The 9 Biggest Fast Food Item Complaints Customers Have In 2026 (So Far)

In theory, fast food is supposed to be a treat. Quick, indulgent, and satisfying, it's often the perfect pick-me-up to help you through a long drive or boost your morale at the end of the day. Unfortunately, it simply doesn't deliver at times. In fact, it seems fast food has missed the mark in many instances so far in 2026, with many customers already reportedly receiving subpar orders throughout the year.

Over the first four months of this year, numerous customers have complained about the low quality, skyrocketing prices, and lack of substance in their fast food orders, with many doing so on review sites and social media. There's no single restaurant to blame, either; some say Burger King has continuously let them down, while others have found certain Domino's or McDonald's items weren't up to scratch.

If you want to find out more about which fast food menu items have received the most complaints in 2026 (so far, anyway), keep reading. Spoiler alert: Some of these might put you off ordering fast food for a while.

At the very start of 2026 — when we were full of hope for the new year ahead — we named Burger King's ultimate steakhouse Whopper as one of the best new food items released in January 2026. But for many people, it seems like the reality of the menu item didn't quite live up to the hype.

When this item first hit stores at the beginning of January, some Redditors complained that the burger was far too small. Other customers felt the patty size was fine, but was underwhelming. Some thought it was far too salty, while a few people thought the burger was overpriced for what it was; after all, it was a beef burger with onion rings, bacon, mushrooms, melted Swiss cheese, and peppercorn aioli.

At least one patron proclaimed they weren't sure they would return to the fast food chain after trying this burger. As the Facebook user, Sean Place, wrote in a particularly dramatic review, "with each bite, hope quietly left the room."

The Steakhouse Bacon Whopper was, of course, a spin on the regular Whopper (which has been on the fast food chain's menu since the 1950s). More than one billion Whoppers are sold annually as of this writing. Now, some might say if it ain't broke, don't fix it. But not Burger King. In fact, in February 2026, the fast food giant decided it was a time for a Whopper refresh — which was not a hit with fans.

The changes involved swapping the bun for a premium alternative, switching the mayonnaise recipe, and changing the packaging from a simple wrapper to a box. Perhaps unsurprisingly, not everyone was impressed with the move. Some people claimed they couldn't taste any difference between the old Whopper and the new version, despite the change in bun and condiments. Others said they detected a small change, but nothing overly exciting, and some said they preferred the old version.

Plenty of patrons were particularly hung up on the mayonnaise change, claiming that this used to be their favorite thing about the burger, while a few people said that, for them, the new bun was the worst bit. "I hate the new bun, its supposed to be sturdier but mine crumbled into a million pieces," say Reddit user andreaashby15 in the r/fastfood thread, while another customer lamented the subpar flavor. Better luck next time, Burger King.

Fortunately for Burger King, McDonald's didn't fare much better with the reaction to its Big Arch. The fast food giant started trials for the burger in 2024 in international markets, and due to a generally positive response, the Big Arch hit the U.S. menu in March 2026. If you're chronically online, you might remember the viral video of McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski taking a bite (or a tiny nibble) out of the burger back in February. While Kempczinski tried his best to hype up the Big Arch, many customers weren't impressed.

One Reddit user, named sssf6, even said that the burger — which is loaded up with two beef patties, three slices of cheese, onions, pickles, lettuce, and Big Arch sauce (a mix of mustard, pickle, and sweet tomato) — tasted like "congealed dirt" on the r/McDonald's thread. Others were a little less harsh, but still critical, claiming it was nothing particularly special and tasted very similar to the standard Big Mac. Some said there were too many toppings, while others accused it of looking messy and sloppy. The price was a big sticking point for some, as the Big Arch is one of the most expensive burgers on the menu.

Launched in the 1980s, McNuggets have long been one of McDonald's most beloved menu items. In fact, according to the fast food chain, it sells around 700 million pounds of McNuggets every single year. But some fans haven't been impressed with the McNuggets churned out in 2026. According to a number of customers, whether or not the recipe has possibly changed, it appears the chain's McNuggets aren't as good as they used to be.

According to some Redditors, the batter on the McNuggets looks and tastes different now. Some speculated the fast food giant may have changed the recipe to save money, while others are angry that the nuggets taste worse, but have gone up in price. One person on Reddit, with the username SteelersPoker, complained in the r/McDonald's thread that the nuggets "literally tasted cheap if that makes sense. Just some cheap crap food you'd find at the dollar store, that's how those nuggets tasted like."

