There are so many chain restaurants in the United States- which ones are the best chain restaurants in the US?
We asked our team for their opinion on the best chain restaurants in America. We came up with a list of 63 of our favorite chain restaurants.
Why 63 restaurants you asked? We couldn’t decide on which restaurants to cut to make our list an even 50. Instead of shortening the list, why not share all of our favorite restaurants with you?
Below are our favorite chain restaurants in the US listed in alphabetical order. We also give our recommendations on what to order at each of these restaurants. Bon appétit!
We are not being sponsored by any of the restaurants on this list. Our recommendations are purely based on our genuine love for these fast food chains.
Applebee’s
Applebee’s is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US with over 1,500 locations nationwide. It’s a great restaurant to go to unwind even on a weeknight.
The prices are reasonable and the service is fast. We love the Ribs, Fiesta Lime Chicken, Broccoli Chicken Alfredo, Oriental Chicken Salad, and Chicken Tenders.
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 1,578 |
Arby’s
Arby’s is one of our favorite fast food chain restaurants in the US. There are over 3,400 Arby’s nationwide.
Although there are other food items on the menu, we almost always order the Classic Roast Beef Sandwich, Curly Fries, and a drink.
We like to slather our roast beef sandwich with generous amounts of horsey sauce and Arby’s sauce.
| Cuisine | Sandwich |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 3,409 |
Auntie Anne’s
Auntie Anne’s is one of the most popular chain fast food restaurants in the US. Famous for its soft pretzel, our favorites are the original pretzel and the cinnamon sugar pretzel.
Pretzels are baked fresh in the store, in fact, you can usually see the workers expertly roll the dough into pretzels.
| Cuisine | Pretzels |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 1,133 |
BonChon
BonChon is one of the most popular Asian chain restaurants in the US. There are over 100 BonChon locations in the United States, mostly concentrated along the East and West coast.
If you haven’t tried the chicken at this popular Korean Fried Chicken chain restaurant, then you should add it to your list. It is very addictive!
Get the chicken in garlic-soy flavor, it’s the best flavor. We love the wings and the strips (boneless option) at Bonchon.
| Cuisine | Asian |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 115 |
Check out the Best Fast Food Chicken
Boston Market
Boston Market is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US. Boston Market is what we consider healthy fast food.
We love the rotisserie chicken with cornbread and mac and cheese. It’s a great place to go to pick up dinner on the way home from work.
| Cuisine | Chicken |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 341 |
California Pizza Kitchen
California Pizza Kitchen is one of our favorite chain restaurants. The menu was created by Chef Ed LaDou of Wolfgang Puck’s Spago, bringing Italian dishes but with a Hollywood flair to them!
We love the Original BBQ Chicken pizza, the Original BBQ Chicken Chopped Salad, and the Lettuce Wraps. For dessert, definitely order the Red Velvet Cake- it’s delicious!
| Cuisine | Italian |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 169 |
Capital Grille
Capital Grille is one of our favorite chain restaurants. It’s an upscale steakhouse, perfect for special occasions or business lunches.
We love the Fried Calamari with Hot Cherry Peppers, the Caesar salad with Grana Padano Croutons, Lobster Bisque, French Onion soup, and of course the steak. The steak at Capital Grille is always perfectly cooked!
If we feel like splurging, we will get the Grand Plateau which is a cold seafood platter with lobster, shrimp, crab, and raw oysters. Our go-to side dishes are Lobster mac and cheese and Parmesan Truffle Fries.
| Cuisine | Steak |
| Type of restaurant | Fine Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 63 |
Check out the Best Chain Restaurants in the US
Carrabba’s Italian Grill
Carrabba’s Italian Grill is one of the most popular Italian chain restaurants in America. It has an extensive menu but you can’t go wrong with the Linguine Pescatore, Eggplant Parmesan, and Chicken Piccata.
| Cuisine | Italian |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 219 |
Cava
Cava is one of our favorite chain restaurants for salad. There are over 150 Cava locations nationwide.
The format is similar to Chipotle, where you make your own salad bowl. But instead of Mexican food, the ingredients are Mediterranean inspired with ingredients like hummus, tzatziki, feta, harissa, pita, and falafel.
