• by Teresa Buyikian , Yesterday

After 11 consecutive years in the number one spot, Chick-fil-A drops to number two in the most recent American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) of restaurants surpassed for the first time by Jersey Mike’s.

The 2026 ACSI Restaurant and Food Delivery Study is a yearly report based on over 16,000 customer surveys ranking customer satisfaction. The latest study was completed between April 2025 and March 2026. Brands are rated on a scale of 1-100 points.

This year Jersey Mike’s received a score of 84, based primarily on “freshness, food variety” along with “growth without loss of quality,” as the chain added 238 new locations in 2025, reporting $4.2 billion in systemwide sales.  

Chick-fil-A held its score of 83, still leading chicken chains and remaining one of the highest-scoring brands in any ACSI category. KFC follows Chick-fil-A at 80, an improvement of 4% over last year, while Popeyes fell 3% to 73. Raising Cane’s (79) and Wingstop (77) were both new to the index this year.   

“New brands are entering our rankings and immediately competing at the top, which tells you something about where consumer expectations are headed,” said Forrest Morgeson, associate professor of marketing at Michigan State University, and director of research emeritus at the ACSI. “Restaurant industry-level scores are stable, but there’s real movement underneath.”

The burger category was “heavily impacted” by the rising cost of beef, but Culver’s held on to the top spot, sharing the position with Burger King, which gained 1% to land at 78. Sonic jumped up 5% this year to 77.

For full-service restaurants, LongHorn Steakhouse and Texas Roadhouse tied at 82, followed by Olive Garden at 81. While Chili’s was the #1 brand in terms of traffic for 2025, it rated 79 in terms of customer satisfaction.

“Price still matters, but it’s no longer enough on its own,” added Morgeson. “Consistency across the full experience is what separates the leaders right now, and that’s showing up clearly in the data. The challenge going forward is sustaining that as costs continue to rise and competition intensifies.”

In terms of food delivery, Uber Eats topped the list at 76, a 1% increase over 2025, followed by Grubhub which rose 3% to 75. DoorDash landed third at 74.