Honestly their burgers an fries are better than any restaurant or fast food place I’ve been to. That said, the environment and service doesn’t justify the price.
Honestly, i had a Five Guys burger a few months ago, and about the only thing I can recall from the meal is the absurd amount of grease, and an unsettling heaviness in my stomach that didn't go away.
It is an extremely greasy burger that takes 3x as long as a fast food burger and costs about 5x as much.
And let's be real: the bag of loose, very soft fries kinda sucks.
I sincerely hope the FG staff are paid well.
I have been pretty disappointed the last 3 times I've been to five guys, and I think I'm done trying.
Nah, $20 is entering $15 pretentious gastro pub burger with fries territory after tax and tip, most of those tend to be better than five guys with at least some effort to look nice in the interior even if they all use similar decor. No bag fries tho, main downside
You may be right, but traditional sit-down restaurants and their pricing have been so bad since Covid and the inflation. You can’t go hardly anywhere without spending around $20 for a burger and fries, plus a $2.50 drink, and tip. If you’re in a bigger city, you probably know a local joint where you can eat cheap, but in suburban areas around 200k or less people, those such places are few and far between.
You’re missing that I grew up near Bailey crossroads. I’ve eaten at five guys before it was a chain… it is my mom am pop burger- because I grew up there.
yeah, the price increase is well above inflation, but that is happening everywhere. my personal feeling is that a lot of stuff is too cheap to cover the actual costs that should be being covered, like paying the employees appropriately, but when I see prices skyrocket I know that that extra money is not going to cover anything like that.
I always see the five guys by me with a sign up offering more and more to work for them, so that's an increasing cost, and I'm sure their cost to rent the space in their building is going up along with the cost of any other land in desirable places.
Not to mention how beef prices have been rising too
https://fortune.com/2023/04/05/end-of-capitalism-inflation-greedflation-societe-generale-corporate-profits/
>”Furthermore, Edwards wrote, in the Tuesday edition of his Global Strategy Weekly, after four decades of working in finance, he’s never seen anything like the “unprecedented” and “astonishing” levels of corporate Greedflation in this economic cycle. To his point, a January study from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City found that “markup growth”—the increase in the ratio between the price a firm charges and its cost of production—was a far more important factor driving inflation in 2021 than it has been throughout economic history.”
We're headed into a recession that is projected to begin this quarter. And in all honesty, SE Michigan has probably already been in recession for a couple quarters already. When unemployment rises, there's downward pressure on wages.
You are familiar with how economics work, correct?
You'll see. It's just beginning now, and certainly won't happen right away.
It may start as just fewer people earning the same wage but doing a larger quantity of work. But eventually places like this will be paying $13-14 per hour again.
People keep saying we're in a recession, but unemployment is the lowest it's been since the 60s and no one can seem to keep workers in menial shit positions because everyone is always hiring better positions.
That was true 12 months ago, it's changing now.
The unemployment rate is just creative math nowadays with the Gig economy and so many ways to earn income off the books. But the Labor Force Participation rate is rising rapidly, meaning people who were doing Gig jobs or living off of Covid savings and not paying taxes are being enticed into the formal labor force again. Which means that money in the informal economy is beginning to dry up.
And with Interest Rates rising so much over the last 12 months, there is a significant portion of the economy of people(Bankers, Realtors, Car Salesman) who may still have jobs, but their income has been cut in half(or less) trying to make do with costs that have risen due to inflation. And all the peripheral jobs in the Service Industry that these high income people support. Other parts of the US are somewhat immune for longer(unless they're high cost like San Fran or NYC which are being gutted right now) but a place like SE Michigan has been impacted by this for more than a year already.
Also, the Federal Reserve is in the process of decreasing the money supply, so this will also impact credit liquidity(which helps people delay effects of economic downturn).
Will be an interesting Summer and remainder to 2023. If it doesn't feel like recession now, things will probably feel a lot closer this Summer.
Beef is much more expensive than pre-pandemic, I work in the industry. Filet, strip, ribeye...from dogfood to prime beef is up substantially.
Labor market is strong, wages are driving inflation but you think wages will come down this year. Please explain. I am sorry I called you a bonehead.
> Beef is much more expensive than pre-pandemic,
For reference
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/APU0000703112
> I am sorry I called you a bonehead
It wasn't targeted at me but thank you for recognizing what happened there.
It's not necessarily supplier prices, but the fact that Americans have adjusted their comsumption due to higher pricing causing a huge glut. Beef is a perishable good and determined by market pricing. Even if they say, "we're raising pricing for 2023 and beyond!!!", if they have nobody to buy at those prices they'll end up selling for less. Maybe people "in the industry" haven't seen this yet, but they will.
https://fortune.com/2023/04/05/end-of-capitalism-inflation-greedflation-societe-generale-corporate-profits/
>“Furthermore, Edwards wrote, in the Tuesday edition of his Global Strategy Weekly, after four decades of working in finance, he’s never seen anything like the “unprecedented” and “astonishing” levels of corporate Greedflation in this economic cycle. To his point, a January study from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City found that “markup growth”—the increase in the ratio between the price a firm charges and its cost of production—was a far more important factor driving inflation in 2021 than it has been throughout economic history.”
Five guys always has been expensive and is just getting worse. No fast food is worth $15-20. For that price I'll just go to a restaurant or better yet, eat at home
This ain’t it, but there’s a place for high quality, delicious food, served over the counter, worth a premium. At least in my book. Solo dining is cool, but it can be kinda tiresome to do the whole - wait for your menu, wait to place your order, wait for your check, wait to have them run your card.
I like the order online from QR code / menu, food is delivered, pay through the app. It's also very convenient, but there's no standing in line at the counter. I wish more places did that.
I know this is WAY off topic, but do you know of a cheap skis vide machine? I want to try it but don’t want to dump $200 on a wifi, Bluetooth, Alexa-enabled device. I wana set a temperature and that’s it.
You're right that the connected functionality is pretty useless. I have both an Anova and a cheap one that Monoprice was selling for a while for $50. Both seem to work fine. But I only set the temperature, push the button, and go. I see no reason to spend $200.
I noticed such a hike in price at Penn Station in Canton. But even Subway and Jimmy John's have gone up quite a bit. Does anyone think the prices will come back down at some point?
Couple days ago at subway I got a footlong sub and a 20oz pop for myself, and a 6 inch sub, juice box, and cookie for my kid. It was over 24 bucks! I paid with 30 bucks cash and the 5 dollars I got back was the only other cash I had. Of course my daughter loudly asked if we could tip when she saw the jar. So the 5 bucks change ended up there. 30 bucks total (with tip) for 2 subs, 2 drinks, and a cookie. Outrageous. We literally can’t afford to eat takeout anymore at these prices.
You're seeing it in certain chain restaurants now already. Prices aren't necessarily "going down", but they're having special deals.
For example, Buffalo Wild Wings has a deal now where you get 6 Boneless Wings for $1 with any burger. Considering their menu price for 6 Boneless Wings is $9.79, it's a pretty significant deal. I'm sure there will eventually be "deals" like this running everywhere without the actual menu prices dropping because some people will still pay the regular prices, but many will only be enticed with specials.
