Pennsylvania Chick-Fil-A Bans Unaccompanied Kids Under 16

A Chick-fil-A restaurant in a file photograph. Alex Wong/Getty Images

The Chick-Fil-A restaurant in Royersford, Pennsylvania, will no longer tolerate rude, unaccompanied children dining in its restaurant.

In a Feb. 22 Facebook post, the franchise said that anyone under age 16 is required to be accompanied by an adult. If not accompanied by an adult, they may go inside to purchase food but must take it to go.

“We contemplated long and hard before posting this, but decided it was time. Often on Saturdays and days when schools are off, we have school-age children visiting the restaurant without their parents. Usually, these children and teens are dropped off for several hours at a local bounce park and groups of them then walk over to our restaurant,” the post said. “While we love being a community restaurant and serving guests of all ages, some issues need to be addressed.”

When groups of unaccompanied children and teens visit the restaurant, the post said, often they engage in unacceptable behaviors such as very loud conversation, often with a lot of explicit language; food and trash thrown around and left on the tables, chairs, and floor; tables and restrooms vandalized; stealing decorations; and disrespecting employees by laughing at them, treating them rudely, cursing at them, or ignoring them when asked to change behavior or leave.

‘Numerous Extreme Behaviors’

The restaurant has also seen unsafe behaviors such as walking through the parking lot and drive-thru lanes.

“As you can imagine, this is not a pleasant experience. We want to provide a comfortable and safe environment for our guests and our staff, and also to protect our building. Therefore, we cannot allow this to continue,” the restaurant said. “To those unaccompanied children and teens that have visited us and acted appropriately, we thank you. But we also apologize. Due to the numerous extreme behaviors of many of your peers, we must make a blanket rule covering anyone under the age of 16.”

The post had a message for parents too.

“Parents, we are not blaming you. Children and teens are learning to navigate the world free from supervision and often push the boundaries. We simply can’t let them push those boundaries anymore at our restaurant. We encourage you to talk to your children and ask about behaviors they have seen and perhaps participated in. Thank you for understanding and for your support.”

As of Tuesday, the post had nearly 800 comments from the public, and feedback about the new rule has been mostly positive.

“Witnessed just such an event while eating with my grandchildren,” one person responded. “Explained to them this is not how to act while in a public restaurant. They must respect other patrons . Thanks to the management for eloquently addressing this situation.”

Many of the comments cited a need for youth to learn proper boundaries.

Chick-Fil-A’s home office said most Chick-fil-A restaurants are individually owned and operated and set their own policies for their restaurant.