Chick-Fil-A's Biggest Location Is 5 Stories Tall, Has 2 Kitchens, And Overlooks One World Trade Center

Some fast-food restaurants stand out for the menu, while others are memorable for where they happen to perch, whether in famous cities or iconic neighborhoods. But one Chick-fil-A location manages to do both, churning out those well-loved chicken sandwiches inside a five-story building towering over one of the busiest, buzziest sections of New York City. That eatery is the Chick-fil-A Fulton Street In-Line restaurant in Lower Manhattan's Financial District, known as the largest Chick-fil-A restaurant in the world.

The Fulton Street restaurant opened to Chick-fil-A fans and newbies in March 2018, bringing the chain to a notably high-traffic pocket of downtown Manhattan, not far from the World Trade Center. Sprawling over more than 12,000 square feet, it was described at opening as being nearly twice the size of any other Chick-fil-A restaurant, a striking feat since the building itself is only 15 feet wide. Instead of spreading out, it goes up — way up.

The building soars up five levels, with metal-banistered staircases winding past wood-paneled walls, floor-to-ceiling windows, and a crowning skylight. Two kitchen areas keep chefs buzzing and frying, while three levels of seating that host up to 140 guests at a time, including semi-private meeting rooms and a rooftop deck with views of One World Trade Center. If you're accustomed to suburban Chick-fil-A locations with drive-thru lanes and parking lots, this isn't that. Eating waffle fries above Lower Manhattan is a very different experience, but one that's worth a visit in The City That Never Sleeps. It sits next to Fulton Center Station for easy subway access until the restaurant's 11 p.m. closing time Mondays through Saturdays. As usual for this chain, it closes on Sundays. 

Though impressive by most any measure, Chick-fil-A's Fulton Street In-Line restaurant isn't the only intriguing location for the fried chicken enterprise. One in particular digs deep into the chain's history, even keeping its longtime name, The Hapeville Dwarf House, located in Hapeville, Georgia. Truett Cathy, founder of Chick-fil-A, opened a tiny restaurant there in 1946, when it was still called the Dwarf Grill. The company now calls it the birthplace of the Original Chick-fil-A Chicken Sandwich, the same one that remains on today's menu across the chain of more than 3,000 restaurants. 

Unlike a typical Chick-fil-A venue, the Dwarf House still maintains a diner-style personality, with options for sit-down, counter, and drive-thru service, along with menu items such as Dwarf Burgers, Giant Burgers, fried okra, coleslaw, house pies, and its version of the famous Kentucky Hot Brown sandwich, this one made with chicken, cream sauce, cheese, and bacon. The restaurant has been rebuilt over the years, with Chick-fil-A noting that the redesigned building reopened in 2022 with reclaimed bricks from the 1967 structure, plus a patio placed where the 1946 restaurant once stood.

Another one-of-a-kind stop in the Chick-fil-A family of eateries is Truett's Luau in Fayetteville, Georgia. The company shares that it was inspired by Cathy's love of Hawaii, and opened the location in December 2013 when he was 92 years old. The restaurant leans fully into the island theme, greeting customers with "alohas" and ukuleles while setting the scene with tiki hut dining. Its menu also diverges from the usual Chick-fil-A lineup, pairing classic menu items with Hawaiian-inspired options and a Southern twist. Take a drive to this Georgia location for Island Chicken Salad sandwiches, Lava Cake, I'a Makana Tacos, and sweet potato waffle fries.