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  1. #1

    Is food at restaurants really generally cheaper than in Europe?

    One of the explanations for the tipping culture in the U.S is that in return, prices at restaurants in the U.S are cheaper than what you find in Europe, but is that a fact or just a myth?

    I've been to New York, Miami/Orlando, San Francisco, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles, and I must say that everywhere I've eaten, prices have been comparable to those that I find in Sweden, and western Europe in general.

    In Sweden I normally expect one dish to cost somewhere between 120-190 SEK, or about 12-19 dollar, at a normal-class restaurant. Maybe around 100-110 SEK, or 10-11 dollars, if I want Thai food or Chinese.

    Those prices are about the same as the ones I had to pay for food in the U.S, and on TOP of that 10-20% tip which in the end made it more expensive. I didn't even go anywhere fancy other than once or twice. Just your average everyday restaurant.

    I don't mind tipping at all, I completely understand why it's a thing in the U.S, but I never understood the argument that, in return, food is much cheaper than in other countries. Because from my experience, it isn't. I'd say that food across most western European nations and the U.S cost about the same at restaurants. The only time I've really reacted on how cheap food was, was when I visited the Czech Republic, and Japan.

    On the upside, I gotta love the free refills on soda. Now that's a thing that you can save money on.

    Edit: I see that I messed up the title. I forgot to add "in the U.S".
    Last edited by Deathknightish; 2020-05-19 at 06:47 AM.

  2. #2
    The Unstoppable Force Puupi's Avatar
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    You do realize that the income levels are much higher in those big US cities?
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  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Indara View Post
    10-11 dollars for chinese? The cheapest on the menu at the Chinese restaurant here is like $11, most expensive is like $17.
    http://lai-wa.se/wp-content/uploads/...-2018-juni.pdf

    Yeah. This is one of the most famous ones in my city, and while not 10-11 dollars it's not much higher. It's around 10-11 dollars at the cheaper, worse places.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by Puupi View Post
    You do realize that the income levels are much higher in those big US cities?
    I don't know what Americans themselves think. This is what I've heard from tourists, that it's so cheap.
    Last edited by Deathknightish; 2020-05-19 at 07:20 AM.

  4. #4
    Merely a Setback PACOX's Avatar
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    You can find cheap good food in most places. Mark ups are an easy con in the food industry. Use particular color schemes, buzzwords, and people will suddenly pay more for your stuff even if it's straight from Sysco and cooked by Chef Mic.

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  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by PACOX View Post
    You can find cheap good food in most places. Mark ups are an easy con in the food industry. Use particular color schemes, buzzwords, and people will suddenly pay more for your stuff even if it's straight from Sysco and cooked by Chef Mic.
    Yeah, I tend to never go to the touristy spots. Not necessarily because of the prices but because they don't have good food. If you want bland food, look for the tourist spots.

  6. #6
    The Unstoppable Force Puupi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Deathknightish View Post
    http://lai-wa.se/wp-content/uploads/...-2018-juni.pdf

    Yeah. This is one of the most famous ones in my city, and while not 10-11 dollars it's not much higher. It's around 10-11 dollars at the cheaper, worse places.

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    I don't know what Americans themselves think. This is what I've heard from tourists, that it's so cheap.
    Remember that having a 10k monthly income (or more) is common in the US, and they are not paying 50% income tax on it.

    Buying a 10 dollar meal is cheap then.
    Quote Originally Posted by derpkitteh View Post
    i've said i'd like to have one of those bad dragon dildos shaped like a horse, because the shape is nicer than human.
    Quote Originally Posted by derpkitteh View Post
    i was talking about horse cock again, told him to look at your sig.

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Puupi View Post
    Remember that having a 10k monthly income (or more) is common in the US, and they are not paying 50% income tax on it.

    Buying a 10 dollar meal is cheap then.
    Sure, I understand that but the prices have still been on the same level as in Europe, at least where I've eaten. So while they may pay less, relatively, than what we do when at home, it still hasn't been cheaper for the actual food, which is what I aim at.

    12 dollars is 12 dollars.

  8. #8
    Merely a Setback PACOX's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Puupi View Post
    Remember that having a 10k monthly income (or more) is common in the US, and they are not paying 50% income tax on it.

    Buying a 10 dollar meal is cheap then.
    $10k a month is common? Excuse me?

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  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Puupi View Post
    Remember that having a 10k monthly income (or more) is common in the US, and they are not paying 50% income tax on it.

    Buying a 10 dollar meal is cheap then.
    Not sure where you're getting your 10k monthly figure from, but the median yearly income for a full time or salaried person in the US was at just over $48,000 for the first quarter of 2020.

    https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/wkyeng.pdf
    Last edited by Tasttey; 2020-05-19 at 07:45 AM.
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    Now this is just blatant trolling, at least before you had the credibility of maybe being stupid.
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  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by Indara View Post

    Average income is misleading. It's all incomes divided over the population. The median is far lower than that.
    Well I obviously fail at reading comprehension at 3am, because that was actually the median, not the average according to BLS. Changed the post to reflect that.
    Quote Originally Posted by Mardhyn View Post
    Now this is just blatant trolling, at least before you had the credibility of maybe being stupid.
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  11. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by Indara View Post
    That's so stupid. My father makes like $600 per month, 12 dollars is a lot to him. To me it's almost nothing because I make like 4 times that amount.
    Obviously. If I pay 12 dollars at home, then going to the U.S and paying 12 dollars means it's not a single cent cheaper than it is at home, which is what I'm pointing at.

