Quick, cheap and reliable, fast food is the ultimate comfort food for many people. While
we all have our favorite restaurant chain, the battle between each franchise for who
is top dog in the fast-food game is a fierce one. With that in mind, we look to the future
to see which fast food joint will earn that top spot. Here are the Top 10 Fast Food Chains
in America in 2020.
Panera Bread
The only new comer to the list in 2020 is Panera Bread! Panera has recently announced
their plans aimed at expanding their reach. They want to continue to grow in both locations
and sales in 2020. They've already got a very loyal core group of fans and are looking to
spread into more wide appeal, as their fresh, health conscious offerings are becoming more
popular with the fast food consuming public. Panera was acquired by a holding company back
in 2017 for the massive sum of $7.5 billion dollars and this has spurred their recent
growth. They've also revamped their coffee menu, and are working hard at rounding out
their dinner menu with items like artisan flatbreads, bowls and hearty side. There is
clearly a plan to grow beyond the lunch crowd, which they've already captured. This growth
is obvious as they've made the top 10 fast food chains in 2020.
Dominos
Dominos is the only Pizza chain to make the top 10 fast food chains in 2020. Keep in mind
this list is based off of sales, so don't be upset if you prefer Pizza Hut, Little Ceasar's,
Papa john's or any other pizza chain, as this just means Dominos did more sales than the
rest. This goes to show Dominos has had an increased dominance in the fast food pizza
space over the years with their plentiful advertising, innovations like their pizza
tracker, intuitive online ordering and lighting fast delivery that have given them a step
up on the competition. While the pizza chain industry as a whole has been flat sales wise,
Dominos has shown growths of around 20%. They are showing no signs of slowly down in 2020
as they are projecting similar same store sales growth and are planning to open up to
2000 more locations by 2025. The future is definitely bright for this pizza giant.
Dunkin' Donuts
This baked goods and coffee chain has seen many changes and updates over the past few
years, including removing "donuts" from their name. They've been working hard on modernizing
their stores with things like digital menus, new espresso machines, new drinks, two lane
drive-thrus, all to make the customer experience an even better one. Other changes include
modernizing the interior of the stores, with things like front facing bakery cases, instead
of everything behind the counter and an expanded "grab-and-go" section. All of this, and the
exterior facelifts many stores received have really given Dunkin' a more contemporary feel
that the modern consumer is drawn to. So while Dunkin' has actually dropped a few spots on
the list from years past, they are clearly aware of that fact and they have re-branded
and re-focused heavily on giving customers an improved experience and modernizing which
we believe will move them back up the list in the years to come.
Wendy's
'Where's the beef?' One of the biggest rises and transformations in fast food in recent
years has been Wendy's. The 'old fashioned' style food restaurant has seen a dramatic
facelift as they look to take on burger big shot McDonald's. Famous for its square burger
patties, and fresh-never-frozen beef, Wendy's was founded in Columbus, Ohio by Dave Thomas
in the late 1960s. Naming the restaurant after his fourth daughter, Thomas wanted to produce
good, old fashioned food that the whole family could enjoy. The inspiration for Wendy's famous
square patties actually came about when Thomas visited the burger restaurant Kewpee Hamburgers.
Because the square patties stuck out of the side of the bun, customers could see the quality
of the meat, which is exactly the spirit Thomas wanted to instill in his new restaurant: good,
quality food. While it may have taken Wendy's a little longer to reach the top end of the
fast-food royalty, The company has taken steps to modernize the brand to keep it strong and
relevant in the future. The focus is still on quality as well as new procedures in place
to source better and more animal-friendly meat for its burgers, plus stepping up their
healthier option game by adding more nutritious meals to their menus, Wendy's has also been
working hard on productivity and cutting wait times, while still maintaining their high
standards of food. All of these reasons go a long way to ensure that the red-haired queen
of burgers is rising ever higher in the fast-food world.
Burger King
Burger King was steadily falling on this list, but are now making comeback! Going into 2020,
Burger King is on the rise and there are a few factors that are responsible for this.
They've made some really clever advertising initiatives including their recent "Whopper
Detour promotion" in which Burger King offered the classic Whopper for one cent if customers
used to the BK app to order it within 600 feet of any McDonald's locations. The BK app
topped the charts in Apple’s App Store during the campaign. Another unforgettable Ad was
their 45-second long Super Bowl ad which featured old stock style footage of Andy Warhol slowly
unwrapping and eating a Whopper. They've also partnered with "Impossible foods" to release
a plant-based version of the Whopper called the "Impossible Whopper" which has been a
huge success for the company. The Impossible Whopper was limited to certain stores but
they now plan on rolling it out to many more locations in the near future. Another avenue
they plan on increasing is breakfast, having recently released a coffee subscription program
that offers customers unlimited coffee for only $5 a month. So look for Burger King to
continue this growth moving forward. They even plan on reaching 40,000 stores globally
by the year 2030, which would be more locations then even McDonald's!
