Do these companies not realize their whole business model is cheap food for broke people? I lived off of $5 footlongs when I was a student. There’s no way I could have afforded that with the prices they’re charging now. And now that I do have disposable income and could afford their food I wouldn’t go there anyway because there are way better options for the same price.
I think they’ve realized that they’ve successfully trained poor people to not know how to cook and then there aren’t any options left if they all band together.
I wonder if there’s software that makes pricing cartels easier to form now.
Banding together is supposed to be economically unstable because anyone who undercuts on price is supposed to capture the market.
Drug cartels can punish defectors with violence. Is there some new mechanism legal businesses are using to punish pricing cartel defectors? Maybe it’s lawsuits?
I guess I’m thinking more of fast food places: After they got cheap food market, they had to keep growing so they tried to be semi fancy to convince people to go there instead of restaurants. It was back when people had more money / lower cost of living. They got too optimistic. Now we’re back to wanting cheap cheap cheap.
Back in high school, which coincidentally were my weed days, the state tax in NJ allowed us to do the 4.20 meal: JBC, small nuggets, small fries, small frostee. They were all off the dollar menu (which I understand isn’t a thing anymore), and came to 3.96, with 24¢ tax. It was a beautiful thing and honestly sold itself. If Wendy’s, or any fast burger joint, were to bring back a 4.20 meal, I have to imagine some young stoners having a giggle and ordering it. And then, the ingredients and their ability to tug on people’s addiction centers, do the rest of the work.
Back in highschool, actually before my stoner days but I still hung out with that crowd, Dairy Queen had burgers, 2 for $4; with a 5% GST and no PST, I giggled a bit every time I ordered them, which was 3 or 4 days a week
Taco Bell used to be a goto, then they tried to get too creative and half their stuff became a sloppy greasy mess. Now you can’t go and simply get 3 soft tacos and a drink for under $10 and they seem to change the menu every other week.
BRING BACK THE 2 MENUS AT THE DRIVE THRU SO I CAN DECIDE ON MY ORDER WHILE THE DOLT IN THE MINIVAN IN FRONT OF ME IS ORDERING FOR 12 PEOPLE!
I really really want to be on your side, Taco bell has gone crazy on the prices and I hate it.
But, on the other hand, it sounds like you haven’t even had the crispy cantina taco meal and that’s not a life I’d wish on anybody.
Where are you? I just got on the app and 3 soft shell tacos and a large drink is $9.13 after tax. That’s still more than I would pay for that especially seeing as the build your own cravings box is only $6.48 after tax and comes with much better options. I seriously am flabbergasted when I read the prices people are saying they pay.
Where I’m at, the price for the boxes are minimum $8 or $9, most of the combos are $11-$15 before tax, and they change their menu so often that I can’t be bothered going there. 3 years ago the prices were a lot closer to what you’re seeing.
I used to go there pretty often, but with the prices going up particularly in the last few years and with the additional inconvenience of having to learn what their new gimmick of the week item is and what box or combo items they’ve removed to make space for it, I just can’t be bothered. Also because eventually I realized that there’s a local Mexican restaurant that sells bigger, better burritos for cheaper in a gas station closer to my work than Taco Bell is. Only downside is them not having a drive through.
Start looking at the … “Welcome to Taco Bell will you be using the app?”
And holy hell is their app a piece of shit.
Yep. Tried to add points with my receipt the other day, and it refused to access the camera to scan the barcode, and refused to give me a keyboard so I could manually input the code.
The only saving grace they have right now is that they brought back a $7 cravings box meal. Filling and only $7.54 with tax.
Yep. Tried to add points with my receipt the other day, and it refused to access the camera to scan the barcode, and refused to give me a keyboard so I could manually input the code.
But at least it ignores your preferences and makes the stupid “bong” sound when you tell it not to.
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i moved from FL to MA, i have few regrets, i do miss pubsubs though. and corn nuggets.
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As sacrilegious as it sounds pub subs are very mid-tier to me. Perfectly acceptable sandwich just too much bread and always kinda dry unless I drown it in mayo/mustard after the fact. I’d rather go with their tenders and potato wedges honestly
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I have no clue how they don’t get it. The selling point of fast food was always the speed, convenience and a price. They’ve been degrading all 3 of those selling points and now it’s just not fucking worth it anymore.
But like it’s nothing new, I don’t belive I’m the only one, that for the last few years, every price hike just started picking less and less form the menu. And I’m not poor, far from it, I can definitely afford the price hikes, it’s just, once it’s 8x times more expensive than home cooking, the convenience no longer outweighs the shit ass quality. I hate paying as if I was at a fancy place and getting pure shit, might as well just go to a fancy place for fucks sake!
