9 Restaurant Chains With The Best Customer Service, According To Reviews

Everyone has their favorite restaurant chain. For some, it's the food that keeps them coming back, but for others, it's customer service. Even if the food is not that great or maybe it's mediocre, people will return to a restaurant that has staff that is friendly and kind. Perhaps servers who remember your name and/or your order. Who make you feel special, even if it's the first time that you've been there. As someone who has been in the trenches of the service world (aka a server), customer service is a big part of the job and one that can bring in a mountain of tips or diffuse hairy situations. It can also build relationships with regulars that are often fun and fulfilling.

But which restaurant chains have the best customer service? This is a tricky question to answer. Sure, there are reports and lists, like the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), which releases studies each year. However, customer service can vary from location to location, even within the same chain.

So, we dug deep into social media, forums, reviews, articles, and studies to find out which chains in the U.S. are known for their customer service and who have made it an important part of their operations. This is not to say that none of these restaurants have ever had a negative review of customer service (again, it varies and it's subjective), but they are chains that overall had more positive things about their customer service than negative.

While this list is not in any particular order, we are starting with the restaurant chain that overwhelmingly had the largest amount of positive reviews regarding customer service — Chick-fil-A. Sure, a lot of people flock to the chicken chain because of its iconic flavor, but many sing its praises because of its customer service, which seems to be pretty consistent across locations.

Chick-fil-A has been voted the highest in customer satisfaction for 11 years straight on the ACSI. It was given a score of 83 for both 2024 and 2025, higher than the average score for all quick-service restaurants of 79. This is based on over 16,000 surveys, which included questions about customer expectations, quality, customer loyalty, and more. It maintained its score and top spot even though it experienced slower growth.

The reviews and comments on the chain support this. A thread on Reddit asking what makes Chick-fil-A customer service so good mentions the fact that they are fully staffed, which lowers wait times and mistakes. It also mentioned their training. Other posts mentioned that the staff is friendly and polite. There were many comments about this on many different sites. A different thread on Reddit about customer service at fast food chains in general brought up Chick-fil-A several times, mentioning that the staff would ask if they needed anything and were polite. Customers commented that it appears workers genuinely enjoy being there, which makes the experience better. They also liked that the chain was clean.

In a way, Jersey Mike's is the sandwich shop that could. It started as a small local shop, then grew into a nationwide franchise in the '80s. Outside of reviews of its sandwiches, many have focused on the friendly staff and great customer service. While we haven't been to all of the chains on this list, we have been to Jersey Mike's and can attest to their friendly staff. They're polite and even joked around with us while getting our order ready. They were also quick to acknowledge any new customers who came in behind me. Definitely helped me to go back.

Other reviews echo this. They talked about the line moving fast and how workers stayed on top of orders coming, whether in person or online. Others commented that even when a delivery order took too long, the staff went out of their way to remake it and included free treats for the inconvenience. They commented on how organized and clean the restaurants are, or how they donate back to the community. There were more than one comment saying the staff is the best.

Other customers have commented that they like how the managers and staff chat with them. Another said that the workers took extra care with their food allergies. Other common remarks are that the staff is courteous, and as customers, they had great experiences at the restaurant. Customers like that the staff is friendly, even during rush hour, and make their sandwiches the way they want every time.

Whether you think Arby's is just okay or if you agree with Kristen Kish and Justin Sutherland, two chefs who think it's underrated, the consensus on the chain is that it knows how to take care of its customers. A thread on Reddit had comments such as the customer service is great and the staff always seems peppy. Others in the thread commented on the cleanliness and how workers were often friendly. Several mentioned that they like that the managers always seem to be working alongside the employees.

We found many posts on social media extolling the customer service, like this one, which talked about a worker at a local Arby's who offered the best service and had a "great energy." Another social media post lauded the "positive vibes" of the workers at their local Arby's, with more talking about how friendly the workers are. Other reviews have reiterated that the locations near them have nice and friendly staff, as well as serving people even though it was close to closing time.

Arby's is another chain that we can personally attest to. We've been to several in different states, though most recently we visited two different locations. At both shops, the staff were bright and friendly. They were incredibly polite, apologizing for the short wait we had to get fresh fried chicken. The other location chatted with us for a bit about pickles and were genuinely kind. From the looks of the social media reviews and our own experiences, it's safe to assume that you're going to find good customer service at nearly any Arby's you go to.

While some may wonder how Olive Garden's endless soup and salad tradition began, we're more curious about their training methods. We have yet to go to an Olive Garden that didn't have a fun server and excellent customer service. They've always been entertaining and got orders out in a timely fashion, as well as anticipating when anyone needed more to drink or wanted to get dessert. We don't know about you, but we like a server that jokes around with me, and we've definitely gotten that more often than not at Olive Garden.

However, you don't need to take our word for it. This social media post said Olive Garden had the best customer service, including the server taking the kids' order first after overhearing how hungry they were. Others backed them up on the post, echoing that they enjoyed the customer service at that location and others. Another social media post called their local Olive Garden a well-oiled machine, with additional comments sharing their experiences. One commended how well their server handled their large group, while others simply agreed that the chain has good customer service. Reviews on Comparably have been positive when it comes to customer service, with comments like "great culture," "The customer service has been great every time I go," and the staff is "a wonderful group of personnel who are so very friendly" and courteous.

Starbucks has more going for it than its generous free refill policy. It's known for having some of the best customer service around. Most people like that the service is quick and the employees are friendly. According to Comparbly, the chain is ranked No. 23 in Top Brands for Millennials, and more people are likely to recommend it than not. Though prices feel high sometimes, we've never had a bad experience at any of them, and we've been to many a Starbucks both in the United States and abroad.

