In tight economy, fast food becoming an attractive option for many

MONTROSE — Ronald McDonald’s smile just got a little bit bigger.

Despite a struggling economy, fast food powerhouse McDonald’s reported its third quarter profits had increased nearly 11 percent from the second quarter.

As the cost of living continues to increase during hard times,  a National Restaurant Association study says Americans are buying fast food because it’s fast and cheap. Montrose residents are opting to spend their money on fast food rather than buying groceries.

“I could spend an hour shopping for groceries or buy a meal at McDonald’s and spend less money and time,” said Ryan Nystrom of Montrose.

A typical meal at McDonald’s ranges from $5 to $8, which includes a burger or sandwich, fries and a drink. And the rising popularity of the company’s “dollar menu” has only encouraged more to eat out.

 A hamburger, cheeseburger, ice cream sundae, soft drink and fries can each be purchased for a dollar plus change.

McDonald’s isn’t the only fast food restaurant offering cheap meals. Subway offers $5 foot long subs, while KFC, Burger King and Taco Bell offer meal deals that can feed an entire family for less than $15.

Dalrose Brugge, manager at the McDonald’s located at 1035 Main St., said earlier this week her McDonald’s earned $2,000 in a two-hour period just on one register. She said the McDonald’s on Main Street has been seeing a lot of business and that eating at the fast food restaurant was more convenient for people with today’s economy.

“It’s the quality of the people and the food,” Brugge said. “It tastes good and it’s easy and cheap to get something off the Dollar Menu. And we have fast service most times.”

Carolyn Parker of Montrose, a working mom, said the busy schedules of her children, husband and herself make McDonald’s an easy solution. She said she found herself wasting money on groceries the family never got around to eating because there wasn’t time or energy to cook.

“With kids in school and parents working, it’s tough to get the whole family together to eat,” Parker said. “Ordering from McDonald’s makes things a little less stressful because it’s simple. Plus, I’m not spending a fortune on food all the time.”

Parker said she spent nearly $300 on groceries per month. However, she said eating McDonald’s twice a month has given the family some extra money to do something “fun.”

“Mickey D’s” is the world’s largest fast food chain — with over 13,000 locations in the U.S. and 31,000 locations worldwide according to the company’s Web site.

Although City Market declined comment and Safeway did not respond by press time, Montrose shoppers said they believed fast food places like McDonald’s were affecting grocery store sales.

“I’ve been shopping at Safeway for quite some time and as the economy has gotten worse, I believe I haven’t seen as many people here,” said Kerry Jones of Montrose. “I don’t even shop as much — people can’t afford things like they used to with the current state of the economy.”

Brugge said Montrose’s two McDonald’s showed no sign of slowing down and that both were holding steady. She said the McDonald’s on Townsend Avenue saw most of its business on the weekends while the one on Main Street remained constant all week, mostly busy during the lunch hour.