World's most expensive fast food?

manc

From Yahoo/Forbes.com http://uk.biz.yahoo.com/10072009/389/world-s-most-expensive-fast-food.html ...............

Dublin is home to Trinity College , the Guinness Storehouse and St. Stephens Green.

Here, you'll also find the world's most expensive fast food. A hamburger meal at a medium-priced establishment, as defined by consulting firm Mercer, costs a whopping £5.65, or $9.16.

That figure - the only to exceed $8.00 on a list of 20 geographically diverse cities selected for different cost comparisons - is $3.00 greater than the price of a hamburger meal in New York, where it's £3.70 ($5.99).

But travelers in Europe will not find significant relief in many other cities on the continent, where the price of a fast-food meal hovers within the £4.50 range: In Amsterdam you'll pay £4.86, in Paris £4.58, and in Athens £4.11. For less pricey eats, grab a hamburger in Prague for £3.02, in Warsaw for £2.38, or in Johannesburg, which sells the cheapest burgers on the list at £1.54.

DOS

They should be double the price than whats shown. Damn junk food. Thats how we'll solve this recession, tax junk food. 1 calorie = 1 cent.

the groutch

"a medium priced establishment", so obviously not a multinational like McDonalds where they can compare like-for-like, just random restaurants in each city, where the product in question is completely different

also this doesn't factor in the operating costs in each country

pointless survey imo

Tipsy Mac

the groutch wrote: »

"a medium priced establishment", so obviously not a multinational like McDonalds where they can compare like-for-like, just random restaurants in each city, where the product in question is completely different

also this doesn't factor in the operating costs in each country

pointless survey imo

Exactly, they should have priced a Big Mac or Whopper in each city instead.

rubadub

manc wrote: »

Johannesburg, which sells the cheapest burgers on the list at £1.54.

McDonalds sell €1 burgers, and BK often have them on the 99cent menu. And there are loads of 2 for 1 deals on receipts which these surveys always omit, I would rarely buy any burger etc for the full listed price.

All this survey shows is the amount of new fancy overpriced burger joints in dublin, I know nobody who goes to them.

Morgans

rubadub wrote: »

McDonalds sell €1 burgers, and BK often have them on the 99cent menu, And there are loads of 2 for 1 deals on receipts which these surveys always omit

All this survey shows is the amount of new fancy overpriced burger joints in dublin, I know nobody who goes to them.

Do you have a reference for these two statements? From what I could see/read the study was on meals, not individual burgers which bargain hunters nourish themselves on. Nor was it a survey on special offers avialable at fast food restaurants.

The report itself states "In devising a comparative study of the cost of a fast-food hamburger meal across different cities, included in this year's Worldwide Cost of Living Survey 2009, Mercer analysts collected data from venues most frequented by expatriates in a given city."

greener&leaner

manc wrote: »

From Yahoo/Forbes.com http://uk.biz.yahoo.com/10072009/389/world-s-most-expensive-fast-food.html ...............

Dublin is home to Trinity College , the Guinness Storehouse and St. Stephens Green.

Here, you'll also find the world's most expensive fast food. A hamburger meal at a medium-priced establishment, as defined by consulting firm Mercer, costs a whopping £5.65, or $9.16.

That figure - the only to exceed $8.00 on a list of 20 geographically diverse cities selected for different cost comparisons - is $3.00 greater than the price of a hamburger meal in New York, where it's £3.70 ($5.99).

But travelers in Europe will not find significant relief in many other cities on the continent, where the price of a fast-food meal hovers within the £4.50 range: In Amsterdam you'll pay £4.86, in Paris £4.58, and in Athens £4.11. For less pricey eats, grab a hamburger in Prague for £3.02, in Warsaw for £2.38, or in Johannesburg, which sells the cheapest burgers on the list at £1.54.

Let's see.
Sterling - cheap
Dollar - cheap
Euro - expensive
other small currencies - cheap

Anyone want to hazard a guess?

seclachi

DOS wrote: »

They should be double the price than whats shown. Damn junk food. Thats how we'll solve this recession, tax junk food. 1 calorie = 1 cent.

