Not Jersey Mike's — Consumers Say This Fast Food Chain Has The Best-Quality Food

Jersey Mike's is a wildly popular sandwich chain, beating out Subway and Quizno's in our ranking of 20 sandwich shop chains. But while the chain takes some pretty extreme measures to prepare fresh ingredients for its diverse list of subs, Jersey Mike's still doesn't measure up to the quality, freshness, and value of Chick-fil-A.

In a YouGov report on U.S. restaurant brand rankings, Chick-fil-A came in first for food quality, beating Jersey Mike's at number two. Interviews with paying customers of different age ranges revealed that fans thought the taste, freshness, and quality of the food were excellent. Apart from food taste and quality, other key themes that put Chick-fil-A at the top of customer satisfaction lists include friendly service, consistency and reliability, efficiency and speed, and social influence and reputation. While the "A" in Chick-fil-A stands for Grade A chicken, the same high-quality standards also apply to hospitality and service. In fact, Chick-fil-A got the Ritz-Carlton CEO to help teach employees top-tier customer service.

If you're looking to get the most bang for your buck, Chick-fil-A isn't the cheapest chain, but it certainly isn't the most expensive, either. While Chick-fil-A ranks sixth out of 10 in terms of value on the YouGov brand survey, Jersey Mike's doesn't make the list. One of the biggest customer complaints for Jersey Mike's has to do with value, namely alleged shrinkflation that's reportedly diminishing the size of its sandwiches.

Despite Jersey Mike's motto of "a sub above," many customers have started raising complaints about the chain's sandwiches. You might be better off making Jersey Mike's Italian sub at home and choosing Chick-fil-A for your next fast food fix. After all, Chick-fil-A is known for some of the best sandwiches in the business. 

You might not have an array of different cold cuts, but Chick-fil-A's many chicken sandwich options have something for everyone. Some of our favorite chicken items include the Deluxe Chicken Sandwich, Original Chicken Sandwich, and Grilled Chicken Sandwich, for example. You can bring extra flavor to your sandwich order by adding a barbecue sauce packet and a honey pouch for a Southern-style upgrade.

While you can turn Jersey Mike's sandwiches into salads, Chick-fil-A also has a unique selection of salads fans enjoy so much that the chain has created a line of store-bought salad dressings. It also has more exciting sides than Jersey Mike's. It's no surprise that the waffle fries are the best side at Chick-fil-A, but the mac and cheese is another decadent option that you can add to the original chicken sandwich to make it even better. Other unexpected side dish contenders include chicken tortilla soup and a kale crunch salad for healthier alternatives to pair with your next chicken sandwich order.