    Not sure if people are intentionally misreading my post. It's about the fact that people are saying that eating out in the U.S is much cheaper than in Europe when, at least from my experience, it hasn't been. In fact it's been more expensive, if you include tipping. The actual food cost has been around the same, and then another 10-20% gets added on top of that as tip. So I'd say that eating out in the U.S is actually about 10-20% more expensive than in Europe as we don't have "mandatory" tipping here.
    Last edited by Deathknightish; 2020-05-19 at 07:53 AM.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Deathknightish View Post
    Obviously. If I pay 12 dollars at home, then going to the U.S and paying 12 dollars means it's not a single cent cheaper than it is at home, which is what I'm pointing at.

    Not sure if people are intentionally misreading my post. It's about the fact that people are saying that eating out in the U.S is much cheaper than in Europe when, at least from my experience, it hasn't been. In fact it's been more expensive, if you include tipping. The actual food cost has been around the same, and then another 10-20% gets added on top of that as tip. So I'd say that eating out in the U.S is actually about 10-20% more expensive than in Europe as we don't have "mandatory" tipping here.
    But there are still labor costs in food pricing. If labor costs are higher in the US then in Europe then for the US 12 dollar seems cheaper then 12 dollar in Europe.

  13. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by Hansworst View Post
    But there are still labor costs in food pricing. If labor costs are higher in the US then in Europe then for the US 12 dollar seems cheaper then 12 dollar in Europe.
    But for me as a customer it's the same. I pay 12 dollars both in Sweden and the U.S. I give them 12 dollars in both countries, which takes the same amount of money away from my wallet at that exact moment. If I'm on a trip to the U.S and eat out, I'm not gonna think "labour costs" are higher. What I'm gonna think is that 12 dollars is 12 dollars, and then compare the price to what I pay back home, which is also 12 dollars.

    As a guest, all I'm looking at is "how much am I paying for this plate of food in front of me?". If it's 12 dollars in the U.S, and 12 dollars back home, the U.S isn't cheaper. It's the same, even if labour costs are higher but the raw produce is cheaper.

    Food in grocery stores is cheaper in the U.S, that's true, but it's also cheaper in, say, Spain compared to Sweden even though the prices at restaurants down there are also at the same level as in Sweden.
    Last edited by Deathknightish; 2020-05-19 at 08:32 AM.

  14. #14
    The Unstoppable Force Puupi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tasttey View Post
    Not sure where you're getting your 10k monthly figure from, but the median yearly income for a full time or salaried person in the US was at just over $48,000 for the first quarter of 2020.

    https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/wkyeng.pdf
    And as we were talking about LA, NY etc. the average salary is nearly 80k.

    The differences in between different parts of the US are huge.
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    i've said i'd like to have one of those bad dragon dildos shaped like a horse, because the shape is nicer than human.
    Quote Originally Posted by derpkitteh View Post
    i was talking about horse cock again, told him to look at your sig.

  15. #15
    The Unstoppable Force Puupi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Vegas82 View Post
    You didn’t say in those cities, you said it’s common in the US to make $10K+ per month.
    So what?

    Those places are part of the US and exactly the part we are discussing as described by the OP. This wasn't about salaries and restaurant food in Bumfuckery, WY.
    Quote Originally Posted by derpkitteh View Post
    i've said i'd like to have one of those bad dragon dildos shaped like a horse, because the shape is nicer than human.
    Quote Originally Posted by derpkitteh View Post
    i was talking about horse cock again, told him to look at your sig.

  16. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by Vegas82 View Post
    I guess admitting to being misinformed is impossible for some. Oh well.
    It's okay at least he may not be able to divide 80k by 12 but he can tell you where New York is on a globe so don't laugh at him.
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  17. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by AeneasBK View Post
    It's okay at least he may not be able to divide 80k by 12 but he can tell you where New York is on a globe so don't laugh at him.
    He said it's common to have an income of 10k or more per month. He didn't say that's the average income or median income. Just that it's common.

  18. #18
    Quote Originally Posted by Freighter View Post
    He said it's common to have an income of 10k or more per month. He didn't say that's the average income or median income. Just that it's common.
    And followed it up with the justification that 80k/year was common in those cities.

    I'll let you work it out from here, it was a throwaway pisstake and if you can't keep up thats not a problem.
    Quote Originally Posted by Shalcker View Post
    Posting here is primarily a way to strengthen your own viewpoint against common counter-arguments.

  19. #19
    In a number of European countries, the dominant business model is for main dishes to be relatively cheap, as in there's very little markup compared to the price of ingredients and manpower, the higher margins being chiefly on drinks (I'm talking non alcoholic ones even), as well as desserts and sides.

    I've seen that in other countries it is not the same, as while travelling I was many times surprised at the low cost of drinks. Have you compared prices for drinks between Europe and the US?

    Otherwise my country's prices are a bad reference as $20 is considered normal for a dish, and $15 cheap (the likes of Doner Kebab or Big Mac menu being barely on the $10 mark (we might still top the Big Mac Index)).
    Last edited by Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang; 2020-05-19 at 09:06 AM.
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  20. #20
    Quote Originally Posted by AeneasBK View Post
    And followed it up with the justification that 80k/year was common in those cities.

    I'll let you work it out from here, it was a throwaway pisstake and if you can't keep up thats not a problem.
    It's not me that's having problems to keep up. Saying it's common for people to make 10k per month or 80k per year isn't mutually exclusive. Both can be common. You're acting like they're mutually exclusive statements when they aren't.

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