We typically order the make-our-own custom bowl with either chicken and/or falafel then we load it up with all the toppings, sauces, and dips. Definitely get the roasted eggplant dip along with tzatziki. The garlic dressing is delicious.
| Cuisine | Salad |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 170 |
Cheesecake Factory
Cheesecake Factory is one of the best chain restaurants in the US. There is often a long line, just to get seated but it’s definitely worth the wait!
They have an extensive menu where you will be tempted to try many dishes but don’t because the portion sizes are large! You will probably fill up with just the complimentary brown bread (served nice and warm!).
We love the Shrimp with Angel Hair, Fettucine Alfredo, Fried Mac and Cheese, and Thai Lettuce Wrap with Chicken.
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 207 |
Chick-fil-A
Chick-fil-A is one of the most popular fast-food chain restaurants in the US. We are addicted to the Chick-fil-A nuggets and will usually order the 30 pc. Chick-fil-A nuggets to share!
We love the large variety of dipping sauces that they offer (try the ranch and the Chick-fil-A sauce). You can’t go wrong with the Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich.
| Cuisine | Chicken |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 2704 |
Check out Fast Foods with All Day Breakfast
Chili’s
Chili’s is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US with over 1,200 locations. We love the fajitas (chicken is the best in our opinion) with all the toppings that come with it, the Caesar salad is addictive and the chicken crispers are delicious.
One of our editors loves Chili’s so much that she frequently orders Chili’s catering trays so she doesn’t have to cook for the rest of the week!
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 1,234 |
Chipotle Mexican Grill
Chipotle Mexican Grill is a popular chain restaurant in the US with over 2900 locations nationwide. It’s a favorite lunch spot- we typically order burritos or burrito bowls at Chipotle.
We usually load up with every free topping that they offer. If you are debating which meat to go for our favorites are chicken, barbacoa, and carnitas.
| Cuisine | Mexican |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 2,926 |
Chopt
Chopt is a chain restaurant with over 80 locations in the US. Chopt is a quick-service restaurant similar to Chipotle. You make your own custom salad or order from the menu.
We love the Santa Fe salad or if we are in the mood to try something new we make our own salad and combine a few salad dressings to create our own.
The best part about eating at Chopt is they hand-toss your salad and chop it up into bite-size pieces. So yes, you can eat your salad with only a fork (no knife needed)!
| Cuisine | Salad |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 81 |
Cinnabon
Cinnabon is a popular fast food in the US with over 900 retail locations. Famous for its sinfully delicious cinnamon rolls, we usually order the Classic Roll.
We are grateful for their bite-sized cinnamon rolls, BonBites- it helps keep our waistline in check!
| Cuisine | Snack |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 939 |
Cold Stone Creamery
Cold Stone Creamery is a popular ice cream shop in the US. We love going there for the theatrics- they will hand-mix your ice cream with whatever toppings you choose!
It’s fun to go there- the kids love it! Plus did you know the ice cream at Cold Stone Creamery is freshly made in-store?
| Cuisine | Ice Cream |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 875 |
Cracker Barrel
Cracker Barrel is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US. If you are craving comfort food- this is the chain restaurant to go to. We love that there is breakfast all day.
The country fried chicken breakfast is sinfully delicious (you can also get the non-breakfast version of chicken fried chicken). We also love the meatloaf.
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 664 |
Dairy Queen
Dairy Queen is a popular ice cream shop in the US with over 4,300 locations.
We love the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough blizzard. The ice cream is mixed in so well that when you flip it upside down, the ice cream does not fall out!
| Cuisine | Ice Cream |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 4,339 |
Dave and Buster’s
Dave and Buster’s is a popular chain restaurant in the US. It is an arcade, sports bar, and restaurant all rolled into one! To be honest, we don’t go there for the food.
We go there because it’s a lot of fun to be at Dave and Buster’s. What’s not to love when you can eat and play video games at the same time?
| Cuisine | Sports Bar |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 142 |
Del Taco
Del Taco is a popular chain restaurant in the US with over 600 locations. We can’t get enough of the crispy fish taco and the chicken taco del carbon- at less than $2 each, we usually devour 4-5 tacos in one sitting!
| Cuisine | Mexican |
| Type of restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 603 |
Domino’s
Domino’s is probably the most popular pizzeria chain restaurant in the US. Head to head with Pizza Hut, there are over 6,500 Domino’s locations nationwide.
