These fast food restaurants will make you wait the longest at the drive-thru window
- Chick-Fil-A is ranked as the slowest drive-thru restaurant in the new report
- Taco Bell offers the fastest service, with an average wait time of four minutes
- In all customers spend 343.45 seconds waiting to be served, figures show
Ravenous fast food lovers may want to steer clear of Chick-fil-A if they’re looking for a quick bite, as it has one of the longest wait times of America’s largest drive-thru.
Customers of the chicken sandwich restaurant wait an average of 436.09 seconds – about seven minutes – to receive their orders, according to a new study by QRS magazine. However, it was still the highest for good customer service.
By comparison, Taco Bell came out as the fastest service, with motorists waiting just 278.84 seconds – or four minutes – to get their food.
Carl’s Jr and KFC came in second and third, with customers waiting 303.74 seconds and 303.95 seconds respectively.
The report analyzed the time it took for a customer to be served and how long they then waited for their food. Mystery shoppers visited each restaurant 25 times.
The report analyzed the time it took for a customer to be served and how long they then waited for their food. Mystery shoppers visited each restaurant 25 times
Across the board, they waited an average of 262.09 seconds to be served and a further 80.90 seconds to receive their food. They spent a total of 343.45 seconds from the time they arrived at the restaurant until they left with their order.
Services were 22 seconds faster than last year, the report said.
And it was the third year in a row that Taco Bell ranked as the fastest-growing.
The brand’s success has been attributed in part to its ‘Go Mobile’ concept – launched in August 2020 – which allows drive-thru customers to order food on its apps.
Matt Shaw, Taco Bell’s chief development officer, said bosses “learned a lot” from the feature’s success.
Taco Bell came out as the fastest service, with motorists waiting just 278.84 seconds – or four minutes – to get their food
Chick-fil-A customers wait an average of 436.09 seconds — about seven minutes — to receive their orders
“While Go Mobile is not the only contributor to success, the increase in rewards members visiting Go Mobile locations is certainly something we are excited about,” he said.
Despite offering the slowest service, Chick-Fil-A actually received the best customer service ratings. It also had the best order accuracy ratings, as 92 percent said their order was filed correctly.
About 97 percent of buyers said they were satisfied with their order. Taco Bell and Arby’s came in second and third, with 95 percent and 93 percent, respectively.
Burger King ranked worst for customer service, with only 85 percent of shoppers saying they were satisfied with their experience.
The theme noted that many drive-thru restaurants have invested in streamlining their operations.
