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Fast Food - Changes

Have you reduced the amount of times you dine on fast food?

  • Yes

    Votes: 31 93.9%

  • No

    Votes: 1 3.0%

  • See Comment

    Votes: 1 3.0%
  • Total voters
    33
AlaskaMoose said:
I have no idea if there are food industry requirements for the sale of chocolates, but there are lots of options relating to chocolate one can choose from. For example the amounts and types of cacao, sugar, and other ingredients, both in solid and liquid form, varies throughout the food industry. The best is to either find a commercial chocolate type you prefer, and drink this one, or just to gather all of the ingredients you prefer, and then mix these ingredients to attain the taste you enjoy the most.

Most of the stores' chocolate drinks contain quite a large amount of sugar and other sweeter, preservatives, and a myriad of flavors (the amount of cocoa/sugar/etc. in the package is on the label). The problem is that it takes a lot of effort for one to create the perfect chocolate blend at home, but once you have found the "right taste," then you have your most delicious chocolate :)

That said, when I was much younger I loved the sweet taste in chocolates from EU and the US, but now that I am much older I prefer chocolates (drinks or solid forms) that are low on sugar or sweeteners. The same for ice cream, where I may eat a small portion every 6 months. In fact, I don't remember that last time I had a scoop of ice cream.
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You live in Alaska. Of course you don’t eat ice cream all too often! But I can imagine a hot chocolate going down well there.

I don’t eat much in the way of sweets or chocolate. But dark chocolate is nice. Usually I go for something like a Twix though.
 
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adrianlondon said:
Spot on!

I can buy Mövenpick ice-cream much cheaper just across the border (same flavour) in Germany as I can in my local Swiss supermarket.

But ... if I look at the ingredients, the Swiss one is all milk, cream etc whereas the German one is milk protein powder, sugar etc.
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However, there are small, local ice-cream companies, which use nothing but good quality natural products and whose products taste absolutely amazing. Granted, the downside is a higher price, than one would find from mass-produced rubbish, but - as an occasional - or, semi-occasional - treat - they are amazing.

And, whenever I buy ice-cream (which is not all that often, as I never much liked it, even as a child, but I used to buy it when my mother was still alive, as did the carer, for they both liked it), this is the only kind of ice-cream I will ever buy; The really good stuff.
 
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Scepticalscribe said:
However, there are small, local ice-cream companies, which use nothing but good quality natural products and whose products taste absolutely amazing.
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We have one such creamery here in SW Florida. They distribute to area mom-and-pop places, so we need only drive ten minutes to enjoy "real" ice cream at one of three spots. I eat very little ice cream (full fat dairy is bad for my genetic cholesterol issues) but when I do indulge it's the higher quality stuff. No store-bought rubbish for me.
 
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Apple fanboy said:
You live in Alaska. Of course you don’t eat ice cream all too often! But I can imagine a hot chocolate going down well there.

I don’t eat much in the way of sweets or chocolate. But dark chocolate is nice. Usually I go for something like a Twix though.
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Mmm yes, 70% cacao dark chocolate please. I enjoy drinking chocolates as well with a bit of red chile powder and cinnamon.
 
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Certificate of Excellence said:
Mmm yes, 70% cacao dark chocolate please. I enjoy drinking chocolates as well with a bit of red chile powder and cinnamon.
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70% cacao, wonderful, my idea of chocolate perfection.

Yum.

Actually, I'm quite partial to 77% cacao, or anything (and everything) up to 85% cocao; however, even I, with my marked, nay pronounced, preference for dark chocolate, will quail a little - just a little - at 99% cacao dark chocolate.
 
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Apple fanboy said:
You live in Alaska. Of course you don’t eat ice cream all too often! But I can imagine a hot chocolate going down well there.