You can’t go wrong with any of the pizzas at Domino’s. The Chicken Alfredo pasta is also really good.
| Cuisine | Pizza |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 6,560 |
Dunkin’ Donuts
Dunkin’ Donuts is one of the most popular chain coffee shops in the US. With over 9000 locations nationwide, Dunkin’ Donuts is ubiquitous.
We love going to Dunkin’ for a pick me up- coffee and munchkins at the drive-thru. We can’t get enough of the classic Bavarian Kreme donuts.
| Cuisine | Coffee |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 9,244 |
Fogo de Chao
Fogo de Chao is a popular chain restaurant. It’s an upscale Brazilian steakhouse where they serve the meat churrasco style (they bring out grilled meat on a spit and carve the meat tableside).
Be prepared for a feast because aside from the parade of meat, there is also an expansive all-you-can-eat salad bar buffet. Don’t miss the candied bacon at the buffet- it’s highly addictive.
| Cuisine | Steak |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 48 |
Friendly’s
Friendly’s is a popular chain restaurant in the US. Friendly’s is an old-fashioned, down-to-earth restaurant serving comfort food and really good sundaes. We love the Fribble, it’s basically a really thick milkshake.
As for sundaes, we like the Ultimate Cookies and Cream Sundae and the Retro Royal Banana Split. For lunch or dinner, the supermelts are good. Our favorite is the Fishamajig supermelt.
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of Restaurant | Family Style |
| Number of Restaurants | 129 |
Golden Corral
Golden Corral is one of the most popular chain restaurants in America. It’s an all-you-can-eat buffet chain restaurant.
We usually pig out on the meatloaf and pot roast at Golden Corral. There is also a salad bar and lots of sides.
For dinner, you can get steak cooked to order. Don’t forget to try the freshly baked, warm dinner rolls- they are so addictive!
| Cuisine | Buffet |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 392 |
Gyu-Kaku
Gyu-Kaku is one of the most popular Asian chain restaurants in the US. It’s a fun Japanese restaurant where you cook your own meat on your tabletop grill.
We love the Beef Kalbi short ribs. Definitely order appetizers for the table- get the Spicy Tuna Volcano and the Chicken Karaage (Japanese fried chicken).
Don’t forget to order S’mores for dessert- it’s a lot of fun to make your own s’mores on the grill!
| Cuisine | Asian |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 63 |
Hooters
Hooters is a popular chain restaurant in the US. The sports bar is known for hiring attractive waitresses or “Hooters Girls”.
Go there for the high-energy sports bar vibe and definitely order the wings- they are delicious!
| Cuisine | Sports Bar |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 303 |
IHOP
IHOP is definitely one of the most popular chain restaurants for breakfast. With over 1,600 locations, there should be an IHOP near you. The best part is they serve breakfast all day.
You can’t go wrong with the buttermilk pancakes. Come hungry and order the World Famous Pancake Combo which comes with pancakes, eggs, hashbrowns, and bacon or sausage.
The omelets are great too! Love the Bacon Temptation Omelette (bacon, cheddar jack, and cheese sauce).
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 1,657 |
In-N-Out Burger
In-N-Out Burger is one of the most popular burger restaurants in the US. Despite only having 370+ locations, In-N-Out has a cult-like following with a fanatic fan base.
You can’t go wrong with any of their burgers- cheeseburger, double double. Their fries are fresh cut in the restaurant (not frozen). Pair your burger with fries and a drink- you’ll want to come back for more!
| Cuisine | Burger |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 373 |
Insomnia Cookies
Insomnia Cookies is an up-and-coming chain restaurant in the US. Mostly located in college towns, there are over 200 locations nationwide. We love that every cookie is freshly baked and served warm (they keep the cookies in a warmer).
You can’t go wrong with the classic Chocolate Chip Cookies. The classic with M&M’s is also good. If you have food allergies, you can get gluten-free, vegan cookies!
| Cuisine | Cookies |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 210 |
Jersey Mike’s Subs
Jersey Mike’s Subs is a popular chain restaurant in the US. What started as a humble sub shop in the Jersey shore has grown to over 2000 locations nationwide.
