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Next CF Bracket Fast food nomination thread

what is fast food per AI:

“Fast food” generally means a restaurant built around:
  • Quick service
  • Standardized/pre-made menu items
  • Counter, drive-thru, or app ordering
  • Low-to-mid price point
  • Minimal table service
  • High operational speed and consistency
Most people divide it into a few overlapping categories:

Traditional Fast Food (QSR = Quick Service Restaurant)​

Classic drive-thru chains with heavily standardized menus.

Examples:
  • McDonald's
  • Taco Bell
  • Burger King
  • Wendy's
  • KFC
  • Subway
Typical traits:
  • Drive-thru
  • Food ready in minutes
  • Frozen/prepped ingredients
  • National branding
  • Combo meals

Fast Casual​

A step above traditional fast food in ingredient quality and customization.
Examples:
  • Chipotle
  • Panera Bread
  • Shake Shack
  • Five Guys
  • Qdoba
  • MOD Pizza
Typical traits:
  • No full table service
  • Higher quality ingredients
  • Open kitchens/customization
  • Higher prices
  • Slower than drive-thru but faster than sit-down

Regional Fast Food​

Chains that operate like fast food but are concentrated in certain areas.
Examples:
  • Culver’s (Midwest)
  • Whataburger (Texas/South)
  • In-N-Out Burger (West)
  • Runza (Nebraska)
  • Tasty Tacos (Iowa)

Hybrid / Borderline Chains​

Some restaurants blur the line between fast food and casual dining.
Examples:
  • California Pizza Kitchen
  • Cafe Du Monde
  • Alfredo’s Pizza Cafe
These may:
  • Have table service
  • Be local restaurants
  • Take longer to prepare food
  • Focus more on dining experience
So people may not universally consider them “fast food.”

What usually does NOT count as fast food​

  • Full sit-down restaurants
  • Fine dining
  • Most local diners
  • Food trucks
  • Bars/grills
  • Cafés without quick-service operations
Examples:
  • Applebee’s
  • Olive Garden
  • Texas Roadhouse
 
  • Like
  • Winner
Reactions: demoncore1031, cyclones500 and CycloneRulzzz
Howard Johnson's! I just watched a video that said 60 years ago, HoJo was bigger than McDonald's, Burger King and KFC, combined.
Never mind, last one closed in 2022.
 
using that criteria to trim the list got us to this:

Burgers​

  • McDonald's
  • Burger King
  • Wendy's
  • Five Guys
  • In-N-Out Burger
  • Whataburger
  • Shake Shack
  • Steak 'n Shake
  • Culver's
  • Sonic Drive-In
  • Jack in the Box
  • White Castle
  • Carl's Jr.
  • Hardee's
  • Freddy's
  • A&W
  • B-Bops
  • The Habit
  • Checkers / Rally’s
  • Smashburger

Chicken / Wings​

  • Chick-fil-A
  • Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen
  • Raising Cane's
  • KFC
  • Bojangles
  • Wingstop
  • Zaxby's
  • El Pollo Loco
  • Slim Chickens
  • Jollibee
  • Church’s Chicken
  • Dave’s Hot Chicken

Mexican / Tex-Mex​

  • Taco Bell
  • Chipotle
  • Taco John's
  • Del Taco
  • Panchero's
  • Taco Time
  • Taco Tico
  • Tasty Tacos
  • Taco Palenque
  • Qdoba
  • Moe’s Southwest Grill
  • Baja Fresh

Sandwiches / Subs​

  • Subway
  • Jersey Mike's Subs
  • Firehouse Subs
  • Jimmy John's
  • Arby's
  • Runza
  • Sub City
  • Potbelly Sandwich Shop
  • Which Wich
  • Schlotzsky’s

Pizza​

  • Domino's Pizza
  • Pizza Hut
  • Jet's Pizza
  • Northern Lights Pizza
  • Little Caesars
  • Papa Johns
  • Marco's Pizza
  • Sbarro
  • MOD Pizza
  • Blaze Pizza
  • Round Table Pizza

Asian​

  • Panda Express
  • Teriyaki Madness
  • Pei Wei

Seafood​

  • Long John Silver's

Coffee / Breakfast​

  • Dunkin’ Donuts
  • Starbucks
  • Tim Hortons
  • Dutch Bros Coffee

Dessert / Ice Cream​

  • Dairy Queen

Snacks / Sides​

  • Potato Corner
 
  • Winner
Reactions: CycloneRulzzz
Seafood: Add Captain D's. It is basically the Southern version of LJS. Closest locations are KC metro.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: Tailg8er
Should probably include some options seen in mall food courts.

