Chick-fil-A is once again teens' favorite fast-food chain in America

• Chick-fil-A is teens' favorite fast-food chain in the US, according to Piper Sandler's biannual survey.
• The chicken chain has topped rankings of Gen Z's favorite restaurants for years.
• Chick-fil-A's sales are exploding, with revenue growing more than 20% in 2019.

Chick-fil-A is — once again — teens' favorite restaurant chain in the US.

The chicken chain snagged the top spot as Gen Z's favorite restaurant brand in Piper Sandler's biannual survey of teenagers.

Piper Sandler surveyed 9,800 teenagers across the US, with an average age of 15.8 years. Chick-fil-A topped the ranking for both high-income and low-income households, as it has for the last several surveys conducted by the financial services giant. The average household income of respondents surveyed this year was $67,500.

Chick-fil-A dominates customer satisfaction rankings among customers of all ages. Last year, Business Insider polled readers on their favorite fast-food chains. Chick-fil-A took the top spot for best food, best customer service, and cleanest bathrooms.

The chain has seen explosive growth in recent years, growing revenue by an estimated 20.6% in 2019 to reach $12.6 billion — solidifying Chick-fil-A's spot as the third largest restaurant chain by sales in the US, according to Nation's Restaurant News.

Chick-fil-A's success can be linked to its strong customer service and technology investments.

The company's unique business structure also helps set Chick-fil-A apart from the competition. Each Chick-fil-A franchisee is only allowed to open a single location, following a rigorous application process. As a result, operators tend to be more hands on and able to enforce Chick-fil-A's standards around seemingly minor details — like telling customers "my pleasure" and giving away free food.

"Little things like being told 'please' and 'thank you' — it feels like you're appreciated as a customer and a human being at Chick-fil-A," Kalinowski Equity Research founder Mark Kalinowski told Business Insider last year. "And especially in today's very complex world, it's just very nice to be able to go to a place where you feel appreciated."

Teens' obsession with Chick-fil-A in current markets is in stark contrast to some of the backlash the chain has seen in recent years, especially as it eyes expansion in new countries. Unlike many fast-food rivals, Chick-fil-A only has restaurants in the US and Canada.

When the company recently attempted to expand into the UK, it was met with protests claiming the company had donated to anti-LGBTQ organizations. Both of the chain's locations — intended as "pilot license locations" with limited menus and short-term leases — in the UK are now closed. Chick-fil-A has not indicated any plans to open new locations in the country. Chick-fil-A also ended donations criticized by LGBTQ activists last year.