Saw an article recently, can’t remember where, that basically said that the sole reason fast food was doing so poorly was pricing. That McDonald’s was charging Texas Roadhouse prices, so people were choosing to skip McDonald’s and go to Texas Roadhouse.
I haven’t even considered McDonald’s because their pricing skyrocketed post pandemic when inflation was high. They saw other businesses justifying large price increases by blaming inflation and the idiot consumers accepting the lie, and just ignored the niche their product is in, cheap shit.
Before the pandemic to be able to get a McDouble, Spicy McChicken and Fries for $4 with tax. Granted, the fries were only $1 with a digital coupon, but that coupon was always there. It was like the 2 tacos for 99¢ deal at Jack in the Box, you just gotta use the app.
Now that same group of food is $9 and the coupons available are dogshit. 15% off my $10 meal is not a good deal when sales tax is $12%. I’m not really saving much compared to things like BOGO offers and $1 items like it used to be constantly.
This is exactly what subway is doing.
“A regular deli charges $16 for a sub/hero/grinder/hoagie/pickafuckingnameforalongsandwitch so we’re charging $14! It’s less they’ll still come the econ 101 book says they will! I’ll take my multimillion dollar bonus now tyvm.”
Except a regular deli actually puts meat on their subs instead of lightly rubbing the sub with a piece of turkey then filling it with lettuce.
Yeah, but a regular deli makes a decent fucking sandwich and isn’t using the cheapest institutional ingredients imaginable.
Unless you get the promoted deals it’s starting to be like that everywhere. Near me if im getting two burgers and two fries, I spend less at five guys than I do at burger king. Why would I ever go to BK?
Even FG is unreasonable.
My wife and 6YO kid went to FG last week and spent $27 on a meal for two and they split the fries.
A few ounces of meat, 50 cents of soda, a couple potatoes and an arguably 2 nice quality rolls. That meal cost them $5. Even with inflated labor it should be more like $15.
Five guys has been bad for a while. Super expensive for a really greasy burger. I had to stop eating there several years ago.
Five guys is at the very bottom of my “list of things that are so needlessly expensive that now I actively hate”.
Cause they’re so fucking good, and they use better stuff than most.
The moment that changes… will be the day I either go no-beef, or start rioting.
Culver’s destroys fg for quality and price
They’ve barely raised their prices in the last decade, they’re actually pretty fast, and there’s nearly always a bunch of people queued up.
Depends on the location too. For my location everything on the menu is $2 more than it is in the nearby, similarly-sized city. And there’s a high quality Wendy’s right next door.
I’ll take good Wendy’s at half the price of Five Guys.
Of course everyone is doing tiered pricing. You either use their apps or pay double. I think half of it is to get the app on your phone, and the other half is simply to make you jump through hoops for lower pricing. They all want to charge obscene prices, and then if you object, give you an option other than not going there. “Just install our app” could just as easily be “pat your head while standing on one leg and rubbing your stomach, and we’ll give you 40% off.”
I’m sorry, but fuck Wendy’s. Yes, capitalism is in decline around us all, but fuck Wendy’s for deciding they’re gonna be the first in fast food to push that envelope to full-blown-shit mode. And their burgers are just eh.
(Hey, pssst… so, quoting etiquette typically means you’re not using the quoting carrot on something not in the the comment you are replying to without noting it in the comment somehow. I was staring very confused at my replies inbox for, like, 4-5 read throughs of your reply, because its an opinion I could have typed, and couldn’t remember at all lol. 🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️)
Pretty sure it was around after Dave Thomas passed that the quality took a dive at many franchise locations, similar poor business decisions looking for short term profits over long term customers affecting many businesses these days.
The data is delicious for ‘em. Assists in world domination plans. Not really but they’ll eventually fine tune who gets deals real good IMO.
Connect to LinkedIn to see pricing
Income based fast food prices
Sometimes I go there just for an order of fries because they’re just that good. I can’t bring myself to pay $14 for a burger though.
Fucksake man, will you PLEASE think of the shareholders
Five guys has been expensive for a long time. The rest just caught up more recently.
I would kill for an in-and-out burger on the East Coast. You can get a burger, fries, and drink for less than an Five Guys cheeseburger.
Five Guys at least has better food than most fast food and the portions are so massive you basically have to share
The recent Disney lawsuit reminded me of this. In order to get those deals, McDonald’s makes you use their app, and part of signing up for the app is agreeing to their ToS which has an arbitration clause
Yeah but there’s no way a judge will follow that reasoning. The response to the arbitration argument was that the argument was “unconscionable” and “no reasonable person” would think signing up for Disney Plus means they can’t file a wrongful death suit for a restaurant that has nothing to do with Disney Plus.