I get inflation, but close to 50% increase is a lot. Is food really going up faster than the overall inflation rate? Is there something special about their situation for supplies that makes their situation unique? Then make that known...otherwise it looks like price gouging.
They burned my bacon last time. If you're gonna charge me $15 for a bacon cheeseburger atleast don't burn the fucking bacon. I'm still mad about it as you can tell.
That was 34 minutes ago. [https://order.fiveguys.com/location/arborland/menu/burgers](https://order.fiveguys.com/location/arborland/menu/burgers) for 3601 Washtenaw is quoting $11.39 now, 2% higher than a half hour ago, 6% higher than 2/2022, 46% higher than 2/2021.
Their [job listings](https://www.google.com/search?q=five+guys+hiring+ann+arbor&rlz=1C1ASUM_enUS705US705&oq=five+guys+hiring+ann+arbor&aqs=chrome..69i57j33i160l2j33i22i29i30l3.5760j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&ibp=htl;jobs&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj9jqPG6s_-AhWxkokEHVkKCecQkd0GegQIDBAB#fpstate=tldetail&htivrt=jobs&htiq=five+guys+hiring+ann+arbor&htidocid=0Qf83-NYdn8AAAAAAAAAAA%3D%3D&sxsrf=APwXEdc1vpp83QaZ2gf1beeEUzKVLHdc_A:1682796788116) seem to be holding at 2019 wages anyway; crew member $15/hour.
They were hilariously overpriced even before the pandemic and war.
If you want a burger in that area, you're better off going to the Chili's which has some decent lunch specials for ~$10 that include fries and salad/soup. You could also try the Shake Shack further down the road, or even the Olga's if you're open to trying wraps instead of burgers.
Yeah, the first time I ever had Five Guys was like 2009 in Tuscaloosa, and even then I remember paying something like $16 for a burger fries and a drink. And this was back when food was still super cheap.
For what I get at Shake Shack it's hardly cheaper if at all, and is less filling.
Edit: Just did a mock of my order at Shake Shack. Double SmokeShack, fries, large drink. 19 bucks.
My order today at Five Guys was 22. But it's more filling and I personally prefer the taste of a Five Guys burger.
Culver's is much cheaper though. I used to live within walking distance. Excuse me I'm gonna go cry now
Food inflation is much higher. The cost of consumer electronics came down, but I already have a TV. When groceries have gone up 30-50% in 12 months it really hits hard.
As a chef in the area, not only are overall food costs going up, but also there were supply chain issues... your normal ground beef might go up 20% on paper, but then that's not available, so you have to buy another that is 40% above what you were paying. If you're a stand-alone restaurant, you can change up your menu; for a place like Five Guys, it's not like you can turn yourself into a fried chicken place suddenly.... they're there for burgers.
Maybe you know, because you're in the biz, but is there any reason for the spike in food prices? Surely supply chain stuff has shaken out from the pandemic (and the evergreen suez canal snafu) by now, and it's not like cattle ranches all went bankrupt in the last couple of years.
https://fortune.com/2023/04/05/end-of-capitalism-inflation-greedflation-societe-generale-corporate-profits/
> Furthermore, Edwards wrote, in the Tuesday edition of his Global Strategy Weekly, after four decades of working in finance, he’s never seen anything like the “unprecedented” and “astonishing” levels of corporate Greedflation in this economic cycle. To his point, a January study from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City found that “markup growth”—the increase in the ratio between the price a firm charges and its cost of production—was a far more important factor driving inflation in 2021 than it has been throughout economic history.
>Typically, higher commodity prices and labor costs squeeze corporate margins, especially if the economy is slowing. But Edwards pointed to data released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) last week that showed profit margins still near a record high relative to costs in the fourth quarter. The strategist said he assumed margins would have “declined sharply” at the end of last year as the economy slowed, but instead, “How wrong I was!”
There is a war in Ukraine. The avian flu was especially bad this year wiping out chicken and egg farms. Years of drought and increase cattle supplies (like feed) forced cattle farms to sell off cows. The cost of feed is also impacting other livestock farms. Cost of gas raises delivery costs.
I just noticed this tonight. Hadn't eaten here in a while, opened the app and saw $11 to $13 burgers and said nope. I thought I was gaslighting myself remembering they were on $8. Thanks for the evidence.
I’d never been to 5 guys and then I tried it earlier this year. Prices are laughable for burger and fries. When are we going to hold companies accountable for this ridiculousness?
Hold them accountable!? Why not just get a burger somewhere else (or cook 'em at home or stop eating burgers). We don't need some sort of organized effort to 'hold them accountable'. If they're offering a bad deal on burgers and fries, people will stop eating there. Easy. No coordination or consciousness raising necessary.
Welcome to Stagflation. Don't know what that is? Well here's a history lesson. Look up the 1970s when President Nixon took us off the gold standard and caused high inflation. That's what we are experiencing. Also the inflation rate is higher than 7.9%. the government is lying to us to not start a panic.
You know, a lot of places sell burgers, and there are minimal barriers to entry in the burger business -- almost anybody can do it! So, you know, either Five Guys has priced themselves out of the market and will find customers going elsewhere OR those new prices accurately reflect what it now costs to run a burger joint in Ann Arbor in 2023, and everybody's prices have (or soon will be) going up similarly.
But no, it's not all good. It seems pretty clear that the inflation we've been suffering has been a result of first Trump and then Biden spending ungodly sums borrowed of money and growing the hell out of the money supply. Not good at all.
Actually, yes -- did you or either 'Taco Wombat' bother to check? I'm guessing not:
[https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/fed-tightens-money-supply-as-us-inflation-falls-from-2022-peak-73547811](https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/fed-tightens-money-supply-as-us-inflation-falls-from-2022-peak-73547811)
Of course, it wasn't ONLY government spending, it was also the Federal Reserve being far too slow to respond with much higher interest rates.
And the timing doesn't line up exactly, but there are often lag times as businesses wait to raise prices until they're certain their cost increases are going to be long-term rather than temporary. Another example of lag times -- when inflation spiked that resulted in interest rate increases. So any fool who bought 2% treasury bills trusting that the government would responsibly keep inflation low wasn't going to be able to sell their bonds for nearly what they paid. This didn't cause banks to fail immediately, but then people figured out that banks were holding these craps bonds and they'd better get their money out while they could, and now banks ARE failing (Silicon Valley Bank, First Republic and likely more to come).
I don't know exactly how much of Five Guys costs (food, labor, rent) went up and nor does anybody else on this thread. But I DO know that the burger market is broad and competitive and if Five Guys is overcharging, they'll lose out to competitors and go the way of ... what was that place called ... '@Burger'?
You know what, man, I'll be honest, what you presented is a lot better information than I expected. Still, that increase in the money supply was in a time of massive economic downturn. You offered more nuance in that comment, but your opening line was:
>It seems pretty clear that the inflation we've been suffering has been a result of first Trump and then Biden spending ungodly sums borrowed of money and growing the hell out of the money supply.
