Many people believe it’s an astounding $18 after a post on X of McDonald’s menu prices at a rest stop in Connecticut went viral and made national headlines. (Narrator voice: It’s not.)

Now, almost a year after the post, a top McDonald’s executive wants to set the record straight. In a recent letter, Joe Erlinger, president of McDonald’s USA, said $18 for a Big Mac combo was the “exception” and not the norm across all 13,700 restaurants in the country.

The average price of a Big Mac in the US was $4.39 in 2019,” Erlinger said in his recent letter. “Despite a global pandemic and historic rises in supply chain costs, wages and other inflationary pressures in the years that followed, the average cost is now $5.29. That’s an increase of 21% (not 100%),” he added.

  • Chainweasel
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    8 days ago

    I would admit I used to get McDonald’s quite a bit for lunch because it was pretty cheap. But, where I live a Big Mac meal is on average about $16 right now and I can get a burrito bowl from Chipotle with a drink for $13.
    I’m not saying Chipotle is high quality food but I don’t think anyone’s going to argue it’s not better quality than McDonald’s, so why on earth would I pay more for McDonald’s?
    They overreached on their price gouging and now they’re just trying to backpedal because they’re losing money.

    • @hamFoilHat@lemmy.world
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      148 days ago

      Started eating at Culver’s recently. Same price as McDonald’s but tastes like actual good quality hamburgers.

      • @jballs@sh.itjust.works
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        8 days ago

        Pretty sure Chipotle is owned by McDonalds.

        It is not. McDonald’s was an early investor but hasn’t been for a long long time (almost 20 years now), but the idea has stuck around.

      • @KneeTitts@lemmy.world
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        -18 days ago

        I dunno… sugar is sugar, carbs are carbs, protein is protein, your body is not prejudiced as to where those components comes from

    • sunzu
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      48 days ago

      Chiptle is real food… Mcshit ain’t.

      I don’t got to chiptle because customer service is shite tho