Dear Mr. Cathy,
Today was a very trying day for me.
I had traveled to the Chick-Fil-A on Mall Boulevard, here in Savannah, Georgia, for my April calendar card promotional reward. Today was the final day for me to collect my promotional item and I had scheduled the trip to Chick-Fil-A as a treat while running my errands.
Have I mentioned that I am lactose-intolerant?
Well, I am.
The promotional item for April, as you know, is the frosted lemonade. The beverage consists of a half-cup of lemonade, with no ice, with a scoop of ice cream in the cup.
That's how it was eventually served to me.
A half-cup of lemonade,
no ice.
A half-cup of ice cream.
When I had ordered the beverage, I had told the young woman that I was lactose-intolerant. Instead of having the frosted lemonade, could I simply have the regular lemonade?
No, that was not possible.
Well, since I could not have the beverage with the ice cream, could I simply have the ice cream on the side?
No, that was not possible.
She consulted with her manager, "Miss Cleo", who confirmed that the only way I could obtain the beverage was with the ice cream in the lemonade.
Was the ice cream already mixed into the lemonade, or placed into the lemonade, such as in a lemonade float?
The drink was served as a float.
Well, then, why couldn't the ice cream simply be omitted or served on the side?
The cash register wouldn't be able to handle that, the young woman said.
Trapped in the drive-through by traffic, I was forced to proceed, slowly, up to the window.
When I arrived at the window, the young woman there stared at me in silence. I reminded her that I was the one who could not eat ice cream. (I do wish I had gotten her name for you.) She again told me that the beverage could only be served with ice cream and that it was not possible for me to have just the lemonade portion.
At that point, I asked for the manager's business card and the 800-number for the corporate office.
I also turned off my car engine and prepared to wait, as it was clear that the manager ("Miss Cleo") was unwilling to come talk to me.
Within moments, a young man came to the window, professing to be the manager. He began, at once, to prepare me the lemonade and ice cream as separate items, telling me that he had to do the same for another customer earlier.
Clearly, he was not "Miss Cleo", but he did handle the issue.
I did not receive the manager's card, nor the 800-number.
I am very disappointed that the entire process took so much of my time.
My niece's gift to me, of the calendar with the monthly treats, has been somewhat tarnished by the entire experience.
I would suggest that dairy products be omitted as promotional items... or that management be trained in the best manner of dealing with substitutions for customers with health issues which preclude their partaking of dairy products.
At the very least, I would expect management to not lie to me, as "Miss Cleo" certainly did.
I have been a customer of Chick-Fil-A ever since its arrival in Savannah at the Oglethorpe Mall when I was in high school, in the mid-1970's.
I am very disappointed in the actions taken today by the personnel at the franchise on Mall Boulevard. I do hope this was an isolated incident and encourage more training of those personnel.
Hoping for better,
Faustina Smith
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