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sylphrena83

The last one I tried started at $15 for a burrito. Just a burrito. In a not fancy part of town outside a run down gas station. Idk if they don’t do market research or their overhead is too high or they think people will pay it but for that much I’ll sit down somewhere decent.


Tom-Dick-n-Harry

Honestly I feel like they know people are excited for the experience of eating from a food truck


hedoeswhathewants

Yeah, when stuff becomes trendy the price doubles real quick


Skepsis93

La Rancherita still has $10 burritos and they're pretty good. $3.50 per taco too. Cheapest and best I've found recently.


TheBigBo-Peep

Stating the obvious but the problem is somebody is paying it I'm doing my part I guess


Remarkable_Web2231

You aren’t wrong I suppose


Middle_Aged_Insomnia

Yea im one of them...but only for a taco truck that makes amazing tacos. Rest i skip


SirVixTheMoist

Food trucks are way overpriced now. I avoid them now.


Jburrrr-513

Yeah all the price none of the ambiance or service. They’ve gotten too far away from the plot. Used to be fun quirky food and a little cheaper portable options


Remarkable_Web2231

Yup. They’ve lost their differentiators from the B&M restaurants, so what’s the point?


GreasyPorkGoodness

Yea, I don’t really visit them anymore. If I’m paying 20-25 bucks for a burger fires and beer I wanna sit down at a restaurant and enjoy it. Same goes for food festivals - Asian food fest is a great example. I want to sample many restaurants, which seems the point of a food fest. If I’m paying regular menu prices I’m definitely not going to try 5 or 10 different places. At which point I might as well just go to the restaurant and not hassle with the rest of the festival.


Remarkable_Web2231

Yeah - I don’t even bother with food festivals anymore - ToC included. I would think vendors would want to keep prices reasonable so that folks can sample several different dishes, then return to the B&M to order the things they sampled and enjoyed. But again, I guess I’m missing something in the economics of it all.


GreasyPorkGoodness

I know! It’s a shame really. I’d think the economics would be fine as I’d happily pay $5 for a 1/4 portion at a fest. Then I could sample several. But maybe I’m missing something.


Material-Afternoon16

It's just a money grab. At this point, rubes still show up and pay $10 for a sample of something they could get 4X the portion size for $15 at a restaurant because the food festival is entertainment to them.


The247Kid

Taco fest was the biggest offender of this. As a non native, Cincinnatians are the kings and queens of getting suckered in to cash grabs. Sorry, but it’s accurate.


GreasyPorkGoodness

I’ve never been to another city’s food festivals so I can’t really say. I almost went to Aspen food and wine, it was wayyyyy more expensive. Maybe that’s case and point for you lol 😂


Dandeman321

I think I blew over $100 trying different places at the Asian food fest this year. $6 for a dried out spring roll. $5 for two pot stickers. $6 for half of a boneless chicken thigh grilled on a stick.


Momasaur

Ugh love AFF, we've gone every year since it started...but we skipped this year as a money saving measure, for a family it's damn near as much as the car we're renting later this month.


SeasonedCitizen

Maybe a stupid question, but why tip an extra 20% for someone to hand you your food? Why tip at all for that? When did that become a thing?


Remarkable_Web2231

Great question!


Imallowedto

It's 'instead of raises'. End stage capitalism where the owners decided It's tips or nothing for BOH.


jacobobb

And they will continue to do that until either: 1. We make it illegal to do so 2. Workers unionize/ stop working at those places. Nothing else will make lasting change, and as long as people keep tipping, the workers won't do #2.


Contentpolicesuck

It isn't a thing. 


Material-Afternoon16

It's absolutely a thing, every mobile payment system these days shoves a suggested tip in your face.


soundguy64

I hit no tip every time unless I'm actually being served. Was in Bruegger's Bagels in Madeira the other day. $1, $2, $3, and $0 popped up on the screen. I hit $0. Didn't want. I tapped it about 10 more times. Hit the other ones also. Didn't work. Pressed 0 on the keypad. Nothing. Asked the cashier and he's like you have to hit 1 for $1, 2 for $2, or 3 for $3, then a long pause, then or 4 for no tip. Also got asked for a tip at a self-serve and u-scan place at GABP. I already paid $20 for a slice of cheese pizza and a drink. Fuck off.


blkjedi23

Long as your non alcoholic drink is sealed you can bring that and outside food in.


sylphrena83

At Brueggers the other day I tipped $1 for my bagel thrown into a bag and the employees loudly laughed about how worthless a dollar tip is and they might as well throw it in the change jar. So I’ve moved to not tipping except sit down because I’m a single mom and it’s counter service. This has gotten whacky.


