Today I went to burger king for the first time in years. It was even worse than I remembered it. (had the vegetarian option, don’t know if it’s as bad with the meat burgers) Additionally it’s fucking expensive and not as quick as it used to be. So my question is why do some people go there regulary?
Sometimes I channel my spirit animal
And I hunger for a pile of garbage.
I used to “love” running in to McD when I was in a hurry and ask “what burgers do you have that are ready?” and just take whatever was available. More often than not, it was a cheese/double cheese.
Now I have to wait 5-10 minutes before its ready, and its more expensive.
The trade off of cheap and fast vs quality have disappeared.
All the answers will be the same:
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I have limited choices and this is all I got.
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It comfort food. I have fond memories.
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Don’t yuck on people’s yum.
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The King is holding my family hostage unless I order two whoppers a week please send help
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Lack of time, lack of energy, or both. Cooking is exhausting and difficult when you’re already tired from working.
Before the pandemic I was on the road sometimes and it surprised me how many towns / tiny cities would have 1 grocery store and then a couple fast food chains as the only (obvious) to-go food options.
Many seem to have one particular mini-mart or gas station that has surprisingly good food, but you tend to need some local knowledge to find that.
Well, you see, the combination of mayonnaise and melted cheese creates a chemical chain reaction in my brain that makes me feel good.
You get tired of eating microwave meals, and anything that leaves dishes I have to clean later is certainly not easier than going to fast food
I know this is a bad reason, but I’m lazy and don’t feel like cooking, so it’s convenient.
Some people like the taste and don’t mind paying for the convenience - full stop.
Also the vegetarian option at most fast food places is generally more expensive and worse tasting
We have not gone to a fast food in the last fifteen or twenty years, if not more. Why would we? It’s not welcoming, the food taste like… cardboard, it’s rarely a pleasant place to eat, and people are often noisy. When we want to eat a burger, we cook it ourselves with fresh food. Yep, when we want to have some, even the fries are handmade. There is just no comparison.
I consumed fast food regularly when it was cheap. Maybe today someone consumes fast food regularly, because it can still be cheap, but only if you collect points, coupons and such.
On top of that, they’re always around you and you know what they offer, if you get used to it. Sometimes I want a satisfying safe bet instead of an unknown experiment.
Every time I eat a mcD cheeseburger I get a tummy ache. That shit is concrete.
I eat fast food on every road trip. I don’t really travel for the food in random small towns on the way. So if I get hungry, I get either gas station food or fast food.
It’s not because it’s good, it’s because it’s fast.
BK is always trash though. Bucc-ees is relatively good, so is Quik Trip. And Dunkin makes pretty good iced coffees for a decent price.
The only one I typically go to these days is taco bell because I like the flavor and homemade any of it doesn’t taste the same no matter how hard I try. I do make tacos at home often, it still isn’t exactly the same (good but different). With the mobile app that I run in a sandbox the prices also aren’t the worst in the world and the rewards for free food stack fast.
But burger king is garbage, and I say that as a former BK customer. I think it has gone extremely downhill in the last 5-10 years and the prices have also gone up. It just doesn’t make sense anymore. I got a griddle at home and can relatively easily cook up some tasty frozen patties seasoned just how I like.
Same for KFC, Wendy’s, Arby’s, and Carl’s Jr. KFC flavor and quality seems to have gone downhill. Wendy’s is exceptionally expensive typically. Arby’s is not only expensive but I feel the quality has also gone down. Carl’s Jr seems to be roughly the same, but the prices have gone up and the one near me is typically slow so you can tell the patty you end up with has been drying under a heat lamp for hours.
Everything at McDonald’s tastes too processed and sugary to me, unsure why (and one would think I’d have a similar response to TB…)
Anyway…long story short I probably go when I go because of an attempt at nostalgia or fast convenience - but not to save money or for quality.
They‘re everywhere and while the quality isn’t great, it’s a known quantity. McDonalds is never amazing but it’s very rarely terrible. A random hole in the wall is always unpredictable and a proper restaurant usually much slower and more expensive. Also, I’m weak for the Big Tasty sauce.
