A woman is calling out Chick-fil-A after finding something not edible—and alive—in her salad. The company’s response, she says, was unbelievable.
Across several videos with a collective 3 million views, TikTok user Marina (@marinachik15) explains how she ordered a salad from Chick-fil-A, only to discover something in her salad staring back at her.
“So, I just got a salad from Chick-fil-A, and there’s a huge bug,” she starts. Showing her salad, there appears to be a moth nestled amidst the lettuce. Marina proceeds to describe the creature as “hairy.”
“Is that April Fool’s?” she asks. “It’s April 2nd, you guys.”
How Did Chick-fil-A Respond?
In the caption of one of her videos, Marina explains that she told the location about the moth. Surprisingly, she claims they were not shocked by the presence of a moth.
“The manager told me it happens and that unfortunately they didn’t see this in the salad bag,” Marina wrote. After this experience, she says she’s “never eating at chic fil a again.”
Another video reveals that Chick-fil-A did, in fact, compensate Marina for the issue. However, this compensation came in the form of gift cards.
“What I got after the trauma,” she writes in the text overlaying a follow-up video. The video shows three gift cards. Two, she explains in a comment, are valid for free sandwiches, while one is only good for a free side.
Has This Happened Before?
There are a surprising number of cases in which animals, both alive and dead, have ended up in salad mixes.
For example, in 2019, a Los Angeles family bought a salad mix from a grocery store. When they opened it, they discovered it contained a live frog.
There are also countless cases of smaller animals being found in salads, including mosquitos and other bugs.
This is common for leafy vegetables for a number of reasons. To start, these vegetables are grown low to the ground, which can lead to increased contact with bugs and other animals that live on the ground. Second, these vegetables are often highly textured—meaning there are a lot of crevices in which animals can hide, even through repeated washes and sorting processes.
Finally, leafy vegetables go through many steps between the farm and one’s plate. Bugs and other creatures can enter at many different stages of this process. While manufacturers do their best to prevent bugs and other animals from entering the food, a few will occasionally slip through the cracks.
What Should You Do If You Find A Bug In Your Food?
Some may find a bug in their salad and immediately consider calling a lawyer. Before one does that, however, it’s important to note what steps experts suggest following.
First, one should thoroughly document the incident. This allows one to have proof for any future claims. Additionally, if one believes that this is indicative of a bigger problem, they can send this proof to relevant agencies like the FDA and USDA.
Second, one should assess the consequences of what has happened. For example, if one ate a contaminated salad and got violently, provably ill, there could be a basis for a lawsuit. However, if one simply purchased a salad, noticed that it had a bug, and did not eat it, it would be difficult to claim that they experienced actual damages, rendering a successful lawsuit unlikely.
Instead, people in similar situations can follow Marina’s lead and confront the restaurant that provided the salad. If one feels their response is inadequate, they can escalate the issue to corporate.
Commenters Are Grossed Out
In the comments section, users expressed their disgust at what Marina experienced.
“Ummm.. as someone who makes Chick-fil-A salads all the time, this does NOT happen all the time,” wrote a commenter. “They should definitely be checking all produce before making any orders.. Wth.”
“I worked at CFA for many years. This is NOT NORMALLLLLL,” echoed another.
“This is why restaurant workers will always say don’t get the salad at any restaurant ever. they never wash it,” declared a third.
Others countered that this was surprisingly common.
“It DOES happen everywhere! Bc it’s from nature it can happen in ANY bag of salad. It’s not CFA’s fault,” stated a commenter.
@marinachik15 The manager told me it happens and that unfortunately they didn’t see this in the salad bag! I’m never eating at chic fil a again ! @chikfila
BroBible reached out to Chick-fil-A via email and Marina via TikTok direct message and comment.