The Most Popular Chain Restaurant In America Only Has 21 Stores In Missouri

A recent ranking of America's Top 50 most popular chain restaurants has been released. It's not surprising what restaurants made the list, either. Many are familiar; you can even find some in smaller towns in Missouri.

You can find many of these restaurants in our corner of the world. I don't just mean the prominent fast food joints like McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Dairy Queen, Wendy's, and Subway. I mean restaurants like iHop, Panera, Applebees, and Buffalo Wild Wings.

Of course, some of the restaurants on this list require visiting a bigger town like Columbia or at least the suburbs of St. Louis or Kansas City to enjoy their offerings. The restaurant at #1 is like that. They only have 21 stores in Missouri, which isn't a lot for the restaurant ranked at #1. Honestly, I might not have included this place on my list. Keep reading to find out.

There you have it. According to YouGov and Stacker, America's #1 chain restaurant is Baskin-Robbins, the ice cream store with 31 flavors. First, I'm not sure I'd count Baskin-Robbins as an actual restaurant. However, putting that aside, I can't tell you how many times, as a kid and an adult, I enjoyed a double scoop: mint chocolate chip and chocolate fudge.

Yet, at this point, that was several years ago because neither Sedalia nor Warrensburg has Baskin-Robbins. There is one off of Highway 50 in Lee's Summit, yet I can't remember it ever registering with me when I've driven by.

So why isn't Baskin Robbins in Sedalia, Warrensburg, or even many rural communities in Missouri? I think the #2 entry on the list, Dairy Queen, might be why. When you think of small-town America, or at least when I think of small-town America, Dairy Queen seems to be one of those franchises that's been in small-town America since they started.

Of course, Baskin-Robbins always seemed more of a suburban or city thing. The store smushed between a couple of other stores in a 50s-era built strip mall or on a block of a busy town surrounded by a dry-cleaner, Woolworths, a beauty salon, and a pet shop.

The marriage of Dunkin' and Baskin-Robbins, which seems to be a thing today, occurred in the 1990s when the two restaurants ended up under common ownership. Today, they're owned by Inspire Brands, which also owns Arby's, Sonic, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Jimmy Johns.

Speaking of ice cream, check out this list of 21 of the most popular ice cream flavors in America!