5. Taco Bell

Average time in seconds: 236.50

2017: 212.71 (sixth place)

2016: 220.11 (sixth place)

Mike Grams, Taco Bell’s chief operating officer, said the speed slow down fits with industry trends.

“Over the last five years, everybody has seen, as traffic has increased in the drive thru, times have slowed down,” he said. “Items per [transaction] has gone up almost a half item at Taco Bell in the last couple years, which is a great thing, but it also means something else has to be produced with every order.”

Gram also said there seems to be some consumer learning needed with mobile order lanes. “I’m not sure that’s 100 percent the way to go,” he added. “If I get enough volume to have another lane, great, but I think there’s still so much room for us to grow in the space today.”

Taco Bell is looking closely at digital menuboards, particularly those that integrate an order-confirmation board. The boards would allow Taco Bell to change the menu based on daypart, something that Grams says can accommodate “more time-sensitive” meal occasions throughout the day.

“We know the No. 1 pain point for the drive-thru experience today is actually at the order point, and that hasn’t changed in the 15 years that I’ve worked in drive thrus,” Grams said. “How do you make that faster? How do you make it easier? How do you make it more readable and more enjoyable? Where you see us experiment and prototype and try different things will be around that area.”

Taco Bell scored solid marks on other details: order accuracy (91.5 percent), saying thank you (89 percent), eye contact (89 percent), and pleasant demeanor (85.3 percent).