Also the lawyer who made the arbitration argument just got his client so much bad PR that i’m sure Disney Plus will take a hit over it.
I was with you until
Disney Plus will take a hit over it.
The average consumer is just so damn apathetic that nothing will happen
Selling your rights to Disney so you can get a cheaper burger is a uniquely American flavor of dystopia
I believe it. The whole appeal of fast food is that it’s fast and cheap.
As a european, fast food is just like a category of food, and more of an occasional treat for me. Normally, I just eat my own homemade food, which is even cheaper. So I guess I see it a little differently, and fast food is allowed to be not cheap if it’s “good”.
Hell yeah, gimme that cancer patty and those artery clogging fries, baby! But make the obesity water size “for kids”.
For many Americans it’s just lunch. If McD’s costs $5 they’re buying. If it costs $15 they’re packing.
“Fast and cheap” as in cheaper than buying precooked food somewhere else. Of course stuff you make at home will be cheaper.
The thing is that at least in my corner of Europe, fast food costs about the same as a filling meal in a sit down restaurant that doesn’t deep fry or microwave everything.
There is an exception but they only have 3 locations in one single town. They’ve barely raised their prices in the last decade, they’re actually pretty fast, and there’s nearly always a bunch of people queued up.
EUn ‘n’ Out?
True, McDonald’s is so expensive now that for 15€ I can go to Mc or I can go to a bib Gourmand restaurant for lunch (dinner is more expensive)
Was not my experience in the US. $1 fast food meals were a thing in 2016. A disgusting one.
I just stopped eating fast food altogether and started using our company cafe, prices at the drive-thru got absolutely ridiculous and the service got worse. I just eat a small salad and a drink, still costs around $6–7/day, but it’s way better than fast food prices. I could probably get it down cheaper if I prepped at home, but fruit and vegetables go bad so frequently and our cafe’s rates are ok-ish, so I just make due with that.
prices at the drive-thru got absolutely ridiculous and the service got worse
And in the case of McDonald’s, the burgers and fries both taste like compressed napkins now. Idk WTF they’ve done to their burgers, but that’s not beef.
They added some food-grade sawdust filler and cut out the majority of beef with their latest round of shrinkflation. Their regular patties are so small and thin that they’re impossible to stay moist in th burger. There’s no more fat left.
I very rarely eat out but if I am going to end up blowing on 30 on two meals I may as well blow 45 on a local spot with a seat and a hefty tip to the waiter.
and a hefty tip to the waiter.
And I detest tipping culture, though I of course don’t fault the wait staff. I’d rather go to a local joint that pays its people appropriately…which are hard to find, admittedly.
There are a couple floating around out there, CNN/investopedia/Eat This Not That. The most scathing one I saw was from CNN, oddly enough: https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/09/business/consumer-spending-travel-value-nightcap
Might as well, I’ve only eaten at two Roadhouses, but they were damn good for a chain steakhouse
That happens when you just think of a bigger number and forget the customer somewhere down the line.
Also publicly traded companies and shareholder value. Everything could be much cheaper if not for shareholders draining every penny from companies. Edit: and CEOs/ managers of course.
found this, they all outpace the inflation rate so it’s just greed as always.
It’s sad that Taco Bell thinks it is gourmet Mexican Food now. Any local taco shop with Mexicans working in the kitchens will give you huge burritos for cheap. Without adding tofu to the ground beef.
They almost doubled the price of their stuff. No fucking way I am paying that. I’ll pack my own sandwiches…
“Why are our sales plummeting?”
Because you didn’t spend any part of that price hike on improving the quality of your food.
Idk. Maybe paying people 14 bucks a hour just to make sandwiches cause they complain that they can’t make money. Because they have no skills. Because they would rather make sandwiches and complain than get a job that pays better.
I went to a BBQ joint here in Texas a week ago. Got 3/4 lb of brisket and some potato salad for the missus and me.
To my surprise… It costed the same thing as 2 menu items at McDonald’s. Like seriously?..
What’s the point of going to subway and McDonald’s if I can just get some BBQ at a restaurant.
(Didn’t name the restaurant since I’m concerned this will make them realize they can charge more)
IMO, no sandwich on Earth is worth $14. Especially not one from SooubWay.
Says someone who’s never had a shooter sandwich.
That’s a common price for any entree at most restaurants in my state. Indian, Thai, American (burgers), Italian, etc. Fast casual and casual dining all have many items in that price range. Most want tips on top as well. There are many sandwiches I’m willing to spend $15 or more on.
