Minor things that bother you

[TheHighwayMan3561]

I'm surprised we got this far without someone mentioning that analyst from a few weeks ago on some business TV channel implying he ate $28 of Taco Bell all by himself in one sitting.

[kphoger]

I'm surprised we got this far without someone mentioning that analyst from a few weeks ago on some business TV channel implying he ate $28 of Taco Bell all by himself in one sitting.

I mean, if I were really hungry, I suppose I might be able to eat six Doritos Cheesy Gordita Crunch thingies.

[webny99]

I think it would be easy to spend $28 if you tried - that is, if you cherry-picked three or four of the most expensive, worst-value items, and added a drink or two at the end. But it would be almost impossible to do by accident with a standard run-of-the-mill Taco Bell order.

[hbelkins]

I used to really like Five Guys, and I'm not one who wants a lot of toppings on my burger. Cheese is usually a must and bacon if it's available without too much of an extra charge. For condiments, I either want mustard alone or mustard with ketchup, A-1, or BBQ sauce, and maybe some lettuce. No onion, no pickle, no tomato, definitely no mayo. But I too determined that Five Guys is too pricey for what you get, even if you get a crap ton of fries, so I haven't been to Five Guys in years. I've actually come to prefer Culver's. It's cheaper and just as tasty, even if the fries aren't as good or as plentiful.

I like Hardee's, but without some sort of coupon or deal, it's become far too expensive for anything more than an occasional splurge.

Unlike our friend in Oklahoma, I make great use of apps, using digital deals and ordering ahead so I can quickly pick up my lunch and get back to the office. McDonald's offers free fries in the app most days; Wendy's and Hardee's will have occasional deals and you can accrue points for free food.

[DenverBrian]

No. I prefer to go to McDonalds, give them a piece of paper the government gave me, and get some pieces of metal the government gave them and a burger in return, without my phone being involved in the transaction at all.

If someone is feeling like they might be conglomerating, they should take medication and lie down until it stops.

Just wait until cash is outright banned because the government decides that they can't track it (and you) and that's a huge problem for them...

As for fast food prices, what do you (not directing this specifically at you, Scott) expect when these businesses were forced to pay all employees $15/hr (which now isn't enough in the eyes of those who pushed for it in the first place) plus the increased fuel costs (which I don't think will be coming down)? Working as a cook at McDonald's or a bagger at Kroger was never meant to be a career that could support a family.

Mandating higher minimum wages is a surefire way to increase inflation. Either that, or a surefire way to replace more jobs with computers.

One minor thing that bothers me is when people repeat the hoary old claim that higher minimum wages lead to inflation.

[kphoger]

I too determined that Five Guys is too pricey for what you get, even if you get a crap ton of fries, so I haven't been to Five Guys in years. I've actually come to prefer Culver's. It's cheaper and just as tasty, even if the fries aren't as good or as plentiful.

I judge a burger by the fries that come with it, so I'd prefer Five Guys even if I didn't think its burgers were better than those at Culver's (which I do).

[JoePCool14]

No. I prefer to go to McDonalds, give them a piece of paper the government gave me, and get some pieces of metal the government gave them and a burger in return, without my phone being involved in the transaction at all.

If someone is feeling like they might be conglomerating, they should take medication and lie down until it stops.

Just wait until cash is outright banned because the government decides that they can't track it (and you) and that's a huge problem for them...

As for fast food prices, what do you (not directing this specifically at you, Scott) expect when these businesses were forced to pay all employees $15/hr (which now isn't enough in the eyes of those who pushed for it in the first place) plus the increased fuel costs (which I don't think will be coming down)? Working as a cook at McDonald's or a bagger at Kroger was never meant to be a career that could support a family.

Mandating higher minimum wages is a surefire way to increase inflation. Either that, or a surefire way to replace more jobs with computers.

One minor thing that bothers me is when people repeat the hoary old claim that higher minimum wages lead to inflation.

Explain how it doesn't then.

[US 89]

Yeah, I wasn't super impressed with the Culver's fries. But I will say their burger was pretty good.

Honestly, in my opinion, McDonalds' fries are the gold standard.

[Scott5114]

No. I prefer to go to McDonalds, give them a piece of paper the government gave me, and get some pieces of metal the government gave them and a burger in return, without my phone being involved in the transaction at all.

If someone is feeling like they might be conglomerating, they should take medication and lie down until it stops.

That reply had nothing to do with what I asked.

If McDonalds, BK, Chick-Fil-A, Subway, and others teamed up on an app, would you download that? Because you clearly stated:

I refuse to use apps belonging to a single company.

Are you just thinking of reasons to not like smartphones, or are you genuinely partial to companies like Amazon, Groupon, WhatsApp, etc?

