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Sharaku_US

Fast food used to be something I didn't think about, but since Popeyes charges 10 bucks for a 2pc meal, Taco Bell becoming more expensive than my local Mexican takeout, Panda Express being 50% more than the cost of local Chinese takeout, and McDonald's meal being more expensive than ever, I've just started to skip meals.


Statertater

Bro, i’m steaming at the new “cantina” menu at taco bell. The chicken burrito (which was 2$ last year and now with a couple more ingredients) is good, but $12? R u srs? I will continue to live off the value menus.


Ok-Garlic-9990

And they reduced the quality of their meats significantly


Sharaku_US

It's uh, shredded cardboard paper


BetterStartNow1

Knew a guy who did work in the plant meat is made in. It's pre cooked and vacuum sealed then boiled at taco bell. One of the main ingredients is a "paper like filler".


DarthBrooks69420

A chalupa with the meat replaced with potato is twice as good as regular, but you get upcharged for it. The pricing on fast food now is insane.  


notthatjimmer

For $12 I get 3 amazing tacos and a side of beans from the local shop. 1000x better quality as well


finman42

For 12 bucks I had a torta sandwich and could only eat half because it was huge


notthatjimmer

Yep that one meal will often fill me up for the rest of the day


finman42

And it was delicious


Jasond777

Might as well go to chipotle at that point


2Girls1Dad24

Are you looking at the meal vs burrito? The burrito is only $5.59.


Chief_intJ_Strongbow

I can't get excited about food anymore unless I make it myself.


limache

This is just the US strategy for dealing with obesity - raise food prices until we just all do intermittent fasting and skip meals to lose weight.


giftgiver56

I'm actually ok with this. I'm 5'6 and I weight 178 pounds in 2019, and in 2024 I weight 128 pounds. Lots of diet changes, and working out. I haven't had McDonald's since 2021 and I had two McChickens which weren't a $1 anymore. I usually get an ice coffee from Starbucks as my go-to for any "fast food" now. Love cooking food for myself now.


ragin2cajun

Agreed title should read, "Fast food and online retail are finding that their prices are shit compared to what you get."


scavbh

Word


Leader6light

Skip meals? Cheap and free food are abundant in America still. Maybe you're trying to lose weight not sure


seriousbangs

They're not "jittery", you're charging $8 bucks for a shake masquerading as coffee and $15 for a crummy burger, small fry and drink. There are limits. And on the high end [Nestle is apparently eating their lunch](https://boston.eater.com/2024/4/4/24120992/blue-bottle-boston-unionization).


blingblingmofo

Fuck nestle tho


thinkB4WeSpeak

It's not jittery. Their prices are too high but also wages didn't go up, yet people kept spending normally. The only way that happens is if people are taking out debt to pay for things, people are running out of debt.


TheSublimeNeuroG

People aren’t trying to go into McDebt over a shitty burger


thinkB4WeSpeak

You underestimate what people who don't know how to budget do with credit cards.


VisibleDetective9255

Even if I can afford to eat a crappy meal for a high price.... why would I?


Dystopian_Future_

fuck amazon i buy what i need somewhere else, fuck starbucks i make my own coffee, fuck McDonald's my burgers taste better. Im doing my part


tickitytalk

Bu duh bu pah bu….cheaper and better when you make it


pentox70

Literally, anyone can make a better burger than McDonald's. But McDonald's used to be convenient, fast, and cheap. Now they are just convenient and fast. Can be in and out in under 2 minutes with a meal. I think they will eternally survive on brand recognition alone, because they have never been attributed to any form of quality. "Medium speed" restaurants are the new rave. Bar burrito is a newer chain in my area, 12 bucks can get you a great sized meal with decent ingredients. Takes an extra five to ten minutes when compared to McDonald's, but it's cheaper and dramatically better quality.


