This Reddit Post Has Chick-Fil-A Fans Venting About Fry Problems

What makes a waffle fry perfect? The thinness and golden color, the crunchy sound it makes when you bite into it, or the pillowy white potato filling hiding inside perhaps? Considering that the Chick-fil-A website claims waffle fries are the most ordered item on its menu — beating the likes of chicken nuggets, hash browns, and chicken sandwiches — you'd think Chick-fil-A has got making and serving waffle fries down to an exact science. But some Reddit users might say otherwise. The chain's fries have been a pain point for more people than you might expect.

Fans have had a problem with Chick-fil-A waffle fries turning soggy during delivery. A poll from March 2021 that asked if people had this experience showed 299 out of 1,340 Redditors answering with an unambiguous yes compared to just 153 nos. For another 212 voters, the answer was "Sometimes yes sometimes no." "Waffle fries lose their heat way too quickly. And at room temperature, they taste like cardboard," wrote a disgruntled customer.

Now, Reddit is frustrated with Chick-fil-A over what they consider underfilled fry boxes. The seemingly unamused DrLoomis131 shared an image of the larger large fries order, sarcastically pointing out that the boxes weren't filled to the top. A fellow user suggested this was hardly a one-off issue: "This is almost a regular occurrence now. It's annoying for sure." LarryBirdsGrandpa said they quit buying fries. A look at the Chick-fil-A subreddit reveals that this isn't the first time patrons have expressed frustration over the matter.

In another thread, user Emil_Automata noticed that their medium Chick-fil-A order had "literally like 8 fries."  While one commenter had never experienced that issue, jjdawgs84 thought, "This has been happening a lot recently." A thread from February, though, could throw some light on the great waffle fry problem. Redditor jcw998, who claimed to be the head of quality at a Chick-fil-A outlet, said the fries are "made to be eaten within minutes of leaving the frier, they aren't made to be eaten when you get home after a while drive." According to this explanation, the longer the fries sit out, the more they tend to "deflate." If so, it only appears that customers received an underfilled bag when in reality, they were filled to the top at the time of packing.

Some fans, however, were not convinced. "I hate how people always say it's 'shrinkage,'" complained wilmo99. "I bought some cfa fries one time ... and let them sit in the bag sealed for 30 mins [with] 0 shrinkage." Other users seemed to buy the shrinkage explanation, naming humidity as the great fry shrinker. A self-identified Chick-fil-A worker insisted they "make sure every box is filled [with fries] before putting them in the bag. the fries can get soggy and sink into themselves so that may be the reason." Others said placing objects like napkins on fries can lead to humidity and shrinkage. Perhaps the solution, as some said, is just to eat them quickly.