8
THE STINGER
February 2014
OPINION
Two Sports Editors, Two Restaurants, One Industry Steve Gudonis for...
Who can defend the coop?
I would like to begin by making this statement very clear: I am a fan of Chick-Fil-A. With that being said, I am a fan of anything chicken. Put chicken in anything, I’ll eat it. Coincidentally, I landed my first job in August of 2012, serving chicken at KFC. I’m sure my opponent feels the same way about his place of employment, but I firmly believe KFC is the best fast food restaurant out there. Our restaurants are clean, our service is impeccable, and most of all, our food is delicious. As one of my biggest pet peeves is hearing a biased opinion, I will not focus on KFC for too long. I will now present to you my “beef” with Chick-Fil-A. My beef with Chick-Fil-A has nothing to do with any type of business rivalry. From my perspective, I believe KFC is doing just fine (based on how well my employers treat me), and just by stopping by Chick-Fil-A once in a while, I can almost guarantee they aren’t doing too bad themselves.
John Lang for... It’s finally time for the two poultry powerhouses, Chick-Fil-A and KFC, to play chicken. Picture your preferable poultry. Chicken is a significant part of the average human diet. When you are eating the delicious, delectable chicken, naturally you would like the highest quality possible. When you’re dining out, you would like the best experience available! Well, I am here to tell you that Chick-Fil-A is the place you are looking for. Granted, while writing this, I will only be considering the two contenders in question. These two “fast food” restaurants are now competing to rule the roost as the top-notch chicken specialists. As an employee of Chick-Fil-A, and my opinion most likely bias, I strongly believe that Chick-Fil-A is a much better fast food restaurant. I would even venture to say it is the best fast food chain there is. Who will be the cock of the walk? When you think about Chick-Fil-A, what comes to mind? Hospitality. Good service. Delicious and healthy food. Kentucky Fried Chicken has its strengths, just as every other food distributor does. But they have not excelled recently as they have in the past. It is time for a new generation of specialty chicken restaurants to emerge on top! Let me start by asking this: have you been inside a KFC? If you have answered no, what does that say about the place itself? It says that it is simply a drivethru oriented, dirty, fast food chain. But if you have answered yes, allow me to ask a follow-up question. How many of you have sat in a KFC to eat there? Kentucky Fried Chicken is not known for its homey, warm environment where you can enjoy a nice meal. It is a place to get a quick, easy, on-the-go bucket of chicken. I
My beef with Chick-Fil-A stems from a particular stance publicly expressed by the corporation’s higher ups, and hopefully has nothing to do with the day-today operation of the restaurant. The following quote is a main objective on the website of the Marriage & Family Foundation, an organization founded by Chick-Fil-A vice president Donald Cathy: “I don’t believe homosexual behavior should be protected as a class.” As a member of the journalism world, I completely understand Cathy has the First Amendment right to express his stance. However, we are in 2014. This man represents a corporation which not only serves, but hires employees from all walks of life. It’s unfortunate to think that this viewpoint from the Cathy family could impact decisions made by the restaurant managers. Now, my beef with the restaurant itself. Whenever I enter Chick-Fil-A, or go through the drivethru, I get this weird vibe. Compared to my place of employment, the employees seem extremely tense. I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s because they are instructed to say certain phrases before and after every order. Next time you order at the place, count how many times they say “my pleasure.” Is it really their pleasure? Or will they be disciplined if they don’t say it?
Speaking of discipline, go to a Chick-Fil-A and look at how many employees have facial hair or any imperfection in their wardrobe. You won’t see any. Why? I have it on good record that if an employee does not meet the standards, they will be disciplined and sent home. You might be asking yourself, what’s the problem with enforcing these rules? Not only does my problem lie with how certain guidelines are shoved in the customers face (“my pleasure”), but a problem also stems from a personal conversation with a Chick-Fil-A employee. I started working at KFC around the same time this employee began at Chick-Fil-A. When it comes to pay, KFC has been incredibly generous to me. When one of my friends, a Chick-Fil-A employee, told me how much they make an hour, I was baffled. This Chick-Fil-A employee has worked for the same amount of time as me, works just as hard, has to follow the crazy guidelines, while making considerably less than I do. No wonder the employees look so tense. All this goes through my mind when I’m ordering Chick-Fil-A. And then I eat the food. Honestly, it tastes no different than KFC. Chicken is chicken. The only difference is, when I eat Chick-Fil-A, my over-analytical mind considers what I just paid for, and where my money went. In reality, my money is going to a corporation. A corporation run by a family who publicly expressed bigoted viewpoints. A corporation with cookie-cutter drone-like employees. A corporation that under-compensates these employees. Do yourself a favor. Eat at KFC.
can personally say that the two times I have gone inside the establishment, I have collected my food and flew out of the coop as fast as I could. Chick-Fil-A, on the other hand, is famous for its comfortable eating area where you can enjoy your meal. Kind people and great service welcome you into the restaurant. Customers are constantly raving about how kind and thoughtful the employees are. That makes an impact on your decision to go out to eat, as it should. KFC, founded in 1930, has had more time to become known and more popular than Chick-Fil-A, which was founded in 1946. I will admit that in the past, KFC has been more widely known and more successful. But statistics have shown that since 2012, Chick-Fil-A has prevailed and surpassed the old Colonel in sales. Chick-Fil-A out-sold KFC $4.62 billion to $4.46 billion. This proves that the Chick-Fil-A franchise is progressing faster and becoming more popular than that of Kentucky Fried Chicken, even though KFC has about 1/3 more restaurants. I will admit, Chick-Fil-A doesn’t have that nasty mac and cheese or chunky mashed potatoes. But we have WAFFLE FRIES. Delicious french fries that look like waffles! French fries that one can dip in our popular house sauce! Can KFC say they have their own dipping sauce? Chick-Fil-A sauce is the perfect flavor blast to add to fries, chicken, anything you want. We have the most amazing milkshakes in America. We are famous for thick, rich, flavorful milkshakes. Who needs rockhard biscuits when you have warm chocolate cookies? We have fruit cups and parfaits. We have coleslaw and applesauce. Chick-Fil-A serves tons of heavenly sides to choose from. Not to mention our chicken is divine. One thing that ruffles my feathers is when Chick-FilA haters attack the beliefs of the founders and owners. Chick-Fil-A, just like every single other person and business in America, is free to believe whatever they please. This is a free country, and the strong Christian roots that Chick-Fil-A goes by are their opinion. That being said, every store location is different. I,
a supporter of gay rights, work at our local Chick-Fil-A. Many a time have I have served or seen homosexual people being served at my place of employment. Therefore, a company’s beliefs and religion should not stop you from enjoying a nice meal. As an employee of Chick-Fil-A, I can say that it has also positively affected my life outside the workplace. Sure, workers are taught and forced to be as polite to the customer as possible. That is the mentality that everybody should be treated with respect. That mentality has followed me everywhere I go in life, and I am now genuinely more kind and aware as a person. As the customers have praised our thoughtfulness and kind ways, can KFC employees say the same? At the end of the day, the choice is yours. I am simply here to tell you the truth: Chick-Fil-A is the better choice for an easy, cheap, yummy stop for a nice chicken dinner. If you disagree, then the yolk’s on you! You do not know what you are missing. Chick-Fil-A provides a comfortable, hospitable environment where one can enjoy his delectable meal. Do yourself a favor, eat at Chick-Fil-A.