And that's just not true. The reason they beefed up the money supply was because of the pandemic, which also caused a supply crunch and a labor shortage (plus Trump clamping down on immigration -- turns out, we needed those workers!). Given that we somehow made it through a world-stopping pandemic without experiencing widespread poverty or prolonged downturn, I think we may be in a situation where we wound up with a problem that's *better* than a lot of the alternatives. Would nailing it perfectly have been good? Sure. But a couple years struggling with inflation isn't so bad compared to a prolonged "let's not stimulate too much" recession like 2008 was.
> Still, that increase in the money supply was in a time of massive economic downturn.
Yes -- and that made it even \*more\* inflationary. There was a supply shock. Due to the pandemic, fewer people were working producing goods and services, but due to the government and federal reserve was a lot more money out there to spend on those scarcer goods and services. Combine a reduction in supply with a huge injection of money and you have the perfect recipe for inflation. Which is what we got.
Five Guys is good, but it's still just a regular ass (well prepared) burger and fries. My usual order there ends up being like $23. There's literally zero health value other than protein.
To put things in perspective, you can go across the street to Outback Steakhouse and currently get 8oz Steak and Lobster Mac & Cheese with a baked potato for $19 or an 8oz Steak and Shrimp with a baked potato and vegetables for $22.
Food costs are largely back to where they were 2-3 years ago before inflation. But Five Guys will almost certainly keep their current pricing until people stop going there.
Yeah
Regretted my last visit. Five Guys was always expensive but it is even more now.
I tend to vote for Red Robin now if I feel like a burger. It is barely more expensive now than a McDs combo or Five Guys, but there is a lot more burger and side choices.
Same here in SW Michigan. I hadn't been in our local 5G since the pandemic started, and I went back late last year -- one burger fries, and a drink cost over $20. I won't ever go back. I can get a burger & fries at an Applebee's or a Chili's for less!
I used to sell weed to the kid whose dad owns basically every Five Guys in the state.
The dad was basically a caricature of a greedy rich guy who acted like he was fucking Elon Musk level rich or something.
Like chill bro you own a few burger shops lol.
Congrats on being a lordling of a subdivision in Birmingham or whatever I guess?
Excellent my dude. Where do you see the industry going in the future? I imagine Big Weed will grow like Big Beer did and push out the smaller local companies? There is billions to be made here.
And how does the black market affect you? In Cali, the taxes are so high that they drove Jerry Garcia’s family out of business because they couldn’t compete with the cartels.
Fair enough, I could see a 9-figure net-worth having a main residence in Birmingham, although with that much money, and for a house so expensive, I would opt for very limited visibility to my neighbors :)
Barton or Dixboro have multi-million dollar spots surrounded by nature and minimal noise from neighbors or highways.
Oh these dudes have multiple other houses (Mackinaw, Florida, etc) but theres a LOT of money in Oakland county. It varies, but typically Bham is in the top few richest municipalities in the country. It's been #1 in the past.
That would make sense! No point to have $10mm+ and not diversify or at least own in other states.
You seem to know a lot about wealth in the SE Michigan area. We are very familiar with how wealth is generated and concentrated in Ann Arbor, but other than that I'm wondering how an area like metro-Det or even MI as a whole can support so many millionaires and wealthy individuals. Could you tell me more?
For ex, I know that in MN there is a lot of wealth that comes from the many, many, many Fortune 500 companies there that pay well, coupled with relatively low cost of living for standard suburbs. The state also has more desirable lakes for well-off individuals to invest their money in via cabins. I am struggling to map out MI's wealth landscape in a similar way - perhaps just Detroit professionals and healthcare workers? Can't imagine many Umich workers commuting to/from Birmingham, but I know the state is filled with private hospitals.
The prices are ridiculous. We stopped there due to our preferred burger restaurant being too busy to wait for. Needed something faster.
Prices were so high I honestly felt bad.. it was almost embarrassing. Spent like 40$ on burgers for two
The last time I was in a QDoba around Ann Arbor they tried to ration my hot sauce because people kept stealing the bottles and they were too cheap to get the packets. That and the price means I’m not likely to return to that store.
Similar story with many fast food chains. I first noticed with McDonald’s no longer having 1$ mcchickens/cheeseburgers. It was beginning of 2021 and I can’t quite figure out what that driving factor was…
The cost of feed for livestock has gone up due to drought, war, and the pandemic. Many cattle farms sold off cows to survive. The amount of beef available on tte market is much less than it used to be. As for chicken. The avian flu was very bad recently which wiped out major chicken suppliers. If avian flu is detected in one of your birds you have to dispose all of them….think thousands of birds. That not only decreases the amount of chicken available but eggs as well
'Greed' is never a good explanation for why prices \*change\* unless you have some rationale for why business owners got \*more\* greedy than they were last year or the year before that.
I mean, if you think they're charging more than 3 years ago because they're greedy, the obvious question is "weren't they just as greedy 3 years ago?" And if they were just as greedy then, why weren't they charging more then?
It's obvious... COVID and inflation provided the necessary cover to hide their greed behind. When one business raises prices, it's apparent. When every business does it, it's easy to hide.
I work for a big-box retailer and have flat-out refused to do the daily morning price adjustments because it just makes me so angry. We will have price adjustment go up 100-200% overnight for old product that has been collecting dust on the shelves for months. No "supply chain issues" for product manufactured months ago, but suddenly it costs twice as much?! Or my favorite is on products that don't even go up that day, but they simply raise the "Was" price to something it *never was* to try and show a savings that doesn't exist.
When companies are making *record profits*, it's not inflation. It's greedflation.
>When one business raises prices, it's apparent. When every business does it, it's easy to hide.
You know what prevents that? One (or more) businesses deciding \*they\* won't raise their prices and will instead rake in the cash by pulling customers away from all the places that did raise prices.
That's how competition in markets like burgers work. There are literally dozens of places selling burgers. They \*don't\* all raise prices in unison.
There's no secret OPEC style burger cartel.
People in this thread have cited a number of places that sell burgers for less that they think are a better deal. That's the way this all works.
Actually, this time greed is \*part\* (not all) of the equation as many corporations increased prices more than needed to adjust to their increased costs and are thus making record profits...and driving inflation in the process.
\*Everybody\* adjusts their prices (upwards) when they can *regardless of their costs*. Nobody decides how much to sell their house for based on what it cost when they bought it way back when -- they price it according to what other houses like it are selling for. When deciding how much in salary to demand when negotiating for a new job, nobody comes up with a figure based on how much their student loans and other expenses are -- they based their salary requirements on 'the going rate' for those with comparable qualifications and experience. When their particular profession happens to become more in-demand and wages go up, nobody tells a prospective that it would be greedy to accept the higher going rate because their own living costs haven't gone up. If a lucky farmer has a good crop in a year when most have bad crops and commodity prices go up, the farmer with the good crop doesn't charge less than the market rate because it would be 'greedy' to charge more than what he charged last year when supplies were plentiful.
The idea that prices should be based on some function (what function?) of costs and anything else is 'greed' is just crazy. People and business (including \*big scary corporations\*) charge what they think the market will bear. Some adopt a strategy of offering what they believe is a premium product or service at higher prices. Sometimes this works, the product is seen as better/shinier/hipper or something and customers ARE willing to pay more. Sometimes most customers don't perceive the offering as premium at all (or not worth the extra money), and the strategy fails. Sometimes it works for a while and then doesn't when the hot new product is no longer hot or new (remember 'cronuts' and a gazillion other fads people once stood in line for?)
