Can't really know from our small mountain town places. We are in the Keys now, same two weeks for the past ten years. It is quite noticeable at dinner time how the restaurants we have always frequented are far from full as in the past. We have had no trouble getting reservations which was strange to begin with. Last night at a predominantly seafood sushi place i noticed on the menu an 8 oz filet, $75. That didn't include a salad. Dinner at Outback near the airport, 2 glasses of wine, hamburger, grilled chicken, one onion soup, one salad with tip slightly under $100. The Keys are crowded with people as always. I know I'm getting old, and it's only the two of us, but man a family of 4 trying to eat out today, wow. Pickup trucks at 100k, 10 year car loans. Everything seems totally out of control. I don't know so how many of these restaurants can survive when people just don't have as much cash to spend on luxuries.
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Our neighbor owns a very good Mexican food restaurant here. She was telling us how much her food and labor cost have risen in the last year. She is struggling even after raising prices.-
I understand that all costs have risen but will people just say enough is enough. -
captainlee Please understand we are literally out in the sticks. When I hit scan on the FM radio in my truck I will get 2 stations and one of those is new. Things are slower to hit here. So far the restaurant seems to be getting by. We were there the other night and it was full. -
Oak Smoke You actually get radio reception? I had to have a cheap SiriusXM receiver added to get anything.
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Ya, I started taking notice a few years back when it cost almost $20 for two combo meals at McDonalds. We almost never buy alcohol at a restaurant because of the huge markup or even go out to eat (especially not dinner) for that matter. My 2006 pickup is starting to really show the wear and tear, but for the time being it starts, stops, turns left or right, the radio, A/C, and heater all still work on command, so I will keep on driving it.
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No kidding. We ordered carry out tacos from a local restaurant here a couple days ago. A nice dine in place. Three tacos with rice and beans x2 with tip = $35. 😵💫😵💫Comment
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We never really go out to eat much anyways but right now we go to a sit-down restaurant maybe once a month. A friend and I were talking awhile back about this very thing and basically every time either of us take the families out to eat it’s easily $100-$150 if not more, especially with a couple of drinks and an appetizer. For reference it’s my wife and I and our 11 and 8 year olds.
You’re right though, everything is so expensive and at least for us it’s picking away at the funds we used to have to go do that stuff. All is well though, we enjoy cooking at home and having movie and game nights with the kids. And the drinks are cheaper too 🥃
Let’s not get started on the grocery bills…. Ugh.Comment
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Panhead John Lol, that’s a crazy comparison, especially when you consider you’re throwing away half of the wings. I swear every trip to the store is $200
mrichie1229 Well bring ‘em over and let’s fire up a smoker!
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We had lunch for 2 at a little Thai joint yesterday that came to almost $70 bucks with tip. Between the 2 plates it was noodles, rice, a little chicken, and I mean a little chicken, and a few spices plus 2 glasses of tea. Even with today's inflation that's not a lot of food cost and if the rest is for overhead and profit that doesn't seem like a good business model and I don't see them flourishing. Not on my dime, anyway.
And the irony of $90 - 100K trucks is that they're shiny crap coming off of the line. My new Ram has to have the front end (4x4) completely rebuilt after only 2,000 miles! And looking at the trends for a large range of VIN's that it was built in the transmission will likely need to be repaired or replaced within the next 10,000 miles. My guess is that it will crap out in the middle of nowhere on my way to North Carolina.
These are not the signs of a thriving society and it's unsustainable. Dark times are ahead, I hope everyone is preparing for it.Comment
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My 2016 Traverse is needing a transmission, a couple of the gears are slipping. It’s going to cost $6-8k for a new one. But the car isn’t going to last another 6+ years to warrant getting a new transmission. But we can’t afford to have an outrageous car payment right now so I keep driving it. -
That's a crappy predicament, tamidw. I just hope it doesn't strand you somewhere. -
CaptainMike me too! It hasn’t been throwing any codes or check engine light so mechanic said keep going for now. 🤷♀️
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They are just trying to survive with the hand they have been dealt, and the cards have been stacked against them. Many costs are beyond their control.Comment
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Way way back in the day, Chick-Fil-A and McDonald's combos could be had for $2.99
But when fast food approaches the $10/meal mark, it's bordering less on "convenience" without improving "quality"
Generically speaking, we've found we can't get out of a reasonably decent sit-down restaurant dinner for less than $35/person.
But this is why everyone on the Pit cooks at home and leans on each other (and Meathead and Kenji and other oft-named people) to show us how anybody can cook anything to be just as good as a restaurant dish -- and less expensive, too.Comment
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Different topic for a different channel. That said, the average monthly car loan payment is $700. Don't blame the car manufacturers specifically for this, but some is due to consumers who choose to over-extend what they'd like to have + the need to roll over payments to the next new vehicle every two years.Originally posted by captainlee View Post
*disclaimer: referring only to those who do this on purpose, not because of circumstances such as car accidents or similar
source: https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/l...ly-car-paymentLast edited by WillTravelForFood; January 27, 2023, 11:49 AM.Comment
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I wonder if it's just my geographical area, but the problem I'm having is small businesses are run like crap (restaurants, bait shops, resorts, etc...). It's always hard to find good help, and now more than ever. But, I can't help but wonder how motivated these owners are to make sure their business is running well. I'd love to spend a little more at a small business to get that personal touch and support them. But if I'm spending my money and getting very little service for it what's the point.
