Chanhassen Operations Letter
Chanhassen, FSU
445 W 79th Street
Chanhassen, MN 55317
Operator: Andrew Armstrong
Proposed improvements to the Chick-fil-A Restaurant at Chanhassen include the following:
• Dual Order lanes
• Dual Order Canopy
• Bypass Lane at Drive-Thru Window
• Delivery Canopy at Drive-Thru Window
• Expanded Drive-Thru Cockpit – Interior Work
When this restaurant was built in 2017, CFA (and the QSR industry) did not have the multiple service channels that exist
today (curbside delivery, 3rd party delivery, Chick-fil-A delivery, and mobile ordering/pick-up). The market is demanding
options when it comes to ordering, fulfilling, and delivering meals. Covid-19 has significantly accelerated the adoption of
mobile ordering by customers. CFA’s goal, nationwide, is to quickly respond to the market’s demands to include options
for all service channels so as not to create a bottleneck in one service channel. Across the country, CFA is retrofitting
sites to include multi-lane order points, dual lane fulfillment, by-pass lanes, curbside delivery, and mobile express lanes.
We are also exploring the use of ghost/cloud kitchens in highly dense and urban markets, providing an option that does
not include a brick-and-mortar storefront. We refer to this approach as a collective “ecosystem” response. These various
service channels and innovations are intended to compliment the traditional service channels of dine-in and on-site
Drive-Thru ordering.
We retrofit approximately 350 sites per year through a major remodel or a custom project solution. In every case, the
Drive-Thru and parking is prioritized to improve the current situation. CFA improves efficiency in some of the following
ways:
• Increase efficiency by allowing off-site orders to be placed through the CFA One app. With this method, the
customer can proceed to the pick-up window and not stop to place an order. Mobile adoption is growing, and
Drive-Thru lines are decreasing as a result because the time needed to place an order on-site is eliminated.
• Increase efficiency by utilizing team members to take on-site orders. Instead of taking one or two orders at
stationary menu boards, the Operator can have four-six team members taking “Face-to-Face” orders in multiple
locations within the D-T queue. This service model also makes interaction with the guest relational, not just
transactional, allowing the Operator’s Team to build an emotional connection with the customer.
• Implementing “Outside Meal Delivery” at the pick-up window allows orders to be delivered by a team member to
a customer upstream of the window so they can avoid stopping at the window.
• Implementing by-pass lanes or pull-forward lanes allows a customer with a large or special order to pull forward
so that other customers can exit the D-T lane. If a car stops at the window, they stop the moving line. The
Operator’s goal is to keep the line moving.
• Offering curbside delivery at parking spaces near the building provides an alternative to a customer that wants
to avoid entering a D-T queue.
• Offering 3rd party delivery provides another alternative.
• Using team members to receive orders, instead of menu boards, has proven to expedite the ordering process.
When customers see a menu board, they tend to stop and stare. The menu boards are primarily used only during
inclement weather.
• Adding a full second lane, where possible, allows the execution of what CFA calls “Dual Lane Fulfillment”. This
allows the Operator’s team members to deliver orders to two cars at one time. CFA’s goal is to build all new
stores with the ability to provide “Dual Lane Fulfillment” and to proactively retrofit all stores where it is possible,
this restaurant included. This is the single best way to reduce on-site and off-site queuing and increase
throughput in the D-T lane.
• For locations where “Dual Lane Fulfillment” is not an option, we seek to add Dual Order Lanes and By-Pass/Pull-
Forward Lanes.
• Lastly, our program often includes interior building modifications (expanded interior Drive-Thru cockpit) that
increases kitchen capacity and expand service area and Drive-Thru areas. Often D-T windows are replaced with
D-T doors (where allowed) to provide team members direct access to customers in the D-T queue. I think these
modifications are beyond the scope of this application, but they are certainly part of our toolbox and we
will use them to the extent we can increase efficiency at this location.
CHICK-FIL-A, INC • 5200 BUFFINGTON ROAD • ATLANTA, GA 30349