Minnesota’s Top Ten Chain Restaurants Might Surprise You

Restaurant week was last week in St. Cloud, it celebrated local eateries while at the same time the participating restaurants had the chance to show off some culinary skills. It did get me thinking about what chain restaurants are most popular not only in St. Cloud but in Minnesota as a whole. Here are the 10 most popular food chains by the number of locations that you can find in Minnesota.

What Are The Most Popular Food Chains In Minnesota? (Based On Locations)

#10 - Burger King, as of April 2025, there were 96 Burger King restaurants scattered across 76 cities in Minnesota.

#9 - Taco Bell, as of April 2025, there were 101 Taco Bell restaurants found in 72 different cities in Minnesota.

#8 - Jimmy John's, as of April 2025, there were 109 Jimmy John's locations in Minnesota across 71 different cities.

#7 - Pizza Hut, as of April 2025, there were 109 Pizza Hut store locations across 79 different cities in Minnesota.

#6 - Domino's Pizza, as of April 2025, there were 143 Domino's Pizza locations across 113 cities in Minnesota. This makes it the most popular pizza chain in Minnesota.

#5 - Dairy Queen, as of April 2025, there were more than 206 stores across 176 Minnesota cities. Dairy Queen might have gotten its start in 1940 down in Illinois, but Minnesota was a quick adopter, with the state getting its first DQs back in 1947.

#4 - McDonald's, as of April 2025, there were 220 restaurant locations across 146 different Minnesota cities. You can learn more about how McDonald's changed St. Cloud's food scene here. 

#3 - Starbucks, as of April 2025, there were 237 Starbucks stores across 86 Minnesota cities. This makes Starbucks one of the most heavily saturated food chains in the state. The St. Cloud area has 6 different locations.

#2 - Caribou Coffee, as of April 2025, there were 303 Caribou Coffee locations across 127 Minnesota cities. Of course, we MAY have an affinity towards the Minnesota coffee chain. The 'bou got its start in Edina back in 1992.

#1 - Subway Restaurants, the Minnesota food chain with the most locations across the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Subway, as of April 2025, had 395 stores across 241 cities in Minnesota.

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Data used for location number and the number of cities can be found here. 

Central Minnesotans Don't Have To Go Far To Find These

The St. Cloud area is home to at least one of each of the 10 most popular chains in Minnesota, meaning you won't have to go far to spot a familiar business sign.