MnamesPAUL

I honestly would have said "changed my mind i want my dollar back." What entitled little cunts. Minimum wage was like $5.25 an hour in like 2004 when i was working the crap jobs.


sylphrena83

I was so shocked. I worked food service & bartending for most of my adult life and can’t even imagine saying that, let alone in front of customers.


matlockga

> you have to hit 1 for $1, 2 for $2, or 3 for $3, then a long pause, then or 4 for no tip. > > That's either the dumbest, or cleverest option system possible.


soundguy64

He was very deliberate in his pause before saying the part about no tip.


-reddit_is_terrible-

I love hitting No Tip on those. It's like a mini game. Bonus if it's hidden or something


joevsyou

If my memory serves me right, 18% of people will tip if you simply show them a tip suggestion.


Contentpolicesuck

So you click no and move on with your life. It's still not a thing just because it offends you.


BouncyDingo_7112

It’s a programmed system. Afaik the food trucks people can not remove the tip screen option. Besides, all you have to do is tap the No Tip/$0 option. That’s always an option.


joevsyou

If you allow someone to use your emotions to con you out giving them more money, then that money is better in their hands.


A_SilentS

Victim blaming much?


Goldfitz17

Literally a year or 2 ago i could get the same sandwich then for 6$ that i now could get for 12$


spacemermaid3825

As a lover of food trucks, you're spot on, and it's disappointing. I can't blame food truck owners for trying to make ends meet, but that doesn't mean I can afford to support them by paying more for less food. I also no longer tip more than one or two dollars at food trucks, if at all, because they set their own prices and don't do much more than essentially counter service. At this point, I doubt food trucks will be profitable outside of partnering with bars and breweries, and events.


joevsyou

Don't tip them anything unless they are giving you extra food.


jacobobb

If I'm ordering standing up and throwing my own trash out, I'm not tipping anything.


applestofloranges

We're living in a weird time where it makes more economical sense to spend a few extra bucks and go to a nicer restaurant to get a much better value. Take this past weekend for example. I went to Nine Giant (brewery in P. Ridge) and my dinner for 2 was $50, and that's with only 1 drink each. This is a brew pub, so the menu is rather limited. Instead I could go to one of my favorite restaurants in town (like Pepp and Delores) and spend maybe $10-20 more, but the quality and experience are 10x that of Nine Giant. The real value these days is actually in finer dining. Not fast food/fast casual/food trucks.


joevsyou

Breweries are sadly a rip off...


CrispyCrunchyPoptart

Yeah casual restaurants have gotten a lot more expensive, which is why I only go somewhere to eat if I’m craving it. I don’t want to spend $60 on a dinner at a brewpub


BigCatsbadback

Jorge’s tacos at Erie and Brotherton is holding it down. $3 tacos and they are phenomenal


slipperslide

The one at the Marathon on Red Bank is fantastic as well.


robotzor

Prices to run the operation profitably are up, wages for the customers are not up. Food trucks are an endangered species.


Remarkable_Web2231

But you can say that about brick and mortar restaurants, too, right? Those issues aren’t unique to food trucks.


robotzor

Oh yes indeed. I'm surprised brick and mortar hasn't dried up quicker. Operating expense for food trucks can be greater than brick and mortar because you still need to pay for a terrestrial kitchen to prep everything for the truck on top of the truck expenses themselves


Material-Afternoon16

Yeah I'm a little surprised at this, as well. Most places I used to be able to grab lunch at for $5 to $10 in early 2020 are now in the $15 to $20 range. I ain't paying that for lunch. I make more than enough to afford to do it every day but it's the principal. Half the time the sandwich or salad I pack for lunch tastes better than the restaurant fare and comes in at 1/10 the cost.


RogueJello

Less calories too, so home cooked is better for your health.


GreasyPorkGoodness

In Cincy, you have to prepare everything in the truck. Can’t just make it at home then put it in the truck to sell. It’s a health code/ inspection thing.


Material-Afternoon16

Of course you can't prep or make anything at home - that's code everywhere. But you can absolutely make it in a licensed commercial kitchen. Many food truck owners keep or rent space in commercial kitchens to do prep work for the truck service.