I don’t eat much in the way of sweets or chocolate. But dark chocolate is nice. Usually I go for something like a Twix though.
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Sometimes we experience very warm to hot springs and summers in the interior of Alaska, but the seasons are very short from perhaps late April to September. It has been raining quite a lot most of September, and today (23 September) the weather forecast shows a day temperature of 43º F (around 6-degrees C), and colder tonight at 34ºF or lower. If the rain continues it will probably turn into an ice/rain mixture very soon.

About ice cream: some of the local companies in Fairbanks produce and sell ice creams with Alaska wild blue and other berries, so during the summer I sometimes have a scoop of this ice cream now and then. My favorite however, is a blend of chocolate with very small chunks of peanut butter, but I seldom eat ice creams because I find most of them too sweet. The same for chocolate bars, but there is a company in Texas USA -I am reading the label right as I type- that makes organic dark chocolate wafers or very small cups that have a layer of raspberry creamè in the middle. My wife purchased a bag-full of these chocolates at the local CostCo store, and they are quite delicious. Since they are very sweet but of a small volume I can eat one or two per day to pacify my dark chocolate and sugar cravings...along a hot cup of very dark and plain coffee. The name on the of the wafer's is: Chocxo Raspberry Cremè Cups (certified organic and made in Canada).
Certificate of Excellence said:
Mmm yes, 70% cacao dark chocolate please. I enjoy drinking chocolates as well with a bit of red chile powder and cinnamon.
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I have eaten a dark chocolate blend that has either chili pepper, or Jalapeño pepper. Both are quite good, but it is extremely wise to take very small bites of it 😁
 
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I’ll share why I have this rule. I did restaurant consultation work and was traveling back from from being in Raton NM. I was hungry so I grabbed some tacos, a seamingly harmless fast food. As I was driving back enjoying my tacos, a pronghorned antelope jumped over a fence and across the road as I was driving probably 75mph or so. Needless to say, I smashed the taco on the wheel while aspirating taco pieces and choking on that. It was a pretty terrible experience lol. After that tacos were off the fast food list.
 
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dawson-donald said:
Yes, I have seen changes too. The costs are higher, the amounts are smaller, and the menus keep adding "premium" or plant-based things. It seems like fast food isnot as easy or affordable as it used to be.
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Nothing is cheaper these days, for both the producer and the customer. The only way for a fast food place to survive is by selling a greater quantity of various fast foods (junk food, really), or reducing production costs, sometimes by reducing the workforce when there is a reduction is sales, and most often buy using as much of the cheaper and lower quality food products as possible. The cost of utilities (water, electricity, heating or cooling, etc.) is higher, building and other maintenance per-hour is higher too.

But don't believe for a moment that restaurants offer only the best foods at a lower cost for the customer. Regardless of where you buy food, if you want the best quality, or healthier foods, you have to pay for it. For example, pure olive oil is healthier and a lot more expensive than highly processed oils. The same can be said for organic foods versus non-organic and non-GMO foods, plus highly processed foods (breads, frozen and other hamburger patties, frozen meals or various kinds, sweet drinks, and on, and on). When it comes to one's health and foods, more than likely quantity is not the most important. Yes, it may be important to the $ in one's pocket, but that is about it. The "No GMO" label can be deceiving since it does not mean that these foods are free of pesticides and herbicides.
 
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AlaskaMoose said:
Nothing is cheaper these days, for both the producer and the customer. The only way for a fast food place to survive is by selling a greater quantity of various fast foods (junk food, really), or reducing production costs, sometimes by reducing the workforce when there is a reduction is sales, and most often buy using as much of the cheaper and lower quality food products as possible. The cost of utilities (water, electricity, heating or cooling, etc.) is higher, building and other maintenance per-hour is higher too.

