The Discontinued Chick-Fil-A Menu Item That No One Actually Wanted

Fast food chains tinker with their menus all the time, which means customers get the fun of sampling new items that could become permanent additions or returning specials if they're a hit. It also means some offerings get retired if people aren't buying them, even if they're one of the franchise's sentimental stalwarts. That's what happened to the Carrot & Raisin Salad that Chick-fil-A discontinued in 2013 after more than 40 years, dating back to the popular chicken chain's early years.

Sweet and creamy carrot & raisin salad is a classic Southern dish for get-togethers like picnics, barbecues, and potlucks. So it was a natural to be one of the sides at Georgia-founded Chick-fil-A, making its debut in 1967, the year the first location opened its doors. But tastes change over time. Fast forward four decades, and online workers claim that a store would sell only one or two a day.

Chick-fil-A never officially announced why it was retiring the carrot & raisin salad. But a year after it was dropped, the chain revealed it was mostly because it wasn't selling. Chick-fil-A posted the recipe online for Thanksgiving in 2014, the first time it had ever done that for one of its foods, calling it one of its "heritage" recipes. When fans of the dish pleaded in the Facebook post's comments to bring it back, Chick-fil-A said it was "no longer as attractive to the vast majority of our customers as it once was." The chain also says that occasionally retiring items allows it to debut new choices on the menu.

Chick-fil-A's carrot & raisin salad still has its die-hards, including Southern Living magazine, which posted a 2017 video asking for its return, saying their chicken sandwich meals had "never been the same." Those in Georgia can still get it at Chick-fil-A's Truett's Grill restaurants and Dwarf House restaurant in Atlanta.

Devotees can also make it at home with the recipe that remains posted on the chain's website and has just six ingredients: shredded carrots, raisins, crushed pineapple, mayo (make it truly Southern with cult favorite Duke's Mayonnaise), sugar, and lemon juice. Stay with the classic or try playing around with the recipe by using pineapple juice and honey or maple syrup instead of sugar, or swap the mayo with Greek yogurt. Spice it up with cinnamon or nutmeg, switch out some or all of the raisins for cranberries, or give it a crunch with toasted pecans or walnuts.

Chick-fil-A has also discontinued several of its other classic menu items over the years, including coleslaw, chicken salad, and lemon meringue pie, which founder Truett Cathy used to make himself at Dwarf House, his first restaurant. There is also no longer a seasonal Chick-fil-A fish sandwich for Lent. But there are times when customer pressure actually can work to keep an item on the menu. Case in point: Chick-fil-A canceled plans to drop its side salad in 2023 due to customer feedback.