The 10 Best Fast-Casual Restaurants of 2018

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We’re all pretty busy these days. This is especially true during the holidays. Between shopping for gifts, food preparation, and holiday get-togethers, who has time to sit down for a meal? Not us, that’s for sure. Even though we like to be wined and dined, we just don’t have time to sit down to a four-course meal at a white tablecloth-adorned restaurant. We have a schedule to keep. But, we’d rather not stop at a greasy, colon-attacking fast-food joint. Luckily for us, fast-casual has become a popular restaurant choice in recent years, so popular in fact that for the first time ever TripAdvisor has released a list of the 10 best fast casual restaurants in the U.S.

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This week, TripAdvisor announced its Traveler’s Choice awards for restaurants. They have a top 10 for best fine dining, everyday dining, and the aforementioned fast-casual. They based these lists on an algorithm using the amount of, and the quality of, restaurant reviews for the last year.

“Millions of diners worldwide rely on TripAdvisor to discover their perfect culinary experience. The 2018 Travelers’ Choice restaurant winners are what diners consider the best-in-class, and we hope these leaders in hospitality will inspire others to try something new,” Bertrand Jelensperger, senior vice president for TripAdvisor Restaurants said in a press release. “Food and dining experiences can often be the main highlight of any trip or an evening out. Luckily, diners can use this list to find the ideal eatery for any occasion – from formal to casual and everything in between.”

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The biggest surprise: Chipotle didn’t make the cut. Also: Americans really love tacos and burgers. You can check out the whole list below:

Portillo’s – Chicago, Illinois

Earl of Sandwich – Las Vegas, Nevada

Shake Shack – New York City, New York

Blaze Pizza – Orlando, Florida

In-N-Out Burger – Los Angeles, California

The Taco Stand – La Jolla, California

Five Guys – Orlando, Florida

Super Duper Burgers – San Francisco, California

Tacos el Gordo – Las Vegas, Nevada

Torchy’s Tacos – Austin, Texas

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