Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

Towlie

(5,458 posts)
Thu May 4, 2023, 09:04 AM May 2023

New York Has Serious Concerns With Chick-fil-A

Why the nation's most popular chicken chain is not a great fit for New York's highway rest stops.

Rest areas along the New York State Thruway are currently undergoing a $450 million redesign. That project involves removing all McDonald’s restaurants and adding Chick-fil-A, among other chains, to several of the rest areas that punctuate the 500-mile highway system, which connects New York City and Buffalo by way of Albany. The McDonald’s closures were meant to provide “updated restaurant concepts” to these rest areas. However, it’s quickly becoming apparent that Chick-fil-A will present obstacles to highway drivers throughout the state.

Chick-fil-A, of course, is famously closed on Sundays, a nod to its founder’s religious beliefs. But Sunday isn’t just when many folks go to church—it’s a notoriously heavy traffic day, with a lot of travelers using Sundays to head back home from weekend trips. When it was announced that Chick-fil-A was being added to rest areas along the Thruway, it seems some New Yorkers erroneously assumed that the restaurants be open on Sundays, despite the chain’s longstanding policy. That would just make good sense at a rest stop, right?


[wrong]

more...
36 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
New York Has Serious Concerns With Chick-fil-A (Original Post) Towlie May 2023 OP
Whose bright idea was this? And how are they tied to that junk food? niyad May 2023 #1
Smells of 'mordida' peppertree May 2023 #7
Good grief, even gawd-fearin', Chick-fil-A lovin' people travel on Sundays. tanyev May 2023 #2
They can travel on Sundays because they know they have the day off rurallib May 2023 #18
A right wing republican idea....someone in the mix is acting out for "the cause". BComplex May 2023 #34
That's just a really bad idea. Diamond_Dog May 2023 #3
When you actually look at the map there aren't many choices if your heading Historic NY May 2023 #4
Do highways really need so many places to eat bad food...and then sit for hours after? Alexander Of Assyria May 2023 #5
They will be needed as electric vehicles take over but before they are as convenient as carbonfuel. NullTuples May 2023 #8
This message was self-deleted by its author appleannie1 May 2023 #16
Have you ever traveled with a car full of hungry kids? appleannie1 May 2023 #17
I'd rather look for decent family diners a few miles off the thruway ... Auggie May 2023 #6
I would rather have my blood sugar crash than eat there. niyad May 2023 #9
Screw chick fil a flying_wahini May 2023 #10
Seems more like a Chick-Fil-A problem than a state concern... Shipwack May 2023 #11
If you had been able to read the article you would have realized the only other options appleannie1 May 2023 #14
Is the state's only obligation to make money from the deal? sl8 May 2023 #32
NY is a neighboring state. I guess I will have to pack a lunch when I travel there. appleannie1 May 2023 #12
Maybe they should look to italy..... getagrip_already May 2023 #13
The same applies to France. appleannie1 May 2023 #15
We have a corporate fast-food problem here. pandr32 May 2023 #21
When I was in Italy, I found multigraincracker May 2023 #22
yep, no excuse NJCher May 2023 #26
They are opening on in Flint Township Siwsan May 2023 #19
Eat at Halo Burger! Wednesdays May 2023 #30
Of course!!! Siwsan May 2023 #31
It's more satisfying to pack your own food. You save money & can eat exactly what you want. littlemissmartypants May 2023 #20
+100 multigraincracker May 2023 #23
Exactly! nt littlemissmartypants May 2023 #25
not to mention NJCher May 2023 #27
My new nurse wife is multigraincracker May 2023 #28
Fuck chick-crap-a FoxNewsSucks May 2023 #24
Friggin Food Truck Sunday modrepub May 2023 #29
I was saddened to see Danascot May 2023 #33
I cannot stand even the smell of Chik Fil A Skittles May 2023 #35
Why can't they be open on Sunday? Farmer-Rick May 2023 #36

tanyev

(44,502 posts)
2. Good grief, even gawd-fearin', Chick-fil-A lovin' people travel on Sundays.
Thu May 4, 2023, 09:15 AM
May 2023

Whose boneheaded idea was this?

BComplex

(9,075 posts)
34. A right wing republican idea....someone in the mix is acting out for "the cause".
Thu May 4, 2023, 01:47 PM
May 2023

Lots of my friends won't darken Chick-fil-a's doors due to the right wing ownership and push.

 

Alexander Of Assyria

(7,839 posts)
5. Do highways really need so many places to eat bad food...and then sit for hours after?
Thu May 4, 2023, 10:22 AM
May 2023

Just places to rest and take a piss would be ok.

Response to Alexander Of Assyria (Reply #5)

appleannie1

(5,203 posts)
17. Have you ever traveled with a car full of hungry kids?
Thu May 4, 2023, 11:02 AM
May 2023

We had 7 kids and traveling with a trunk full of suitcases, there is no room for a cooler. Plus, if you are diabetic, you have to eat regular meals or risk passing out. That is not a good thing and eating a candy bar to raise your sugar is not really a good thing.

Shipwack

(2,309 posts)
11. Seems more like a Chick-Fil-A problem than a state concern...
Thu May 4, 2023, 10:48 AM
May 2023

I can’t read the article right now, sorry for any errors…

It depends on the deal, but if Chick is paying the state for a lease, then it shouldn’t matter what their hours are. Chick might lose money, but that’s their business plan and it’s worked out for them all these years. The drivers will be mildly inconvenienced, but there will be other eateries there.

