'We have Five Guys at home': Woman's $50 order has diners swearing off fast food

A Reddit post about spending nearly $50 at Five Guys is tapping into a wider complaint from diners who say eating out no longer feels worth it.

For many people trying to watch their budgets, fast food now carries prices that feel closer to a sit-down restaurant bill, without delivering the same experience.

What happened?

A Reddit user said a recent effort to save money by cooking at home was undone by a single fast-food stop. The user wrote in the r/frugal subreddit that they spent "almost $50 on dinner" for themselves and their partner. 

To make matters worse, the restaurant messed up the poster's order. 

"The whole time I was eating it I was thinking about how if I'd went to the grocery store we could have had burgers and fries for a whole week for that price," the poster wrote. 

Commenters quickly turned the post into a bigger discussion about rising menu prices, weaker value, and that home cooking often stretches money further. A recurring theme was that restaurant spending now feels most justified for meals that are difficult, messy, or time-consuming to make at home.

Why does it matter?

The reaction points to a broader question about convenience: when a fast-food order costs roughly the same as a casual dine-in meal, people may start to rethink whether the time saved is really worth the money, especially if the food disappoints.

Homeowners don't have to eat in every night to see savings. Replacing a few takeout meals each week can make a meaningful difference in a household budget. It also gives people more control over ingredients, portion sizes, and food waste. Several commenters said that if they are going to spend restaurant-level money, they would rather spend it on something memorable than settle for a rushed chain meal.

That helps explain why many said they now save restaurant meals for dishes such as sushi, pho, barbecue, or hot pot — foods that often require specialty ingredients, equipment, or lengthy preparation. Others said they rely on copycat recipes to get the taste without the price.

In addition to saving money, cooking at home can significantly reduce the amount of single-use plastic and packaging waste produced by fast food and takeout. Preparing meals yourself often means relying on reusable cookware and storage containers instead of disposable wrappers, cups, and cutlery, helping to cut down on everyday household waste while also giving you more control over ingredients and portion sizes.

What are people saying?

"We're pretty much to the point where the only things we eat out for are things that we couldn't make ourselves or take a ton of prep," one user wrote. 

"Yep. This is us as well," another added. "If I want something deep fried I eat that out, otherwise we eat at home." 

"Fast food is on par price-wise with traditional restaurants at this point," another user noted. 

Another user quipped, "Next time tell him 'we have 5 Guys at home.'"

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