Chick-fil-A Dethroned: A New Sandwich Chain Takes the Top Spot

Chick-fil-A has officially lost its spot at the top.

For 11 years, the popular chicken chain has held the No. 1 spot in customer satisfaction among quick-service restaurants. But after more than a decade of staying on top, a new restaurant has finally taken the crown.

And it isn't another chicken chain.

Jersey Mike’s Subs is now the highest-rated quick-service restaurant in the country, according to the 2026 American Customer Satisfaction Index.

A One-Point Difference Ends an 11-Year Streak

Jersey Mike’s scored 84 out of 100 in the latest rankings, while Chick-fil-A came in at 83.

It was an extremely close race, but that single point was enough to end Chick-fil-A’s 11-year run at No. 1.

Interestingly, Chick-fil-A didn't actually see its customer satisfaction score drop. The chain received the same score it had in 2025.

Instead, Jersey Mike’s entered the rankings with a score high enough to take the top spot.

Customers gave Jersey Mike’s particularly strong ratings for the freshness of its food, variety of menu choices and overall value.

How Other Fast-Food Chains Ranked

Several other familiar restaurant names also made the list.

Jimmy John’s and Panda Express tied for third place with scores of 81.

KFC, Papa John's and Pizza Hut each received a score of 80.

Domino’s, Raising Cane’s, Starbucks and Subway all scored 79, which was also the overall average for quick-service restaurants.

At the bottom of the rankings, McDonald’s and Dairy Queen tied with scores of 72.

McDonald’s did show improvement, increasing from a score of 70 in 2025. Dairy Queen’s score stayed the same.

Even though Chick-fil-A lost the overall No. 1 ranking, it still has something to celebrate. The chain remains the highest-rated chicken restaurant in the survey.

KFC came in second among chicken chains with 80, followed by Raising Cane’s at 79 and Wingstop at 77.

What Makes a Restaurant Customer-Satisfaction Winner?

The American Customer Satisfaction Index looks at the entire customer experience. That includes food quality, order accuracy, staff friendliness, speed of service, cleanliness, menu variety, website performance and mobile apps.

The 2026 study was based on 16,464 completed surveys from customers who were contacted between April 2025 and March 2026.

Four Chains That Don't Use Real Pumpkin in Their Pumpkin Spice Lattes

We've entered pumpkin spice season, which makes summer-lovers cringe . . . while fall-lovers are trying to pretend they don't have the A.C. on, while they get out their pinecone- and pumpkin-themed decorations.

Here's a question for pumpkin spice latte aficionados: Do you care if your PSL contains ACTUAL pumpkin . . . or are you fine with whatever ingredients are in that delicious, mysterious pumpkin spice syrup?

TheTakout.com has a list of FOUR chains that DON'T use real pumpkin in their PSLs. They are: