Going to Chick-fil-A opening? What to know about traffic, take-out and free food
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- Chick-fil-A opens in Ocean Springs with 115 local employees and 60-70 visiting staff.
- Ocean Springs police will monitor traffic around the new location for a day or two.
- Customers in cow spots on opening day will receive one free Chick-fil-A entrée.
Chick-fil-A opens Thursday in Ocean Springs and the company and city are preparing for a crowd at its Moove-In Party.
“There’s a huge, pent-up demand in Ocean Springs,” franchise owner Craig Smith said during a ceremonial ribbon-cutting Wednesday. He has 115 eployees ready to go and 60 to 70 Chick-fil-A employees arriving from other locations, who will work alongside the new staff members and train them how to provide the culture and food for which the restaurant is known.
The city also is making plans for added Chick-fil-A traffic in that area, just east of Ocean Springs Road.
“They do draw a large crowd, especially when opening a restaurant,” said Ocean Springs Police Chief Steven Dye.
“We do have a plan in place just to monitor this area,” he said. Signs were made up for the service road, he said, so hopefully patrons of the restaurant don’t obstruct the entrance and exits to the imaging center and other businesses along the service road.
Customers also can access the restaurant from the north, off Groveland Road, which connects to Ocean Springs Road.
Police will monitor the traffic for a day or two to see how it flows, he said, and decide if any additional action is needed beyond that.
Along with the new Chick-fil-A, the Chipotle next door will open on Tuesday.
Seeing spots brings free food
Customers who dress up on opening day get the perk of free food. Those who don a cow costume, or a dress or shirt with cow spots, will each receive one free entrée of their choice.
They might choose a chicken biscuit for breakfast, a chicken sandwich — made with the original chicken recipe since 1964 — a spicy chicken sandwice, 8-count chicken nuggets or a 5-count kid’s nugget meal.
Mayor Bobby Cox said he and they city have been working for years to bring Chick-fil-A to Ocean Springs and the new restaurant is the nicest he’s seen. He’s just as excited about Chick-fil-A becoming a community partner, he said.
The company presented a $25,000 check to Feeding the Gulf Coast, and Smith said the restaurant will support other projects and causes in the community.
Food to go
The new restaurant has about 50 parking places, seating for 76 customers indoors and four more outdoor tables, plus a kids’ indoor playground with slides.
Yet some customers may never step inside, since Chick-fil-A has mastered the drive-thru by providing quick-moving lanes and staff members out there with the customers to enhance service.
One lane is for customers who download the Chick-fil-A app and place a mobile order. The other lane is the standard drive-thru where customers place their order on site.
The restaurant is open from 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, with an additional hour for drive-thru orders only from 9-10 p.m., said Taylor Lord, grand opening supervisor for Chick-fil-A.
“We’re so excited. We’re so thankful to be in the community,” he said.
This story was originally published April 22, 2026 at 12:51 PM.