Starbucks recently reiterated that customer service is one of its core focuses. CEO Brian Niccol said in an interview in July 2025 that the company is going to lay the foundation to become "once again the gold standard in customer service." The brand has worked to improve speed, hospitality, and accuracy, which has led to higher customer connection scores and lower customer complaints. Starbucks has made four-minute handoffs standard for in-person orders, and continues to evolve its customer rewards program.

Pretty much from the beginning, Starbucks wanted to become a place where customers could lounge or hang out while enjoying coffee alone or with friends. The brand dedicates a good amount of time to training, both on how to make drinks as well as how to interact with customers. All this is to say that it's no surprise the coffee chain repeatedly gets compliments on customer service.

Longhorn Steakhouse grew in popularity because of its affordable price, as well as the fact that it doesn't serve frozen steak. It's the great customer service that appears to bring customers back, as well. There are stories of employees sending gift cards after making mistakes on curbside orders, and how quickly servers at the chain take care of customers, even when extremely busy. Other customers have commented on social media about how attentive the staff is.

There are multiple reviews that talk about the friendly staff and how every visit is a great experience. Others like the consistency — no matter which Longhorn you visit, it has the same high-quality of service. Others talked about how they never had an empty glass, with servers staying on top of drinks. However, it wasn't over-the-top with servers hovering.

Reviews on YouTube have been giving points to Longhorn's service. In one video, Guga Foods complimented the quick service before ultimately giving the chain a 7.2 out of 10 stars, ranking it higher than Outback and Texas Roadhouse. Haire's Last Resort Adventures said their server took good care of them and they never had to ask for a thing. Despite the restaurant having a couple of parties going on at the time they were there, service was quick and high-quality.

While Papa John's may have been struggling with lower sales, along with many other fast food chains, it doesn't appear to be struggling as much when it comes to offering good customer service. On a social media post, one customer sang the praises of their delivery guy, even though the restaurant made a mistake on one pizza. The comments on the post all repeated compliments on the brand's customer service.

Another post complimented the pizza restaurant for having their large order ready early, as well as being friendly and helping load them into the car. Reviews from Google have been mostly positive when it comes to Papa John's customer service as well, commenting that the staff are fast and friendly.

Giving customers the best experience is a priority for the chain. In April 2025, it announced a new partnership with Google Cloud to use AI to improve ordering and delivery. It's goal is to help personalize the experience for each customer, giving them more of what they want. CEO Todd Penegor said it would help the chain to anticipate customers' needs and tailor recommendations and offers. Before that, the chain revamped its loyalty program, which reportedly got more people coming back to the restaurant and placing orders.

This Midwest fast food chain is known for its famous ButterBurgers, sourced from three suppliers, and its great customer service. There have been social media posts talking about how Culver's has great service, is clean, and gets food out quickly. An analysis of Culver's reviews from Tellculvers.com found that most people are happy with the chain's customer service, saying that workers are always courteous. It also reported high satisfaction scores.

Reviews on another website were also mostly positive in regards to customer service. Some mentioned that the staff was respectful, friendly, and efficient. Other reviews commented on how the service was good "inside and out," the staff was amazing, and got food out in a timely manner.

A thread on Reddit claimed that the chain had "110% the best customer service." A few talked about how workers gave them coupons for free food to make up for mistakes, even if they were small or not what the customer considered a mistake. Many agreed with the policy, with one commenter saying it's because Culver's goes out of its way to hire good people. From the number of comments, this seems to be a pretty standard response at Culver's across the board.

While Applebee's may not be as popular today as it once was, from recent reviews, it would appear that it still has good customer service. On the 2025 ACSI for full-service chains, the restaurant came in fifth for customer satisfaction, with a score of 80, rising from 79 the year before. Recent reviews through Consumer Affairs noted how workers were fast and kind, even when the restaurant was busy. One mentioned that the customers were so happy with the host/server at a location that they stood up for her when another customer was acting rudely.

Looking at Comparably, the analysis showed that the chain has 66% customer loyalty. Under reviews, customers talked about the fast service and friendly staff, as well as the attention to detail. A social media post talked about how a host at a location went above and beyond to help out a family with a cranky child. Some of the responses were from others sharing their own positive interactions with this host and server.

This isn't just a one-off thing at that specific location. Another social media post raved about a location in another state, saying that the staff and customer service were great. They mentioned the general manager coming to check on them and talked about how they were pushing strengthened customer service.

Let's get into the nitty-gritty of this list. Again, good or bad customer service can be subjective. What one person loves, another person may find annoying. But we strove to keep this as objective as possible. We looked at other rankings and customer satisfaction reports to start with to generate a massive list to start with.

From there, we went deeper. We looked into reviews from customers on forums like Reddit, and posted in groups on social media. We also looked at individual reviews on blogs and social media. We wanted to see what actual customers were really saying about these chains and their customer service. If a chain just didn't have enough reviews — good or bad — we would move on to the next one. We selected those that had generated the most buzz for the final list.

There were some specific things we kept in mind as we searched through reviews. Obviously, we were focused on finding positive ones, but there were also opinions to be gleaned from those that were critical. We looked for comments on how friendly the staff were, how quick they were to get orders taken and out. We also looked at how they handled mistakes — what they do to ease the frustration of customers, and did customers walk away wanting to come back, even though something was wrong with the order. Additionally, we looked for comments about how staff went above and beyond, or found small ways to make their customers feel special.