A recent consumer report found that about 44% of customers do make the return trip for their chicken wings when it comes to Wingstop’s performance. Famous for its house-made ranch sauce and hand-cut sweet fries, this is certainly a highlight for the majority of diners. But regardless – Wingstop isn’t totally free from criticism! Customers have two major complaints: saltiness and BONELESS “wings.” Yeah, go figure that one out. Sure, if they called them nuggets, we’d be kinda okay (though what’s in the nuggets is somewhat worrying), but not WINGS with no bones.
Maybe we missed the point – but at least they haven’t been criticised for poor quality or freshness, hence why it takes the #33 spot on our list! Consumer Score: 44%
Arby’s
So we’re not sure if the fact Arby’s has a repeat customer rate of 44% is owing to the incident that happened back in 2005, where an Ohio man filed a lawsuit against the fast-food operator for more than $50,000. And for what? Well, he alleged that he found a slice of human SKIN on his chicken sandwich. Yeah, digest that! It turns out that an employee had sliced skin whilst shredding lettuce…and the accuser’s sandwich contained lettuce, so… ewww!
Maybe he would’ve had better luck with roast beef. Anywho, customers have also made claims that their roast beef isn’t well… roast beef. We’ll let you decide on that one – just don’t order the salad! Consumer Score: 44%
Starbucks
Sure, Starbucks may be somewhat struggling to get people through their doors for coffee, but um, surely, you’ve seen the memes about basic girls ordering their pumpkin-spiced lattes like they’re going out of style? Yah. We’re starting to think, though, that Starbucks isn’t exactly a place you go to because you LOVE it; it’s more about the sheer convenience of it! And also the fact that some of their holiday seasonal stuff is pretty neat.
We’re not sure it’s really a competitor to the likes of McDonald's or KFC, but all the same, it technically IS fast food. Also, they tried to hush up a case of mistreating two African-American customers just last year – it makes sense why they’re on our list now!
Boston Market
Back in the 1990s (which, FYI, was almost 30 years ago) (we’re all crying) (let’s storm Area 51 and get the time machine), Boston Market gloated at the fact it had over 1100 locations in shopping malls and hubs across the great United States. However, we’re guessing business hasn’t been quite so good, with their numbers dwindling to less than 400 stores. Their main offering is rotisserie chicken, which makes for a simple, tasty dinner for those who are less inclined to put a chicken in the oven! Sure, it’s a convenient idea, but if you don’t do it the best, you won’t get the better share of the market.
Easily replicated, supermarkets started providing their own rotisserie chicken, which sent these guys packing! Maybe they need to look at some new menu items... Consumer Score: 43%
Dairy Queen
Their slogan says “Fan Food, not Fast Food,” but we’re not so sure, seeing as it’s made our list! With ice cream served upside down, Dairy Queen lovers know the ice cream joint has been serving up their thick serves since 1940! But even Dairy Queen has come under fire – it seems her American subjects aren’t so loyal! Apparently, the ice-cream doesn’t even taste like well… ice-cream – it’s got a plasticky, manufactured taste, and it melts before you can take a photo for IG!
We prefer our ice-cream to be made with fresh milk and cream (or sorbet for our lactose-intolerant friends), so anything other than that just irks us. But the ice-cream isn’t the only menu item that’s sent the public to bad-mouthing the chain – their hot dog looks like “a blown-up Slim Jim in a cold, soggy bun.” Yikes. Consumer Score: 43%