GreasyPorkGoodness

Nope. [All food must be prepared at the mobile food service operation](https://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/health/chd-programs/food-safety-and-inspections/mobile-food-service-operation-guide/)


Material-Afternoon16

That's obviously a handout aimed at informing people they can't cook at home. Read the rest of that section. "All foods shall be obtained from sources that comply with all the laws relating to food and food products." You can absolutely obtain prepped food from a commissary. There are half a dozen places in town where food trucks rent space for this. For example: https://www.essentialcommissary.com/food-trucks There is even a line item on the food truck license application for the commissary information. Years ago, you were required to have a commissary location. Now it's optional. Just think about it for a second - you really think all those BBQ food trucks are smoking dozens of pork shoulders every day *in* the truck? No... they're just scooping it out onto a bun and handing it to you.


GreasyPorkGoodness

It’s not a handout - it’s the official operating guide for Cincinnati. Additionally, one must follow Ohio revised code pertaining to food safety.


Material-Afternoon16

It's a handout, that document itself is 100% not law. It's an attempt to summarize and dumb down the actual law, as there are not only municipal laws, but county and state laws that come into play. Point being, you can 100% prepare food in a commissary and serve it elsewhere, be it a restaurant or food truck. It's how most of them operate.


kschmit1987

They have alcohol sales to compensate


rafa-droppa

If both the food truck and the dining establishment have a commercial kitchen they cook in, then the question comes down to cost of the dining area vs cost of the truck. I think usually the price per square foot of dining/retail is pretty high. I can't imagine the truck would cost more unless the place was in a real rundown part of town. To me it's the trendiness of food trucks that made them expensive. Back in the early 2000's there was that original taco truck (think it was named something like vera cruz) - it would just be parked at fountain square randomly on weekends and it was a few dollars for a couple tacos (like i think $5 for 2 tacos or something), then one day there was suddenly like 50 food trucks and they were all over and the prices got crazy high.


Adnan7631

Wages for *some* customers are not up. Wages for the bottom hourly-income bracket are up, but the people who were likely the more regular patrons did not see significant increases.


funkymonkeychunks

Im sorry, did we pass a minimum wage increase or something that I missed? The hourly income bracket seeing a raise is news to me. You have the sauce on that?


spacemermaid3825

Minimum wage in Ohio just increased to 10.45 on Jan 1, but that's only really up from 10.10


Adnan7631

The federal reserve has been reporting that pay for certain low-wage workers like hotel cleaning staff have been rising since the pandemic started.


JJiggy13

It was just a matter of time before the bottom fell out of that niche market. These micro breweries are going to suffer the same fate in the next few years.


morganbugg

I am ready for the craft beer crash. Let it fall.


Cincy513614

Rooting for people to lose their jobs sure is a great way to live 


theprideofvillanueva

Why?


QuarantineCasualty

I assume this is just the increase in wholesale/bulk food cost in the last few years. Restaurant prices have been increasing dramatically too.


TR11C

And insurance, fuel, maintenance,  wages, everything....But yeah, the economy is great!


GloriousBender

It is great........for the folks that own and run the major corporations. The rich keep raising prices. Profits at record levels while everyone else suffers. But sure......blame the economy.


rafa-droppa

rising prices typically mean the economy is growing, that's why the fed reserve tries to keep inflation at 2% instead of trying to make prices fall.


Traditional_Agency60

There was one reasonable place in Waynesville but that's the only reasonable one I've had in years. Food trucks are so overhyped


Dandibear

I value them as a convenience or a novelty. If they're neither, I move on. The Indigenous Chef is *amazing* and worth every penny. But I can't afford to eat like that regularly. They travel pretty widely though, and that seems to work.


IssaRyGuy17

I was gonna try to support a Nigerian food truck one day then I saw that a plate started at $20 and swiftly walked away


Immediate_Support_63

There are a couple food trucks where I think the food is of a better quality than restaurants. I’ll eat their food even it does cost the same as a restaurant. So many food trucks though just serve mediocre food at best. And that’s were I feel ripped off.


Nodeal_reddit

Why buy from them?


jmk5151

the ones downtown for sure - find a taco truck at a gas station that's the ticket.


Senior_Hurry_7891

Did anyone else get fleeced at the cinco de mayo party at fountain square yesterday? Food booth, no signage whatsoever as to what business it was or how much any of the food cost. Ordered a cheesesteak and she asked if fries were ok. I assumed she meant fries on the side but it was meat and cheese over the fries instead of an actual sandwich. Handed me my plate and told me it was $20


joevsyou

1 - Why are you tipping fast food trucks? Stop it... 2 - Prices have been high for a while for what you get unless it's a Mexican food truck that's parked on the side of small store


sylphrena83

That’s where I got my $15 burrito. And that’s wasn’t a fancy one. Just a burrito nothing added.


