The New Year always brings a fresh crop of "top ten" lists and the editors at Entrepreneur Magazine have just declared a new champion in their annual rankings for best franchise. From the looks of it, there seems to be a high failure rate for resolutions to stop eating so much fast-food.

7-Eleven Inc., the retailer that gave us the Slurpee and the 44 ounce Super Big Gulp, has been named the No.1 franchise opportunity, according to Entrepreneur Magazine's 2008 Annual Franchise 500. 7-Eleven moved up from fourth place last year to become the first convenience store chain to claim first place. 7-Eleven started a 24 hour schedule in the 1960's. As a nation of harried commuters increasingly headed out the door before sunrise to beat the rush-hour traffic, 7-Eleven stood ready, serving coffee and breakfast sandwiches. The upset victory broke a seven year continuous run at the top for sandwich mega-chain, Subway.

But Subway didn't fall far, landing at number two. The company has taken first place on Entrepreneur's list a total of 15 times, attributing much of its success to the marketing of a healthy fast-food alternative. When Indiana University student Jared Fogel lost 245 pounds with exercise and a diet of Subway sandwiches, he became the company's wildly popular spokesperson, attracting a new following of dieters and health conscious consumers. Subway now has 28,703 outlets in 86 countries.

Taking the number three spot without making any weight-loss claims, Dunkin' Donuts began in 1950 as a donut and coffee shop in Quincy, Mass. The company now claims to serve more than 3 million customers per day in more than 7,000 locations worldwide, with its heaviest international concentration in South Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand.

PizzaHut is number four on the list, tracing its success to a family business started in the 1950's, when two brothers borrowed $600 from their mother and made Wichita, Kan. history. The company was purchased by the giant PepsiCo, Inc. in 1977 and eventually became part of YUM! Brands, the parent company of Taco Bell, KFC, A&W and Long John Silver's. YUM! Brands is now the world’s largest restaurant company, with more than 34,000 locations worldwide.

One of the most recognizable brands in the world, McDonalds takes fifth place. A franchise pioneer, McDonald's has been at it for more than 50 years and the company reports on its web site that "more than 70% of McDonald's restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent local men and women." Often a target of critics blaming fast-food for rising obesity rates, McDonald's now has a team of "wellness experts" as consultants on educational outreach and menu options, including cardiovascular disease prevention guru, Dr. Dean Ornish. But it may still be hamburgers and fries fueling profits, with McDonald's reporting an 8.2% Global Comparable Sales Rise in November.

Burgers rule again at Sonic Drive-In Restaurants in sixth place. The largest chain of drive-in restaurants in the United States, Sonic has thousands of locations nationwide, expanding into Mexico in 2001. Sonic features a 1950's theme, complete with car hops delivering food to customer vehicles. Sonic also offers unique menu items like Cherry Limeades and Coneys (chili smothered hot dogs.) The drive-in chain got its start in Shawnee, Okla. in 1953 and became a small town sensation in several states. At the end of the 2007 fiscal year, company officials announced 21 consecutive years of positive same-store sales.