Wide Open Eats
Ask any American what the best fast food restaurant in the country is, and you probably won’t hear the same answer twice. Unless, of course, you’re in Texas and the answer is always Whataburger. Now, before we go lighting this poll on fire for not including Whataburger in the top 10 (I know, I know), let’s remember that Whataburger is only in a few select states so it’s not quite fair to get angry with the rest of Americans that haven’t been lucky enough to have those taquitos at 2:00 a.m.
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Ranker is a site where users can cast their votes in lists on so many topics, it’s mind-boggling people actually have this many opinions. The voting for the Top Fast Food Brands closed recently, and this is the final version of the list. Here are the 10 top fast food brands in the country.
10. In-N-Out Burger
Scraping into the Top 10 is everyone’s favorite burger chain from California that they also love to hate. You have to admit that Animal Style is a delicious way to order a burger, but is it really that great of a burger? We’d argue not.
9. Burger King
Personally, we’d rank Burger King a bit higher on this list than ninth, but hey, what can you do? Their French fries are forever underrated and their mission to switch to higher-quality ingredients is admirable.
8. Arby’s
Home of the meats indeed. Whether you’ve enjoyed a deep fried turkey sandwich or you’re a fan of their coveted curly fries, Arby’s has captured the hearts of meat-lovers looking for a drive-thru everywhere.
7. Five Guys
For a burger that beat out In-N-Out, Five Guys continues its tradition of crushing the West Coast burger chain that’s mostly hype. Sorry, had to be said.
6. Dairy Queen
It must be the Blizzards, right? Don’t break our hearts anymore, DQ, especially after closing 29 stores throughout Texas and the Southwest.
5. Chick-fil-A
Chick-fil-A would probably be first on this list if they were open on Sundays. However, we fully respect and appreciate why they are not. That original chicken sandwich is seriously what dreams are made of, and all of these Texan cities agree.
4. Taco Bell
Seemingly overnight, Taco Bell became one of the healthiest fast food chains out there and Americans took notice. One of the few Mexican restaurants nationwide with a drive-thru, T-Bell has also become the best guilty pleasure fast food chain out there.
3. KFC
If you can believe it, KFC is the only fried chicken chain on this list. Colonel Sanders might never have imagined KFC’s popularity as a fast food chain, but all of the versions of him sure make this a sweet victory. Celebrate with a box of chicken fingers as you take a bath with their drumstick-shaped bath bomb. Seriously.
2. Subway
I don’t know who the 4,456 voters are that ranked Subway as the second best fast food brand in the country, but they are sincerely wrong. Whataburger for life. Bojangles’ for life. Literally anything except Subway.
1. Wendy’s
https://www.instagram.com/p/BZWN0j5AFCR/?taken-by=wendys
Congratulations to Wendy’s, with their fresh and never frozen beef, for capturing the hearts of Americans everywhere. Over 4,800 votes were cast to rank Wendy’s into the top position and it must have something to do with the brand’s blooming sense of humor. Voters from North Carolina to Florida to Atlanta chose this classic American fast food chain as the best, but do you agree?
From the most retweeted tweet of all time to the hilarious sign war a Lubbock location had with a tea company across the street, Wendy’s has been quietly delighting customers for years, making them the top fast food restaurant in America.
You’ll notice that McDonald’s didn’t make this list, either. In fact, it didn’t even rank in the Top 25. McDonald’s sat squarely at 29, behind Culver’s and Hardee’s. So much for those delicious Chicken McNuggets. Chipotle scored surprisingly well at 11. Panera Bread didn’t even appear on the list, but some would argue it’s not true fast food.
