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The prices are just too damn high.Earlier this month, McDonald’s made a reassuring announcement — the return of its $5 value meal. This pocket-friendly deal includes a choice of sandwiches, a four-piece order of McNuggets, medium fries, and a drink. Not to be outdone, Burger King is also stepping up with its own $5 Your Way Meal, featuring a sandwich, chicken nuggets, fries, and a drink. And of course, Wendy’s weighed in first with its $3 breakfast meals, then with its 1-cent bacon cheeseburgers. These affordable options are a welcome respite for consumers amidst the rising fast food prices. Although...

It’s time somebody came out and said it: Whataburger sucks. God forbid somebody in San Antonio should say that. We treat Whataburger like a hometown hero, never mind that it never was. And now it’s just another asset in a Chicago firm’s portfolio. Through orange-colored glasses, we failed to see the beat-down beef, the bun crushed by overreach and ennui. We failed to hold accountable the burger that tastes like the wrapper it came in, with the little round sticker that says “no onion” or “bacon” or “you can do better.”

Lending Tree surveyed 2,000 American adults and found 78 percent now consider fast food a luxury. “78% of consumers view fast food as a luxury because it’s become increasingly expensive,” reports Lending Tree. “Additionally, half of Americans say they view fast food as a luxury because they’re struggling financially” Of those making less than $30,000 a year, 71 percent see fast food as a luxury, as do 58 percent of parents with young kids, 58 percent of those in Generation Z, and 53 percent of women.

Little by little, our standard of living has been eroding. A couple decades ago, we had the largest and most prosperous middle class in the history of the world, but now most of the country is struggling. At this point, fast food is considered to be a “luxury”, 11 million children are living in poverty, and thousands of stores are permanently shutting down all over the United States because consumers have so little discretionary income these days. We are in the midst of a historic cost of living crisis, and those at the bottom of the economic food chain are...

The growing Chinese 'gate crashers' trend is sparking espionage concerns The FBI and Department of Defense have reportedly tracked more than 100 incidents of Chinese nationals posing as tourists to attempt to breach U.S. military bases and other federal sites. Those responsible, dubbed "gate crashers," range from Chinese nationals detected crossing into a U.S. missile range in New Mexico, to scuba divers caught swimming in murky waters near a U.S. government rocket launch site in Florida, several U.S. officials recently told The Wall Street Journal. The growing trend represents a potential espionage threat, as authorities believe the Chinese government in...

Fast food is no longer healthy for your wallet. Common fast food favorites increased in price under President Joe Biden’s so-called Bidenomics. Fast food inflation has a disparate impact across racial and ethnic groups due to different levels of fast food consumption. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 42.4 percent of non-Hispanic black adults consume fast food, compared with 37.6 percent of non-Hispanic white adults, 35.5 percent of Hispanic adults, and 30.6 percent of Asian adults. The higher price tag of popular foods may be creating political problems for Biden. Thirty percent of black men and...

It's crazy to think how much better we had it just five short years ago. You could get a $1.29 McChicken, a $1.69 5-layer burrito from Taco Bell, 8 nuggets at Chick-fil-A for $3.05. We had it made! Since 2019, however, those prices have essentially doubled, and that's not only outrageous, it's depressing. Let's check on the numbers, shall we? So here's what inflation looked like overall during that period: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' inflation calculator, prices in general went up by around 21.5% between December 2019 (prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and economic...

Economy, other factors have put pressure on consumers People seem to be buying less food from quick-service restaurants (QSR). That appears to be the case after companies such as Yum! Brands, Starbucks and McDonald’s offered their latest quarterly updates on their businesses. In the first quarter, the corporate parent of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut said its overall same-store sales narrowed by 3%, which was "expected," said Yum! Brands CEO David Gibbs in the company’s press release Wednesday. CFO Chris Turner told analysts and investors who tuned into the earnings call that Yum! Brands had expected the first quarter...

Fast food prices in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D) California jumped during the six-month period before the Democrat-run state mandated a $20 minimum wage in the industry, according to a study. Prices rose seven percent during that time, the New York Post reported on Friday, citing a study from Datassential. “California registered the highest rate of menu price inflation in the country in the period leading up to April 1 — when the minimum wage increase from $16 an hour to $20 an hour went into effect,” the outlet said in reference to the study.

