I generally try to ignore fast food (unless of course it’s given to me). I do like a good burger, but I usually shy away from the genre because of its unhealthy reputation.
But I couldn’t resist telling you about this. Recently Money magazine published a rating of 25 fast-food restaurants. Their methodology was simple — examine the cost of a combo meal, then ask their staffers to rate each chain to develop a ranking based on the best picks for the money. This system produced a top five of In-N-Out Burger, Dairy Queen, Zaxby’s (a Georgia-based fried chicken chain), A&W, and McDonald’s.
Putting In-N-Out at the top doesn’t surprise me; my California friends have raved about this chain for years (their secret is fresh ingredients). Dairy Queen at number two is a bit of a shock; I guess I’m still carrying my youthful imprint of them as an ice cream place, but they serve lunch and dinner too. And McDonald’s at number five? They get a lot of negative attention from being so successful, but that seems to be the case for any large and profitable business. There has to be good reason why they’ve been so big for so long.
On the other hand, Subway was down to number eleven and I was disappointed to see my personal favorite, Arby’s, at number 21; I’ve never been able to resist a good Reuben. But I guess that’s why there are so many chains — there’s bound to be something you like somewhere, whether it’s at the top of the list or not.
To read the full report, see “This Is the Best Fast Food Chain in America” by Megan Leonhardt at http://time.com/money/5226202/best-fast-food-chain-us/?.