That means 20 euro if your a woman and 25 euro if your a man in tax a day if you keep to the RDA. Funny thing is, probably still wouldn't sort the problems the government are having.

And yes, ireland is expensive, I think its only at this point now that money has become tight that the majority have come to this realization.

rubadub

Morgans wrote: »

Do you have a reference for these two statements?

Nope, and I can't be bothered taking photos of the menus or receipts, it is common knowledge.

The others I meant my mates or people in work etc when I said "I know of nobody". e.g. there was a €10 hambuger meal mentioned for eddie rockets in bargain alerts, most people replying were in shock. Whenever I hear mention eddies mentioned 99% of the time somebody remarks on how expensive it is. Lots of these style "diners" or "gourmet burger joints have opened.

A far more interesting survey would be average price PAID for a takeaway meal, which is totally different thing than the average price ATTEMPTED to be charged.

Morgans wrote: »

The report itself states "In devising a comparative study of the cost of a fast-food hamburger meal across different cities, included in this year's Worldwide Cost of Living Survey 2009, Mercer analysts collected data from venues most frequented by expatriates in a given city."

Yes the expatriates thing is interesting, I presume they are US expats. In a high cost city I expect most expats would be on a higher income level, therefore might frequent higher cost restaurants. e.g. a US expat without much money might go to a cheaper country to retire and so tend to go to cheaper places anyway. I always like to see the full breakdown of figures in these surveys which can reveal the many flaws they usually have, or if not even considered flaws I can see how the figures were arrived at. Often this figures shock me but when I see how the survey is conducted it makes sense.

e.g. some survey was comparing own brand goods in supermarkets, at first I was shocked to see tesco high on the list, then I saw the figures and it turned out they went to the highest or second highest own brand item in each case. i.e. tesco can have 6-8 types of own-brand pizza, of varying quality & price, while many others just have 1-2 types, both cheap.

Morgans wrote: »

Nor was it a survey on special offers avialable at fast food restaurants.

Yes, and my point is that is not how many people ordinarily shop. On the supermarket survey they did buy stuff on offer but then corrected the prices to the "original" price! ridiculous as the dogs on the street know the "original" price is usually overinflated in the first place.

Run_to_da_hills

Burgerking has a fantastic offer on at the moment, Double cheese burger, fries and coke 3.50 Can't go wrong.

Morgans

rubadub wrote: »

Nope, and I can't be bothered taking photos of the menus or receipts, it is common knowledge.

The others I meant my mates or people in work etc when I said "I know of nobody". e.g. there was a €10 hambuger meal mentioned for eddie rockets in bargain alerts, most people replying were in shock. Whenever I hear mention eddies mentioned 99% of the time somebody remarks on how expensive it is. Lots of these style "diners" or "gourmet burger joints have opened.

A far more interesting survey would be average price PAID for a takeaway meal, which is totally different thing than the average price ATTEMPTED to be charged.


Yes the expatriates thing is interesting, I presume they are US expats. In a high cost city I expect most expats would be on a higher income level, therefore might frequent higher cost restaurants. e.g. a US expat without much money might go to a cheaper country to retire and so tend to go to cheaper places anyway. I always like to see the full breakdown of figures in these surveys which can reveal the many flaws they usually have, or if not even considered flaws I can see how the figures were arrived at. Often this figures shock me but when I see how the survey is conducted it makes sense.

e.g. some survey was comparing own brand goods in supermarkets, at first I was shocked to see tesco high on the list, then I saw the figures and it turned out they went to the highest or second highest own brand item in each case. i.e. tesco can have 6-8 types of own-brand pizza, of varying quality & price, while many others just have 1-2 types, both cheap.


Yes, and my point is that is not how many people ordinarily shop. On the supermarket survey they did buy stuff on offer but then corrected the prices to the "original" price! ridiculous as the dogs on the street know the "original" price is usually overinflated in the first place.

It seems that you are denying or questioning the reports findings because you assume without evidence that expats arent going to the McDonalds Burger King or Supermacs but eddie rockets or some of the gourmet burger restaurants.

