Chick-fil-A’s New Jalapeno Ranch Club Chicken Sandwich Is Dropping on Menus This Monday, March 9

Chick-fil-A might be all about the chicken, but the most exciting part of its new sandwich is actually the bun. Let’s get into this new Chick-fil-A sandwich and its groundbreaking bun.

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Chick-fil-A’s new sandwich is the Jalapeño Ranch Club Chicken Sandwich

Chick-fil-A just announced this brand new chicken sandwich, which they originally tested out in Salt Lake City. It comes with your choice of a breaded chicken filet (original or spicy) or a grilled chicken filet. It’s topped with pepper jack cheese, caramelized onion-flavored candied bacon (what?!), lettuce, tomato, and pickled jalapeños. It comes with a side of jalapeño ranch sauce for dipping (or you can drizzle it onto the filet). And it’s served not on the standard brioche bun, but a buttermilk ranch bun.

Fast food joints are constantly throwing new sandwiches at us—McDonald’s just launched the overly massive Big Arch, Burger King just revamped their Whopper, Wendy’s Cheesy Bacon Cheeseburger is getting all the love—but, exciting as they are, these sandwiches are mostly all about the toppings. Chick-fil-A went and amped up the flavor of the bun with the new buttermilk ranch bun. Now that’s innovation.

And what about the caramelized onion-flavored bacon? How does that even work? Do they powder the onions? Are the onions in some sort of glaze to candy the bacon? Consider my curiosity piqued!

Is it actually a club sandwich?

A popular theory is that the “club” in club sandwich stands for: chicken, lettuce, under bacon. So, if you believe that, it is, technically, a club sandwich because, per the pictures, the lettuce and the chicken are underneath the bacon. However, that popular theory is widely discredited (even though I choose to believe it). A real club sandwich needs three slices of bread to be classified as a club sandwich. So, if you want to be a stickler, no, the Jalapeño Ranch Club Chicken Sandwich is not an actual club sandwich.

When will it be available?

This new Chick-fil-A sandwich is dropping March 9 at “participating” Chick-fil-A locations nationwide.

Is it any good?

Some folks have gotten their hands on early samples of the new sandwich, and reviews have been pretty positive. One Mashed correspondent wrote that the grilled chicken version of the sandwich “takes the everyday version of the Grilled Chicken Club Sandwich up many notches.” A Tasting Table writer gave it a glowing review, saying this is not your average chicken sandwich.

What else is new at Chick-fil-A?

You can pair your Jalapeño Ranch Club Chicken Sandwich with one of Chick-fil-A’s four new Strawberry Hibiscus drinks:

Strawberry Hibiscus & Sprite
Strawberry Hibiscus Lemonade
Strawberry Hibiscus Frosted Lemonade
Strawberry Hibiscus Sunjoy (lemonade and sweet iced tea with strawberry and hibiscus flavors)

Will you be trying the new Chick-fil-A sandwich? I really might have to just to figure out this bacon thing. Stay tuned for our review!

About the Author

Hi! I’m the editor-in-chief of Sporked. I will never turn down a fresh-shucked oyster but I’ll also leap at whatever new product Reese’s releases and I love a Tostitos Hint of Lime, even if there is no actual lime in the ingredients. Why you should trust me: I have been writing about food and beverages for well over a decade and am an avid at-home cook and snacker. I began my career writing about fine dining and recipes, moved into cocktails and spirits, and now I talk about groceries. If you can eat it or drink it, I’ve probably written about it. What I buy every week: Trader Joe’s dried okra. Appleton Farms prosciutto from Aldi. Some sort of Trader Joe’s cheese (I’m into the aged gouda at the moment). Frozen waffles (usually the Eggo Cinnamon Toast Minis). Spindrift water (loving the Cosmopolitan right now). Favorite ranking: Smoked salmon. Imagine me as Scrooge McDuck but instead of coins I’m diving into a vault of slippery smoked salmon slices. Pure joy. I also found some real steals in that taste test! Least favorite ranking: Canned oysters. I had such high hopes for this but it quickly became a chore. The kitchen smelled like an uncleaned aquarium.