Updated: Sept. 2, 2025 at 11:26 p.m.
Chick-fil-A opened in Mitchell Hall on Tuesday, nearly a year after its initially scheduled debut.
University spokesperson Claire Sabin said in July the restaurant would open by Aug. 25, but on Aug. 5 the D.C. Department of Health found five health code violations during an inspection, delaying the opening. Chick-fil-A’s debut comes about a year after the restaurant’s projected fall 2024 opening, rounding out a series of construction delays and a failed building inspection.
Days before the eatery’s Tuesday opening, the Chick-fil-A opened its doors Aug. 30 and Sept. 1 for a limited training day menu, offering free breakfast and lunch. Under the scaffolding signaling Mitchell Hall’s ongoing construction, which University officials said will not impact Chick-fil-A’s operations, students snaked down the road awaiting their free tenders, nuggets, chicken sandwiches or waffle fries.
Sabin said that as of Sept. 2, the Chick-fil-A has passed all building and health inspections. D.C. Health records do not show documents for a more recent inspection of the Chick-fil-A after the failed Aug. 5 one.
An inspection conducted earlier this month cited Chick-fil-A for five violations, including the absence of a necessary plumbing component in the mop sink to prevent sewage backflow into the kitchen, lack of hot water at handwashing sinks and issues with refrigeration. The violations were too serious to green light the restaurant’s opening, and the restaurant had to install a new plumbing system and address the infractions before it could open, according to the health inspection report.
Sabin told The Hatchet last month that construction at the eatery in the space formerly occupied by 7-Eleven in Mitchell Hall would accept dining dollars, and students with All Access, Vern All Access and Revolutionary 85 meal plans will be eligible to use one meal swipe weekly at the location.
With the fast food chain now accepting customers, the Chick-fil-A’s return closes out a nearly three-year hiatus from campus, formerly operating in the District House basement until August 2021. Officials said they planned to move the restaurant to the University Student Center but in 2022 cited “mechanical challenges” with the planned location. In February 2024, officials announced plans to open the Mitchell Hall location.
This post was updated to include comment from a University spokesperson.