I don't know, maybe? Probably not, because I've seen a friend use the McDonalds app and it didn't really seem like it made the transaction any faster or more convenient. We just waited in a parking spot instead of in the drive thru and it was about the same amount of time. I guess she got a discount or something, I don't know. But it just seemed like a hassle compared to paying cash.

I don't have any of the apps you describe in the rest of your post, either. I only access Amazon through Firefox on my desktop. I don't use Groupon or WhatsApp.

As for fast food prices, what do you (not directing this specifically at you, Scott) expect when these businesses were forced to pay all employees $15/hr (which now isn't enough in the eyes of those who pushed for it in the first place) plus the increased fuel costs (which I don't think will be coming down)? Working as a cook at McDonald's or a bagger at Kroger was never meant to be a career that could support a family.

Get rid of a bunch of the district managers and other corporate gunk that just drains money and provides no benefit to the customer. When I was at Burger King we always had all sorts of district managers, regional managers, corporate secret shoppers, and who knows what else always buzzing around causing problems. None of them made things any better for the customer. They can be cut. (After all, you can have a burger joint without a regional manager, but you can't have a burger joint without a cook or a drive-thru person.)

[kphoger]

Honestly, in my opinion, McDonalds' fries are the gold standard.

Pizza Hut has some of the best fries.

[Bruce]

No. I prefer to go to McDonalds, give them a piece of paper the government gave me, and get some pieces of metal the government gave them and a burger in return, without my phone being involved in the transaction at all.

If someone is feeling like they might be conglomerating, they should take medication and lie down until it stops.

With the app, all I have to do is read out the coupon code number at the drive-thru speaker and I can proceed much faster than ordering the normal way. It'll pop up on their screen as the complete order.

[DenverBrian]

No. I prefer to go to McDonalds, give them a piece of paper the government gave me, and get some pieces of metal the government gave them and a burger in return, without my phone being involved in the transaction at all.

If someone is feeling like they might be conglomerating, they should take medication and lie down until it stops.

Just wait until cash is outright banned because the government decides that they can't track it (and you) and that's a huge problem for them...

As for fast food prices, what do you (not directing this specifically at you, Scott) expect when these businesses were forced to pay all employees $15/hr (which now isn't enough in the eyes of those who pushed for it in the first place) plus the increased fuel costs (which I don't think will be coming down)? Working as a cook at McDonald's or a bagger at Kroger was never meant to be a career that could support a family.

Mandating higher minimum wages is a surefire way to increase inflation. Either that, or a surefire way to replace more jobs with computers.

One minor thing that bothers me is when people repeat the hoary old claim that higher minimum wages lead to inflation.

Explain how it doesn't then.

Another minor thing that bugs me is when posters try insert their economic/political/religious beliefs into otherwise innocuous forum topics. <shrugs>

[Scott5114]

No. I prefer to go to McDonalds, give them a piece of paper the government gave me, and get some pieces of metal the government gave them and a burger in return, without my phone being involved in the transaction at all.

If someone is feeling like they might be conglomerating, they should take medication and lie down until it stops.

With the app, all I have to do is read out the coupon code number at the drive-thru speaker and I can proceed much faster than ordering the normal way. It'll pop up on their screen as the complete order.

The one time I was with someone with the app it really didn't seem any faster to me.

And if you go through the drive thru, the ordering process isn't normally the rate-limiting factor. It's the guy in front of you in line who ordered 18,357 cheeseburgers and 19,099 orders of fries (768 of them with no salt). I have first-hand experience with this, running a drive thru myself. (I could ring up orders very fast, but it didn't really matter too much because all that did was fill the kitchen's screen up with crap and it didn't make them any faster.)

[kphoger]

Another minor thing that bugs me is when posters try insert their economic/political/religious beliefs into otherwise innocuous forum topics. <shrugs>

Yes, thank you.  We went from a discussion of the benefits of cash vs smartphone apps to posts about government tracking and minimum wage, for no apparent reason other than wanting to insert politics into the forum.

[kphoger]

And if you go through the drive thru, the ordering process isn't normally the rate-limiting factor. It's the guy in front of you in line who ordered 18,357 cheeseburgers and 19,099 orders of fries (768 of them with no salt).

That guy should have just used the app.   

[Scott5114]

And if you go through the drive thru, the ordering process isn't normally the rate-limiting factor. It's the guy in front of you in line who ordered 18,357 cheeseburgers and 19,099 orders of fries (768 of them with no salt).

That guy should have just used the app.   

How would it have helped? Apparently when they get an app order they don't start making it until the person arrives at the restaurant anyway.

[kphoger]

How would it have helped? Apparently when they get an app order they don't start making it until the person arrives at the restaurant anyway.

When they don't get an app order they don't start making it until the customer is done ordering at the speaker.