We prefer the hot subs over the cold subs at Jersey Mike’s- get the Mike’s Famous Philly Cheesesteak or the Big Kahuna Cheese Steak (only if you love jalapeno). Vegetarians will love the Grilled Portabella Mushroom and Swiss.
| Cuisine | Sandwich |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 2100 |
Joe’s Crab Shack
Joe’s Crab Shack is a favorite chain restaurant. There are only 46 Joe’s Crab Shack in the US, so whenever we see one we make it a point to go.
We always get the Steampots- we like the Joe’s Classic which is a seafood boil of Dungeness crab, snow crab, shrimp, sausage, corn, and potatoes. We also like the fried shrimp.
| Cuisine | Seafood |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 46 |
Jollibee
Jollibee is one of our favorite chain restaurants in the US. Originally from the Philippines, it is slowly growing its footprint in the US.
Famous for its fried chicken, we typically order the fried chicken and Jolly Spaghetti at Jollibee. The Jolly Spaghetti is not your typical red sauce pasta- the marinara is sweet with hotdogs.
Don’t forget to order the Peach Mango Pie- it looks like McDonald’s apple pie but with a delicious peach mango filling.
| Cuisine | Chicken |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 54 |
KFC
KFC is one of the most popular fried chicken chain restaurants in the US. You can’t go wrong with a bucket of fried chicken, coleslaw, and mashed potatoes. We love the gravy at KFC- it’s addictive!
| Cuisine | Chicken |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 3,953 |
Krispy Kreme
Krispy Kreme is one of the most popular donut shops in the US. The original glazed is our favorite but you can’t go wrong with any of the donuts at Krispy Kreme.
Get the donuts when they are freshly baked (you will see the Krispy Kreme Hot Now lights turned on). Try it once and you will be hooked!
| Cuisine | Donuts |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 373 |
Kung Fu Tea
Kung Fu Tea is one of the best bubble tea chains in the US. You can’t go wrong with the classic Kung Fu tea (green tea, oolong, or black tea), Milk Tea (if you like milk with your tea), or if you want something fruity try the Mango Green Tea.
Just make sure to order your drink with tapioca bubbles- that is the best part of the drink!
| Cuisine | Beverage |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 278 |
L&L Hawaiian Barbeque
L&L Hawaiian Barbeque is a popular chain restaurant in Hawaii. If you are ever in Hawaii, definitely give it a try.
We love the Barbeque chicken with rice dish as well as the Spam Musubi (Spam sushi).
| Cuisine | Asian |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 209 |
Maggiano’s Little Italy
Maggiano’s Little Italy is one of our favorite chain restaurants for Italian food. Everything at Maggiano’s is served family style.
We usually start with fried calamari, stuffed mushrooms, and caesar salad. Then for the main course, we like the Chicken Marsala, Fettucine Alfredo, and Rigatoni Arrabbiata.
| Cuisine | Italian |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 54 |
McDonald’s
McDonald’s is hands-down the most popular chain restaurant in America and maybe the world! It’s always a treat to go to McDonald’s for breakfast- hashbrowns, pancakes, and sausages! We also like the McGriddles!
Our go-to sandwiches are the classic Cheeseburger and Quarter Pounder. We also like the nuggets at McDonald’s. And we think McDonald’s has the best fries!
| Cuisine | Burger |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 13,438 |
Moe’s Southwest Grill
Moe’s Southwest Grill is a popular chain restaurant in the US with over 650 locations nationwide. Similar to Chipotle, you build your own burrito, burrito bowl, and tacos at Moe’s.
What we love about eating at Moe’s is they have a complimentary salsa bar. We love loading up on unlimited salsa!
| Cuisine | Mexican |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 657 |
Olive Garden
Olive Garden is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US for Italian food. We are drawn to Olive Garden for the unlimited garlic breadsticks- they are served warm and you can keep asking your server for more breadsticks!
We also love the Chicken Alfredo and for lunch, we like to order the unlimited Soup, Salad, and Breadsticks!
| Cuisine | Italian |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 876 |
On the Border Mexican Grill and Cantina
On the Border Mexican Grill is a popular Tex-Mex chain restaurant in the US. First, you’ll be greeted with complimentary chips and salsa- don’t eat too many chips because the food portions at On the Border are big!
