Face-to-Fast Drive Thru?

So today on my lunch break I decided to go through the Chick-fil-a drive-thru to get something to drink. I knew that CFA was my best option since I wanted it to be quick. But I was in for a surprise...

As I pulled in I noticed people standing in between the cars that were in line and a sign that said "Introducing our new Face-to-Face Drive Thru to save you time!"

HUH????

So as I pulled up to the first lady she asked me what I would like. I told her and she wrote it down on an index card which she handed to me.

When I reached the next guy in the parking lot he took the card from me and spoke into a headset mic to relay the order...which he read from the card. Then he told me my total.

When I got to the window one girl took my money and another handed me my drink.

Phew...so all in all I dealt with four CFA employees. That's four "How are you today?"s, four "Thank you for visiting Chick-fil-a"s and four "My pleasure"s. WOW.

I spoke with my brother (who is a manager at another CFA) and asked how this was saving me time in the drive thru. He seems convinced that they served "more cars in an hour" than their previous record.

I'm not buying it.

Now don't get me wrong, I love CFA and am completely dedicated to eating there whenever possible. But I think they may have missed the mark on this one. I mean it's a little annoying to discuss my order with four different people (since they wanted to confirm it every step of the way), not to mention the fact that the ordering spot (the lady with the index cards) was far before the speaker and the giant menu.

Maybe I'm being a little harsh, but I have such high standards for CFA that when it rubs me the wrong way I'm very disappointed.

If you have visited a face-to-face drive thru please let me know about your experience! I'm eager to watch this thing play out...