I think apart from a handful of Eddie Rockets you would need local knowledge to find the gourmet burger, jo burger restaurant. They are not the type of restaurant that you would stumble accross by accident.

I dont know if its only expats in Ireland that mistake McDonalds for higher end restaurants. I dont know why only in Ireland would ex-pats make that mistake.

You state of another report where every one knew that original prices are overinflated in the first place.

Isnt that the point of the report? That Ireland's hamburger meals are overinflated in price in comparison with other cities in the world.

abakan

Did you notice that in SuperMacs - the one in Manooth anyway doesnt have their prices displayed!!! whats up there? so you dont know how much you are being ripped off

rubadub

Morgans wrote: »

It seems that you are denying or questioning the reports findings

I question the findings, end of story. Not that I think they are lying or making a mistake I would like to see what the findings actually were, and the figures etc. Then it would probably become very clear to me why they are so high. I would also like to see what countries were included or excluded, after visiting Oslo I am shocked it is not on the list.

Morgans wrote: »

expats arent going to the McDonalds Burger King or Supermacs but eddie rockets or some of the gourmet burger restaurants.

If they listed restaurants out and in other countries it was all mc donalds and cheaper fast food joints it would make sense. Dublin has a disproportionate amount of overpriced places. As I said before I would like to see average price PAID. There are very few italian style chippers in dublin city centre, while in amsterdam you will get loads of places selling burgers around the same price as McDs or BK.

Morgans wrote: »

I think apart from a handful of Eddie Rockets you would need local knowledge to find the gourmet burger, jo burger restaurant.

There are a good few around the city centre now, outside the city centre they are far rarer.

Morgans wrote: »

I dont know why only in Ireland would ex-pats make that mistake.

I never said it was a mistake, I was saying higher income earners would probably choose to go to better restaurants. SOme Irish people will retire to a villa in spain as a cheap place to live, some with cash might head to monaco etc, I expect the people who can only afford a cheaper house would be going to cheaper restaurants too etc.

Morgans wrote: »

You state of another report where every one knew that original prices are overinflated in the first place

No, I was the first one who spotted it, people just blindly accepted the end result and were not examining what was going on, just like this survey. Some guy then posted the excel sheet with the actual data, and then I was discovered what was going on, and how explained the results were skewed. I did not spot any mistakes, it was however unrealistic about how I see most people doing their shopping, and since it only picked one "own brand", shops with lower quality single own brand items turned out best.

Another legitimate report ended up being very misleading due to journalists from the likes of the irish times making out that goods should cost 6% more at the till in the republic than up north. I expect journalists are not completely illiterate so expect they purposely lied or feigned ignorance for the sake of a good story. Again you had to read the actual report to discover what was really being said, and it certainly made no claims at all that people should be paying 6% more here.

Morgans wrote: »

Isnt that the point of the report? That Ireland's hamburger meals are overinflated in price in comparison with other cities in the world.

Yes, but under what circumstances? The results are pretty useless to me when they are so vague to begin with. I could probably set a load of rules in a survey and have us appearing the cheapest of those countries. I probably could have got tesco to the bottom of the supermarket price survey when they topped it.

Did you notice that in SuperMacs - the one in Manooth anyway doesnt have their prices displayed!!! whats up there?

That is illegal
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/1984/en/si/0213.html

Morgans

I have no problem with the figures being questioned. Ive been to cities where it has been more expensive than Dublin, however, the idea that in Dublin they compare Gourmet Burger prices to McDonalds prices elsewhere is ridiculous. The fact that McDonalds/Burger King are so global makes them easy for a braod stroke price comparison.

rubadub

Morgans wrote: »

the idea that in Dublin they compare Gourmet Burger prices to McDonalds prices elsewhere is ridiculous.

Yes, it is as ridiculous as the conclusions drawn in the other 2 surveys I mentioned, this is why it would not surprise me in the slightest if they have done something like that.

Morgans wrote: »

The fact that McDonalds/Burger King are so global makes them easy for a braod stroke price comparison.