But don't believe for a moment that restaurants offer only the best foods at a lower cost for the customer. Regardless of where you buy food, if you want the best quality, or healthier foods, you have to pay for it. For example, pure olive oil is healthier and a lot more expensive than highly processed oils. The same can be said for organic foods versus non-organic and non-GMO foods, plus highly processed foods (breads, frozen and other hamburger patties, frozen meals or various kinds, sweet drinks, and on, and on). When it comes to one's health and foods, more than likely quantity is not the most important. Yes, it may be important to the $ in one's pocket, but that is about it. The "No GMO" label can be deceiving since it does not mean that these foods are free of pesticides and herbicides.
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One aspect of fast food that puzzles me is cost.
I can go to an Arby’s, a McDonald’s, or other FF joint and the cost of a meal is close to or the same as many chain / local restaurants (not the trendy or touristy spots) and the food quality / taste at these places far exceeds FF.
 
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dk001 said:
One aspect of fast food that puzzles me is cost.
I can go to an Arby’s, a McDonald’s, or other FF joint and the cost of a meal is close to or the same as many chain / local restaurants (not the trendy or touristy spots) and the food quality / taste at these places far exceeds FF.
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The reason for this is that a smaller local store can only survive by selling fast foods that please the taste of the local community, while the national chain stores are most interested in pleasing the taste of most customers throughout the country. As such it is a sort of generic blend of flavors that most people learn to enjoy from childhood into adulthood. The rest of the company's market is left to the advertisers.

We love the sweetness of sugar, salt, and blends of both with vinegar, fat or fat products of various kinds in our foods. Salt, sugar, fat, spiced with salt, are always present in our commercial foods. Therefore a smart owner or cook of a local fast food joint or a restaurant, or even a food stand by the street-if smart enough- can create a single or more dishes that the locals enjoy. In this case the difference between the nationals and the locals rests on the blend of flavors and cooking techniques used by the locals.

But "flavors" aren't all for the local stores. For example, things that also make a difference to the customers are lighting, the feeling of being welcomed to the place, pleasantness of the people who serve the food, a place that is clean or homely where you can spend time and not feel like you are being pushed out the door. The large or national FF chain stores lose money by keeping customers seated inside the joint for long periods of time, while the locals very well can create a different type of atmosphere.
 
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AlaskaMoose said:
…if you want the best quality, or healthier foods, you have to pay for it. For example, pure olive oil is healthier and a lot more expensive than highly processed oils. The same can be said for organic foods versus non-organic and non-GMO foods, plus highly processed foods (breads, frozen and other hamburger patties, frozen meals or various kinds, sweet drinks, and on, and on). When it comes to one's health and foods, more than likely quantity is not the most important. Yes, it may be important to the $ in one's pocket, but that is about it.
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While I agree with your statement, one thing doesn’t make sense to me: why do “purer” foods cost more than “highly-processed” foods? I would think that the more “processing” a food goes thru, the more expensive it becomes.
I tend to shop at the “perimeter of the grocery store”, where the locally-baked, fresh meats, and fresh veg reside; I’ve done that for a lot of my adult life and even more so now that I’m retired and have time to cook (I realize that a single parent with 3 kids and 2 jobs doesn’t have that luxury).
 
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I'm edu-guessing ...

Pure foods cost more than processed foods as the latter take much cheaper ingredients and process them to make them taste nice.

Also, they're "designed" to make us want more of them using cheap ingredients, such as salt, sugar and (cheap) fats.
www.psychologytoday.com

What Ultra-Processed Food Is Doing to Your Mind

Ultra‑processed foods shape how we feel, think, and connect with others. Understanding their impact is key to caring for our body, supporting mental health, and finding balance.
www.psychologytoday.com www.psychologytoday.com
 
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When I was trying to save money (was working at Wal-Mart making $4.50/hr) ... it was amazing how cheap "processed" foods were. I could stock up on a week's supply of rice-a-roni for a few bucks (back in the day you could get them on sale for $.59/box). A big loaf of sourdough bread (the long kind) - and I had poor man's food for awhile lol. Not healthy but it filled the belly. The Cheddar Broccoli rice-a-roni was my favorite. Now they're like $1.50/box ...