If I could have the best burger I’ve ever had right in front of me right now, I’d pay ~$25 for it. The cost we pay for top-notch sandwiches is typically a search cost.
Oh man, you’ve never had a good Rueben then. Good corned beef, a pile of kraut, swiss, fresh rye bread (or sourdough), and that thousand island and/or spicy mustard. Grilled up and served with a pickle spear and some fresh chips.
Making one is not cheap, though not a lot more than your typical burger. But, a 14 usd price is reasonable when you factor in labor. I’ve paid more than that for a truly great Rueben where the corned beef was made in house, and the bread came from an attached bakery. Completely, totally worth twenty bucks.
Our closest deli that’s like the kind of deli in bigger cities charges 15 and some change for their Rueben that comes with a pickle, potato chips, and a drink. I ain’t mad at that price even though it makes it a rare treat.
Which, I get you, you led off with IMO which means you’re speaking only for yourself, so I’m not saying your opinion is wrong, or trying to change your opinion! Just giving my opinion on the matter of expensive sandwiches for my own tastes.
I disagree, there’s a sub place near me with a 16" sandwich with like 5 meats, 3 cheeses, and lots of toppings that costs about $14. The heft is noticable, even when I’m hungry I can only eat about half.
There are some high quality places out there, Subway has always been the McDs of subs. I feel they started to go downhill when they stopped cutting the v notch in the bread to stuff it full and just went with boring halves.
I will say to those thinking $5 should remain the price - we were okay with $5 subs a decade or more ago, but now asking more is too much? Inflation is a thing. $5 purchasing power in 1990 is now $12 in 2024. The argument shouldn’t be about the price increase, as it should have crept up this whole time. But the quality should have at least remained the same, and the workers fairly paid. The price of the sub is the least of the problems.
But the price increase kinda is a symptom of the underlying issue. For reference, the reason that subway subs were $5 for a long time was that the company was trying an advertising campaign to grow the brand, which it did amazingly well (honestly, far too well). However, those were not sold at a sustainable price, but whenever the company tried to raise the price it was perceived very poorly by the market. So they kept the price low for a long time, and eventually had to raise it but due to inflation (and decreasing the sub size to compensate for the low price before that), but the price increase was pretty drastic to most of the customers who often stopped going there.
In other words, the company kept the price down artificially to keep their stock price high, and foisted a lot of the actual costs onto the franchisees, of which they had tons. Which is obviously not a sustainable business model, and it’s why less people go to subway anymore.
They also allowed overcrowding. You could basically put a Subway right next to another Subway if you wanted. 3-4 in a single neighborhood. Corporate does not care if the franchisees make any money.
A footlong NY Italian at my local sub shop with like 4 kinds of meat and a ton of veggies on it costs $9. It’s better than subway in literally every way. The people who work there are chill and seem to like it too
I’m willing to pay a decent amount for Schlotzkys tbh. But they’d have to exist in my area first.
I can either: A. Drive to fuckin’ Toledo Or B. Drive to Kentucky.
I had an amazing buffalo chicken sub from a hole-in-the-wall restaurant in NYC that cost $16, and it was worth every penny. It was like 2 pounds of food, and they cut the chicken and grilled it right there in front of me. But that place and Subway aren’t even on the same planet as quality goes.
I quit them about 10 years ago when I asked for spinach on my sandwich and they gave me 3 small leaves of spinach for an upcharge. That and their instantly stale tasting bread made me done with the particular store and all Subway stores. Was a shame, because they were convenient to where I worked.
I’m not gonna look it up, but who recently bought Subway and is now cashing in on tanking it so they can sell the corpse?
If you ever watch CompanyMan on youtube, it’s like 90% of all “The Fall of [Company]” involves either going public and then rapidly expanding, or “acquired by private equity firm then died in 5 years”
Its like the saying, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
By far the worst one is always the private equity/leveraged buyout. It always ends in failure for the company.
I hate that cliche’d, untrue, glurgey phrase with a passion. But your point is good.
It’s supposed to end in failure due to having all the money squeezed and sucked out of the company.
What happens to the company doesn’t matter. What matters is what happens to the people making the buyout decision. If they can pad their wallets then who cares about what happens to the company?
The bread bought it. It’s not an in-bread operation.
Fast food is losing the plot. If it isn’t cheap, then there is really no point.
They thought they could charge the same money as real sandwich places. Lol.
There’s a great last week tonight segment on subway.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDdYFhzVCDM
Covers a lot of the insane shit they do / have done.
That’s all the corpos and shareholders doing one last big squeeze before recession hits and the stock market crashes.
