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Comment by jasonlotito | Hacker News Reader

> Today, that same meal is $35 - $40

WTF? A $10 to $40 jump? I haven't seen that anywhere around here, and I don't live in a cheap county, either. This is 100% about where you live and eat. This is not normal at all.

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It's absolutely normal in most of the USA. Inflation in the last decade has been outlandish.

400% increase in restaurant meals is normal over the last decade.

Prove it. I want to see facts, not feelings.

Vibe facts elsewhere.

It's at least doubled since the pre-COVID times. The days of $20 large pizzas are mostly gone.

I live in Westchester county, just north of NYC, one of the most expensive places in the country. I get a large pepperoni pizza from the place down the street from me for $25 every week.

That's a good deal. It's closer to $30 here. What was it in 2019?

You seriously think it was under $7 in 2019?

The assertion wasn't prices have gone up. The assertion was a 400% increase.

What was your pizza in 2019? under $8?

No, I don't think it was $7. I'm just interested in the relative change since the before times. For reference, I remember large pizzas being under $20 with one topping around that time.

I have no idea, I moved here six months ago.

Just before the pandemic I'd go have a pizza and beer nearly every Thursday to a nearby place. A medium pizza and a pitcher of beer was ~$16-18 (depending on beer selection).

Today in that same place, same pizza and same beer, is ~$50. So I only go about once a year.

> Just before the pandemic

My local place is $16 for a large pizza. I don't drink an entire pitcher of beer, so I don't know.

Regardless, they've been able to charge that much and stay in business, so maybe you are just living outside your means.

I feel you misunderstood my comment. I was commenting about the severe inflation (in the US) with an example of same restaurant, same food and same drink, just a few years apart.

It wasn't about pizza or beer specifically, and also not about whether I can afford it.

Bucks County, PA, not exactly cheap. 2 large pizzas $30. Normal price.

Been to Taco Bell lately?

https://www.tacobell.com/food/burritos

Doesn't look too bad?

The Beefy 5 Layer Burrito used to be under $1. Yes, that was like 15 years ago, but we're still talking like a 300% increase. Even the regular bean burrito has doubled in price!

Oh. That’s terrible, then. Also probably doesn’t taste 3x better.

I’ve seen kebab prices in Europe also rise from 2-4€ to 8-15€ within five (!) years.

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