Local/regional chains seem to stay more reasonable, but honestly, local restaurants in my area are almost cheaper than fast food. A typical combo meal seems to run around $10-15, and you can find lunch specials and weekly specials for $8-12.
The food is way better as well.
I could go to Arby’s for a combo (roast beef sandwich, soda, and fries) and spend around $14. Or I can go to the sushi place half a mile away and pay $11 for their made-to-order bento box: teriyaki salmon filet, small salad, 3 gyoza, 4-piece Cali roll, and tasty rice. I haven’t been to Arby’s in years.
+1 for local.
If it’s the same price, then you’re usually getting something much better for your dollar, and supporting a local business instead of a big corpo.
If it’s cheaper then win win!
Where I live it’s the chicken places. I can get a meal and a drink from church’s or kfc for under a tenner.
I keep finding myself surprised that this is a complaint when there are so many better options available.
McDonald’s used to be the cheap place.
Why do you want to eat cheap food? Do you honestly have no other alternative that putting this garbage into your body is worth it?
It’s a net loss as far as I am concerned. You put this crap into your body and eventually you’ll be paying out of your ass in medical bills.
Take better care of yourself.
You: “No one is allowed to academically ask anything and I’ll attack you if you do.”
You: “I like to eat shitty over priced food while I complain about shitty over priced food being too expensive. I am the victim of myself.”
ROFL nothing here is “academic”.
Actually I don’t eat it or any fast food. It’s literally completely academic discussion from my end.
Funny that you had to attack again. I see the trend. Ciao.
Panda Express! Why does McDonald’s even exist??!
Costco hotdogs
Chain restaurants often times will be more expensive than small, hole in the wall places. Part of that is the price of rent that gets passed onto the consumer. If you have the option, I’d say try to find a taco truck, food window (no seating area), or grab and go food from a grocery store.
If you’re in Seattle, Dicks Drive In is still relatively cheap compared to McDonalds.
I live in a different continent and still miss Dicks.
Every time I go back I get Dicks.
Dicksdicksdicksdicksdicks.
Go eat a bag of Dick’s.
Gladly
They used to sell a T Shirt that said that and had the Dick’s drive through logo on it. They might still sell it, idk, I still have mine so I never looked to see.
A lot of folks are suggesting fast food apps help you continue getting cheaper prices on their low quality meals. But not much mention that you are selling your data to continue receiving those meals at those lower rates.
I don’t go there but when I’d drop in to use a bathroom while travelling I always found it shockingly expensive. I’d rather go to the local hole in the wall dumpling joint and get a plate full of real homemade and inexpensive food any day.
Wendy’s Biggie Bag is a solid deal.
Also, Taco Bell, but only if you know what you’re doing. There’s a $6 box that gets you all you need for a meal, but I think you need the app to order it. Otherwise, your best bet is multiple items from the $1-$2 menu. The combos are a trap, stay away from those.
These 2 are the only answers I can think of. Since everyone’s dollar menus are dead and gone, the Wendy’s or Taco Bell $5 for 4 items is the best of what remains.
I can get a burrito cheaper: made out of actual food, way healthier for me and way more filling. And I can ask for extra hot sauce
Where?
Seems like Chipotle fits, but we have some local taquerias that are both better and cheaper
Does McDonalds still own Chipotle?
Life hack: you take some bread, put some ham and cheese on top of it, put another slice of bread on top and boom! you’ve got food! If you’re feeling fancy you add tomato, lettuce, hard boiled egg, tuna or anything else.
If you’re not at home, you can easily find flat surfaces to prepare your food on, known as benches. They are available in any park that hasn’t had them removed just to spite the homeless. You can also add butter to your park bench sandwiches using a credit or debit card.
!I actually knew someone who did so while making food to sell at a funeral to raise money for the deceased.!<
Or you can make your sandwich at home and wrap it in some food grade wrapping material (like aluminum foil).
The Costco Hot Dog is a 1/4lb hot dog sold at the international warehouse club Costco’s food courts. It is notable for its price, which has remained steady at $1.50 in a combo deal including a soda at United States locations since its introduction in 1984. That price has become increasingly low relative to inflation and spawned a cult following
From the wiki
And as an added bonus, you get about three days worth of salt in that one hot dog.
It’s how I retain that resting heart rate of 112. I don’t even have to go to the gym anymore; I’m getting my cardio in just sitting here.
LMAO
Food trucks tend to run cheaper as they cut down a lot of expenses in their operation compared to restaurants with dining areas, staff, drive thrus, etc.
On top of that, I have found a few random local places with rather decent prices. A pub in town, a chinese restaurant across town, and a diner. They took a while to find though and not all their items are cheap. I am also finding places are incorporating delivery apps into their operations to avoid paying out as much too through middlemen.
Not at all my experience; food trucks tend to be massively overpriced (and poor quality) in my area. I assume they expect to sell based on convenience and novelty. I guess it isn’t working as there aren’t very many around.
A lot of America centric answers, so I’ll give a more global one: Ikea or any comparable store which uses cheap meal deals as a loss leader to get you to shop in their store. AFAIK the costco hot dog is the most famous US example.
This being said: eat/cook at home. Rice based meals can be made for as little as a dollar per serving, if you buy in bulk. (Get a cheap rice cooker, it can do more than cook rice, save on energy costs, and takes out most of the hassle.) Potato based meals are also very cheap. Baked potato with a bit of butter contains much of the nutrients you need to survive in the short to medium term.
McDonald’s is still cheap but only if you use the app for deals and points. They want to drive people to the app to eventually hire one less employee at each store, which will save them more money. They keep the app cheaper to drive this change.