If the state gets a cut of revenue, that’s a different story. That would mean that they were idiots. Who was in charge of vetting the restaurants, or setting up the parameters for who would be allowed to vie for a spot?

For the record, I despise Chicks food and corporate attitude.

appleannie1

(5,203 posts)
14. If you had been able to read the article you would have realized the only other options
Thu May 4, 2023, 10:54 AM
May 2023

were Starbucks and a convenience store. That might serve if you are into cold, stale, packaged sandwiches or sweet rolls but if you want a meal you have to leave the toll road and hunt for something else. That usually means paying more for the toll.

sl8

(16,245 posts)
32. Is the state's only obligation to make money from the deal?
Thu May 4, 2023, 11:58 AM
May 2023

Last edited Thu May 4, 2023, 01:00 PM - Edit history (1)

Or do they also have some obligation to the drivers/customers on their toll road?

appleannie1

(5,203 posts)
12. NY is a neighboring state. I guess I will have to pack a lunch when I travel there.
Thu May 4, 2023, 10:49 AM
May 2023

I have to limit my salt intake. I have only eaten there once, in South Carolina, when it was the only place at a rest area. I only ate one bite of their sandwich because it tasted like a salt block to me and I knew if I ate it I would not be able to get into my shoes in the morning my feet would be so swollen.
The other reason is their stance on the LBGTQ community, and their not allowing women employees access to paid birth control.
I have 3 LBGTQ grandchildren and will be damned if I am going to add to their profit margin by eating at their chicken place nor at Hobby Lobby. If I need something sold at a craft store, I go to Michael's now that the local hobby shop went out of business.

getagrip_already

(17,430 posts)
13. Maybe they should look to italy.....
Thu May 4, 2023, 10:51 AM
May 2023

I was gobsmacked by the quality of the food at res stops in Italy. IT would be worth eating even if it wasn't a rest stop.

Plenty of fresh veggies, fresh baked breads, lots of choices.

Closed on Sundays? A nonstandard from an rfp standard.

pandr32

(12,165 posts)
21. We have a corporate fast-food problem here.
Thu May 4, 2023, 11:16 AM
May 2023

We also have a Big Food problem that centralizes most of our food sources.
We have animal suffering, more than our share of pollution, and a huge population of obese people.
Our food culture is pretty bad.
And religious wackos--we have more than our share of them, too

NJCher

(37,864 posts)
26. yep, no excuse
Thu May 4, 2023, 11:37 AM
May 2023

for unhealthy food.

The RG, who lived in Italy and France for 20+ years, says that Americans simply don't think of food in the same way most French and Italians do. He likes to tell the store of shopping in a French market. An older lady was selecting vegetables in proximity to the RG, who is very careful with his selections. Some other shopper tossed a vegetable back in the bin, possibly bruising it.

His fellow shopper looked at the RG and said with disgust, "No respect for the food! None!"

I always think of that story when I see shopper throwing vegetables and fruits around.

Siwsan

(27,285 posts)
31. Of course!!!
Thu May 4, 2023, 11:53 AM
May 2023

There is one just down the road.

The BEST burgers, IMHO, are at 'The Torch' in downtown Flint. Absolutely phenomenal.

multigraincracker

(34,069 posts)
23. +100
Thu May 4, 2023, 11:28 AM
May 2023

I always, at the least pack my own spring water out of my own tested well. Try best I can to prepare something like nuts and fruits for travel. Cans of water packed sardines for protein. Save money and better for my health.

FoxNewsSucks

(10,787 posts)
24. Fuck chick-crap-a
Thu May 4, 2023, 11:36 AM
May 2023

And the officials who made any deal with them.

I'm sick of seeing all the fast-food crowding out good choices anyway, but especially those rightwing religious freaks.

modrepub

(3,612 posts)
29. Friggin Food Truck Sunday
Thu May 4, 2023, 11:45 AM
May 2023

Let a couple of food truck set up at the rest stops on Sundays. Food is probably better and you stimulate the local economy.

Danascot

(4,895 posts)
33. I was saddened to see
Thu May 4, 2023, 12:13 PM
May 2023

that they were demolishing the handsome Adirondack style rest stops. Maybe some needed sprucing up but in general they were fine and served their intended purpose. It's a shame they ended up in the landfill. And when they closed them for demolition there were long stretches of road with no food or rest rooms ... real value for those exorbitant tolls!








Now I see the new ones have all the character and charm of a shipping container. Plus they are apparently smaller so more crowded (perfect for the next pandemic!). And the major food option will be closed on Sunday. What a freakin' cluster f**k!








Maybe I'm wrong about the the new ones having no character or history. Some look a lot like the original 1950s era rest stops.

Farmer-Rick

(11,399 posts)
36. Why can't they be open on Sunday?
Sat May 6, 2023, 07:49 PM
May 2023

I don't get it. Lots of Christian places are open on Sundays....like churches.

Stupid idea to be closed during the weekend. Many Christians even eat out on Sundays.

Latest Discussions»Alliance Forums»Atheists & Agnostics»New York Has Serious Conc...