Chick-Fil-A Is Officially Ditching Its Side Salad

If there's one company that knows how to do chicken right, it's Chick-fil-A. Since opening the first location in Georgia in the spring of 1946, the chain has become iconic for its crunchy fried chicken sandwiches. The simple combination of freshly fried chicken, a soft, pillowy bun, and tangy pickles is the height of the Chick-fil-A experience and is its most popular entrée.

Chick-fil-A's popularity is unmatched, and it goes beyond just the sandwich. The restaurant has topped the list of most popular fast-food restaurants for eight years, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (via Fox Business). While the chain knocks it out of the park with its chicken, not everything on the menu is as popular with customers. And sometimes, that means something has to go. 

With that in mind, Chick-fil-A's classic side salad will depart from the fast-food chain's menu next month, according to social media.

It came as a shock to customers when, on March 20, the first announcement was made that Chick-fil-A's side salad would be moving off the menu and onto the list of things customers miss. The news initially came from a Tifton, Georgia location that shared the news on Facebook. "We are spring cleaning here at Chick-fil-A and taking this opportunity to refresh our menu. The side salad's last day will be April 1," the post reads. A Yukon, Georgia Chick-fil-A shared a similar message on Facebook. However, the Tifton location's photo shows a "fond farewell" note to the side salad, which states that the last day customers can order it is April 3. 

Whichever date it is, though, customers don't have much longer to order the beloved menu item. A TikToker shared a photo of the same note from their local Chick-fil-A; apparently, the company has been handing out cards to share the bad news with customers who've ordered the salad recently. And naturally, many people are unhappy about the change. "Why do they always take away the good stuff?" lamented one commenter on the Yukon location's Facebook post.

For those looking for other options while on the go, Chick-fil-A is planning on releasing new menu items but hasn't announced just what they'll be. The side salad may be hard to replace for its diehard fans. But with Chick-fil-A's unstoppable popularity, some are optimistic about what the new menu might bring.