I mean, I’m an American. I have a pro-American sentiment when it comes to food and drink.
I also happen to have an anti-overpriced-crap sentiment when it comes to the things I eat and drink.
In my area, a Quarter Pounder with Cheese is $10.50. Now, I may not compare exact apples-to-apples here, but let’s go for it.
From my local supermarket, I can get 20 1/4lb. patties for $25 - that’s the premade patties, not from the butcher section. That means not only can I decide how well-done I like my burger, I can season it as I choose. And I have confidence in my local supermarket that when they put on the side of the box “Ingredients:80% Lean, 20% Fat Ground Beef”, they mean it. That makes each patty $1.25.
Now, if I want to buy the exact same ground beef, but not formed in patties, that’s $3.25/lb (usually in 2-3 lb. packs, but I can ask the butcher and get a custom size) - so now we’re down to $0.81 for the patty.
The rolls, I can get store brand. 8 for $1.50. That’s $0.19 cents a roll. That means that if I buy my own ground beef, I’ve now spent exactly $1 on a quarter pound burger. So let’s talk toppings.
The cheese first - one slice of American on theirs; I would go a different way, but stick to them. Springing for a little extra, $3.59 a pack for Borden Melts cheese, 16 slices. $0.22 per slice. Our burger is now at $1.22 COGS, and I have the makings for 7 more in buns and probably that in beef, plus I could make each burger with 2 slices of cheese, so each burger is $1.44 so far.
Onions, I can get for $1.50/lb (or less!), and each onion is less than that. But I definitely have enough to do a burger and meal plan - let’s say an ounce, about $0.10. Mustard, I’m not going to factor in the cost, because it’s so little as to be a joke. Buying a jar of good mustard can last you a year or more. Ketchup I’ll say the same for. It can last a long time and the amount per burger is negligible. So let’s be generous and say $0.10 each. Pickles can be more expensive if you get good ones, but store brand we’re talking $0.16 per ounce (with brine), and you’re not putting on a full ounce of pickle. So in toppings, we’re adding ~$0.50 value.
Total cost of the burger is around $2.00 at retail, not at scale; about $3 if you want premade patties. Sure, there are costs to be amortized like rent and tax and cooking - and the biggest cost, labor. But each individual burger shouldn’t be socked with an 80+% markup from COGS, and taste worse than the home-made version.
Yup, and that’s just a burger. Mind you, I live in spitting distance of NYC, so I do admittedly have a cost that’s inflated due to high taxes and high minimum wage. But all my other costs were based on my local supermarket that’s within walking distance of the McD’s I used for price reference. If I’d used the Walmart that’s in the same lot, it’d be even more extreme.
I just checked the prices from my local McD on deliveroo it is bad but not that bad, think they are also a little bit cheaper when ordering directly inside but not 100% sure haven’t been there myself in ages
Ok like I agree with 99% of what you said and prefer not to eat McDonald’s as well. Overpriced and poor quality. But labor is the kicker. The time you spent going to the store, are you eating the burgers daily if not your buns and onions will go bad pretty quick so you’re heading to the store multiple times to use that meat (if cooking one burger a time) plus time to cook. Like McDonald’s sucks for sure but where do you draw the line at what 10 dollars of your time is worth? Like this fictional one burger at a time universe sounds exhausting to me.
Obviously at scale this doesn’t matter. I don’t just buy burgers to eat one burger a day I get a load of groceries for a week at a time. Some meals are easier to make than others. Etc. I just felt the way you write your post was like time is free. It’s like the opposite of free.
I agree. But I think I sort of mentioned, what I found was that through serendipity, it works out to the packages being pretty accurate to 8 .25lb burgers, aside from the onion, mustard, ketchup, and pickles.
I would make a family meal out of that - in fact, I think I might this weekend. You’re right, time isn’t free. But I’m not going to pay more than double the retail COGS for a sandwich that’s produced on commercial scale and not cooked by hand. If that’s what they need to do in order to keep the lights on, then they need to cut overhead or negotiate more effectively to reduce COGS. But we all know that these are not ‘keep the lights on’ prices. They could cut the price and still make a profit.
If it was a locally owned small business where I believed that my support would be valued, or where they were reinvesting into the local community, I think I’d accept it. Heck, I do accept it. One of my local places serves a $13 burger. I buy it, because I know where they get their beef, and their veggies, and the staff and owners are in my area. Everything but the tax comes back into my local economy. That’s not how McD’s works.
I just want to thank you for making me feel not crazy. Some of my co workers won’t even consider a 13 dollar burger. But it’s from a local joint and the owners live local been doing it for 30 years. I don’t care it’s a better purchase than McDonald’s. They think I’m Mad.
I mean, I’m an American. I have a pro-American sentiment when it comes to food and drink.
I also happen to have an anti-overpriced-crap sentiment when it comes to the things I eat and drink.
In my area, a Quarter Pounder with Cheese is $10.50. Now, I may not compare exact apples-to-apples here, but let’s go for it.
