Chick-fil-A is rolling out its most ambitious fall limited-time menu in recent memory: a Chicken & Waffles Sandwich available in two daypart-specific sizes and a pair of S'mores-themed dispensed beverages, all landing system-wide on August 24.
The Sandwich Build
The Chicken & Waffles Sandwich had a limited regional test run in 2025 before earning a full national launch. Both the breakfast and entrée versions stack a signature Chick-fil-A filet — available Original, Spicy, or Grilled — with maple-flavored waffles, three strips of applewood smoked bacon, and honey butter spread, served warm alongside classic syrup. The breakfast format, offered from opening until 10:30 a.m., uses a smaller filet and waffle; the entrée build, available from 10:30 a.m. to close, scales up both the protein and the waffle. That dual-daypart architecture is a deliberate play to capture lunch and dinner traffic with a breakfast-inspired platform — a format that has driven incremental check at a number of QSR operators investing in all-day breakfast.
The Beverage Side
Flanking the sandwich are two new LTO sips. The S'mores Milkshake hand-spins Chick-fil-A's signature Icedream dessert with chocolate shortbread and graham cracker crumbles, marshmallow-flavored syrup, and marshmallow-flavored whipped topping. The S'mores Frosted Coffee blends custom cold-brewed coffee with marshmallow-flavored syrup and the same Icedream-and-crumble base. Both lean into the nostalgia-driven flavor trend that has shaped QSR and convenience foodservice menus throughout 2025 and into this year — think campfire-inspired SKUs, retro dairy formats, and childhood-coded indulgence.
"Both Chicken & Waffles and S'mores are much-loved classics, and we challenged ourselves to bring those flavors to our menu in a playful and unexpected way," said Allison Duncan, director of menu and packaging for Chick-fil-A. "After seeing the incredible response and excitement from Guests in our test markets, we couldn't wait to share these flavors nationwide."
Broader 'Newstalgia' Context
The fall drop is the latest chapter in Chick-fil-A's yearlong "Newstalgia" campaign tied to its 80-year heritage. Earlier 2026 additions under the same umbrella included the now-permanent Frosted Sodas and Floats and a collectible Classic Cups program — all pointing to a strategy of using limited-time urgency to drive frequency while building permanent menu equity on the back end. For c-store operators tracking QSR foodservice trends as a competitive benchmark, the all-day breakfast angle and the premium frozen-beverage emphasis are two formats with clear read-across to dispensed beverage programs at convenience retail. Chick-fil-A operates more than 3,000 restaurants across the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico, the UK, and Singapore, making system-wide LTO execution at this scale a meaningful signal of what nostalgic flavor platforms can do for traffic and attachment rates.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
