Remember that moment of pure and utter disregard for your daily budget just to go to a nearby fast food chain to satisfy that insatiable craving for greasy and heart attack inducing delicacies? Then as you enter the restaurant, you quickly turn your head to the so-called “value meal” that greets you at an affordable price. The mouth-watering picture and the lack of time to do the math somehow push you to quickly order out that very meal you set your eyes on. Time passes and you’ve had your cheap fill… but it wasn’t exactly filling now, was it? Where did the money go you ask? Was the meal you even gobbled worthy of being called a “value” meal? In this issue, The LaSallian gives you just some of its alternatives to some fast food value meals to avoid that experience where you felt those extra coins handed to you at the cash register felt more like an apology for your unsatisfied hunger.
Battle Gear
To get started, saving money would mean having your most important weapon at your disposal: your own drink.
Water will be your companion in any case, because not only will it save you from spending any excess for those diabetic fizzy drinks, but can also provide a peace of mind that you never really have when you intake the “purified” house water. Keep in mind that the target here is a heavier meal for a lesser price, so that means extra rice will also be a valuable acquisition.
McDonald’s
What you order:
Sausage McMuffin (sandwich)
Hash Brown
2 piece Hotcakes w/o the drinks
Price: at around Php 115
Better than:
Sausage McMuffin w/ egg “Value Meal”
Price: Around Php 90
Why? It’s got syrup, crunchy potato, and it doesn’t cost too much as compared to buying that measly sandwich.
KFC
What you order:
1 piece Chicken without the drink
Flavor shots without the drink
Price: around 121 pesos
Better than:
2 piece chicken “Value Meal”
Price : Around Php 130
It is without a doubt a bargain, considering you get 2 cups of rice and a variety of flavours with your chicken.
Bon Chon
What you order:
Chicken Sandwich meal
Extra rice
Price: Php 160
Better than:
Chops meal with rice with a side order of fries “Value Meal”
Price: around Php 190
The secret to this meal is that the chicken sandwich has 2 chicken fillets. Simply take out one of them and before you know it you have a rice meal and a sandwich meal with fries.
Jollibee
What you order :
Crunchy Chicken Burger
Lumpia Rice Meal
Beef with Mushroom Rice Meal
Jolly Twirl (optional)
Price: Around Php 110-120
Better than :
A two piece Chicken “Value Meal”
Price: Php 130
It would be safe to assume that when one buys a two-piece chicken in Jollibee, one expects to be stuffed to ones very core. With the 2-piece chicken you get that satisfaction, but why settle for one cuisine when you can enjoy a fast food buffet?
Ministop
What you order:
2 orders of Uncle John’s Fried Chicken
Price : Around Php 120
Better than: Most chicken “Value Meals” in Taft
Price: Around Php 130
Okay, this one isn’t necessarily included in the “Fast Food” chains we’ve become accustomed to. But you’ve got to take account that its American-style crisp and juicy taste, lip-smackingly good to the very bone, can compete with the local chicken juggernauts. Plus, it’s a whole lot cheaper.
With these surefire gut busters, be sure to put all the extra pressure on your stomach rather than on your wallet. And even though it’s tempting to start building your lunch routine around these deep-fried savers, do try to keep the salad and mom’s cooking in the rotation. We hope that with this collection of the true value meals, we’ve made you a little more street-wise, just enough for you to never buy that “street-wise” value meal ever again.