Leann Chin
Great Steak and Potato Company
Charley's Cheesesteaks
Shake Shack (SIAP somewhere)
Dave's Hot Chicken
Nashville Coop
 
  • Disagree
Reactions: Tailg8er
cyclones500 said:
I'd like to say it qualifies for fast food if drive-thru or delivery (or a combo of those) is the predominant method, vs. dine-in.

Seems like that simplifies it, BUT still leaves gray area unless we dive into measurables.

(I can't believe I used "measurables." Oh well, at least it's "actionable.")
Click to expand...

I was pondering this as well.
 
We have a committee of 6 but not all are making lists.

I think having someone on committee with experience in some of these more regional places would be a plus.

I've had in and out and whataburger and that's the extent of my regional cuisine.
 
FerShizzle said:
what is fast food per AI:

“Fast food” generally means a restaurant built around:
  • Quick service
  • Standardized/pre-made menu items
  • Counter, drive-thru, or app ordering
  • Low-to-mid price point
  • Minimal table service
  • High operational speed and consistency
Most people divide it into a few overlapping categories:

Traditional Fast Food (QSR = Quick Service Restaurant)​

Classic drive-thru chains with heavily standardized menus.

Examples:
  • McDonald's
  • Taco Bell
  • Burger King
  • Wendy's
  • KFC
  • Subway
Typical traits:
  • Drive-thru
  • Food ready in minutes
  • Frozen/prepped ingredients
  • National branding
  • Combo meals

Fast Casual​

A step above traditional fast food in ingredient quality and customization.
Examples:
  • Chipotle
  • Panera Bread
  • Shake Shack
  • Five Guys
  • Qdoba
  • MOD Pizza
Typical traits:
  • No full table service
  • Higher quality ingredients
  • Open kitchens/customization
  • Higher prices
  • Slower than drive-thru but faster than sit-down

Regional Fast Food​

Chains that operate like fast food but are concentrated in certain areas.
Examples:
  • Culver’s (Midwest)
  • Whataburger (Texas/South)
  • In-N-Out Burger (West)
  • Runza (Nebraska)
  • Tasty Tacos (Iowa)

Hybrid / Borderline Chains​

Some restaurants blur the line between fast food and casual dining.
Examples:
  • California Pizza Kitchen
  • Cafe Du Monde
  • Alfredo’s Pizza Cafe
These may:
  • Have table service
  • Be local restaurants
  • Take longer to prepare food
  • Focus more on dining experience
So people may not universally consider them “fast food.”

What usually does NOT count as fast food​

  • Full sit-down restaurants
  • Fine dining
  • Most local diners
  • Food trucks
  • Bars/grills
  • Cafés without quick-service operations
Examples:
  • Applebee’s
  • Olive Garden
  • Texas Roadhouse
Click to expand...
That's a helpful overview.

We definitely won't count the "does not count," and those hybrid/borderline seem off the table for the most part.

Not in that listing, but also disqualified is convenience store category.
 
CycloneRulzzz said:
In my opinion should be a primary factor but could be tough finding 64 if we make it the only factor.
Click to expand...

I could see certain categories getting a pass on this, like sub sandwiches. But pizza places are not fast food. Well, I guess I’ve seen a Happy Joes with a drive through window. But there has to be a time limit from ordering to eating for it to count as fast food. And even the fastest pizza places take too long.

Or I guess wait time can just be part of the criteria when determining winners.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tailg8er
enisthemenace said:
Can someone explain the difference between Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr? Aren’t they the same thing?
Click to expand...

They are. But there’s a magical line where they name the restaurant different. I can’t remember if that’s the Mississippi River or the mason dixon line.
 
Clonehomer said:
I could see certain categories getting a pass on this, like sub sandwiches. But pizza places are not fast food. Well, I guess I’ve seen a Happy Joes with a drive through window. But there has to be a time limit from ordering to eating for it to count as fast food. And even the fastest pizza places take too long.

Or I guess wait time can just be part of the criteria when determining winners.
Click to expand...

This was always something I thought about and we will have a pizza bracket down the line too.

I lean towards keeping sub places and eliminating pizza places for this bracket but would love public input.

Maybe make poll whether pizza qualifies and public vote will stand.
 
  • Like
Reactions: FerShizzle
Clonehomer said:
I could see certain categories getting a pass on this, like sub sandwiches. But pizza places are not fast food. Well, I guess I’ve seen a Happy Joes with a drive through window. But there has to be a time limit from ordering to eating for it to count as fast food. And even the fastest pizza places take too long.

Or I guess wait time can just be part of the criteria when determining winners.
Click to expand...
I think a pizza place is only fast food if they sell by the slice and have a slice tray sitting at the counter.

If you sit down and order it’s not fast food.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: baller21
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