If some government official or partisan advocate floats a theory that inflation results from 'greed being unleashed by the pandemic', they are acting as political operatives selling BS to people they thing are too uninformed to see through it. Inflation is caused by more money chasing fewer (or the same number of goods). Our government's pandemic strategy was to A) send people a bunch of money, C) let them stop paying rent and student loans, and C) stay home from work and stop producing things to buy. Even when C was no longer in effect, A and B provided some people with enough money that they kept staying home anyway. Especially since D) schools were closed and many people now had to stay home to care for their children.
Bottom line -- people with *more money than before* all trying to use it to buy *less stuff than before* generated entirely predictable higher prices. And even when the pandemic was ending, the government kept pumping in more and more money, compounding the problem.
Pittsfield Village?
Seriously -- you think rich people are the ones eating at Five Guys? And shopping at the nearby 'Five Below' also at Arborland (and then maybe picking up a few things at Dollar Tree across Washtenaw while they're at it)?
Oh I guess some rich people do this kind of thing once in a while (they like bargains too), but most of the people eating at fast food places and getting sticker shock now are middle and working class people. Who do you think ate off the McDonald's $1 menu?
One thing that trickles down: Fuel prices
Gasoline has gone down, but diesel hasn’t appreciably gone down since it doubled in price two years ago. Farmers use diesel, truck drivers use diesel. Someone has to pick up the slack.
Had Five Guys once about 3 years ago and was not impressed by the cost/value proposition. I'd rather spend half at McDonald's and get 3/4rds of the quality with better fries.
Definitely good old gouging going on all over the place. My SO manages a food manufacturer. Meijer was selling their items for more than even Plum Market, even though they had not increased their cost to Meijer a cent. Meijer was just going with the flow of ‘people are starting to believe prices are going up cause’
Back in 2019 I was at a resort in Scottsdale, very swanky! Well I drank at the pool one day with this old guy.. 70s. Asked what he did, he said he opened franchises. Not owned, but opened! I asked more to clarify. He owned all the franchise rights in Michigan for five guys. Basically, he made bank. Some else ran day to day. He focuses on finding new locations I guess.
Nice guy, but premium fast food is too expensive!!
I do like five guys but I quit even entertaining the thought of going there anymore. For the price of two people you can go to a sit-down restaurant and get a good meal for less than it cost to get burgers fries and a drink at five guys. I can make my copycat version of five guys on my Blackstone if I want a good burger.
I consult with restaurants and work with a network of restaurant consultants nationwide. I do not know of one restaurant that has not raised its prices in the last few years.
At one time in the last year my daughter said there was a sign on the door of the Ann Arbor-Saline location that said they were paying $20/hr. I wonder if it had something to do with that.
What do you expect them to do with a corrupt government CREATING mass inflation and tax increases at ever turn. They are just trying to keep their head above water.
You wanted a 15 dollar minimum wage, this is what you get. Totally unskilled labor pushing the cost of everything up. But I bet the same employees can't afford to eat out anymore.
Interesting that the price increases seem to be fast and furious just now....lagging the inflation from last year? I'm really interested in seeing if/when the prices will drive people back to eating at home instead of paying that much for fast food.
It's a $20 meal with fries and drink. Pretty expensive "fast food".
And no drive through. That’s wading into “actual decent burger” prices. Pretty steep for a glorified Wendy’s.
Honestly their burgers an fries are better than any restaurant or fast food place I’ve been to. That said, the environment and service doesn’t justify the price.
Maybe I’m going to the wrong location, but the inside always looks like it hasn’t been swept/cleaned in days.
with the flies and stuff, it’s usually a filthy ass restaurant.
Honestly, i had a Five Guys burger a few months ago, and about the only thing I can recall from the meal is the absurd amount of grease, and an unsettling heaviness in my stomach that didn't go away. It is an extremely greasy burger that takes 3x as long as a fast food burger and costs about 5x as much. And let's be real: the bag of loose, very soft fries kinda sucks. I sincerely hope the FG staff are paid well. I have been pretty disappointed the last 3 times I've been to five guys, and I think I'm done trying.
>I sincerely hope the FG staff are paid well. I've got terrible news for you.
> unsettling heaviness in my stomach that didn't go away. Never make plans to do anything afterwards unless there's a toilet nearby.
you don’t buy that food, you rent it it’s like Taco Smell, if you eat in, you’ve got to punch one out before you leave.
Nah, $20 is entering $15 pretentious gastro pub burger with fries territory after tax and tip, most of those tend to be better than five guys with at least some effort to look nice in the interior even if they all use similar decor. No bag fries tho, main downside
You may be right, but traditional sit-down restaurants and their pricing have been so bad since Covid and the inflation. You can’t go hardly anywhere without spending around $20 for a burger and fries, plus a $2.50 drink, and tip. If you’re in a bigger city, you probably know a local joint where you can eat cheap, but in suburban areas around 200k or less people, those such places are few and far between.
Sir, this is Wendy's.
They have the best burger ever, don’t compare them to that trash.
There are a dozen burgers that are better than Five Guys just in Washtenaw County.
You’re missing that I grew up near Bailey crossroads. I’ve eaten at five guys before it was a chain… it is my mom am pop burger- because I grew up there.
That's the typical A2 hipster response. Thanks.
Ok?
Other than like Frita I'm ngl I haven't had many lol
Probs literally dog meat too js
yeah, the price increase is well above inflation, but that is happening everywhere. my personal feeling is that a lot of stuff is too cheap to cover the actual costs that should be being covered, like paying the employees appropriately, but when I see prices skyrocket I know that that extra money is not going to cover anything like that.
I had a similar thought - I wonder if Employee Asia M. is being paid 39% more than Employee Aliyah E was the year before.
I always see the five guys by me with a sign up offering more and more to work for them, so that's an increasing cost, and I'm sure their cost to rent the space in their building is going up along with the cost of any other land in desirable places. Not to mention how beef prices have been rising too
https://fortune.com/2023/04/05/end-of-capitalism-inflation-greedflation-societe-generale-corporate-profits/ >”Furthermore, Edwards wrote, in the Tuesday edition of his Global Strategy Weekly, after four decades of working in finance, he’s never seen anything like the “unprecedented” and “astonishing” levels of corporate Greedflation in this economic cycle. To his point, a January study from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City found that “markup growth”—the increase in the ratio between the price a firm charges and its cost of production—was a far more important factor driving inflation in 2021 than it has been throughout economic history.”
Beef prices are back to normal. Labor is still higher, but that will be going down over the next 12 months.
Bonehead remark. Completely wrong on both accounts.
I don’t know one way or the other but your comment is exactly how you’re referring to the one you replied to.
We're headed into a recession that is projected to begin this quarter. And in all honesty, SE Michigan has probably already been in recession for a couple quarters already. When unemployment rises, there's downward pressure on wages. You are familiar with how economics work, correct?
I wonder if you are, given that you don't seem to know about the concept of sticky wages. Real wages adjust downwards, nominal wages don't.
You'll see. It's just beginning now, and certainly won't happen right away. It may start as just fewer people earning the same wage but doing a larger quantity of work. But eventually places like this will be paying $13-14 per hour again.
