Been in Berlin the past day and stopped at a McDs. Not only is it considerably cheaper (meal with two sides for £4.50 equivalent) than the UK (the last time I went I paid around £7 for the same quantity of items) there’s also a heap of variety – items we’ve either never had in the UK or items we’ve randomly discontinued due to lack of demand. I find it hard to accept that a society as diverse as we’ve become in the last fifty years still prefers the plainest of the plain.
It’s made me think, just what the fuck is wrong with the UK with the prices we’re charging coupled with the lack of variety in fast food restaurants? We occasionally rotate menus but it’s much and such the basics through and through whereas in Europe you can get a large variety of food year-round at a competitive price. You’d think the restaurants that offer that larger variety would be in such a position to charge more for sourcing, yet we pay more.
10 comments
Berlin is generally cheaper because it was a poor city for a long time so their prices will be adjusted to reflect the lower cost of overheads, wages etc. It would be cheaper again in Warsaw and about £20 in Zurich.
[removed]
>items we’ve either never had in the UK
All McDonalds are different, depending on the country you are in; It’s inherent to their Franchise system. Other fast food outlets are run a similar way.
>in Europe you can get a large variety of food year-round at a competitive price
No you can’t, we have essentially the lowest cost of food and groceries in western Europe, and have had for decades now.
I was in Italy last week and a large Big Mac meal came to around €11. Slightly more than here, and they charge for ketchup by the tub too.
Our takeaway prices and range are a national embarrassment, have been for years.
McDonalds has shot up in the price over the last few years (for a variety of reasons) and we have got relatively poorer compared to Germany over the last decade, who already had a head start when it comes to rent.
I used to be an administrator for a franchise of McDonald’s in the UK. I wouldn’t say we’re being ripped off, the cost of doing business in the UK is considerable.
On average, the stores will spend roughly 20% of gross sales on staffing and 30% on cost of goods sold. Once you include utilities, staff pensions etc, building/equipment maintenance and so on, plus refurb and upgrade costs (which happen probably every 5 years on average) your profit margin is minimal.
I paid about £6 ish for a Mcplant medium meal here in Portugal a few weeks ago.
Burger king is much better here, a lot of options and most meals have a vegetable patty option as standard. And my ex, he has really good deals on the app, a medium meal for about £3 sometimes. And free refills in Burger king.
But when you think that my wage here is the equivalent of £4 an hour and I’m on slightly more than the national minimum, you can see why it is cheaper here
It’s slop and it’s killing you.
I think McDonald’s in the UK is still pretty good value even though it has gone up.
I was in Amsterdam last month and it came to about €12/£10 for a medium Big Mac meal with nothing else. £10 here still gets me a large Big Mac meal , hamburger and 2 McFlurrys.
Also in NYC last month it was about $14 for a medium Big Mac meal and nothing else.