Yes, like the big mac index. The other interesting data was on the average wages in proportion to the price of big macs. I cannot find a big mac index with the irish price on it. But for 2009 we appear 10th on the "fastest earned" list

Wealth Management Research has expanded the idea of the Big Mac Index to include the amount of time that an average worker in a given country must work to earn enough to buy a Big Mac. The working-time based Big Mac index might give a more realistic view of the purchasing power of the average worker, as it takes into account more factors, such as local wages

Ten fastest earned

Tokyo, Japan - 10 minutes
Los Angeles, United States - 11 minutes
Chicago, Illinois United States - 12 minutes
Miami, Florida United States - 12 minutes
New York City, New York United States - 13 minutes
Auckland, New Zealand - 14 minutes
Sydney, Australia - 14 minutes
Toronto, Canada - 14 minutes
Zürich, Switzerland - 15 minutes
Dublin, Ireland - 15 minutes

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Mac_Index#Figures

the groutch

the fastest earned list is a good comparison imo

Tabnabs

We're no where near the dearest.

5 places with the overall highest Bic Mac prices

The reason that there are only 2 cities from Europe in the top for a fastest earned Big Mac is not because the overall salaries are low (just the opposite), but because the overall prices are high compared to the rest of the world. Here are the 5 places with the highest Big Mac price:

1. Norway - 7.88 dollars for a Big Mac
2. Sweden - 6.37 dollars
3. Switzerland - 6.36 dollars
4. Denmark - 5.95 dollars
5. Euro Area average - 5.34 dollars

The average price for a Big Mac in the US is 3.57 dollars. For the same price that you get 1 Big Mac in Norway you get 2 Big Macs in the US (and you’ll even have some money left).

The huge price differences in Europe and the United States is also the reason why American tourists in Europe will find their wallets thinning out pretty quickly!

source

citizen_p

€5.20 for a qurter pounder with cheese in the chippers :eek:

plus in america they have extra costs.... on the 99 cent menu there i got 1 item.....they charged me 1.08.... damm tips...

just put 1.08 on the damm sign...

if they want 15 % just charge 1.15 instead of 1

killbillvol2

Just for those of you who didn't actually read the report: alongside the caption of Dublin as most expensive is a very clear picture of McDonald's in Grafton St. Here it is:



Edit/ In fact there's a picture of a McDonald's restaurant from every city.


.

rubadub

killbillvol2 wrote: »

alongside the caption of Dublin as most expensive is a very clear picture of McDonald's in Grafton St.

Yeah I noticed that. Last time I got a hamburger meal in that same place it was €2 or €3...

cullen5998

Soooooooooooo expensive everywhere but at least the food is good and the place is clean!

SIX PACK

manc wrote: »

From Yahoo/Forbes.com http://uk.biz.yahoo.com/10072009/389/world-s-most-expensive-fast-food.html ...............

Dublin is home to Trinity College , the Guinness Storehouse and St. Stephens Green.

Here, you'll also find the world's most expensive fast food. A hamburger meal at a medium-priced establishment, as defined by consulting firm Mercer, costs a whopping £5.65, or $9.16.

That figure - the only to exceed $8.00 on a list of 20 geographically diverse cities selected for different cost comparisons - is $3.00 greater than the price of a hamburger meal in New York, where it's £3.70 ($5.99).

But travelers in Europe will not find significant relief in many other cities on the continent, where the price of a fast-food meal hovers within the £4.50 range: In Amsterdam you'll pay £4.86, in Paris £4.58, and in Athens £4.11. For less pricey eats, grab a hamburger in Prague for £3.02, in Warsaw for £2.38, or in Johannesburg, which sells the cheapest burgers on the list at £1.54.

we Use € euro in Ireland Not £ pound but yea Ireland is an expensive **** hole:mad:

SIX PACK

Dyflin wrote: »

We're no where near the dearest.



source

thats why 75% of Americans are Obese

the groutch

Mousey- wrote: »

plus in america they have extra costs.... on the 99 cent menu there i got 1 item.....they charged me 1.08.... damm tips...

just put 1.08 on the damm sign...

the $1.08 is including sales tax (their version of VAT), which varies between different states, so it's much more cost effective for them to make signage/menus saying 99c plus tax, rather than make different signs/menus for each state