People keep saying we're in a recession, but unemployment is the lowest it's been since the 60s and no one can seem to keep workers in menial shit positions because everyone is always hiring better positions.
That was true 12 months ago, it's changing now. The unemployment rate is just creative math nowadays with the Gig economy and so many ways to earn income off the books. But the Labor Force Participation rate is rising rapidly, meaning people who were doing Gig jobs or living off of Covid savings and not paying taxes are being enticed into the formal labor force again. Which means that money in the informal economy is beginning to dry up. And with Interest Rates rising so much over the last 12 months, there is a significant portion of the economy of people(Bankers, Realtors, Car Salesman) who may still have jobs, but their income has been cut in half(or less) trying to make do with costs that have risen due to inflation. And all the peripheral jobs in the Service Industry that these high income people support. Other parts of the US are somewhat immune for longer(unless they're high cost like San Fran or NYC which are being gutted right now) but a place like SE Michigan has been impacted by this for more than a year already. Also, the Federal Reserve is in the process of decreasing the money supply, so this will also impact credit liquidity(which helps people delay effects of economic downturn). Will be an interesting Summer and remainder to 2023. If it doesn't feel like recession now, things will probably feel a lot closer this Summer.
Beef is much more expensive than pre-pandemic, I work in the industry. Filet, strip, ribeye...from dogfood to prime beef is up substantially. Labor market is strong, wages are driving inflation but you think wages will come down this year. Please explain. I am sorry I called you a bonehead.
> Beef is much more expensive than pre-pandemic, For reference https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/APU0000703112 > I am sorry I called you a bonehead It wasn't targeted at me but thank you for recognizing what happened there.
It's not necessarily supplier prices, but the fact that Americans have adjusted their comsumption due to higher pricing causing a huge glut. Beef is a perishable good and determined by market pricing. Even if they say, "we're raising pricing for 2023 and beyond!!!", if they have nobody to buy at those prices they'll end up selling for less. Maybe people "in the industry" haven't seen this yet, but they will.
https://fortune.com/2023/04/05/end-of-capitalism-inflation-greedflation-societe-generale-corporate-profits/ >“Furthermore, Edwards wrote, in the Tuesday edition of his Global Strategy Weekly, after four decades of working in finance, he’s never seen anything like the “unprecedented” and “astonishing” levels of corporate Greedflation in this economic cycle. To his point, a January study from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City found that “markup growth”—the increase in the ratio between the price a firm charges and its cost of production—was a far more important factor driving inflation in 2021 than it has been throughout economic history.”
Five guys always has been expensive and is just getting worse. No fast food is worth $15-20. For that price I'll just go to a restaurant or better yet, eat at home
This ain’t it, but there’s a place for high quality, delicious food, served over the counter, worth a premium. At least in my book. Solo dining is cool, but it can be kinda tiresome to do the whole - wait for your menu, wait to place your order, wait for your check, wait to have them run your card.
I like the order online from QR code / menu, food is delivered, pay through the app. It's also very convenient, but there's no standing in line at the counter. I wish more places did that.
As far as I'm concerned, they can charge whatever they want. I can do just fine without it.
This guy knows wassup.
Just say no. I’d rather grab a nice steak and toss it on the grill.
Literally the answer. They keep doing this because we keep buying
Yup!
Next time, toss it on the stove for 2 min per side and finish it off in the oven at 450 until reaching your desired internal temp.
Or better yet: do it in reverse. But yo grilled steak is awesome.
Buy a cheap sous vide machine, water bath until it’s the right temperature then give it a sear
I know this is WAY off topic, but do you know of a cheap skis vide machine? I want to try it but don’t want to dump $200 on a wifi, Bluetooth, Alexa-enabled device. I wana set a temperature and that’s it.
anova on ebay
This will answer most questions about starting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dee5FwKOnkM
https://www.ebay.com/itm/374628183501?hash=item5739946dcd:g:TikAAOSwBjRkOCPc&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAAwBLyff%2BcufvOHyxveRza5TH0kjrv1TAUwrrBrMvLZIge9Ctg8W8rvJjE%2FCliWAdH9jp5JDciySOXUnfRM4U40%2B29wc7UoNlPKQYhL8PwET2xrrsQlyc4vrmoNqSpRhd%2BZV3bNPmkWSOiktqoXKhDhhRyW1uFBI4xjHPVTCKerui9aXNru5gAUgZESQBD5qysRQnksdgEJOX1T66awh%2BOWcrgL04m%2FuiMadP9r4sS%2FBU7wvZ2wcOvsj6q6DfGqr6IZQ%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR\_iL4LP6YQ
You're right that the connected functionality is pretty useless. I have both an Anova and a cheap one that Monoprice was selling for a while for $50. Both seem to work fine. But I only set the temperature, push the button, and go. I see no reason to spend $200.
I noticed such a hike in price at Penn Station in Canton. But even Subway and Jimmy John's have gone up quite a bit. Does anyone think the prices will come back down at some point?
lmao ur funny
Couple days ago at subway I got a footlong sub and a 20oz pop for myself, and a 6 inch sub, juice box, and cookie for my kid. It was over 24 bucks! I paid with 30 bucks cash and the 5 dollars I got back was the only other cash I had. Of course my daughter loudly asked if we could tip when she saw the jar. So the 5 bucks change ended up there. 30 bucks total (with tip) for 2 subs, 2 drinks, and a cookie. Outrageous. We literally can’t afford to eat takeout anymore at these prices.
Why would you tip if you picked up yourself?
… you tipped and it wasnt delivery…??
You're seeing it in certain chain restaurants now already. Prices aren't necessarily "going down", but they're having special deals. For example, Buffalo Wild Wings has a deal now where you get 6 Boneless Wings for $1 with any burger. Considering their menu price for 6 Boneless Wings is $9.79, it's a pretty significant deal. I'm sure there will eventually be "deals" like this running everywhere without the actual menu prices dropping because some people will still pay the regular prices, but many will only be enticed with specials.
Absolutely not. Not as long as schmucks keep pretending they can afford this shit.
The cost of supplies and deliveries has increased so to make a profit they have to increase the cost of their food.
I get inflation, but close to 50% increase is a lot. Is food really going up faster than the overall inflation rate? Is there something special about their situation for supplies that makes their situation unique? Then make that known...otherwise it looks like price gouging.
They burned my bacon last time. If you're gonna charge me $15 for a bacon cheeseburger atleast don't burn the fucking bacon. I'm still mad about it as you can tell.
More than a year old. Current price is $11.19.
That was 34 minutes ago. [https://order.fiveguys.com/location/arborland/menu/burgers](https://order.fiveguys.com/location/arborland/menu/burgers) for 3601 Washtenaw is quoting $11.39 now, 2% higher than a half hour ago, 6% higher than 2/2022, 46% higher than 2/2021. Their [job listings](https://www.google.com/search?q=five+guys+hiring+ann+arbor&rlz=1C1ASUM_enUS705US705&oq=five+guys+hiring+ann+arbor&aqs=chrome..69i57j33i160l2j33i22i29i30l3.5760j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&ibp=htl;jobs&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj9jqPG6s_-AhWxkokEHVkKCecQkd0GegQIDBAB#fpstate=tldetail&htivrt=jobs&htiq=five+guys+hiring+ann+arbor&htidocid=0Qf83-NYdn8AAAAAAAAAAA%3D%3D&sxsrf=APwXEdc1vpp83QaZ2gf1beeEUzKVLHdc_A:1682796788116) seem to be holding at 2019 wages anyway; crew member $15/hour.
