March 26, 2008 08:00 ET

New Stand-Alone Chick-fil-A Restaurant Opens March 27 in College Station

Free Chick-fil-A for a Year Awaits First 100 Adults in Line at New Chick-fil-A Location

COLLEGE STATION, TX--(Marketwire - March 26, 2008) - Chick-fil-A®, the nation's second-largest chicken restaurant chain, will award those willing to wait in line for the March 27th opening of the new stand-alone Chick-fil-A restaurant at 1719 Texas Ave. S. in College Station by giving away $26,000 in free Chick-fil-A food to the first 100 adults in line that morning.

A one-year supply of free Chick-fil-A® Combo Meals (52 coupons) will be awarded to each of the first 100 adults, age 18 and older with identification, at the new stand-alone restaurant in College Station. The line can begin forming up to 24 hours prior to the opening, with the prizes being given away on March 27 sometime between 6 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. The restaurant will open for business immediately afterward.

Launched in 2003 to mark the opening of the chain's first stand-alone restaurant in Arizona, the First 100 Fans promotion continues to draw Chick-fil-A raving fans from all over the country. Armed with tents, computers, games and even swimming pools, campers turn the grand opening event into an all-night tailgate party.

"When we started the First 100 Fans promotion we were stunned when someone arrived 18 hours in advance and asked where he could wait in line," said Chick-fil-A, Inc. President Dan Cathy, who has camped out at dozens of openings. "Almost five years later, we've given away more than $7 million in free Chick-fil-A food across the country to raving fans who've braved snow, wind, rain and triple-digit temperatures to help us celebrate the opening of each new Chick-fil-A."

Chick-fil-A grand openings attract raving fans from around the country with some traveling many hours and hundreds of miles from several states away to take part in the festivities.

A 1997 graduate of Texas A&M, Jerald Huggins has been selected to operate the new stand-alone Chick-fil-A restaurant in College Station. Huggins worked at the Chick-fil-A in Bryan/College Station for four years before moving to Houston to operate his own Chick-fil-A restaurant. After six years in Houston, Huggins is eager to return to the College Station community to operate the new restaurant.

"Since its first chain restaurant opened more than 40 years ago, Chick-fil-A has become synonymous with freshly prepared food and 'my pleasure' customer service," said Huggins. "My team and I are eager to continue that legacy at the new stand-alone location in College Station."

The new 3,921 square-foot restaurant seats approximately 104 with additional seating outside and features an indoor playground and an award-winning drive-thru.

With more quick-service customers saying they favor the ease of drive-thru service, Chick-fil-A's drive-thru offers a convenient way for Chick-fil-A customers to get their freshly prepared food on the go. The new restaurant is open Monday through Saturday from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., serving a full breakfast menu until 10:30 a.m.

QSR® magazine's 2007 Best in Drive-Thru in America Survey found Chick-fil-A top-ranked with a 95 percent score in order accuracy, a category that remains the most important service criteria for drive-thru customers. With a majority of survey participants saying service speed is second only to order accuracy, Chick-fil-A finished second in service speed among chains with more than two cars in the drive-thru. Chick-fil-A has been recognized among the winners of the annual industry survey for six consecutive years.

Truett Cathy developed the original Chick-fil-A boneless breast of chicken sandwich in his 24-hour Dwarf House® diner near Atlanta in the early 1960s. The sandwich became so popular that Cathy opened his first Chick-fil-A restaurant in Atlanta's Greenbriar Mall in 1967. The chain has grown to more than 1,375 locations in 37 states and Washington, D.C.

About Chick-fil-A Inc.

Chick-fil-A, Inc. reached more than $2.64 billion in sales in 2007. This resulted in a 16.09 percent increase over the chain's 2006 performance and included an 8.47 percent same-store sales increase. It is the 40th consecutive year of sales growth for the chain which plans to add 88 locations this year, including 70 stand-alone restaurants.

Credited with inventing the boneless breast of chicken sandwich and first introducing the chicken nugget concept, Chick-fil-A serves nutritious and freshly prepared food products in mall locations, stand-alone restaurants, drive-thru-only restaurants, Chick-fil-A Dwarf House and Truett's Grill® full-service restaurants, and through licensed outlets in college campuses, hospitals, airports, businesses and industrial sites. Information about Chick-fil-A is available on the chain's websites, located at www.chick-fil-a.com, www.chick-fil-apressroom.com or www.truettcathy.com.