What encourages countless McIntosh students to set their alarms early, scramble to find a parking spot, and wait in a line that extends out through the door? The answer is Chick-fil-A, of course. Every so often, the Chick-fil-A restaurants in the participating Atlanta area do free breakfast promotions that draw in McIntosh students, their parents, and anyone else who just loves chicken.

On Tuesday, Aug. 15, all three Chick-fil-A restaurants in the Peachtree City area were buzzing with high school students as they waited in line, anxious to make their Tuesday mornings a little more bearable with a free 4-count of Chick-n-Minis. Typically these events fall on Tuesdays and last from the time the restaurant opens its doors until the time they stop serving breakfast, but if extra food is produced they will sell until the food is gone as a way to reduce the waste.

This event is put on every 3 months as a way of trying to encourage customers who normally wouldn’t stop in for breakfast to try some of their breakfast foods free of charge. They have found that customers are more likely to come in again and actually make a purchase if they are happy with the free food and the customer service.

Dylan Carder, Director of Operations at the Midtown Chick-fil-A, said, “On normal days, like today for example, we had nearly 600 transactions between 6:30 a.m. through 11:00 a.m., but on Aug. 15, the free breakfast day, we had 771 transactions. I’d say at least half of those transactions, or up to 400, were from McIntosh students coming in before school.”

When asked what motivated her to get up early for some free food, sophomore Claire Oliver said, “Who wouldn’t roll out of bed a few minutes earlier for free food? Especially since it’s from Chick-fil-A. I love that our local Chick-fil-A restaurants are so up for giving back to their customers.”

Giving away free breakfast is only one of the many things Chick-fil-A does for the community. They recently gave away 4 tickets to the Atlanta United Game on Wednesday, Sept. 20., and they are also encouraging their customers to visit and taste test their new frosted orange drink. Locals can also experience morning story times, dress like a cow days, spirit nights, princess dress up nights, daddy daughter date nights, action hero night, pictures with Santa cow when Christmas comes around, and countless other events. Hosting these events showcases their involvement with the community and gratitude towards their customers.

The Chick-fil-A restaurants of Peachtree City are a hit with the McIntosh students, and for good reason; they keep the students coming back for more with all of the promotions they offer, their customer service, and great food.