grabbed a booth in the corner since most of the tables were taken (and I didn't want anyone to see my now see-through white capris). We had our drink orders taken at the table, and then we got our picture taken with the cow mascot. To keep the ravaging masses from storming the kitchen, workers passed out samples of chicken nuggets. Did you know the chicken arrives fresh at the store, and once cooked it only has a shelf life of one hour? See, you learned something from reading this.

To keep the crowd occupied, we heard speeches from the owner and a couple of people from the Chick-fil-A corporate office. They also handed each guest 10 coupons for free sandwiches and biscuits and asked us to GIVE THEM AWAY! Alright Chicken People, since I took the Chick-fil-A Ambassador Pledge and you gave me a free meal, I'll pass most of them out. Okay, okay, I'll give them all away since I love CFA!

Following Gaffney trivia, everyone lined up to place their orders, which took awhile. Hubby got a chicken sandwich with fries, and I got a chicken strips salad. Both were excellent. For dessert, servers made the rounds with milkshakes, cakes, and brownies. We picked out a brownie covered in chocolate icing and nuts and a cheesecake with strawberry syrup. Alright, maybe there is one thing I don't love about the place--I've never been a fan of the brownies. They are really dense, and I don't like icing on them. It's a brownie, not a piece of cake. The cheesecake was really good, but my favorite dessert is still a simple ice cream cone. After the meal the Chicken People held a raffle. I'm sad to say neither of us won anything, including the free food for a year. Oh well...

After the raffle we decided to forgo the kitchen tour and head home to our puppy. Upon our leaving we were each given a mini stuffed mascot cow and a travel coffee mug. Although we were disappointed that we didn't win the free meals for a year we are extremely excited our favorite fast food is now only a 5 minute ride away!

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