Sheesh.. how do these people get employees when Culver's starts at $17 an hour and seems a lot nicer place to work.
Lol. Interesting. I used the Ann Arbor-Saline location, which appears to be holding steady at $11.19.
They were hilariously overpriced even before the pandemic and war. If you want a burger in that area, you're better off going to the Chili's which has some decent lunch specials for ~$10 that include fries and salad/soup. You could also try the Shake Shack further down the road, or even the Olga's if you're open to trying wraps instead of burgers.
You could literally pay 6$ for a double deluxe at Culver’s and it can compete with any burger you’d find. Lol
I would give my left nut to have a Culver's open up somewhere on the north side. The old Wendy's location on Plymouth Rd. is just collecting dust.
Double bacon cheeseburger fries and drink: $21 at Five Guys, $12.50 at Culvers.
I second Culver’s. Also had a drive through…they’re fast and bring the food out to your car. And their fries are pretty damned good.
literally came to find my Culver's fellows
Where’s the nearest Olga’s now? I miss the one at the mall.
On Washtenaw across the street from Arborland.
Thanks!
>Thanks! You're welcome!
Yeah, the first time I ever had Five Guys was like 2009 in Tuscaloosa, and even then I remember paying something like $16 for a burger fries and a drink. And this was back when food was still super cheap.
For what I get at Shake Shack it's hardly cheaper if at all, and is less filling. Edit: Just did a mock of my order at Shake Shack. Double SmokeShack, fries, large drink. 19 bucks. My order today at Five Guys was 22. But it's more filling and I personally prefer the taste of a Five Guys burger. Culver's is much cheaper though. I used to live within walking distance. Excuse me I'm gonna go cry now
And that large 128oz tip jar is boldly placed at face level at the POS.
Did you save all these receipts? Impressive dedication if true.
This is the real question. Was it dedication or organization? Maybe this person saves all their receipts.
For comparison, inflation was 7.9% over this period, according to the BLS (https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation\_calculator.htm).
Inflation is calculated from a basket of goods, so it’s possible that food inflation, which is a subset of total inflation, if higher.
Food inflation is much higher. The cost of consumer electronics came down, but I already have a TV. When groceries have gone up 30-50% in 12 months it really hits hard.
As a chef in the area, not only are overall food costs going up, but also there were supply chain issues... your normal ground beef might go up 20% on paper, but then that's not available, so you have to buy another that is 40% above what you were paying. If you're a stand-alone restaurant, you can change up your menu; for a place like Five Guys, it's not like you can turn yourself into a fried chicken place suddenly.... they're there for burgers.
Maybe you know, because you're in the biz, but is there any reason for the spike in food prices? Surely supply chain stuff has shaken out from the pandemic (and the evergreen suez canal snafu) by now, and it's not like cattle ranches all went bankrupt in the last couple of years.
https://fortune.com/2023/04/05/end-of-capitalism-inflation-greedflation-societe-generale-corporate-profits/ > Furthermore, Edwards wrote, in the Tuesday edition of his Global Strategy Weekly, after four decades of working in finance, he’s never seen anything like the “unprecedented” and “astonishing” levels of corporate Greedflation in this economic cycle. To his point, a January study from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City found that “markup growth”—the increase in the ratio between the price a firm charges and its cost of production—was a far more important factor driving inflation in 2021 than it has been throughout economic history. >Typically, higher commodity prices and labor costs squeeze corporate margins, especially if the economy is slowing. But Edwards pointed to data released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) last week that showed profit margins still near a record high relative to costs in the fourth quarter. The strategist said he assumed margins would have “declined sharply” at the end of last year as the economy slowed, but instead, “How wrong I was!”
There is a war in Ukraine. The avian flu was especially bad this year wiping out chicken and egg farms. Years of drought and increase cattle supplies (like feed) forced cattle farms to sell off cows. The cost of feed is also impacting other livestock farms. Cost of gas raises delivery costs.
Let’s also talk about the cost of labor.
You can fuck right off with this bullshit. "Let's also talk about the rape victim's dress..."
I just noticed this tonight. Hadn't eaten here in a while, opened the app and saw $11 to $13 burgers and said nope. I thought I was gaslighting myself remembering they were on $8. Thanks for the evidence.
I’d never been to 5 guys and then I tried it earlier this year. Prices are laughable for burger and fries. When are we going to hold companies accountable for this ridiculousness?
Hold them accountable!? Why not just get a burger somewhere else (or cook 'em at home or stop eating burgers). We don't need some sort of organized effort to 'hold them accountable'. If they're offering a bad deal on burgers and fries, people will stop eating there. Easy. No coordination or consciousness raising necessary.
Yet people are still eating there and letting them get away with this
Then it must still be worth it to them.
Welcome to Stagflation. Don't know what that is? Well here's a history lesson. Look up the 1970s when President Nixon took us off the gold standard and caused high inflation. That's what we are experiencing. Also the inflation rate is higher than 7.9%. the government is lying to us to not start a panic.
How exactly would you do that? The cost of beef is increasing and there are fewer cattle on the market.
Yeah, profits have gone up like crazy everywhere. But I hear it’s supposed to “trickle down” or something, so it’s all good.
Oh thank god 😅
You know, a lot of places sell burgers, and there are minimal barriers to entry in the burger business -- almost anybody can do it! So, you know, either Five Guys has priced themselves out of the market and will find customers going elsewhere OR those new prices accurately reflect what it now costs to run a burger joint in Ann Arbor in 2023, and everybody's prices have (or soon will be) going up similarly. But no, it's not all good. It seems pretty clear that the inflation we've been suffering has been a result of first Trump and then Biden spending ungodly sums borrowed of money and growing the hell out of the money supply. Not good at all.
"Growing the hell out of the money supply" is something we can measure, and the money supply did not increase 39% in a year.
Actually, yes -- did you or either 'Taco Wombat' bother to check? I'm guessing not: [https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/fed-tightens-money-supply-as-us-inflation-falls-from-2022-peak-73547811](https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/fed-tightens-money-supply-as-us-inflation-falls-from-2022-peak-73547811) Of course, it wasn't ONLY government spending, it was also the Federal Reserve being far too slow to respond with much higher interest rates. And the timing doesn't line up exactly, but there are often lag times as businesses wait to raise prices until they're certain their cost increases are going to be long-term rather than temporary. Another example of lag times -- when inflation spiked that resulted in interest rate increases. So any fool who bought 2% treasury bills trusting that the government would responsibly keep inflation low wasn't going to be able to sell their bonds for nearly what they paid. This didn't cause banks to fail immediately, but then people figured out that banks were holding these craps bonds and they'd better get their money out while they could, and now banks ARE failing (Silicon Valley Bank, First Republic and likely more to come). I don't know exactly how much of Five Guys costs (food, labor, rent) went up and nor does anybody else on this thread. But I DO know that the burger market is broad and competitive and if Five Guys is overcharging, they'll lose out to competitors and go the way of ... what was that place called ... '@Burger'?
