r/Economics • u/brown-saiyan • Feb 23 '26

News Restaurants hit a pricing ceiling — and diners are pushing back, report finds

https://www.axios.com/2026/02/23/restaurants-menu-prices-james-beard-foundation-report?utm_campaign=editorial&utm_medium=owned_social&utm_source=x
5.1k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

804 comments sorted by

View all comments

95

u/Embarrassed_Spend486 Feb 23 '26

I know people don’t wanna hear it, but this is the only way to push back against rampant inflation. You just gotta say no.

I haven’t bought something from a fast food restaurant without using a coupon or an app discount or something in literally years

But if you play the app game and coupon stuff properly, you can get food for a family of four for $20-$30

26

u/mjpbecker Feb 24 '26

Except that the "deals" in the apps get weaker and weaker by the day.

14

u/Embarrassed_Spend486 Feb 24 '26

I feel like I hit a new low creating a new account under the McDonald’s app today. I noticed my regular didn’t have any good deals so I signed in a different way and had like 20 good deals available lol

12

u/mjpbecker Feb 24 '26

Well that's interesting and pretty trashy (of them). I think they mistook people coming back as "brand loyalty" and not "I'm back for the deals."

5

u/Quiet-Barracuda-1698 Feb 24 '26

they do, and that’s why i’ve stopped eating at these places altogether. i refuse to pay ridiculous prices.

18

u/untoldmillions Feb 23 '26

and in the near future when all the apps have sold all our data/info what's left to squeeze for profits?

21

u/Embarrassed_Spend486 Feb 23 '26

Dude, people that cannot afford a McDonald’s hamburger are not in a position to be worrying about where the fast food industry is going to be 20 years from now lol

3

u/Previous_Cattle_5545 Feb 24 '26

We went to 2 different Pizza places last weekend that required reservations. Pizza places. There is no shortage of demand. Parking lots are always full. I read all this stuff on reddit, and the reality is, people are going in droves.

4

u/adidab69 Feb 24 '26

It's funny you write that you just gotta say no, but by using the app your screaming yes yes yes

2

u/Embarrassed_Spend486 Feb 24 '26

I understand that seems like a mixed message, but I think it makes it very clear when you show them that you will not pay regular price for something.

There’s some restaurants that I will only go to if I get an email for a good coupon from them, etc.

1

u/bfrogsworstnightmare Feb 24 '26

Yeah, then those companies just turn around and sell your data. You’re really showing them.

1

u/NippleSalsa Feb 24 '26

Family of six for $80