Honestly, we get it. In September 2025, one of our writers also declared McDonald's 10-Piece Chicken McNuggets as an overpriced fast food item that is not worth the money, and it seems like nothing's

The thing about taste is that it's incredibly subjective. When our taste tester tried Dunkin's new banana coffee drinks in March 2026, they were pretty pleased with the chain's offering, noting it was nothing particularly special, but "pleasant overall." They did clarify, however, that for anyone who doesn't like banana, these new drinks were not worth trying.

It seems that many customers agree that Dunkin's banana drinks aren't worth the money. Some said the banana cold foam made them feel ill after drinking it, while many people said that the banana flavor of the drinks tasted too artificial. "The banana syrup has a very artificial flavor that just doesnt sit right with me and now I feel gross," one person, Willing_Ad1921, wrote on Reddit on the r/DunkinDonuts thread. Others were disappointed that they wasted their money on the new banana drinks, while others claimed that they only way to make them drinkable was to add a shot of vanilla.

Others had particularly strong feelings about Dunkin's attempt to make banana coffee happen. In fact, one Reddit user named human2rainbow claimed it was "the worst thing" they've ever tasted.

"Are these pigeon wings?" asked user Justananontroll on the Reddit thread r/PapaJohns, under an image of two wings they'd just ordered from the pizza chain, adding, "they are barely as long as the 1-ounce sauce cup." That customer is hardly alone in questioning whether Papa John's has stopped paying attention to the quality of its wings. Some of the chain's workers even responded saying that the wing suppliers aren't consistent, which explains why the quality and size goes up and down.

For some, the issue isn't the size, but the gap between expectation versus reality. Some think that the wings that Papa John's promises on its website don't actually hold up; other customers said they received a nugget-like piece of chicken with sauce drizzled over the top, instead of an actual wing. "I had 15 coupons for free wings and after the fifth I just gave up," wrote Reddit user Stock-Carpet-250 on the r/PapaJohns thread, adding "Little Caesars are better."

Listen, the economy isn't necessarily great right now, and we're all aware. As a result, many people are pulling back on their spending, and choosing to eat out far less in a bid to save money. But KFC thinks it has a solution. In March, it introduced its Value Feast range, with an aim to offer a high quality meal that's satisfying for a price that doesn't break the bank. The options include a $7 Box Feast, a $9 Box Feast, and an $11 Box Feast. The issue for many? The prices don't actually seem to translate to reality.

Several people have found that when they go to buy a Value Feast, the website charges them more than the amount mentioned. For example, one Redditor noted that the $7 Box Feast was actually $11. "I get the KFC emails and they almost never honor the deals in them locally," one Reddit user, named IllVolume5936, said in r/Hawaii thread.

For a number of other customers, it wasn't that KFC didn't honor the prices. Rather, the issue was that the feast itself was a let down. On TrustPilot, for instance, one customer claimed the nuggets were too small, and there were only about "eight fries" in the box.

The problem at KFC isn't the chicken according to customer complaints in 2026 — it's the gravy. Many have claimed the sauce used to be good, but the recipe appears to have changed in recent year, resulting in a lower quality product.

"They need to bring back the old gravy," wrote Reddit user Nemspy on the r/KFC thread, with others comparing the gravy to motor grease. Some complaints claim it's now far too watery, almost like a broth. For other customers, the issue isn't just the consistency, but the taste (or rather lack of it). 

More than that, KFC's gravy issues aren't new to this year. One customer felt strongly enough about KFC's declining gravy that they started a petition in 2025 hoping to encourage the chain to bring the old recipe back. And others say the taste is irrelevant, because they can't get past how its made. In a now-deleted TikTok video from several years back, one British worker revealed the mixture is made with chicken bits in the fryer, water, and gravy seasoning. Some found the whole process repulsive, and declared they would never eat it again.

If you're craving a takeout pizza, there's a good chance you'll pick up the phone and order from Domino's. After all, as the best-selling pizza chain in the U.S. as of October 2025, a location is rarely far away. But if you've ordered a pizza from Domino's in 2026, and felt seriously let down by what you actually received, you're not alone.

Many customers have expressed disappointment about Domino's pizzas this year, claiming that they're declining in quality. One Redditor even noted that the pizza they ordered arrived seriously undercooked. Other customers have claimed they have ordered pizzas from Domino's, only to receive a seriously limited amount of toppings and barely any cheese.

Several people seem to have had the same experience, noting that the cheese on their pie was seriously sparse. Some have even noted that the pizza tasted like it had been reheated. "It may have the worst excuse for a pizza I've ever had," wrote one customer on TrustPilot. Another added they were "tired of paying for extra cheese and not getting it. The pizza has barely any topping on it and it was totally tasteless."