We usually order the Fish tacos and the Monterey Ranch chicken fajitas (what’s not to love about chicken smothered in cheesy Monterey jack!) And of course, a Margarita or Sangria to go with our meal!
| Cuisine | Mexican |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 125 |
Outback Steakhouse
Outback Steakhouse is a popular chain restaurant with over 600 locations in the US. It’s an Aussie-themed restaurant famous for its fried onion appetizer- Bloomin’ Onion. We always get the Bloomin’ Onion, steak, and grilled shrimp. The rice pilaf is also good at Outback steakhouse.
| Cuisine | Steak |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 694 |
P.F. Chang’s
P.F. Chang’s is one of the most popular Chinese chain restaurants in the US. For appetizers, we love the Lettuce Wraps, Dynamite Shrimp, and Hot and Sour Soup.
Our go-to main courses are the Crispy Honey Chicken and Orange Chicken. The Lo Mein and Fried Rice are delicious. Everything at P.F. Chang’s is served family style.
| Cuisine | Asian |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 209 |
Panda Express
Panda Express is the most popular Chinese chain restaurant in the US. Typically located in mall food courts, there are over 2000 Panda Express locations in the US.
We can’t get enough of the orange chicken, fried rice, and chow mein noodles. Just thinking of the orange chicken is making us hungry right now!
| Cuisine | Asian |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 2316 |
Panera Bread
Panera Bread is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US. It’s a great place to go to for soup and salad or a sandwich and soup.
We love the Classic Grilled Cheese with Tomato Soup. For salad, we like the BBQ Chicken salad or the Green Goddess Cobb Salad.
We also love that they have the unlimited Sip Club- for $11.99 a month, you can get unlimited beverages at Panera Bread!
| Cuisine | Sandwich |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 2,121 |
Papa John’s
Papa John’s is a very popular pizzeria chain restaurant in the US with over 3000 locations nationwide.
Papa John’s is well-known for the thoughtful extras that elevate the pizza- the pepperoncinis and garlic dipping sauce. We usually order The Works, Hawaiian, or Pepperoni pizza at Papa John’s.
| Cuisine | Pizza |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 3,164 |
Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut is one of the most popular pizza chain restaurants in the US. We love the deep-dish pizza at Pizza Hut.
Our favorite pizzas at Pizza Hut are Supreme Pizza, Pepperoni pizza, and Hawaiian pizza. The oven-baked Chicken Alfredo pasta is also good at Pizza Hut.
| Cuisine | Pizza |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 6,548 |
Pokeworks
Pokeworks is one of our favorite chain restaurants in the US. Pokeworks is a newcomer with only 55 restaurants. If you live near a Pokeworks, you need to try it.
We love the Yuzu Ponzu Salmon bowl and the Spicy Ahi bowl. Or if you prefer you can make your own poke bowl.
| Cuisine | Asian |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 55 |
Pollo Tropical
Pollo Tropical is one of our favorite chain restaurants in the US. The fire-grilled chicken is delicious. We typically order chicken with plantains, rice, and beans.
We love that there is a complimentary sauce bar at Pollo Tropical. We load up on the cilantro garlic sauce, it’s really delicious!
| Cuisine | Chicken |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 169 |
Popeyes
Popeyes is one of the best chain restaurants for fried chicken. We love any of the fried chicken at Popeyes- whether it’s boneless chicken or chicken with bones.
Keep in mind that the signature fried chicken (chicken with bones) doesn’t taste like the chicken tenders. Each type of chicken has its own flavor and both are delicious! Dip the chicken with honey- it’s perfect!
| Cuisine | Chicken |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 2,754 |
Qdoba Mexican Eats
Qdoba Mexican Eats is a popular chain restaurant in the US with over 700 locations nationwide. The restaurant format is similar to Chipotle where you make your own burrito, burrito bowl, and tacos.
The food at Qdoba is very similar to Chipotle’s in quality and taste. However, if there was a Qdoba next to a Chipotle, we will always go to the Qdoba mainly because of the free guacamole. Qdoba does not charge extra for guacamole!
| Cuisine | Mexican |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 739 |
Ruby Tuesday
Ruby Tuesday is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US with over 200 locations nationwide.
