The big leagues

To be “in the big leagues” is to be among the biggest or best of your type. When thinking of fast-food chains, there are the big, well-known international brands, and then there are some smaller, regional chains.

For example, McDonald’s, Burger King, and Starbucks are in the big leagues, while Jimmy John’s and Popeye’s are much smaller. For a long time, Chick-fil-A was a small, regional chain of restaurants. But in the last decade, it propelled itself into the big leagues. That means, it increased its sales so much that it is now one of the biggest and best of its type (fast-food restaurants).