Is there a link between fundamentalist Christianity and a preference for generic chain restaurants?
There's a link between religiousness and living in rural, non-cosmopolitan areas; and there's also a link between living in rural, non-cosmopolitan areas and preferring generic chain restaurants because that's often genuinely the best* option when you're far away from the density, wealth, and ethnic diversity which are all-too-often prerequisites for good local food.
*or at least safest, or possibly even only
But a local restaurant could theoretically still serve delicious "home cooking" or "American" fare without getting too cosmopolitan. I say "could theoretically" as from my time in rural Ohio I found that one couldn't get a good meal at any local restaurant better than the "you want fries with that?" level. I'm no snob who can't enjoy Denny's or the like, but when there was NOTHING better than that available without driving at least 30-60 minutes in any direction, it gets kinda depressing.
Or, if you've grown up used to that, I guess you get used to mediocre food being "okay" since there's no competition. So I think I just answered my own question.
