A survey of 6,000 diners and coffee drinkers has named the top five fast food coffees in the US; plus a guy who’s making faces out of coffee foam.

The 2009 Zagat Fast-Food Survey has been released and the results have yielded Starbucks as the undisputed coffee-slinging champ. The company placed first over second and third place finishers Dunkin’ Donuts and Peet’s Coffee. Rounding out the category were also McDonald’s and Caribou Coffee in fourth and fifth place, respectively.

For full-service, “sit down” restaurant coffee, survey subjects named The Cheesecake Factory as their top choice, followed by IHOP, Cracker Barrel, Denny’s, and Waffle House.

A little over 6,100 fast food fans took part in the survey, split nearly evenly among males and females. The average survey participant visited a fast-food chain 6.3 times per month and a full-service restaurant 4.7 times per month.

So, what does this survey tell us about coffee in America right now? As far as popularity goes, there really aren’t any surprises here. Despite their economic troubles, Starbucks still seems to be foremost in Americans minds when it comes to thinking about coffee.

However, just because a choice is popular doesn’t mean the survey participants have actually sampled all five top coffees and truly named Starbucks as the best. Humans are creatures of habit, and when asked “what’s your favorite coffee?” most of us will just answer the first thing that comes to mind.

What do you think of Zagat’s top five? Did your favorite make the list? I hear my own opinion of the first place finisher echoed back at me in one of the survey participant’s comments: “Good morning heartburn.”

Wake up and face the coffee

Move over, latte art. A Denver barista has just created the next level of coffee foam artwork: a customer’s portrait, staring back at him or her atop their cappuccino.

Michael Keen, the owner of Studio 6 Coffee on Denver’s Santa Fe Drive, gently sketches his customer’s features into the foamy tops of the lattes he serves in his shop. He stopped by the Today Show Wednesday morning to show off his skills and talk a little about what he does.

“I’m surrounded by artists in the art district of Denver, so everything that goes on is always about creativity,” Keen told Matt and the gang. “Even our coffee…always comes out as something really interesting.”

Strong features, like the perpetually attractive Matt Lauer’s, are easy to pour while Al Roker’s face seemed to provide a bit more of a challenge. Keen said he doesn’t charge for the coffee foam portraits and that they last about two to three minutes.

You can check out the video from Wednesday’s Today Show and see more examples of Keen’s work by clicking here.

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