Then there's the huge stores and chain restaurants. Nope.
Best I can figure is to shop at regional businesses. They seem to have the best mix of enough organizational structure to deliver consistent quality service yet not be a faceless behemoth of a corporation.
Shoutout to L&M Fleet Supply my favorite regional businessComment
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I doubt people are just going to say “enough is enough.” Especially anywhere near tourists…
I’ve come to expect higher prices in some places…the rent alone in some locations I go to has got to be astronomical.
My GF & I were in the San Diego Gaslamp Quarter the other day to meet up with some family members for dinner. We stopped into a cocktail bar prior to walking over to the restaurant…4 cocktails + tip and it was just shy of $90. Yikes LOL
Dinner was another $100 + parking… Yep, that was a quick 200 bucks.
But I pretty much expect that somewhere like the Gaslamp… Had that been at a little place in the suburbs, I would have been shocked. And a bit incredulous to be honest.
In my experience, outside of a specialty steakhouse…sushi/Japanese restaurants seem to have really high steak prices. Not sure why, it’s not like they’re all serving A5 wagyu! For reference, the NY strip that I get at one o’ my faves in Palm Springs is $47. (That would be the Steak Sinatra at Johnny Costa’s for those interested.)
It'll work itself out at some point…it always does. But I’m sure there will be some that can’t make it work and won’t survive. But, going back to my suburbs comment…a lot of it has to do with perceptions. And “bang for the buck” if you will.
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A local place I go to, It used to be 6.00 for a cheeseburger on Thursday. This was before covid. Now that same burger is 14.00. I find it hard to buy a burger for that amount of money.Comment
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CaptainMike Oh, I agree. My personal take is that there are just too many restaurants so each dollar spent in them is diluted among all the choices and makes it harder for most to break even. They are forced to raise prices. As an example we just received new property tax assessments in the mail and our buildings on average had a 72% increase in valuation. We would then see about the same increases in property taxes paid but due to triple net clauses in our leases we pass this cost down to the businesses and some will have a hard time surviving just with this unexpected cost. If the consumer’s food dollar wasn’t so diluted among all the choices then the good ones would survive easier. And, unfortunately many restaurant and small business owners just aren’t good at running a business.Comment
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And why most fail. I've had several friends suggest I open a smokehouse restaurant here and my reply is "Why, so I can invest a couple of hundred thousand bucks just to work my a$$ off until I'm broke?" I think we all know what the root problem is, you hit it on the head in your 4th and 5th sentences, but we as a people haven't had enough of it to force the necessary changes.
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Yeah.... take out teriyaki or Thai here is $15-20 just for the main dish - no appetizer or drinks. That's not BAD but it's a big hike over what it was even 5 years ago.This is the problem with economists complaining about rising wages as a driver for inflation. Um... if our wages are effectively static, then the rise in expenses means we're making LESS in real terms. Which means we spend less.Comment
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Bringing this back to the OP's comment; my DW and I have noticed that MUCH more $$ is going out the door for the same (or even less) amount of grub coming in
(we have a 15 year-old - 'nuff said?)
As to the comments above about when folks say, "enough is enough" ... I'm not holding my breath :/
Here in Florida, where many folks RELY on tourism as their bread and butter, you'd think there wouldn't be a BP gas station still in business after the Gulf disaster which was allegedly caused by BP cutting corners. As a more nation-wide illustration, look at any parking lot and the profusion of shopping carts left willy-nilly all over the place (some within a few paces of the cart corral 😡) ... or the litter on the side of any road/street/highway and you'll recognize that we're NOT self-governed as our forefathers were.
Anywho - the increased cost of groceries nowadays is caused by any number of factors: the cost of raw goods is WAY up (fuel, fertilizer, etc.), the gov't thinks they have the wisdom & authority to set the 'minimum wage' (which has always been zero) yet mandating that an employer pay $15/hr for a burger flipper or toilet cleaner is NOT sustainable), look at your utility bills and add the commercial multiplier 😳 (same with insurance - life, health and never mind Liability!), ad nauseam on costs/expenses/overhead (and then factor in profit) and perhaps that "$70+ dinner for two" is a little more understandable?
Not saying the restaurant should be grossly overpriced, but many of them, as another poster mentioned, are barely able to keep afloat
Here's The Good News 😉 - this is still America, where you can 'vote with your dollars' (read: stay home and cook 😬).
Peace,
NunyazComment
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