I've Tried the New Chick-fil-A Summer Menu [FOOD REVIEW] (2024)

We’ve known about this day for a few months now. Chick-fil-A’s summer menu leaked and the CFA fanbase went ballistic (myself included). The year has been a little lackluster with some great memorable food items, however it appears that most of the big fast food restaurants put a lot of their focus on building new summer menu items instead.

Today’s Chick-fil-A release includes two out of the three menu items of the summer:

• Peach Milkshake
• Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich

Going to Chick-fil-A during lunch break in the summertime is about as smart as going to the mall on Black Friday to do your Christmas shopping. It’s pure chaos in the drive-through and standing in line, but when you put new food items on the menu, it becomes even more hectic.

What I found interesting about my nearest location was that there wasn’t any advertisem*nt of the new menu items. Now granted, I went to the walk up location, so there may have been a drive through sign that I missed. I must have been one of the first people to order the new sandwich because the woman behind the counter couldn’t find the sandwich and her manager had to try to point it out. In my mind I’m thinking this is a good thing because it will have some fresh sandwiches made to order and ready to go.

I wanted to get a little consensus of opinions, so instead of devouring the food by myself, I’ve decided to get my teenage kids (15-17 years old) to jump into the party and give me their honest opinions.

Chick fil A Peach Milkshake Review

Chick fil A’s milkshakes are much different than getting a Dairy Queen Blizzard; they melt extremely fast. So fast that within five minutes of going from the restaurant to my house, the whipped cream was almost melted. Some may think this is a bad thing and throw their hands up in the air but I take an optimistic approach because it indicates the ingredients are fresh and have very little additives to extend the life of a product. Now for the review.

At first glance, I couldn’t see any indication it was a peach milkshake. The color is solid white, there’s a cherry on top, and I couldn’t smell anything from afar. When I got up close, it had some light hints of peach, but nothing that will scent up your car on the drive.

When I started to divide the milkshake into four, my excitement level increased to see there were delicious chunks of peaches falling into each cup. The shake was also really thick and the chunks of milkshake made it hard to divide, but this isn’t a complaint. It just means that it didn’t completely melt and will be easy to enjoy.

How Does the Chick fil A Peach Milkshake Taste?

The milkshake was better than I expected. I was disappointed by last summer’s Peach Milkshake and also the Caramel Crumble milkshake that accompanied the Pimento Chicken sandwich. Both were incredibly sweet and had my sugar rush crash and burn.

This milkshake reminded me of a vanilla In-n-Out shake: It had some nice hints of the vanilla, the whipped cream was light, and the chunks of peaches were very consistent throughout.

How Many Calories are in the Chick fil A Peach Milkshake?

A single Peach Milkshake is 620 calories with the following nutrition:

• Calories: 620
• Total Fat: 20g
• Saturated Fat: 13g
• Cholesterol: 80mg
• Sodium: 400mg
• Total Carbohydrates: 101g
• Sugars: 98g
• Protein: 11g

In comparison, the Cookies & Cream Milkshake clocks in at 630 calories and the Vanilla Milkshake is 580 calories.

How Much Does The Peach Milkshake Cost?

In California, the cost of the shake is $6.25 which is more expensive than the Cookies & Cream, Chocolate, or Vanilla Milkshake at $5.75.

What’s the Overall Review of the Peach Milkshake?

Everyone enjoyed this milkshake. Nobody complained about it being too sweet and the teenagers finished their portion after the sandwich, giving them that dessert ending.

I personally liked it. I came in with low expectations, and I am even surprised the milkshake is 620 calories because it tastes much lighter than I was expecting.

What is the Peach Milkshake Rating?

I’m giving the Peach Milkshake an 8.1 out of 10. It was better than expected and refreshing, and I would get it again if the mood set me right.

Chick fil A Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich Review

Chick-fil-A is notoriously bad for coming up with interesting names for their products. They name their products pretty bluntly based on the ingredients, which can be good and bad. It’s a good thing to understand what is actually in the sandwich you’re getting, but it’s bad because I’ll never remember the entire name and have to think of a shorter version.

I needed a break from all of the new fried chicken that’s been coming out from everyone: Saucy nuggets, Chizza, Popeyes, McDonald’s McCrispys. So to get a grilled chicken sandwich gave me more motivation to run to CFA on launch day and give it a try.

The Mapper Pepper Bacon Sandwich has the following:

• Maple Brioche Bun
• Pepper Jack Cheese
• Lettuce
• Brown Sugar Pepper Bacon
• Sweet Heat Pickles

RELATED: Chick-fil-A’s Rumored Dessert Has Been Confirmed

How Does the Chick fil A Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich Look?

