Chick-fil-A CEO Andrew Cathy Defends Sunday Closures, Says Company Is Built on Faith in God
Listen or Read Below:
Audio By Carbonatix
Chick-fil-A CEO Andrew Cathy recently reaffirmed the food chain’s Christian commitment to being closed on Sundays and welcoming all customers regardless of beliefs.
In an interview with NBC's "Today," Cathy explained that the decision to close Chick-fil-A on Sundays stems from his family’s tradition as Southern Baptists.
“My grandfather, my great-uncle, Ben, when they started that little restaurant back in Atlanta, it was very common back in the 1940s that a lot of places were closed on Sunday,” said Cathy. “They had to do that. They wanted to have a chance to take a break, go to church, and for others just to take some rest.”
“It was a company that was built on God, if you will, and that still seems to be very much a part of the DNA of Chick-fil-A,” he added. “It is our anchor, in the sense of what our corporate purpose states, that we're in business to be a glorifier of God.”
Cathy, who became CEO in 2021, also addressed the widespread backlash Chick-fil-A faced in 2012 after his father, former CEO Dan Cathy, publicly expressed opposition to same-sex marriage, The Christian Post reported. According to public documents, the chain donated millions of dollars to conservative Christian organizations also opposing the LGBT movement.
When asked about the controversy, Cathy instead emphasized Chick-fil-A's commitment to welcoming all customers with hospitality and service.
“For anybody that hasn’t tried us, we would love for you to come try us and have our great-tasting food and the hospitality that we’re known for,” he said. “Everybody that’s willing to walk in the door, they’re welcome to come eat with us. We would love to give them a great-tasting sandwich and great hospitality.”
He also reiterated the same point when asked where Chick-fil-A stands on LGBT issues today.
“We’re focused on hospitality,” he replied. “Serving great-tasting food.”
In response to the interview, former "Today" anchor Katie Couric criticized Cathy for providing a “non answer answer” to the question about the company’s LGBT controversy and its current position on those issues.
She also suggested a follow-up question that may have elicited a more direct response from Cathy.
"A good follow up would have been: 'Do you agree with [your] father?'"
However, not everyone had the same reaction to Cathy's answer during that interview. The conservative media watchdog NewsBusters had a very different take on the interview, referring to it as a "repugnant and uncalled-for ambush."
In an interview with CNBC last week, Cathy addressed artificial intelligence, stating that his company will take a “human plus” approach to the technology when serving its customers.
“From our experience, we really want that hospitality to be human to human,” Cathy told CNBC. “We’re not gonna substitute that interaction with technology, because we feel like that hospitality is so important to create that warm environment for consumers.”
Cathy went on to mention that, given the rapidly expanding nature of artificial intelligence, he sees nothing but possibilities for the company and how they can better incorporate the human touch to give their customers the best possible experience.
“We think about all these new things into the future, about how will people want to receive food in the future?” he added. “As you think about drone delivery and all the other kind of things that could be coming, it’s a fun time in the industry, to think about all the possibilities of what we can do to make a better experience for our guests.”
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Brandon Bell/Staff
Originally published October 19, 2026.