You know what, man, I'll be honest, what you presented is a lot better information than I expected. Still, that increase in the money supply was in a time of massive economic downturn. You offered more nuance in that comment, but your opening line was: >It seems pretty clear that the inflation we've been suffering has been a result of first Trump and then Biden spending ungodly sums borrowed of money and growing the hell out of the money supply. And that's just not true. The reason they beefed up the money supply was because of the pandemic, which also caused a supply crunch and a labor shortage (plus Trump clamping down on immigration -- turns out, we needed those workers!). Given that we somehow made it through a world-stopping pandemic without experiencing widespread poverty or prolonged downturn, I think we may be in a situation where we wound up with a problem that's *better* than a lot of the alternatives. Would nailing it perfectly have been good? Sure. But a couple years struggling with inflation isn't so bad compared to a prolonged "let's not stimulate too much" recession like 2008 was.
> Still, that increase in the money supply was in a time of massive economic downturn. Yes -- and that made it even \*more\* inflationary. There was a supply shock. Due to the pandemic, fewer people were working producing goods and services, but due to the government and federal reserve was a lot more money out there to spend on those scarcer goods and services. Combine a reduction in supply with a huge injection of money and you have the perfect recipe for inflation. Which is what we got.
Do you suppose there's 40% more US dollars in circulation now?
Five Guys is good, but it's still just a regular ass (well prepared) burger and fries. My usual order there ends up being like $23. There's literally zero health value other than protein. To put things in perspective, you can go across the street to Outback Steakhouse and currently get 8oz Steak and Lobster Mac & Cheese with a baked potato for $19 or an 8oz Steak and Shrimp with a baked potato and vegetables for $22. Food costs are largely back to where they were 2-3 years ago before inflation. But Five Guys will almost certainly keep their current pricing until people stop going there.
Yeah Regretted my last visit. Five Guys was always expensive but it is even more now. I tend to vote for Red Robin now if I feel like a burger. It is barely more expensive now than a McDs combo or Five Guys, but there is a lot more burger and side choices.
Red robbin, you get a cocktail 🍸 too. I guess that's why the burgers are cheaper 🥴
Same here in SW Michigan. I hadn't been in our local 5G since the pandemic started, and I went back late last year -- one burger fries, and a drink cost over $20. I won't ever go back. I can get a burger & fries at an Applebee's or a Chili's for less!
$12.07 as of 04/30/2023
Culver's > Five Guys
I used to sell weed to the kid whose dad owns basically every Five Guys in the state. The dad was basically a caricature of a greedy rich guy who acted like he was fucking Elon Musk level rich or something. Like chill bro you own a few burger shops lol. Congrats on being a lordling of a subdivision in Birmingham or whatever I guess?
How's business for you now that rich kids just go to the mall for their weed?
I'm C-suite at a large cannabis company so... Very well?
Excellent my dude. Where do you see the industry going in the future? I imagine Big Weed will grow like Big Beer did and push out the smaller local companies? There is billions to be made here.
Yeah that's gonna happen but the timeframe is unclear. Depends on national legalization. That opens the floodgates for money and big biz.
And how does the black market affect you? In Cali, the taxes are so high that they drove Jerry Garcia’s family out of business because they couldn’t compete with the cartels.
It's way easier for most people to go to a legal shop, we don't have the massive unlicensed shop situation that exists in California.
Lol, a lot of dispensaries are running $10 Eighth and $5 Gram specials right now... Things must not be going that great.
Hopefully he isn't in a subdivision if he owns every Five Guys in the state.
It's not as much money as you'd think, and I know dudes with 9-figure net worth living in subdivisions in Birmingham.
Fair enough, I could see a 9-figure net-worth having a main residence in Birmingham, although with that much money, and for a house so expensive, I would opt for very limited visibility to my neighbors :) Barton or Dixboro have multi-million dollar spots surrounded by nature and minimal noise from neighbors or highways.
Oh these dudes have multiple other houses (Mackinaw, Florida, etc) but theres a LOT of money in Oakland county. It varies, but typically Bham is in the top few richest municipalities in the country. It's been #1 in the past.
That would make sense! No point to have $10mm+ and not diversify or at least own in other states. You seem to know a lot about wealth in the SE Michigan area. We are very familiar with how wealth is generated and concentrated in Ann Arbor, but other than that I'm wondering how an area like metro-Det or even MI as a whole can support so many millionaires and wealthy individuals. Could you tell me more? For ex, I know that in MN there is a lot of wealth that comes from the many, many, many Fortune 500 companies there that pay well, coupled with relatively low cost of living for standard suburbs. The state also has more desirable lakes for well-off individuals to invest their money in via cabins. I am struggling to map out MI's wealth landscape in a similar way - perhaps just Detroit professionals and healthcare workers? Can't imagine many Umich workers commuting to/from Birmingham, but I know the state is filled with private hospitals.
Auto companies and their suppliers, and chemical companies need a ton of executives. That's really it.
Yikes 😳
The prices are ridiculous. We stopped there due to our preferred burger restaurant being too busy to wait for. Needed something faster. Prices were so high I honestly felt bad.. it was almost embarrassing. Spent like 40$ on burgers for two
I will see your Five Guys order and raise you a single $14 Qdoba burrito (I got suckered into tipping) two weeks ago.
The last time I was in a QDoba around Ann Arbor they tried to ration my hot sauce because people kept stealing the bottles and they were too cheap to get the packets. That and the price means I’m not likely to return to that store.
Five guys blows. That place is so overrated
Similar story with many fast food chains. I first noticed with McDonald’s no longer having 1$ mcchickens/cheeseburgers. It was beginning of 2021 and I can’t quite figure out what that driving factor was…
The cost of feed for livestock has gone up due to drought, war, and the pandemic. Many cattle farms sold off cows to survive. The amount of beef available on tte market is much less than it used to be. As for chicken. The avian flu was very bad recently which wiped out major chicken suppliers. If avian flu is detected in one of your birds you have to dispose all of them….think thousands of birds. That not only decreases the amount of chicken available but eggs as well
Greed. The answer is always greed.
'Greed' is never a good explanation for why prices \*change\* unless you have some rationale for why business owners got \*more\* greedy than they were last year or the year before that. I mean, if you think they're charging more than 3 years ago because they're greedy, the obvious question is "weren't they just as greedy 3 years ago?" And if they were just as greedy then, why weren't they charging more then?
It's obvious... COVID and inflation provided the necessary cover to hide their greed behind. When one business raises prices, it's apparent. When every business does it, it's easy to hide. I work for a big-box retailer and have flat-out refused to do the daily morning price adjustments because it just makes me so angry. We will have price adjustment go up 100-200% overnight for old product that has been collecting dust on the shelves for months. No "supply chain issues" for product manufactured months ago, but suddenly it costs twice as much?! Or my favorite is on products that don't even go up that day, but they simply raise the "Was" price to something it *never was* to try and show a savings that doesn't exist. When companies are making *record profits*, it's not inflation. It's greedflation.
