---
title: "QSR Magazine: Wing Zone Recognized Among the Top 11 Restaurants Positioned to Endure the COVID Pandemic"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/6b7ac968-bcd5-43a3-ac28-b720dff444a8
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/qsr-magazine-wing-zone-recognized-among-the-top-11-restaurants-positioned-to-endure-the-covid-pandemic-2713615
category: "Chicken"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Chicken"
published: 2020-07-30T19:14:50.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:28:24.404Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/1a46975d944b2695fb387219fcb84a3f9156.jpg
---

# QSR Magazine: Wing Zone Recognized Among the Top 11 Restaurants Positioned to Endure the COVID Pandemic

**TL;DR:** Wing Zone has been recognized as one of the top 11 restaurants positioned to endure the COVID pandemic, thanks to its model for sustaining a global pandemic.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2020-07-30. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/qsr-magazine-wing-zone-recognized-among-the-top-11-restaurants-positioned-to-endure-the-covid-pandemic-2713615).*

## Story

**For many, COVID-19 has taken a toll on businesses — especially those in the restaurant industry. With locations closing and reopening at lower capacities, restaurant owners were really only left with two options: to pivot operations rapidly or close their doors for good. But those options weren’t cutting it for Matt Friedman, CEO and founder of the fast-casual wing franchise** **Wing Zone****.

Friedman developed a model for the brand that was built to sustain a global pandemic. A recent roundup in** **QSR Magazine** **dives deep into the factors that contributed to the top 11 restaurant brands’ growth amidst COVID-19 including digital sales, menu updates and store development among others.

**While many restaurants have leaned heavily on third-party delivery services like Postmates and UberEats to keep sales afloat, Friedman stuck by his original method of in-house delivery. Not only has he found that this method improved customer loyalty, but it also allowed** **Wing Zone** **to add hundreds of jobs to their roster. Pre-pandemic, this wouldn’t have been possible given that the demand for delivery drivers with third-party services was extremely high. In sticking with their in-house delivery model, Wing Zone has seen unprecedented growth.**

**“I would say one of the most impactful things that has happened with us during COVID-19 is we control the experience,” says Friedman. “It appears to me that the consumer is trusting dealing with the brand directly rather than through a third-party.”**

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Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/qsr-magazine-wing-zone-recognized-among-the-top-11-restaurants-positioned-to-endure-the-covid-pandemic-2713615). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/6b7ac968-bcd5-43a3-ac28-b720dff444a8).