Quote:
Originally Posted by XutvJet
I'm 49 and remember in high school in the early 1990s that we could get a Big Mac meal for $2.99. $3 in 1991 equates to $7 in today's money. What am I missing? Greed anyone?
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Here’s your answer. $15+/hr. Those incompetent McDonald’s employees who can’t find their own butt with both hands want us to show them the money. They no longer consider working the counter at McDonald’s a part-time, high school, stepping stone job. These days it’s the career they aspire to and they gotta have a “living” wage.
I hate that this is true, but McDonald’s makes good coffee and I like Egg McMuffins, so I still eat there occasionally. It’s hard not to, because there is one literally on the lot next to my condo building. I can get a large coffee for 99 cents, so the total is just under $6. But, I utterly despise McDonald’s as a company.
I love Chick Fil A and I eat there occasionally. I’m not a growing teenager, so I get just the basic chicken sandwich and a small sweet tea and refill the tea. But, it’s still pushing $9 these days.
I like Chipotle, but last time I was there about a month ago I noticed they’ve had a significant price increase.
Right now, for me, Panera Bread is my go to. There’s one on the way to my dad’s place, so I eat there a lot. BUT, here’s the key. Get their “Value Duet” meals. I believe there are seven choices. Depending on location they are $7 - $9. It’s a large half sandwich, chips, and a “cup” of soup, which is actually a bowl of soup. It is plenty of food and I think it’s probably enough for a teenager. There are also two salad and soup options. A Greek salad (the one to get) and a Caesar salad. You need to like tomato soup or chicken with wild rice. They come with a baguette by default, but you can request chips instead, which is what I do with the sandwiches. If it wasn’t for the Value Duets and the drink club I would never eat at Panera, because otherwise it’s way too expensive.
In addition, I am a member of the “Sip Club” which gets your drink free. It’s a monthly subscription. I think it’s about $12/month right now. You can get a free drink every two hours. That includes coffee, so if you’re a coffee drinker you could stop by every day on the way to work. They make special renewal offers and a few months ago I did an annual renewal for $90, which brought the monthly cost to $7.50.
You can do a “Sip Club” trial for free for two or three months. They also give food discounts and rewards along the way to Sip Club members. I have saved a fair amount of money with those offers.