Chick-Fil-A
Chick-Fil-A is one of the biggest family-owned businesses in the country. It prides itself
on its family-themed image. Starting from humble beginnings, the company was founded
in Georgia by S.Truett Cathy. After years of making a living, just about, in the fast-food
industry, Cathy came across a pressure cooker that could cook chicken as fast as a burger.
Following this 'Eureka' moment, Cathy trademarked the name Chick-fil-A in the 1960s and made
it his mission to bring great-tasting, and fast, chicken to the country. Focusing on
the chicken sandwich, Chick-Fil-A soon became one of the country's leaders in great tasting
chicken products. Chick-Fil-A takes great care and pride when it comes to speed of food
and the quality of service it provides its customers, as Chick-Fil-A continues to be
the largest chicken focused fast-food chain in the country. And that includes the fact
that every single restaurant closes on Sundays.
Taco Bell
Next, we come to the biggest Mexican-American fast food restaurant in the country. Taco
Bell was founded in the early 1960s by Glen Bell. Incidentally, Bell tried his hand at
pretty much every item of fast food before he settled on tacos. Starting with a hot dog
stand in San Bernardino, Bell then moved to sell hot dogs and burgers. Soon he added tacos
to his menu, which proved to be more popular, so he focused on them and opened taco stands.
Once the 1960s hit, Bell was ready to unleash Taco Bell on the world. Originally, Taco Bell
was a window-service-only restaurant and had no indoor seating or drive-thru. Taco Bell
started to take off, and the company grew into the chain we love today. Famed for its
tasty tacos, as well as being a lot of peoples 'go-to' place for late-night snacks, Taco
Bell continues to hold its own against the big hitters of the fast-food world and this
trend looks set to carry on in 2020.
Subway
Subway is one of the fast-growing restaurant chains in the history of fast food. In fact,
it has so many outlets that in the US alone Subway almost has more restaurants than McDonald's
and Starbucks combined, which is a staggering number. Famed for selling sub sandwiches,
Subway paved the way for the healthier option in fast food. The other big concept that set
Subway apart from other fast-food chains in the beginning was that you could actually
see your meal being made. Rather than having it prepared out of sight by people you couldn't
see, Subway made your sandwich in front of your very eyes. Add to that the fact that
you could tailor everything about your meal - bread, filling, sauce, etc - Subway became
a real fast food trailblazer. Of course, many restaurants and fast-food outlets do the same
thing now, but Subway was one of the first. While being among the first means they've
built a stable of loyal customers over the years, it's the great sandwiches and low prices
that really keep them coming back over and over again. Some of their best sellers include
the Spicy Italian, Turkey Breast, Roast Beef, Subway Club and Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki.
Subway continues to be a fast-food giant coming into 2020 and stand firmly in the top 3.
Starbucks
Starting out in Seattle, Starbucks burst onto the fast-food scene and very quickly became
one of the hottest names in food and coffee. Creating more of a concept and lifestyle rather
than just a restaurant, Starbucks found itself as the forerunner and face of a whole pop
culture movement during the 90s. Even decades later, Starbucks continues to promote its
unique concept and brand management, and we the public are still lapping it up. Not only
has Starbucks prided themselves on their style but also their customer care. After all, has
anyone ever been served by a grumpy or rude staff member? There may be the odd exception
but we certainly haven't. Starbucks takes a lot of time and effort with its staff and
it shows. It is no wonder that Starbucks is still the biggest coffee outlet in the world
and now the second biggest fast-food chain overall. While many many coffee shops and
chains have opened up since Starbucks made it big, they all pale in comparison to the
true leaders and rulers of the coffee world.
McDonald's
Was there seriously any doubt which fast-food chain would come out as number one? Whether
you’re scoring based on financials, popularity, or brand awareness, McDonald's continues to
be world leader and number one. Starting out as a simple burger stand back in the 1940s
by the McDonald brothers Richard and Morris, their new concept of fast food proved a big
hit. However, it wasn't until entrepreneur and salesman Ray Kroc got involved that the
McDonald's brand really started to sell. Kroc franchised the new system across the country
and turned it into the fast-food leader we know and love today. It has been reported
that McDonald's sells an average of 75 fast food items per second across the globe and
this could increase as they have now entered the delivery market with third party companies
such as Uber Eats and DoorDash. McDonald's has been at the forefront of fast food for
decades and they look to stay number one for decades to come. All this talk of fast food
makes us want a Big Mac!
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