Chicken and waffles are finally coming to Chick-fil-A restaurants nationwide, but the idea has been sitting in the company’s kitchen for much longer than many customers may realize. According to Chick-fil-A’s August 12 announcement, the new Chicken & Waffles Sandwiches will arrive August 24 for a limited fall run, giving customers both breakfast and larger lunch and dinner options.
The move puts Chick-fil-A’s spin on a dish with deep cultural history. According to the Associated Press, the fried chicken version that became widely associated with soul food was served at Harlem’s Wells Supper Club during the 1930s, where it became a meal that could satisfy crowds leaving jazz clubs late at night and heading into the early morning. The combination has since become a major fixture of American brunch culture.
For Chick-fil-A, though, this is not the first attempt at bringing chicken and waffles to customers.
Back in August 2014, the Los Angeles Times reported that Chick-fil-A was testing chicken and waffles as part of an expanded breakfast menu. That version paired a breakfast portion of boneless chicken with a warm Belgian style waffle that had maple flavor baked inside. Testing took place in markets that included Philadelphia, Middle Georgia, Memphis and California’s Inland Empire. The item never became a nationwide menu staple.
More than a decade later, Chick-fil-A brought the idea back with a major makeover.
According to Chick-fil-A’s test information, participating restaurants in Baltimore and San Antonio tested Chicken & Waffles Sandwiches from December 1, 2025, through January 24, 2026. Baltimore customers could try breakfast and larger versions, while the test provided Chick-fil-A with another opportunity to see whether the concept had national potential.
This time, customers were not quiet about wanting more.
When news of the test surfaced, Delish documented the social media reaction, including customers frustrated that the sandwiches were limited to select markets. One fan asked, “Why is this even a test? This needs to be nationwide yesterday.” Others wrote that they needed the sandwich as soon as possible and expressed jealousy toward customers living in the test cities.
Those calls apparently did not go unnoticed. In its new announcement, Chick-fil-A said the response and excitement from customers in the test markets helped lead to the national rollout. The current Chicken & Waffles Sandwich features maple flavored waffles, a Chick-fil-A filet, three strips of applewood smoked bacon and honey butter spread with classic syrup served on the side. Customers can select Original, Spicy or Grilled chicken.
The breakfast version will be available from opening until 10:30 a.m. with a smaller chicken filet and waffle. According to Chick-fil-A, the larger entrée version takes over at 10:30 a.m. and remains available through closing, meaning chicken and waffles will no longer be limited to the morning crowd.
Chick-fil-A is also pairing the launch with a S’mores Milkshake and S’mores Frosted Coffee as part of its 2026 “Newstalgia” campaign, which the company says is built around familiar flavors presented in new ways.
For customers who watched chicken and waffles appear briefly in 2014, disappear, return for another test in 2025 and spark demands for a national release, August 24 closes a surprisingly long chapter. Chick-fil-A did not invent the combination, but after twelve years of experimenting with how it could fit its menu, the chain is finally giving the classic a nationwide stage.
