Less tax, more fries

So, a few weeks ago I mentioned that the government were proposing a cut in the VAT and I thought it wouldn’t happen.  It was mainly due to how much of a pain I figured it would be as VAT is included in prices vs added in at the tills.

Well, they did it and cut a whopping 2.5% off to bring the VAT down  to 15%.  This has has meant that stores and restaurants have had to reprint menus, price tickets etc to reflect the (whopping) difference. I can see it being annoying for  retailers as per the sign here in McDonald’s telling customers to bear with them as they have to change their menu boards to reflect the new 2% reduction.

To put the reduction into perspective, I bought something at Marks & Spencer last week for the ticket price of £5 and it actually came out at £4.98…oooh talk about a boost to the economy!  Seems like more of a nuisance than huge savings…unless you are buying a Lear jet or an island then the 2% might seem like more.

On another note…yes, I did go to McDonald’s today and no it wasn’t just to take a picture of their sign but because it would probably be the last time I would eat at McDonald’s in my 20’s!  Anyway I noticed out of the corner of my eye their fancy french fry basket fill-er up-er.

When I worked there we had to open a big plastic bag of frozen fries then shake them ‘evenly’ into the baskets. This process apparently can now be done by a fancy machine that measures out the right amount of fries for each basked.  The empty baskets are sent down a chute and once they get under the the machine dumps a pre allocated amount of fries in the basket.  The basket then slides down to the bottom row ready to be removed and stuck in the fryer….okay this thing maybe not totally necessary as the whole process didnt’ take that long in human hours but it looks fancy so I like it.

Which way is the beach?

 

We had a beautiful sunny day on Sunday (ha! how appropriate!) so I dragged my pasty white milk bags down to the common (or park for the North Americans) near our house to absorb some of this British sun.  When we arrived I witnessed one of my favourite British summer traditions…everyone stripping off into their bikinis and swimming trunks in and laying on the GRASS in the PARK.  It’s hilarious because if you didn’t’ know better you’d assume there was a massive body of water or at least a pool nearby. Water or no water the thought of donning a bathing suit brings shivers down my spine as if you recall how white my legs are, you can only imagine what that means for my upper thighs, torso and back…again this didn’t seem to matter to most out that day as I watched them turn from pasty white to bubble gum pink as the afternoon went on.

Also on this sunny day, for the first time in years, I had a caramel sundae from McDonald’s.  I know I have regaled you with stories of McDonald’s in the past but when I worked there we used to make the most rocking caramel sundae’s with caramel (and sprinkles!) on the bottom then ice cream and more caramel and sprinkles on the top.  Well, yesterday we were walking down the high street and both the hubby’s and my eyes were drawn instantaneously to this man walking by with a McD’s caramel sundae with so much caramel it made my mouth water….using very few words we both looked at each other nodded and detoured in to McDonald’s and got the best caramel sundae I have had in ages.

The bit that got me thinking was that how great of a marketing ploy this would be/was.  See, when we first came out of the park and started back home down the high street there was this women– presumably a store manager at McDonald’s, standing in her uniform with a big sign handing out coupons for 2 for 1 burgers.  We (surprisingly) walked by and didn’t take one as it was a hot day so a burger wasn’t as appealing….funnily enough a half a block later we saw Average Jo with his kick ass caramel sundae and were drawn to McDonald’s like scantily clad sun bathers to the common on a sunny day…what a great marketing campaign!  Forget the poor store manager in her long trousers black McDonald’s top and hat sweating in the sun…just give out a few free sundaes to customers, stipulate that the person has to walk up the high street/through the common and voila you subconsciously have people’s mouths watering.  It will be the best marketing ££’s they have ever spent…and will probably prevent the store manger from dying of heat exhaustion.

You have got to be joking

If this was written on April fools day, I wouldn’t believe a word of it.

Apparently, Burger King is going to offer an £85 burger ($169 CDN) in select restaurants in upmarket London locations in an effort to show that they are more premium than McDonald’s.  Okay, I am fan of McDonald’s so not sure there is anything Burger King can do to completely wow me enough to choose it over McDonald’s but come on…. fast food is fast food, it is not meant to be premium, posh or expensive.

My favourite part of the article is this:
Burger King came up with the idea after Selfridges ditched an £85 sandwich it had served, containing black truffles and rare brie cheese. It plans to match or exceed this price.

Yes read that Selfridges DITCHED an £85 sandwich…if people who shop at Selfridges (£££££) won’t purchase an £85 sandwich, what the hell makes them think someone eating at Burger King will (other than a few members of the Royal family whom rock in after Mahiki perhaps)??

I am beginning to think this is a farce and that they did this just to get people to talk about it…kinda like I am doing right now…crap, it worked.  I still won’t buy one though.

That’s a fancy cup!

Not since Tim Horton’s Roll up the Rim to win cup have I seen such fancy cup technology!! (yes, this is another post about McDonald’s)

This cup below is basically the most moron proof loyalty programme I have ever seen…need a sticker for your loyalty card?…its stuck to your cup (at the end of the giant arrow marked sticker)….need a card to stick to the cup as well?…yup its attached to your cup too. 

Need someone to carry around the loyalty card so you don’t lose it on your next 5 visits to McDonald’s so you can get your free one?…sorry can’t help you with that

Mc Modernisation

Twice now I have been walking around London (in different areas) and walked past a window of a restaurant and stopped to peek inside at the dark wood finishings, modern chairs, flowers on the table and in tall pots around the store……  

 

and twice I have been taken aback when I realised they were both new renovated McDonalds restaurants!!  I never thought I would be sitting devouring a Quarter Pounder with a tulip in a vase on the table…love it!

My foray into blogging

I figure it is about time that I try this blogging thing…I’m a little late to the game and am really not sure who will actually read this but I have never been one to turn down an outlet to express my thoughts on stuff…so here goes.
True to the title of the blog I am starting off with a bit of a rant on the London tube system. Don’t get me wrong, I do think its fab, it puts the Toronto transit system to shame and was built 100 years ago which fascinates me BUT I have recently changed jobs and therefore need to take different tube lines to work one of which is the Circle line. In principle its a great line, its a lovely yellow colour on the tube map and travels in a circle so the name and direction is easy to remember.

The issue I have is that it is CONSTANTLY delayed…fine, big city, loads of people…but, its the reason for the delay that bothers me….staff shortages. How can you consistently not know how many staff to have on hand? I have figured out the solution however, hire McDonald’s shift managers to staff the tube lines. Think about it, how many times have you walked into a McDonad’s restaurant and they’ve said “I’m sorry, we can’t serve you your McChicken as we have a staff shortage”. If the McDonalds managers can plan for a Friday night dinner and get everyone served then i think they can get everyone to and from work.

One thing I do have to give TFL credit for is that they are at least honest by telling us that the tube delays are due to staff shortages, in Canada they wouldn’t dare admit such an error and would blame it on an electrical failure like they do when people jump in front of the trains.