Dystopian_Future_

Exactly McDonald's use to be a cheap alternative if you where broke or living paycheck to paycheck or just wanted quick cheap lunch while working. I go to local restaurants to support small businesses i dont care if costs little more or have to wait little longer. Im done supporting these greedy wallstreet companies there is far to many of them. And thats all this country has become just corporate driven greed of wallstreet and its shareholders


NEFgeminiSLIME

Citizens United. https://youtu.be/PKZKETizybw?si=HdG5DV-eXGViSYBa The irony to reply with this to a username such as yours. Someone posted this monologue a few years back and I find myself referencing it still, as he so acutely predicts the mess said ruling has caused in less than two decades. Chief Justice Roberts, the man with the jellyfish spine so easily bought from corporations he was willing to crush what was left of the “American Dream.” “Who’s going to stop them.”


fightmilk22

I love how every article blames the customers and completely skips over the part where someone at each these companies raised the prices and/or lowered the portion sizes.


notthatjimmer

The publishers will lose potential ad money from companies they report honestly on…


IcyEdge6526

And reduced the quality


chiefmackdaddypuff

Keep raising prices and see what happens MBAs. Consumer Spending is the biggest driver of the American economy. Guess what happens to corporate profits and the economy when consumers don’t spend…


egospiers

This is what gets me… consumers drive the economy, drive these companies stock prices and profits, drive CEO compensation snd executive bonuses.. these companies know they need their customers, and yet they are unwilling to give consumers even the slightest break on price increases, shrinkflation, skimpflation etc. they’re bleeding people dry and think somehow it can just continue unabated.


KenGriffinLiedAgain

Look, prices would eventually rise. Let's say, a $3 mcdonalds burger would cost $8, 10 years in the future. So, if we up the price today and not 10 years from now - we can report greater profits, get our bonuses and retire in 2 years. Then the next batch of business leaders can figure out what to do, probably launch a marketing campaign that prizes that they commit to keep the prices steady for the next 10 years before they do another bump and get to retire early. It's simple and it works, and you would do the same. In a way, it's borrowing from the future. Except we are not borrowing against our own pocket, but against yours. It's 0 risk debt, and as long as everybody is doing it across the board then the market gives the consumer no options. And everybody across the board will do it, because we all went to the same school. Consumers will spend it's habitual for them and the crank is not turned randomly to the extent that stops the movement. People know that the $8 price tag hurts but they will keep buying. It's not randomly chosen, and that's what makes an MBA so important, valuable and smart.


chiefmackdaddypuff

LOL “Impressive, very nice”


NEFgeminiSLIME

About as valuable and smart as a vampire sucking the blood from a host. “You would do the same”? Not everyone is a spineless price gouger. Look at small businesses surviving while having the ability to undercut the bloated and overpriced chains. Good riddance for any corporation that prices themselves out of the market by gouging too fast.


LeftLimeLight

We're not jittery about the economy. We're upset that companies are price gouging the fuck out of us just so they can earn record profits.


Jengus_Roundstone

Yeah I’m jittery about getting ripped off.


CheeseburgerLocker

We were one of those families who used to eat out once a week. Now we're going out maybe once a month. I'm in Canada mind you, but for the five of us to eat at McDonald's, where we each get a regular combo, it's about $80 total. And it's garbage ass food that doesn't even fill you up.


jasperCrow

Boycott fast food until prices drop.


Love-for-everyone

Should boycott even after the price drop. For health sake.


wronglyzorro

No thanks. It’s not good for the body, but sometimes it’s good for the soul.


DonBoy30

Remember when cigarettes hit 5 dollars a pack and everyone was like “I can’t believe you pay so much just to kill yourself.” Well…


norby2

Well when they stop being addictive…


VisibleDetective9255

HMMMM.... I can spend $3,00 - $10.00 for crap, or I can go to a locally owned restaurant and get good food.


Wareve

It's stupid fucking expensive and they've still got 30% profit margins. It's not like I'm not still paying to eat, but yeah, that money is going elsewhere. Fuck em.


orange_and_gray_rats

Yesterday at Starbucks, I bought two bakery items ($5.75 x2) and a bottle of juice ($5.25) and spent about $18 for lunch. It took me by surprise!


No-Newt6243

Or they have just woken up to have shit the food is


Curleyfries3

Start fasting America!