[Scott5114]

How would it have helped? Apparently when they get an app order they don't start making it until the person arrives at the restaurant anyway.

When they don't get an app order they don't start making it until the customer is done ordering at the speaker.

So, we're talking, what, 30 seconds' difference? Seems like a wash considering that's probably how much longer it would take me to order on a clumsy phone interface.

Hey, your phone can't even run the McDonalds app, can it? What are you doing in this discussion?

[jakeroot]

Apparently when they get an app order they don't start making it until the person arrives at the restaurant anyway.

I just say "I'm here" when I'm still five minutes away. Food is usually ready when I get there. Granted that doesn't work for drive thru ordering, but that option is usually too risky (because you can get stuck behind your aforementioned dude ordering "18,357 cheeseburgers and 19,099 orders of fries").

Starbucks is great for ordering ahead, as they automatically make your order after you place it (unlike most places where you have to trick the app). Assuming it's been around 10 minutes, the order is usually ready to pick up immediately after you walk into the store.

[webny99]

Apparently when they get an app order they don't start making it until the person arrives at the restaurant anyway.

I just say "I'm here" when I'm still five minutes away. Food is usually ready when I get there. ...

Starbucks is great for ordering ahead, as they automatically make your order after you place it (unlike most places where you have to trick the app).

Having to trick the app is very much a minor thing that bothers me. Any company that requires you to say you're "here" before starting your order has zero understanding of 21st century customer service. People are ordering ahead because they want to make sure it's ready. They could care less if it's ready 5 minutes early, but they will be annoyed if they have to wait for it, or forget to say they're "here" and have to ask for it only to find out it hasn't even been started.

[kphoger]

Apparently when they get an app order they don't start making it until the person arrives at the restaurant anyway.

I just say "I'm here" when I'm still five minutes away. Food is usually ready when I get there. Granted that doesn't work for drive thru ordering, but that option is usually too risky (because you can get stuck behind your aforementioned dude ordering "18,357 cheeseburgers and 19,099 orders of fries").

Starbucks is great for ordering ahead, as they automatically make your order after you place it (unlike most places where you have to trick the app). Assuming it's been around 10 minutes, the order is usually ready to pick up immediately after you walk into the store.

The Chick-fil-A app uses your cell phone GPS data to determine when you're arriving to the restaurant.  This is annoying when my wife orders on her phone and then I pick it up, because then I have to make sure I have her cell phone with me.

Hey, your phone can't even run the McDonalds app, can it? What are you doing in this discussion?

Oh, me?  I was just in the area...

[abefroman329]

Translating recipes between countries is a pain.  Many British and European cookbooks measure in grams.  Many US cookbooks measure volume instead and hope for the best.  If a US kitchen has a scale at all it's probably in ounces.  A lot of ingredients have different names from their US name, or they have the same name but differ somehow.  Is British "plain flour" like US all purpose flour or pastry flour or bread flour?  Are their eggs the same size as ours? 

Have to also watch for the US pint/British pint difference. Having units of different sizes share the same name is very dumb.

It's not just beer, as I noticed the first time I did serious grocery shopping in England.  Quarts, half-gallons, and gallons of milk are also larger.

[J N Winkler]

The Chick-fil-A app uses your cell phone GPS data to determine when you're arriving to the restaurant.  This is annoying when my wife orders on her phone and then I pick it up, because then I have to make sure I have her cell phone with me.

What happens if you turn location services off?  Does it then prompt you to say "here" and thus open the door to Jakeroot's "'here' when five minutes away" trick?

[kphoger]

The Chick-fil-A app uses your cell phone GPS data to determine when you're arriving to the restaurant.  This is annoying when my wife orders on her phone and then I pick it up, because then I have to make sure I have her cell phone with me.

What happens if you turn location services off?  Does it then prompt you to say "here" and thus open the door to Jakeroot's "'here' when five minutes away" trick?

Beats me.

(It doesn't matter to me, because my wife's phone is the one with the app.  I mean, I guess I could say "here" right before I walk out the door...)

[jmacswimmer]

The Chick-fil-A app uses your cell phone GPS data to determine when you're arriving to the restaurant.  This is annoying when my wife orders on her phone and then I pick it up, because then I have to make sure I have her cell phone with me.

What happens if you turn location services off?  Does it then prompt you to say "here" and thus open the door to Jakeroot's "'here' when five minutes away" trick?

Beats me.

(It doesn't matter to me, because my wife's phone is the one with the app.  I mean, I guess I could say "here" right before I walk out the door...)

I think there's an "I'm already here" option, which I had to use once when I had arrived at CFA but the app wasn't recognizing it for some reason. Which, yes, does indeed open up the trick described above, though I find that CFA is usually pretty quick despite the order not being prepared until you've arrived.