From my local supermarket, I can get 20 1/4lb. patties for $25 - that’s the premade patties, not from the butcher section. That means not only can I decide how well-done I like my burger, I can season it as I choose. And I have confidence in my local supermarket that when they put on the side of the box “Ingredients:80% Lean, 20% Fat Ground Beef”, they mean it. That makes each patty $1.25.
Now, if I want to buy the exact same ground beef, but not formed in patties, that’s $3.25/lb (usually in 2-3 lb. packs, but I can ask the butcher and get a custom size) - so now we’re down to $0.81 for the patty.
The rolls, I can get store brand. 8 for $1.50. That’s $0.19 cents a roll. That means that if I buy my own ground beef, I’ve now spent exactly $1 on a quarter pound burger. So let’s talk toppings.
The cheese first - one slice of American on theirs; I would go a different way, but stick to them. Springing for a little extra, $3.59 a pack for Borden Melts cheese, 16 slices. $0.22 per slice. Our burger is now at $1.22 COGS, and I have the makings for 7 more in buns and probably that in beef, plus I could make each burger with 2 slices of cheese, so each burger is $1.44 so far.
Onions, I can get for $1.50/lb (or less!), and each onion is less than that. But I definitely have enough to do a burger and meal plan - let’s say an ounce, about $0.10. Mustard, I’m not going to factor in the cost, because it’s so little as to be a joke. Buying a jar of good mustard can last you a year or more. Ketchup I’ll say the same for. It can last a long time and the amount per burger is negligible. So let’s be generous and say $0.10 each. Pickles can be more expensive if you get good ones, but store brand we’re talking $0.16 per ounce (with brine), and you’re not putting on a full ounce of pickle. So in toppings, we’re adding ~$0.50 value.
Total cost of the burger is around $2.00 at retail, not at scale; about $3 if you want premade patties. Sure, there are costs to be amortized like rent and tax and cooking - and the biggest cost, labor. But each individual burger shouldn’t be socked with an 80+% markup from COGS, and taste worse than the home-made version.
Why should I buy from McDonald’s ever again?
I haven’t been to McDs in ages, but holy fuck is a burger actually over $10?
Yup, and that’s just a burger. Mind you, I live in spitting distance of NYC, so I do admittedly have a cost that’s inflated due to high taxes and high minimum wage. But all my other costs were based on my local supermarket that’s within walking distance of the McD’s I used for price reference. If I’d used the Walmart that’s in the same lot, it’d be even more extreme.
I just checked the prices from my local McD on deliveroo it is bad but not that bad, think they are also a little bit cheaper when ordering directly inside but not 100% sure haven’t been there myself in ages
If it costs $2 and you sell it for $10, isn’t that a 500% markup?
Wouldn’t that actually be a 400% markup? $2 = no markup, $4 = 100%, $6 = 200%, $8 = 300%, $10 = 400%
You’re right. My markup % was off. I’m glad I have a computer calculating it at work.
Minecraft Happy Meal toys!
Ok like I agree with 99% of what you said and prefer not to eat McDonald’s as well. Overpriced and poor quality. But labor is the kicker. The time you spent going to the store, are you eating the burgers daily if not your buns and onions will go bad pretty quick so you’re heading to the store multiple times to use that meat (if cooking one burger a time) plus time to cook. Like McDonald’s sucks for sure but where do you draw the line at what 10 dollars of your time is worth? Like this fictional one burger at a time universe sounds exhausting to me.
Obviously at scale this doesn’t matter. I don’t just buy burgers to eat one burger a day I get a load of groceries for a week at a time. Some meals are easier to make than others. Etc. I just felt the way you write your post was like time is free. It’s like the opposite of free.
I agree. But I think I sort of mentioned, what I found was that through serendipity, it works out to the packages being pretty accurate to 8 .25lb burgers, aside from the onion, mustard, ketchup, and pickles.
I would make a family meal out of that - in fact, I think I might this weekend. You’re right, time isn’t free. But I’m not going to pay more than double the retail COGS for a sandwich that’s produced on commercial scale and not cooked by hand. If that’s what they need to do in order to keep the lights on, then they need to cut overhead or negotiate more effectively to reduce COGS. But we all know that these are not ‘keep the lights on’ prices. They could cut the price and still make a profit.
If it was a locally owned small business where I believed that my support would be valued, or where they were reinvesting into the local community, I think I’d accept it. Heck, I do accept it. One of my local places serves a $13 burger. I buy it, because I know where they get their beef, and their veggies, and the staff and owners are in my area. Everything but the tax comes back into my local economy. That’s not how McD’s works.
I just want to thank you for making me feel not crazy. Some of my co workers won’t even consider a 13 dollar burger. But it’s from a local joint and the owners live local been doing it for 30 years. I don’t care it’s a better purchase than McDonald’s. They think I’m Mad.
If you’re in the area i am, the place I’m talking about is on the 163 line.