Countless businesses met their end as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic, with even larger chains taking a hit as the world shut down. A new study is purporting that several restaurant chains are bouncing back years after the global pandemic, including one that has seen a decline in San Antonio.
The study, conducted by Restaurant Furniture, looked at Google search trends between 2021 and 2025. Based on the data, the company ranked the 10 chains that saw the biggest jumps in search interest. Oklahoma-based Sonic Drive-In topped the list, with searches reportedly soaring 1,601% over four years. Some might call Sonic the comeback kid, but things look a bit different in the Alamo City.
Despite these findings, the Sonic Drive-In has seen many closures across San Antonio in recent years, with locations on De Zavala Road, Zarzamora Street, Ingram Road, Nacogdoches Road, Pat Booker Road and Culebra Road all closing since 2024, based on previous MySA reporting. At the time of writing, Sonic Drive-In lists 37 locations as still open in San Antonio.
A closed Sonic location on De Zavala Road. (Polly Anna Rocha/MySA)
As for other fast-food chains’ comeback stories, the restaurant study had Dunkin’ and Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers in the second and third, respectively, followed by In-N-Out Burger and Jimmy John’s. In an extended version of the list, Texas-based burger chain Whataburger landed in the No. 15 spot.
This article originally published at Nation’s No. 1 comeback fast-food chain is stumbling in San Antonio.