If you look at the featured cover of this review, the sandwich looks great! The cheese portion was large enough to go beyond the chicken; I received three pieces of bacon and some healthy green lettuce.

How Does the Chick fil A Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich Taste?

I really enjoyed the juicy taste of the grilled chicken. It was cooked perfectly, and the light and fluffy maple brioche bun made each bite very pleasant. The texture was consistent throughout and not chewy.

The sandwich definitely has a sweetness to it. The bacon does add a little pepper kick to it, but there isn’t enough bacon to really cover the sandwich, so you’ll get a lot of the maple taste on your sandwich if you opt for no toppings. I couldn’t even taste the pickles and don’t recall even seeing or tasting them. Maybe they forgot?

The teenagers felt it was too sweet for a sandwich, and one of them broke the Cardinal Rule of food reviews and submerged her sandwich into ketchup (which is my nightmare lol).

After the first bite, I put one of their Texas Pete hot sauce packets on top, but it almost covered the rest of the flavors, and all I tasted was hot sauce.

If you want a light, grilled chicken sandwich with a hint of summertime sweetness, it’s a great sandwich. If the sweetness of the maple isn’t for you, then it may be a hard pass because the bacon doesn’t overpower.

How Many Calories are in the Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich?

A Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich is 480 calories with the following nutrition:

• Calories: 480
• Total Fat: 18g
• Saturated Fat: 7g
• Cholesterol: 100mg
• Sodium: 1050mg
• Total Carbohydrates: 44g
• Sugars: 15g
• Protein: 36g

The sandwich has almost the same amount of nutrition as the Chick-fil-A Deluxe Sandwich with American cheese, with the exception of sodium (the latter has 1700mg).

This sandwich also has more protein than the grilled chicken sandwich (28g) due to the bacon; but other than that, the numbers aren’t too far off.

RELATED: 15 Best Chick-fil-A Secret Menu Items

How Much Does The Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich Cost?

In California, the cost of the Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich is a whopping $10.39, not including fries or a drink. I ordered the sandwich with a Peach Milkshake and Medium Fries which came out to $18.79+tax.

Any Special Customizations Allowed?

Yes! After I ordered the sandwich I called the store to get more information and I found out that you can order the Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich three ways. I bet the spicy breaded would be a big winner when combined with some of the sweet elements of the maple.

• Grilled Chicken (standard)
• Regular Breaded Chicken ($1.00 cheaper than standard)
• Spicy Breaded Chicken ($1.00 cheaper than standard)

What is the Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich Rating?

I’m giving the standard Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich an 8.0 out of 10. I would eat this sandwich again. However, it was a pricy sandwich, and you can copycat this recipe at home pretty inexpensively using the same ingredients you can buy at Trader Joe’s, with the exception of a maple-flavored brioche bun (maple butter would most likely solve that, though).

Is the Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich Worth the Price?

Most consumers will agree that fast food is now a luxury, and treating yourself to fast food instead of cooking is an occasional splurge rather than a daily routine like it used to be. Today, I tried something different, and I bought the full summer meal in addition to a side of nuggets and mac & cheese for all four people to share. The chicken sandwich was cut into 1/4, the milkshake divided by four, with some bacon mac & cheese and nuggets to also spread around which came out to $33.26 ($8.31 per person).

If you were to buy four of the new Chick fil A meals ($75.16 total) that comes out to $18.79 a person. 🤑

My discovery with this method was that we all got a little taste of the new menu and some sides and felt great afterward. It wasn’t expensive per person, and I can see this as a new trend families will start to do with their occasional splurge.

Quick Summary

Name: Peach Milkshake

• Smell: Light hints of peach and vanilla. Not overpowering.
• Texture: Creamy, fresh with chunks of peaches.
• Taste: Light vanilla taste with hints of peach. The peach is subtle and you will have moments of chewing.
• Cost: $6.25 (California) / $5.62 (Average)
• Rating: 8.1 / 10
• Overall Review: Delicious and light treat. Milkshakes are pricey but if I had to choose a milkshake, this would be my selection.

Name: Maple Pepper Bacon Sandwich

• Smell: Peppery bacon with hints of sweet maple. Definitely had me salivating on the ride home.
• Texture: Fluffy brioche buns, bacon was cooked perfectly with crisp lettuce on a perfectly cooked grilled chicken breast.
• Taste: I didn’t taste the pickles, but overall it was slightly sweeter than expected; the pepper had some after taste moments.
• Cost: $10.39 (California) / $9.52 (Average)
• Rating: 8.0 / 10
• Overall Review: This sandwich is a little on the sweet side but overall light, perfect for summer. Making this combination at home will be a much cheaper alternative if you have a family to feed.