A buffet meal for just 500 bucks! That’s a steal you say. You are going to pig out and eat more than the money’s worth and that is also going to be a factor that will make you happy at the end of a filling meal. But is a buffet really that worth your money? Are those combo meals you see in the fast food chains worth it either? For a large part of the food industry, no, they are not. Why? Let’s take a walk through the economics of a meal you think you are getting for cheap. Buffet meals are extremely profitable and cheap to make for restaurants You serve yourself – there is not need for waiters at all. Everything is prepared in huge quantities and laid out for you – it is basically a fancy mess, just like your hostel days. Vegetables are really cheap in huge quantities, and so is meat. Plus, there is no plating and everything is laid out for everyone to eat. Also, the starters waiters bring in as soon as you sit on the table – terming them as “samples” are just to fill you in quickly, and are relatively cheaper.

Combo meals in fast food restaurants are actually not saving you any money

There was a time when if you actually broke down the individual costs of a combo meal, it would add up to be actually cheaper than the cost of the whole combo.

That’s when restaurants jacked up the prices of individual components of a combo meal, so that they do not get asked uncomfortable questions.

Soups are a cost-saver for restaurants – even the high-end ones

Most of the soups use leftover meat and vegetables to make. They will use chicken meat that is left after a the meat has been taken for main dishes. The soups will cost only about 5-10% of the money you are buying it for. That makes it one of the most profitable dishes in restaurants.

Also, most of the soups are made well in advance during the start of the day and then warmed in batches as and when ordered by patrons.