This Is The Best Fast Food Chain, According To Gen Z

Teens know fast-food well—and there’s one chain that stands out among the rest for them in the U.S.

For the second consecutive year, Chick-fil-A has been named Generation Z’s favorite fast-food chain in an annual survey conducted by Piper Sandler.

The “Taking Stock with Teens” survey listed the Atlanta-based chain as Gen Z’s favorite.

Related: 8 Worst Fast-Food Burgers to Stay Away From Right Now

The chicken chain has once again been listed as teens’ top choice with 16% of “share of wallet,” according to the Piper Sandler metrics.

Chick-fil-A was followed in terms of spending numbers by Chipotle (14%), Starbucks (13%), McDonald’s (4%), and Dunkin’ Donuts (3%). The average age of a participant in the survey of 7,100 people was 16 years old.

Food returned to a top priority in teens’ spending habits, with 22% of overall spending going to getting a bite to eat. That number is up 1% from the year prior, showing that more teens are going out to get food than last year.

Another finding from the survey states that teen’s interest in plant-based meat is slipping. Down from 49% in spring 2021, only 43% of teens are now willing to try it.

It’s not just fast food that these teens care about. The survey also brought on some political notions, with many teens citing the war in Ukraine as a top worry. The war has caused grocery and gas prices to rise, and this is something that matters to Gen Z.

“Gen Z is known to be a conscious generation, and teens this Spring cited the Russian invasion of Ukraine as their top concern, pushing the Environment to number two,” Nicole Miller Regan, senior research analyst, said in a release. “Gas prices showed up as the number four concern, and when combined with inflation, would have ranked number one.”

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