But yeah, I always had people tell me how "cheap" it was to eat healthy. No... maybe if you have $. Those same people went to Whole Foods back in the day before it was Amazon. :p
 
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BigMcGuire said:
When I was trying to save money (was working at Wal-Mart making $4.50/hr) ... it was amazing how cheap "processed" foods were. I could stock up on a week's supply of rice-a-roni for a few bucks (back in the day you could get them on sale for $.59/box). A big loaf of sourdough bread (the long kind) - and I had poor man's food for awhile lol. Not healthy but it filled the belly. The Cheddar Broccoli rice-a-roni was my favorite. Now they're like $1.50/box ...

But yeah, I always had people tell me how "cheap" it was to eat healthy. No... maybe if you have $. Those same people went to Whole Foods back in the day before it was Amazon. :p
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A big giant bag of rice is pretty healthy and lasts for ages. We eat rice at least 5-6 nights a week.
 
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Apple fanboy said:
A big giant bag of rice is pretty healthy and lasts for ages. We eat rice at least 5-6 nights a week.
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He didn't say rice, he said "rice-a-roni" which sounds like a mutant hybrid of Italian and Chinese food ...

Did you know, you can annoy the entire population of Italy by looking at their meal of pasta and saying "oooo, noodles!"
 
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adrianlondon said:
He didn't say rice, he said "rice-a-roni" which sounds like a mutant hybrid of Italian and Chinese food ...

Did you know, you can annoy the entire population of Italy by looking at their meal of pasta and saying "oooo, noodles!"
Click to expand...
Apple fanboy said:
A big giant bag of rice is pretty healthy and lasts for ages. We eat rice at least 5-6 nights a week.
Click to expand...
www.walmart.com

Rice-A-Roni Cheddar Broccoli Flavor Rice, 6.5 oz Cardboard Box, Packaged Meal, Dry Uncooked Rice - Walmart.com

Buy Rice-A-Roni Cheddar Broccoli Flavor Rice, 6.5 oz Cardboard Box, Packaged Meal, Dry Uncooked Rice at Walmart.com
www.walmart.com

Oooh on sale for $1.38. Lived off of this stuff for years when $ was tight. Probably shortened my lifespan by a decade or two. :p
 
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adrianlondon said:
I'm edu-guessing ...

Pure foods cost more than processed foods as the latter take much cheaper ingredients and process them to make them taste nice.

Also, they're "designed" to make us want more of them using cheap ingredients, such as salt, sugar and (cheap) fats.
www.psychologytoday.com

What Ultra-Processed Food Is Doing to Your Mind

Ultra‑processed foods shape how we feel, think, and connect with others. Understanding their impact is key to caring for our body, supporting mental health, and finding balance.
www.psychologytoday.com www.psychologytoday.com
Click to expand...
You are correct. The "labeled" organic foods for example, are supposed to be free of pesticides, herbicides, and are GMO free, and are more expensive (explained in the link I posted below). Organic eggs and milks are also more expensive than non-organic ones.
BotchQue said:
While I agree with your statement, one thing doesn’t make sense to me: why do “purer” foods cost more than “highly-processed” foods? I would think that the more “processing” a food goes thru, the more expensive it becomes.
I tend to shop at the “perimeter of the grocery store”, where the locally-baked, fresh meats, and fresh veg reside; I’ve done that for a lot of my adult life and even more so now that I’m retired and have time to cook (I realize that a single parent with 3 kids and 2 jobs doesn’t have that luxury).
Click to expand...
Processed or highly processed foods are detrimental to one's health, and are quite cheap compared to non-processed foods such as organic, and even non GMO foods. For example the average white rice is processed, and it is cheaper than black rice, brown, and red. Most white breads found at the local markets is made of ingredients that are either highly processed or processed.

https://naturelandorganics.com/blog...y4iOtCg7whQCaqEJ1T2vKd9B7QucrU7dz9b7_soTefYN_
 
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