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Regional Favorites and National Companies Topped the Ranking of America's Top Restaurant Chains for 2023. Did Your Go-To Make the List? The list includes more than 220 winners across 16 categories. But did Olive Garden and Chick-fil-A make the cut?

By Madeline Garfinkle Edited by Jessica Thomas

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Despite many individuals cutting back on spending due to rampant inflation and recession fears, Americans still love eating at chain restaurants.

There are more than 100,000 chain restaurant locations across the country, and total annual sales are expected to be around $900 billion this year, according to Newsweek.

In collaboration with global data firm Statista, Newsweek on Tuesday released its second annual roundup of America's favorite restaurant chains. The results are based on a survey of more than 4,000 customers and employees of restaurant chains across the country, and there are 220 winners in 16 categories — from Tex-Mex to coffee.

The survey ran from July to August 2022. The respondents were instructed to pick one of three ethnic cuisines and 13 dish categories, then were asked to rate the chains based on nine assessments of the experience such as food, service and accessibility.

To rank at the top of the list, a chain needed to receive a minimum number of recommendations and an overall score of at least seven out of 10. Additionally, it must have at least three locations across different cities within at least two U.S. states.

Here are some chains that came out on top.

Chinese:

Big Bowl

Inchin's Bamboo Garden

Mark Pi's

P.F. Changs

Pick Up Stix

Italian:

Brio

Johnny's Carino's

LaRosa's Family Pizzeria

Maggiano's Little Italy

Olive Garden

Romano's Macaroni Grill

Vinny's Italian Grill & Pizzeria

Tex-Mex:

Abuelo's

California Tortilla

Carlos O'Kelly's Inspired Mex

Chevys Fresh Mex

Chuy's

La Parrilla

Moe's Southwest Grill

Pappasito's Cantina

Salsarita's

Tumbleweed

BBQ:

Dreamland BBQ

Full Moon Bar-B-Que

Lucille's Smokehouse Bar-B-Que

RibCrib

Rudy's Real Texas Bar-B-Q

Smokey Bones

Texas Roadhouse

Burgers:

Bad Daddy's Burger Bar

BJ'S

Chili's

Culver's

Freddy's

In-N-Out Burger

Red Robin

Shake Shack

Smashburger

Chicken:

Chicken Express

Chick-fil-A

Cracker Barrel

Hooters

Jollibee

Raising Cane's

Texas Roadhouse

Coffee & Tea/ Baked Goods:

Duck Donuts

Dutch Bros Coffee

Panera Bread

Peet's Coffee

Starbucks Coffee

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

Tim Hortons

Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt:

Andy's Frozen Custard

Bruster's

Carvel

CherryBerry

Cold Stone Creamery

Culver's

Graeter's

Orange Leaf

Rita's

sweetFrog

Juice & Smoothies:

Jamba

Juice Bar

Planet Smoothie

Smoothie King

Tropical Smoothie Cafe

Noodles & Ramen:

Gyu-Kaku

Honeygrow

Ichiddo Ramen

Pho Saigon

Teriyaki Madness

Pizza:

Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza

Aurelio's Pizza

Bertucci's

Brixx Wood Fired Pizza

Fazoli's

Giordano's

Johnny's Pizza

Lou Malnati's Pizzeria

Mountain Mike's Pizza

Pizza Inn

Sandwiches:

Capriotti's Sandwich Shop

Einstein Bros. Bagels

Jersey Mike's Subs

McAlister's Deli

Panera Bread

Penn Station East Coast Subs

Togo's

Seafood:

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.

Legal Sea Foods

Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen

The Juicy Crab

Soup:

Au Bon Pain

Zoup!

Steak:

Black Rock Bar & Grill

Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar

Fogo de Chão

Morton's

Ruth's Chris Steak House

Texas Roadhouse

The Capital Grille

Sushi:

Roy's

Sugarfish

You can check out the full list here.

Madeline Garfinkle

News Writer

Madeline Garfinkle is a News Writer at Entrepreneur.com. She is a graduate from Syracuse University, and received an MFA from Columbia University. 

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