---
title: "Why Chick-fil-A's Unique Drive-Thru Approach May Become a New Trend in QSR"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/2a13b72a-f965-45bb-9ced-754bc7623c53
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/why-chick-fil-as-unique-drive-thru-approach-may-become-a-new-trend-in-qsr-2711335
category: "Chicken"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Chicken"
topics: ["Operations"]
published: 2019-10-16T21:16:02.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:30:50.131Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/7fd9fc1d7c4d962efda95ea496eca25f4899.jpg
---

# Why Chick-fil-A's Unique Drive-Thru Approach May Become a New Trend in QSR

**TL;DR:** Chick-fil-A's unique drive-thru approach, which emphasizes human interaction, may become a new trend in QSR, with 39% of consumers using the drive-thru more this year than last year. The chain's approach has led to high customer satisfaction and sales, with over $4.1 million in sales per unit.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2019-10-16. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/why-chick-fil-as-unique-drive-thru-approach-may-become-a-new-trend-in-qsr-2711335).*

## Story

**The drive-thru window has** **been around for restaurants since 1947****. Still, the system is anything but outdated. According to a new study from the** **National Restaurant Association****, 39% of consumers have used the drive-thru more this year than last year, and a whopping 92% of consumers say they use the drive-thru at least once a month at QSR restaurants.**

**As the need for quick and convenient foodservice offerings rises, operators have responded with multiple options to meet the off-premises needs of their guests, including** **mobile ordering****,** **third-party delivery partnerships****,** **pick-up cubbies** **and** **self-ordering kiosks****. Although some predict that the drive-thru industry will be** **dominated by A.I. technology soon****, Chick-fil-A has been sticking with good-old-fashioned human interaction. The results speak for themselves.**

**While** **QSR’s recent Drive-Thru Study** **showed that Chick-fil-A has the slowest drive-thru service time, clocking in at nearly 323 seconds, the chain was also voted** **best in both order accuracy** **(94%),** **and customer service****, scoring high in eye contact, pleasant demeanor, smiling, saying “please,” and being “very friendly”.**

**These results prove that** **Chick-fil-A is setting the bar high for quick-service performance, and that’s especially true re. the drive-thru****. In response to long wait times—****more than 35% of the Chick-fil-A’s restaurants have six-plus vehicles in line at any given time****—the chain employs “face-to-face ordering” 60% of the time. This means team members are positioned outside the dual-lane drive-thru with tablets, mobile card readers and cash drawers to take orders.**

**While this approach may result in slower service times, it also leads to the happiest customers. According to the study,** **Chick-fil-A has the friendliest drive-thru in QSR by a huge margin** **(65% of consumers consider the chain to be “very friendly,” versus No. 2 Taco Bell at 43%). With accuracy scores for the QSR segment overall dropping more than 5% this year, Chick-fil-A’s ability to keep customers satisfied sets it apart from the competition.**

**Whatever Chick-fil-A is doing is working. Overall, the chicken chain generated** **over $4.1 million in sales per unit****, nearly twice as much as McDonald’s. This year, the chain surpassed Taco Bell and Subway for the No. 3 spot in the industry in sales,** **according to National’s Restaurant News****.**

**In response to Chick-fil-A’s success, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see other QSR and fast casual franchisors opting against drive-thru robots in favor of a smiling employee. More often than not, a good customer experience is worth the wait.**

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- McDonald's (company)
- Taco Bell (company)
- Subway (company)
- customer service (topic)
- Chick-fil-A (company)
- qsr industry (topic)
- National Restaurant Association (company)
- sales performance (topic)
- drive-thru trends (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/why-chick-fil-as-unique-drive-thru-approach-may-become-a-new-trend-in-qsr-2711335). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/2a13b72a-f965-45bb-9ced-754bc7623c53).