I struck out yesterday on a visit to a possibly roadfood-worthy place (closed on Monday), and drove another mile and a half to the Dadeland Mall to visit the Chick-Fil-A in the food court.
It's not Chick-Fil-A's fault, but this mall is *very* crowded. It took me ten minutes to find a parking spot, and another ten to walk to the food court. You have heard of the bad drivers in Miami? Well, I discovered that there are many bad mall-walkers. They would come at me 4-5 abreast, and I guess I was expected to flatten myself against a store front to let them go by in that fashion. No concept of "keep right". Maybe my 5'9" self is invisible?
Here is the Chick-Fil-A:
(Sorry about the poor photo - needed a tripod)
I ordered an original chicken sandwich. The server asked whether I wanted lettuce and tomato, to which I replied, "Yes". She picked one off a rack of bagged sandwiches, and put it in a bag.
Here is the Original Chick-Fil-A sandwich:
Not exactly awe-inspiring, compared to what some of the Roadfood reviewers come up with from Roadfood-approved joints. The roll is, at best, indifferent.
Here is the interior:
Oops! No lettuce and tomato. I guess that she picked from the wrong line of premade sandwiches. It does look like an actual chicken part, unlike some other fast-food franchises' offerings.
On to the first bite. It was rather plain, with almost no noticeable seasoning. It did taste chicken-y, at least as much could be expected from a breast. No crispiness from the breading. I guess it steams in the bag while it sits around. Are they always like this? Maybe I needed to order something different? The web site states that the bun is toasted, and that it is served with
pickles. I did find one pickle chip. I had to go back and look at the photo to detect toasting. Perhaps the in-the-bag steaming/holding process made it soggy to the point that I did not notice the toasting.
Just for the heck of it, I asked whether the owner was around. He was, and he turned out to be very friendly and enthusiastic about his franchise. He is not there every day, but he said that he likes to keep an eye on things to ensure that things are done right. I asked some questions about the food, and learned that he buys his pre-portioned chicken breast parts from Perdue and some other vendor. The waffle fries are frozen, and partially cooked, he thought. The two-step breading process is done with corporate-supplied milk-egg dip (I didn't ask whether it comes in a liquid or solid form), and the corporate-supplied breading mix. The vegetables used in the sandwiches, etc., are cut-up on premises. I didn't ask about the breakfast items, but he did say that the desserts are purchased ready-made.
Based upon my admittedly brief single visit, I would give the sandwich, at best, 50%. Nothing toxic, just not inspiring.