We love the ribs, and any of their pasta with parmesan cream sauce (chicken or the shrimp version). The Caesar salad is really good at Ruby Tuesday.
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 206 |
Sarku Japan
Sarku Japan is one of the most popular Asian chain restaurants in the US. Usually found in mall food courts, we always order chicken teriyaki at Sarku.
We love that everything is fresh and cooked to order. It’s mesmerizing to watch the hibachi chef searing the chicken perfectly!
| Cuisine | Asian |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 203 |
Shake Shack
Shake Shack is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US. Opened by celebrity chef Danny Meyer, there is always a line for burgers at Shake Shacks! However, it’s so worth the wait.
We love the ShackBurger, mainly because we can’t get enough of their signature ShackSauce! If you are vegetarian, the ‘Shroom Burger is delicious- it’s basically a crispy mushroom patty with cheese melted inside- it’s surprisingly delicious.
We recommend you try the ‘Shroom Burger even if you are not vegetarian- we promise you will love it!
| Cuisine | Burger |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 243 |
Sonic Drive-In
Sonic Drive-In is one of the most popular fast-food chain restaurants in America with over 3,500 locations nationwide.
Sonic is a classic drive-in where you park at a designated spot, place your order, and then a carhop will deliver your food to your car! Some of the Sonic carhops will even skate to your car!
Of course, if you prefer to eat in the restaurant or get your food in the drive-thru, you can also do that at Sonic. If it’s hot out, we will order the refreshing ice-cold cherry limeade. We also love the popcorn chicken at Sonic.
| Cuisine | Burger |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 3,552 |
Starbucks
Starbucks is hands-down the most popular coffee shop in the US. With over 15,000 locations nationwide, you are always near a Starbucks.
Any of the coffee at Starbucks is good. We like cold brew, Caffe mocha, vanilla latte, or cappuccino. As a treat, we will get the delectable (high-calorie) frappuccino!
The fruity refreshers at Starbucks are also good- we love the Strawberry Acai Lemonade.
| Cuisine | Coffee |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 15,450 |
Sweetgreen
Sweetgreen is one of our favorite chain restaurants in the US. It’s a salad place with over 100 locations nationwide.
The restaurant service format at Sweetgreen is similar to a Chipotle but instead of burrito bowls, you make your own salad bowls.
We love the fish taco bowl mostly because we can’t get enough of the lime cilantro jalapeno dressing!
| Cuisine | Salad |
| Type of Restaurant | Fast Casual |
| Number of Restaurants | 150 |
TGI Friday’s
TGI Friday’s is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US. They have great appetizers at TGI Friday’s- we typically order the wings, pot stickers, sliders, and any of the appetizer combo deals. Perfect with beer or a cocktail.
We love the Philly Cheesesteak burger, Fried shrimp, and Cajun shrimp and chicken pasta. Come hungry, the portions at TGI Friday’s are large!
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 310 |
Uno Pizzeria and Grill
Uno Pizzeria is one of the most popular chain restaurants in the US. There are only 83 Uno Pizzeria restaurants in the US, so if we are near one, we will always make it a point to eat there.
We love the Chicago style deep dish pizza (we get the pepperoni). The broccoli and cheddar soup is also delicious.
| Cuisine | Italian |
| Type of Restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 83 |
Wendy’s
Wendy’s is one of the most popular fast food chain restaurants in the US. There are over 5,900 Wendy’s restaurants nationwide. We love the Baconator at Wendy’s and we always get a side of Chili!
| Cuisine | Burger |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 5,938 |
White Castle
White Castle is one of the most popular chain restaurants in America. We can eat four original sliders or cheese sliders in one sitting! We love that White Castle goes heavy on the onions, we can’t enough of it!
| Cuisine | Burger |
| Type of Restaurant | Quick Service |
| Number of Restaurants | 353 |
Yard House
Yard House is a favorite chain restaurant for beer and casual American food. There are only 80 Yard House locations nationwide.
We love the Spicy Jambalaya pasta, Fried Calamari, Fish Tacos, and Nashville Hot Chicken sandwich.
Don’t forget to order beer, they have a dizzying array of IPA, Stouts- basically any beer you want they most likely have it!
| Cuisine | American |
| Type of restaurant | Casual Dining |
| Number of Restaurants | 81 |
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