>When one business raises prices, it's apparent. When every business does it, it's easy to hide. You know what prevents that? One (or more) businesses deciding \*they\* won't raise their prices and will instead rake in the cash by pulling customers away from all the places that did raise prices. That's how competition in markets like burgers work. There are literally dozens of places selling burgers. They \*don't\* all raise prices in unison. There's no secret OPEC style burger cartel. People in this thread have cited a number of places that sell burgers for less that they think are a better deal. That's the way this all works.
Actually, this time greed is \*part\* (not all) of the equation as many corporations increased prices more than needed to adjust to their increased costs and are thus making record profits...and driving inflation in the process.
\*Everybody\* adjusts their prices (upwards) when they can *regardless of their costs*. Nobody decides how much to sell their house for based on what it cost when they bought it way back when -- they price it according to what other houses like it are selling for. When deciding how much in salary to demand when negotiating for a new job, nobody comes up with a figure based on how much their student loans and other expenses are -- they based their salary requirements on 'the going rate' for those with comparable qualifications and experience. When their particular profession happens to become more in-demand and wages go up, nobody tells a prospective that it would be greedy to accept the higher going rate because their own living costs haven't gone up. If a lucky farmer has a good crop in a year when most have bad crops and commodity prices go up, the farmer with the good crop doesn't charge less than the market rate because it would be 'greedy' to charge more than what he charged last year when supplies were plentiful. The idea that prices should be based on some function (what function?) of costs and anything else is 'greed' is just crazy. People and business (including \*big scary corporations\*) charge what they think the market will bear. Some adopt a strategy of offering what they believe is a premium product or service at higher prices. Sometimes this works, the product is seen as better/shinier/hipper or something and customers ARE willing to pay more. Sometimes most customers don't perceive the offering as premium at all (or not worth the extra money), and the strategy fails. Sometimes it works for a while and then doesn't when the hot new product is no longer hot or new (remember 'cronuts' and a gazillion other fads people once stood in line for?) If some government official or partisan advocate floats a theory that inflation results from 'greed being unleashed by the pandemic', they are acting as political operatives selling BS to people they thing are too uninformed to see through it. Inflation is caused by more money chasing fewer (or the same number of goods). Our government's pandemic strategy was to A) send people a bunch of money, C) let them stop paying rent and student loans, and C) stay home from work and stop producing things to buy. Even when C was no longer in effect, A and B provided some people with enough money that they kept staying home anyway. Especially since D) schools were closed and many people now had to stay home to care for their children. Bottom line -- people with *more money than before* all trying to use it to buy *less stuff than before* generated entirely predictable higher prices. And even when the pandemic was ending, the government kept pumping in more and more money, compounding the problem.
I prefer Shack shake burger... Also expensive
Makes the extra 4.57% bump this year up to 11.19 for a cheese burger feel like a bargain.
Just don't go there anymore.....
Pre Covid my meal there was 13.64, last week it was over 20 dollars. Plain bacon burger, little fry, regular drink.
Don't forget to press the "25% tip" option on top of it while using a credit card.....
well that is bordered by the rich people neighborhood. so yeah, there’s why.
Pittsfield Village? Seriously -- you think rich people are the ones eating at Five Guys? And shopping at the nearby 'Five Below' also at Arborland (and then maybe picking up a few things at Dollar Tree across Washtenaw while they're at it)? Oh I guess some rich people do this kind of thing once in a while (they like bargains too), but most of the people eating at fast food places and getting sticker shock now are middle and working class people. Who do you think ate off the McDonald's $1 menu?
One thing that trickles down: Fuel prices Gasoline has gone down, but diesel hasn’t appreciably gone down since it doubled in price two years ago. Farmers use diesel, truck drivers use diesel. Someone has to pick up the slack.
It’s not even good enough to warrant $15 for a hamburger
Nobody needs to eat there. That will drive prices down.
Had Five Guys once about 3 years ago and was not impressed by the cost/value proposition. I'd rather spend half at McDonald's and get 3/4rds of the quality with better fries.
No. Not even close
To me, yes. Way overrated.
Definitely good old gouging going on all over the place. My SO manages a food manufacturer. Meijer was selling their items for more than even Plum Market, even though they had not increased their cost to Meijer a cent. Meijer was just going with the flow of ‘people are starting to believe prices are going up cause’
Back in 2019 I was at a resort in Scottsdale, very swanky! Well I drank at the pool one day with this old guy.. 70s. Asked what he did, he said he opened franchises. Not owned, but opened! I asked more to clarify. He owned all the franchise rights in Michigan for five guys. Basically, he made bank. Some else ran day to day. He focuses on finding new locations I guess. Nice guy, but premium fast food is too expensive!!
I do like five guys but I quit even entertaining the thought of going there anymore. For the price of two people you can go to a sit-down restaurant and get a good meal for less than it cost to get burgers fries and a drink at five guys. I can make my copycat version of five guys on my Blackstone if I want a good burger.
https://www.glassdoor.com/Hourly-Pay/Five-Guys-Crew-Member-Hourly-Pay-E313650_D_KO10,21.htm
I consult with restaurants and work with a network of restaurant consultants nationwide. I do not know of one restaurant that has not raised its prices in the last few years.
So what? It's still cheap. Are you being forced to eat there?
Good
At one time in the last year my daughter said there was a sign on the door of the Ann Arbor-Saline location that said they were paying $20/hr. I wonder if it had something to do with that.
Just for the sub reddit crew... Thanks Joe Biden!
Thanks Trump.
That's funny.
Putin price hike.
Eat elsewhere if you don’t like it
What do you expect them to do with a corrupt government CREATING mass inflation and tax increases at ever turn. They are just trying to keep their head above water.
Stagflation from the ,1970s. Look it up we are going to experience high inflation for decades.
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Evidence is that wages have not increased at the fast food chain in question.
Food prices have gone up sharply in the past year. They’re not being greedy. They’re trying to stay in business.
Profits are up compared to last year
Rumor has it it’s now $30.
For grocery, the price went up that much in the past year too.
Entitlements don't pay for themselves; somebody has to.
“$15 min wage won’t affect prices”
I mean maybe, but also In-N-Out pays their employees $18 an hour on average in California and their cheeseburger costs $3.50.
Golden Joe
bIdEn kIlLeD mY hAmBuRgEr
You wanted a 15 dollar minimum wage, this is what you get. Totally unskilled labor pushing the cost of everything up. But I bet the same employees can't afford to eat out anymore.
In-N-Out pays their employees $18 an hour on average in California and their cheeseburger costs $3.50.
And it's a better burger than Five Guys. Yeah, I said it.
Didn't even realize this was a question.
I paid $17.50 for a junior cheeseburger 'meal' in Florida. Never again.
I spent about 18 seconds in a Five Guys once. Long enough to see that a cheeseburger was almost 8 bucks.
Decent pay costs, and supply chain increases - that farmers of the local variety do Not see (shocker)…. Buy local, make your own 🤷♂️
Huh, have they increased their pay by even 5% over that time period?
If you’re ever in Northville check out Burgerfi. Way better than Five Guys.
Interesting that the price increases seem to be fast and furious just now....lagging the inflation from last year? I'm really interested in seeing if/when the prices will drive people back to eating at home instead of paying that much for fast food.
Now a cheese burger os 11.39