California-based fast food restaurants have hiked the price of menu items by as much as 8% in response to the $20-an-hour minimum wage law that went into effect April 1. .... A typical Chicken Burrito from a California Chipotle will now cost $10.25, while the average price of a Steak Burrito will set you back $12. ... Wendy’s also instituted substantial price hikes on staple menu items

Democrats' belief that raising the minimum wage for fast food employers would benefit them is being undermined by businesses closing down and/or laying off portions of their labor force. Loren Wright, owner of a Fosters Freeze franchise in Lemoore, said "my employees told me they'd rather have a job at the old wage than be laid off, but the new law doesn't give us that option. Gov. Newsom's restaurant does have that option." Newsom hastened to point out that "I'm only one of the owners of the PlumpJack Cafe. The law exempted this kind of restaurant from the required minimum...

Prices for burgers, fries and other fast food items have increased at various restaurant chains across California, according to a recent report. A New York Post investigation revealed that some fast food chains in the Los Angeles area raised prices on April 1, after new California statewide legislation went into effect Monday enforcing a $20 minimum wage for restaurants that have at least 60 locations nationwide, except those that make and sell their own bread. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the legislation, AB 1228, into law in September. In addition to the pay raises, it also establishes a "Fast Food Council,"...

Fast food giant McDonald's is to buy back all its Israeli restaurants following a boycott of the brand in response to the Israel-Hamas war. The company said it had reached an agreement with franchisee Alonyal for the return of 225 outlets across the country employing 5,000 people. McDonald's was criticised after Alonyal started giving away thousands of free meals to Israeli soldiers. Sales in the region have slumped since the conflict began in October. On Thursday, McDonald's said a deal had been signed with Alonyal which has been running the chain of Golden Arches in Israel for more than 30...

You’ll be dropping a lot of dollar on that Whopper. Menu prices at fast food chains across California have increased, as a new law went into effect requiring them to pay a $20-an-hour minimum wage to workers from Monday. The Post checked menus at several restaurants in the Los Angeles area to see if the costs are already being passed onto consumers — with mixed results. The biggest leap on was at a Burger King, where a Texas Double Whopper meal cost $15.09 on March 29, but surged to $16.89 on April 1, a price whopping increase of $1.80 for...

A Bojangles Cajun restaurant undergoing renovations near Raleigh, North Carolina, accidentally misspelled the chain’s name on an outdoor sign as seen in hilarious photos blowing up online. “I saw the sign and I was looking at it, and I’m like, ‘It’s not right,'” eyewitness Gonzalez Espinosa told USA Today of the recent incident. He saw the botched signage while landscaping near the chain’s Knightdale outlet, which has been undergoing renovations since fall.

Not too long ago, Gavin Newsom got caught with his hand in the cookie jar of political cronyism. In response to a draconian law passed raising fast-food worker wages to $20 an hour, known as A.B. 1228, Newsom carved out a little exemption for his friends at Panera Bread on the laughable grounds that these establishments bake bread on the premises. In reality, the owner of several Panera establishments was a high school buddy who was a really good donor to his campaigns. Once caught, Newsom backed off, but right when he thought no one was looking, he went right...

Despite its reputation for gastronomy, France has become an American fast-food mecca. Between 2019 and 2023, more than 1,300 fast-food restaurants opened in the country, and over the past decade, sales increased by 61%. McDonald’s has the biggest stronghold because of its first-mover advantage. But Burger King, Domino’s Pizza, KFC and Five Guys are expanding their reach. New players like Popeyes and Krispy Kreme moved in for the first time in early 2024 as French consumers continue to seek affordable and convenient food options.

What the hell is wrong with these people? Right in front of her kid too

The CEO of McDonald's admitted Monday that the sales for the fast food giant have dipped amid increased menu prices that have not gone unnoticed by customers. The Chicago-based chain has taken heavy criticism over its Big Mac combo that is priced at nearly $18, among other menu hikes, and has promised to focus on affordability, the New York Post reported. "I think what you’re going to see as you head into 2024 is probably more attention to what I would describe as affordability," McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said on an earnings call with analysts. Some global same-store sales grew...

An almost fully-automated restaurant in Pasadena, California, is using robot cooks and AI-powered ordering kiosks. Joy Benedict has the story.