The price war in fast food and restaurants continues

The price war in the fast-food business continues to heat up as “restaurant CEOs are obsessed with the word ‘value’ as they try to explain to investors why their sales fell this quarter while announcing plans to revive traffic in the coming months,” CNBC reports.

“It’s a battle for price. It’s a battle for wallet share… at a time when our target audience is eating out less, we need to make sure that when they do decide to eat out, IHOP, Applebee’s or Fuzzy’s is their first choice.”

CEO John Peyton, Dine Brands, via Yahoo!Finance

The landscape of restaurant dining is changing as the dominance of fast food declines. In New York City, the cost of fast-food meals has risen to nearly $14, prompting chain restaurants to offer more attractive deals. Chili’s, for example, has introduced a “3 for me” combo meal for $10.99, and other chains such as Applebee’s, Red Lobster and Outback Steakhouse are promoting discounted deals to compete with rising fast-food prices.

Despite these efforts, some chains like Red Lobster have run into financial trouble due to unprofitable deals, such as their endless shrimp promotion, which resulted in significant losses. The industry has struggled with cautious pricing as diners become more price-sensitive and eat out less often. Fast-food giants like McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s are experiencing slow growth or declines, while Starbucks is struggling with weak performance.

However, some chains such as Popeyes, Domino’s and Wingstop are still seeing increasing sales at individual restaurants. McDonald’s has changed its burger offering and plans to introduce a $5 meal deal to attract price-conscious customers. Wendy’s Biggie Bag and Burger King’s various limited-time promotions, including the $1 “Your Way” meal and the 2 for $5 deal, are popular due to their affordability.

Overall, the restaurant industry is going through a challenging time, with rising costs and changing consumer preferences driving a shift toward value-based dining experiences.