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McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

latimes.com

531–540 of 611 posts

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#531
post #435

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Does McDonalds not have the $5 McValue Meals where you live? In the Bay Area, $5 + tax gets you a McChicken, 4 chicken nuggets, small fries, and small drink. $6 to upgrade to a McDouble cheeseburger instead of the McChicken. Altogether ~1000 calories per meal. That's darn good value for your money, at least for a prepared hot meal that's convenient in most locales. $5 for ~1000 calories, plus the ingredients are fort…

Here it is more like $5 gets you a coke at McDonalds.

Have you used the app? You may need to use the app to get the McValue and similar lower-priced menu items. It's a brilliant price discrimination strategy.

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#532

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Basic logic here: the things you’re defending only work when the people who make them possible aren’t getting knocked out by uncontrolled spread. Kids don’t get an education if teachers and staff are sick. Businesses don’t serve communities if workers are out in waves. Families don’t stay afloat if workplaces shut down because too many people are ill. You can absolutely critique the execution and the results. Plenty…

Early on , it was clear the rate of covid complications did not merit the lockdowns. I was an early supporter of lockdowns and an even earlier supporter of ending them. It was a cold... Can we say that now? A relatively moderate flu like cold for the vast majority of people. It did not merit shutting down or slowing global trade

Early on, there wasn't any lockdown, so instead we could see whole villages and regions being in emergency state, with the military handling the logistics of moving coffins around, because there were so many. The lockdowns after 2 years were avoidable, but the first one absolutely wasn't. I'm quite content with my governments actions in the beginning and I'm not alone, the governmental approval during the first lockdown absolutely skyrocketed (>10%).

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#533

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i’m interested in using my pressure cooker more. Do you have a favorite recipe?

This [1] is amazing, and also prep freezes extremely well. There are so many great recipes online, just search - it's also referred to as an instant pot in many places. [1] - https://kristineskitchenblog.com/honey-garlic-instant-pot-ch...

Thank you very much!!

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#534
post #445

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Caloric intake != healthy, good food to be obvious

No, it doesn't. It does serve as an ok proxy for "if I eat 600 calories, will I be hungry in an hour?" The people who are buying pizza or McDonald's aren't after healthy food. They know it isn't healthy. They're after the an inexpensive way to not be hungry when they go to bed.

I don't know why you all have such good opinions of McDonald's, but when I went there I was maybe full, but still hungry. Not an hour later, but immediately. To me it is an absolute waste of money.

It is not cheap, the local kebap or pizza store is cheaper, and the local grocery store has hot dishes for way cheaper. The ordering experience is crappy, you need to use that weird screen instead of ordering directly, long waiting times, the food tastes awful, you have a huge garbage pile on your plate, even larger than the "food" you ate, and you are still hungry after.

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#535
post #40

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Can you afford McDonald’s food if you work at McDonald’s?

When I worked in fast food, they gave you a meal allowance, but it didn't really matter because I would grab a hamburger patty right off the grill and chow down. God damn, now I'm getting hungry. Supposedly you would get fired for doing it, but when the managers accused me of doing it I would just deny it with my mouth closed while still chewing, and the managers would do it too. They probably have cameras now or som…

You are eating in the same place were the cooking happens, without going outside replacing your gloves, putting of your hairnet, apron and mask, and without washing your hands? That sounds like a fast way to get your store closed by the food regulation authority for insterile handling and contamination of food.

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#536
post #531

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Here it is more like $5 gets you a coke at McDonalds.

Have you used the app? You may need to use the app to get the McValue and similar lower-priced menu items. It's a brilliant price discrimination strategy.

I don't even have a smartphone. Why should I put up with these insane prices even with a discount by tracking, when I can buy the same thing for <1€ at the grocery store that is literally in the same building 10meters away.

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#537

> Her brother, who works as a cashier, can’t afford meals out at all, she said. The cost of his diabetes medication has increased greatly, to about $200 a month, which she helps him cover. This is an often unacknowledged part of the cost of fast food. It turns susceptible people into diabetics. As a diabetic there is little I can eat there, since I manage it with food not drugs. When I do I get a burger and throw out…

very stupid question, why dont we have a startup say from india that ships container full of diabetes meds directly to people that need them and a person in the USA who handles the distribution. Even with shipping cost included, I dont think it ll be more expensive

Because of the FDA. Lots of meds already come from India, but if you buy them in France or the US, the price difference is 5x.

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#538
post #476

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I have quite a lot of difficulty eating out once you start cooking at home, because think of what you are buying: - one English muffin (is it called an English muffin in England?) - one slice of cheese - one egg - one slice of ham - one cup of coffee - one hashbrown £5.09 for that? Obviously when you buy from a restaurant you're paying for their labor, rent, electric, and much more so it makes sense - McDonald's fran…

The UK comparison for home cooking vs fast food breakfast should be really be Wetherspoon. Spoons makes a solid stodgy full English breakfast and bottomless coffee for 5-7 quid depending on the size. Classic hangover food, and you can start the morning where the night ended. Obviously you can beat it with home cooking, but the calorie value for a sit down meal out is compelling: 1300 cals for 7.50 (more if you go for…

Wetherspoons is amazing and a great replacement for McDonalds. They bring the food to your table, with cutlery, on a plate and you get unlimited coffee and tap water. I paid £4.78 for a muffin of sauage+bacon+2 eggs+hash brown and unlimited coffee this morning.

You got to choose very carefully from the menu as lot of things aren't good value.

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#539
post #432

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is cheaper to spend 1000$ on a restaurant than to take an hour or two to cook a very low-effort food that takes max 2 hours to cook and lasts for 3 days? I'm genuinely baffled. Personally I would not call it a waste of 2 hours. Either way, if you can afford it, then Godspeed. :D I definitely do not have 1000 USD per week for food. I do not even have 100 USD per week for food.

I have a friend who, once he started steadily making mid-high six figures in Silicon Valley, began taking the HOV lane on his commute into work, despite driving alone. The calculus was easy. Assuming $500,000 salary (I think he made more), 8 hour days, 50 weeks a year, that's $250/hour. As a manager, he couldn't shuffle his schedule around very easily, unlike when he was programming and could come in late and leave l…

> The 30+ minutes saved during his commute each day

I mean, you could also live closer to the office

Re: McDonald's is losing its low-income customers

#540
post #291

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is unusual to see young people make the choices to not turn into patients. It costs very little to eat mostly lentils/legumes/nuts/yogurt/vegetables, and drink mostly water without carbs dissolved in it, but no business is going to survive selling those things.

Where is the next cheap lentils/legumes/nuts/yogurt/vegetables fast food restaurant? I think it's a weird concept of a society where all the parts of it with money are directing people to do one thing - but at the same time, the people are expected to do the exact opposite and it's their own fault if they follow the coercion...

look for a hindi, or middle eastern restaurant.

i prefer hindi:

muligatany soup, naan bread, vindaloo or korma chicken, borfi, dahi, lahssi, chai tea.

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