The food service industry is dominated by fast-food and fast-casual chains, but casual dining, midscale, and family-style chain restaurants are still thriving. Olive Garden has been recognized as one of the top chain restaurants in the United States despite the challenges faced this year, such as Red Lobster’s bankruptcy filing.
According to a report from research firm Technomic, which analyzed trends in the food service industry using historical data, the top 500 biggest chain restaurants in the US were identified. The report excluded fast-casual or quick-service restaurants like Chipotle and McDonald’s when creating this list. The top 15 chains listed as casual dining, midscale, or family-style were included, along with their annual sales and unit counts for 2023, as reported by Nation’s Restaurant News.
Some of the biggest chain restaurants in the US according to Technomic’s report include Olive Garden, founded in 1981 with $1.7 billion in annual sales and over 900 restaurant locations; Denny’s, founded in 1948 with $663 million in annual sales and over 1700 restaurant locations; Applebee’s, founded in 1974 with $584 million in annual sales and over 960 restaurant locations; Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc., founded in 1969 with $383 million in annual sales and over 650 restaurant locations; and IHOP Corporation, founded in 1952 with $326 million in annual sales and over 1800 restaurant locations.
