If you are on any of the St. X sports teams or participate in after-school activities and you need something to eat before a game, this list will assist you to choose the most efficient option. Dairy Queen, McDonald’s, Panera and Taco Bell are the closest, but they are not the fastest drive thru’s. Plus, McDonald’s and Panera are usually busy, so it won’t hurt to drive a little farther to get back to school faster. Below are our official times and breakdown for each drive thru from our experiment.

1. Dairy Queen: 7:35.14

Although the time isn’t the slowest in our experiment, DQ is the slowest drive thru on Poplar Level Road. It took seven and a half minutes to get through, but nobody else was in line. If somebody had been in front of me, and had ordered food, I would have easily been there for fifteen minutes. Other than the blizzard being the best fast food dessert, it is the slowest drive thru.

2. McDonald’s: 8:19.10

Surprisingly, McDonald’s was not as slow as expected. The line was full, and I ordered a combo, but it moved with decent flow. They took my order as soon as I pulled up to the speaker. There were about five cars in front of me, but they each got in and out in about the same amount of time.

3. Panera: 11:02.23 

I will give Panera the benefit of the doubt because there was a long line. But I think that if there wasn’t a line, it would probably be like four to five minutes. I do believe that their food takes longer to make. But if you’re in a rush, I wouldn’t recommend it.

4. City BBQ: 2:32.79 

I’ve heard from many people that City BBQ is the longest, but they were very fast for me. I expected them to be longer because of the quality of the food. There was no one in line so that made it way faster.

5. Taco Bell: 02:23.78 

There was no one in front of me. I had to wait at the window for a little while. I was surprised because I have heard many stories of Taco Bell taking a long time to get your food, but two minutes is a very good time. 

6. Scooters: 2:20.23

Scooters does actually serve food, but I didn’t know this, so it took me a minute to review the menu. Most people think they only serve coffee, but they do serve good tasting food. Something about this place I really like is the manners of the workers. They are the most polite drive through, and they are very efficient.

7. Wendy’s: 1:07.47 

There was no one in line and they were all working quickly. I went there a few times in my early years at St. X, but I didn’t remember it being this fast. They have hired more workers and have become one of, if not the most, efficient drive thru’s on Poplar Level Road.