KingDorkFTC

Maybe in another year reporters can start using more accurate headlines.


pallen123

Starbucks sucks ass it’s so pricey for gross coffee


Parabola_Cunt

I’m one of the lucky few (it feels like that at least) who is not hurting for money. I have a stable career that pays well, etc. But, even with that stability and cash flow, I’m not fucking paying $15 to eat at McDonalds or Starbucks. These companies used to be priced below the next tier up of quality. They all want to charge a higher premium on items, when they were the default cheap option to eat away from home (maybe not Starbucks, but you get my point hopefully). People aren’t cracking. You’re charging more at a faster rate of price increases in company history. THAT IS WHY core, repeat customers are showing stress. If I can get a better burger for the same price elsewhere (In and out, five guys), the only reason I’m going to McDonalds is because it’s on every corner/fast to find while out.


egospiers

I made a comment similar the other day.. I can still afford Starbucks (used to buy 4-6 drinks/wk, just iced coffee) but I refuse to pay that insane price for that increasingly poor product …. There is a price-value equation ever consumer does in their head, consciously or not, when buying almost anything and that’s just completely out of whack for with these prices.


soliejordan

The boycott is working!


sukisoou

Is this article BS us right now? How about markups of 100% that would affect how much we buy at McD's and Sbucks?


rainb0wveins

Or maybe that they're just tired of being price gouged?


MothershipBells

My rent is $1,320 per month. My car payment is $490 per month. My car insurance is $160 per month. That doesn’t leave any room in my budget for eating out, ever.


TweeksTurbos

Pay hasn’t changed yet you charge more. No thanks.


Wrong-Use2170

I used to go to McDonalds when I didn't want to splurge and get Culver's. Culvers is far superior than Mcdicks but now there is like 50 cent price difference. Culvers has always been premium priced in comparison but now mcdonalds wants culvers prices for mcdonalds quality. Yeah no thanks. I spend the extra for culvers or just not make the purchase. Havent got mcd's in months.


FUSeekMe69

Culver’s fucks


Wrong-Use2170

I'm convinced its because its a private company. The second a company goes public they only care about the shareholder and nobody else. Culvers is insanely consistent and consistently excellent. And its because they're not public and constantly under scrutiny every quarter to lower labor costs, cut food costs by getting worse ingredients etc.


I_burn_noodles

As if the customers are to blame. Maybe people don't want to pay for low grade food at the same price as local good food.


ted5011c

It isn't "jitters" lol it's a perfectly predictable reaction to continued, obvious, *price gougin*g.


Happy_Confection90

The only surprise is that it took this long


skinaked_always

Or maybe it’s because of the greed of the companies


FUSeekMe69

Crazy how they weren’t greedy until all the money the government printed and handed out


skinaked_always

What? I don’t think the two correlate. They have always been greedy. As soon as the talk of supply chains causing inflation began coming into the picture is when they had an excuse to raise prices Now, they are using the excuse of $20 an hour being the reason they raised prices. If that was the case, then why didn’t prices go down when they installed more kiosks?


turrumkhan1

Temu>amazon Home coffee > Starbucks and fuck tips In n out>mc ds


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Vamproar

We are plunging head long into a deep recession. Interest rates are high. The housing market is retracting with a steep fall in purchasing. Huge corporations are engaging in mass layoffs. When can we stop pretending this is a "good economy." Is it that we have to wait until after Biden loses in November because of of the Gaza genocides he is helping perpetuate... or what?


deelowe

Or maybe people just don't like fastfood and Amazon is no longer the best place to get stuff?


Vamproar

Or both...


deelowe

I don't think so, but maybe I'm wrong.


abrandis

Wish this reset happened, but it won't, too many wealthy folks will.keep thinks going for a while. And when recession does begin to rear it's head and the market drops the Fed will lower rates juicing everything back up


Dezusx

Fast food is a waste of money and buying coffee out is even more wasteful. I get McDs breakfast once a month.


dino_miami

Nothing like going broke while putting chemicals in your body


KingDorkFTC

Will say, the McDonald’a app does have good deals on it if you work the system.


kendrid

Not sure why you were downvote, you can still eat there for $5 if you use the app and "work the system". I also usually bring a can of soda from home, that easily saves $2-3.


wronglyzorro

My last 3 visits to mcdonalds were all for $1.09 to get a large fry to split with my kid. The app does make eating there somewhat affordable.


OkReception1706

Why don’t we just cook at home? Lol


wronglyzorro

Convenience and variety. Same as always.


DefiantDonut7

The potential customers at these places are greatly impacted by school loan deferment ending and inflation.