Introduction
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread, many fast-food chains are making the difficult decision to close their dining rooms. This is a necessary step to help protect the health and safety of customers and employees. In this article, we’ll take a look at nine fast-food chains that are phasing out dining rooms and what they’re doing to keep customers safe. We’ll also provide some tips on how to make the most of your fast-food experience while still staying safe.
9 Fast-Food Chains That Are Phasing Out Dining Rooms
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread, many fast-food chains are making the decision to close their dining rooms in order to protect their customers and employees. Here are nine fast-food chains that are phasing out dining rooms:
1. McDonald’s
McDonald’s has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $15 or more through the McDonald’s app.
2. Burger King
Burger King has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $10 or more through the Burger King app.
3. Wendy’s
Wendy’s has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $10 or more through the Wendy’s app.
4. Taco Bell
Taco Bell has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $12 or more through the Taco Bell app.
5. KFC
KFC has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $20 or more through the KFC app.
6. Chick-fil-A
Chick-fil-A has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $10 or more through the Chick-fil-A app.
7. Arby’s
Arby’s has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $10 or more through the Arby’s app.
8. Sonic
Sonic has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $15 or more through the Sonic app.
9. Jack in the Box
Jack in the Box has closed the dining rooms of all of its U.S. locations, but is still offering drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services. The chain is also offering free delivery on orders of $15 or more through the Jack in the Box app.
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread, it’s important to stay informed about the changes that fast-food chains are making in order to protect their customers and employees. By phasing out their dining rooms, these fast-food chains are doing their part to help slow the spread of the virus.
In order to make room for more drive-thru lanes and areas for curbside pickups, fast-food chains have been rethinking the concept of a modern-day restaurant with new design prototypes. And one element, in particular, seems to be taking up less and less real estate in a modern fast-food joint—the dining room.
As chains continue to unveil their future restaurant designs, many of them are reducing the sizes of their dining rooms, and in some cases getting rid of them altogether. Here are some of the biggest chains leading the charge in a move to off-premise dining.
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Panera just opened its first “next-generation” restaurant in Missouri last week, and besides double drive-thru lanes and new digital features, its dining room has gotten a makeover as well. For one, the new location and any future Panera store will have dining rooms that are about five times smaller than what you’re used to. However, the chain is going for cozy and will be putting their bread-baking ovens on full display for customers to marvel at.
Burger King’s “restaurant of the future,” a prototype set to begin rolling out this year, will feature several novelties: massive drive-thrus, food lockers, conveyor belts, and in some cases . . . al fresco dining rooms. While some of the chain’s new designs feature smaller dining rooms sitting directly atop drive-thru lanes, others forego a traditional interior altogether and instead include only a shaded patio for on-premise dining.
Portillo’s, a beloved Chicago-based brand, is as known for its iconic hot dogs as it is for its large dining rooms. But the future looks very different for the chain and its customers. According to CEO Michael Osanloo, Portillo’s is betting on off-premise sales as its main source of traffic, and its new locations will reflect this strategy.
Not only is Portillo’s reducing the size of its dining rooms, but it will soon test a prototype location with no dining room at all. The first pick-up-only unit will open in Joliet, Ill. this winter and will have three drive-thru lanes instead.
IHOP may be a staple dine-in chain, but the brand is expanding with an on-the-go offshoot more suitable for takeout. Flip’d by IHOP is serving the iconic breakfast and lunch menu from IHOP but in portable packaging, and features much smaller locations with limited dining room areas.
Del Taco’s idea of a post-pandemic restaurant was dubbed Fresh Flex—a new design offering a range of store sizes to prospective operators. Some of those options include small drive-thru-only locations sans dining rooms.
Not to be outdone in the way of drive-thru efficiency, McDonald’s said last year it was also exploring an express restaurant model, which would forego the dining room and focus on drive-thru, takeout, and delivery services.
KFC announced last year that it was planning to slowly phase out its current restaurant design (dubbed the “American Showman”) for one that puts less emphasis on dining in. It introduced two new designs that will drastically reduce its traditional dining rooms—one focused on drive-thru expansion in suburban areas, and one with lesser dine-in capacity for urban areas where real estate is expensive.
Besides adding its Chipotlanes across America (its proprietary drive-thru on steroids), Chipotle also opened a first-ever digital-only restaurant in New York state last year. The location doesn’t have a dining room and its employees can’t take in-store orders. Instead, customers have to place their orders through the chain’s mobile app or website for pickup or delivery. You can expect to see this Chipotle setup to expand across the country in the coming years.
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