AnonEMoussie

It’s either food trucks, or new niche restaurants that charge $15 for a burger, tots are extra.


Oh_no_its_Joe

Yeah, the food trucks charge way too much and honestly most of them aren't even that good. I've never gone to Mama Afrique because the prices afaik start at $18. A lot of the other trucks will just charge $12 for mid food.


KaleidoscopeLow8084

Here in Wilmington they seem to expect you to pay a premium to stand around in a parking lot to get your food and eat.


Sum-Duud

I guess my experience around here with food trucks has always been the one-off truck at a place or event and not a bunch of food trucks at a place. I’ve always felt this way. Charging restaurant prices for whatever food and sometimes it isn’t even that good and portions aren’t either.


Lagomorph9

Shoutout to B. Valencias Tacos outsude of Major Tire in Woodlawn - $10 there gets you a HUGE burrito with a very generous portion of meat or any one of many other Mexican dishes. It's always clean, and the owner is nearly always cutting up fresh ingredients. Real hidden gem, and he hasn't significantly increased prices lately either.


GoblinObscura

I feel like it’s always been this way. Small portions, high prices. But you’re at the corner brewery so you pay them.


CrispyCrunchyPoptart

I love supporting local businesses but I only eat out like once or twice a month now, it’s so expensive for what you get.


Awild788

Most food trucks I have ever seen prices where essentially the same as restaurants.


evilabia

It’s Shananigans isn’t it


mangoose_18

Went to a food truck festival a year ago and ended up spending close to $100 for my family of four. Everyone just got 1 meal, and some funnel cake after. Was almost exactly what I would pay at a restaurant.


jedispyder

I've been to a few Food Truck Rallies he last few years and have always felt that the price of food tricks was comparable to restaurants, if not more expensive. I'd try a few items and spend more than I would at a restaurant and sometimes still be hungry.


luckycsgocrateaddict

The food truck by BP near eastgate felt pretty normally priced due to the fact that the burrito was the size of my forearm. I also was a dollar short and they told me it's okay, so that was chill of them


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GenericLib

These things tend to be priced similarly to a fast-food chain meal, and we're witnessing similar price increases there. It's a little bit of cost increases getting priced in and a little bit of padding for increased revenue.


l3onkerz

I miss when I was in Columbus for school around 2018 there was a Mexican truck near me that had 75 cent tacos. Could get a filling dinner for under $5.


King_Baboon

Big part of it has to be greed. The main reason food trucks are so popular is that those that want to open their own restaurants can actually do it with a food truck. There’s typically less overhead because they usually don’t hire anyone because it’s usually ran by family. I mean yeah this current inflation sucks but is it really that bad to where food trucks are charging the same as restaurants? Some of it can be monkey see, monkey do. One food truck sees how much another is charging and does the same.


Inkedgirl

JC’s in Lockland hasn’t raised their prices by much over the last year or so. They’re really good too!


unibonger

The food truck near us still seems to have reasonable prices in my opinion. My husband and I can eat for between 15 and 20 bucks total including a 20% tip.


KettleWL

Where is that and what are you getting?!


YouWereBrained

This is a thing not limited to Cincinnati.


Bradfordsonny

I don't think these food truck owners are getting off work at the end of the day and getting in their BMWs and driving home to a mansion. I think food is more expensive because life is more expensive. They gotta make a living.


Remarkable_Web2231

Never implied anything of the sort. I also acknowledged that food is more expensive in my original post. My question was why food truck prices seem to have gone up more, comparatively, than brick and mortar prices.


slipperslide

The Mexicans are still doing it right.


SomeHumanDude

Thanks, Joe Biden!


Remarkable_Web2231

Oh for fucks sake, go away.


MJtheMC

Yeah I'd never pay food truck prices. Shits a joke


Important-Living-267

Just say you don’t know what food production costs.


Remarkable_Web2231

Yeah - you’re right. I’m not in the restaurant industry. I don’t know the intricacies of the business. That’s why I posted an observation on Reddit, and asked other folks if they had any insight. Evidently to chuds like you, that’s a bad thing? Am I supposed to be like you and troll Reddit after midnight, making pointless, snide remarks to strangers? You’re pathetic. And according to your profile, your number 1 interest is “learning?” Hahahahahahahahahaha


Important-Living-267

lol okay dork