Perhaps the key narrative in the world of fast food today is the rise of Chick fil-A and Chipotle and the fall of McDonald's. Industry analysts could build an entire career on an explanation of this phenomenon, but it's really not so complicated: American consumers love Chick fil-A and Chipotle, and they hate McDonald's.
The latest evidence comes in the form of this year's American Consumer Satisfaction Index report on the restaurant industry. Every year, the ACSI folks poll 70,000 people to learn their opinions on various consumer products, then compile these opinions into a composite index that ranges from a low of zero to a high score of 100.
These reports have long shown that McDonald's is among Americans' least favorite restaurant chains -- and 2015 is no exception. McDonald's scored just 67 points in this year's report, far below any other chain in the survey and a whopping 6 percent lower than the Golden Arches scored last year. This kind of antipathy will make it tough for McDonald's to turn around sagging sales.
Chick fil-A and Chipotle were both newcomers to the ACSI report -- a testament, perhaps, to their growing prominence in the industry. And true to form, they scored the highest of any fast food chain. Chick fil-A got an 86, while Chipotle earned an 83.
What makes this even more impressive is that no full-service restaurant chain scored higher than an 83. Full-service restaurants generally rate higher than fast food restaurants in the ACSI reports because they offer more amenities, at higher prices. Yet only Texas Roadhouse, a chain of 400 steak restaurants where a bone-in ribeye costs $19.99, scored as high as Chipotle. None came close to reaching Chick fil-A.
The second runner up among fast food chains was Panera, with a score of 80. Most of the other chains in the report scored in the mid-to-low 70s; Starbucks, for instance, got a 74, and Taco Bell came in near the bottom with a 72.
Overall, the ACSI report indicates that Americans are becoming less satisfied with their experiences at fast food chains. The report tracks nine specific benchmarks of customer satisfaction -- from "courtesy and helpfulness of the staff" to "quality of beverages" -- and all nine registered lower scores for the industry as a whole in 2015 than they did in 2014. Either we're raising our expectations for restaurants -- or restaurants are lowering their standards of service.
The fast food category that fared the worst in this year's survey, compared to last year's, is pizza: Papa John's and Pizza Hut's scores dropped 5 percent, while the scores for Domino's and Little Caesars dropped 6 and 8 percent respectively. Perhaps the gluten-free trend is taking its toll.
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