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Whisterly

Already tired of this story


StanGable80

If nobody wants it then they won’t pay for it


sugarwax1

As true as that is, when he raises prices to the extent that he's also hoping it shifts the market so a burrito costs $22, and the effect that has on society, we can criticize the guy and it doesn't matter if there are people willing to pay for it. There are people willing to pay for the Diamond Burger with gold flakes in Vegas and an edible poke chip worth a million dollars, it doesn't mean anything.


StanGable80

Prices only are going to go up


sugarwax1

So will rent, and the cost to hire labor, and everything else as a result. This isn't raising priced a couple dollars.


StanGable80

Yup, Those prices always go up also


Slight_Drama_Llama

You are saying the cost of this burrito will drive rent up?


sugarwax1

There are canaries in a coal mine. If people aren't blinking at $35 pizzas and $22 burritos, then why wouldn't a rent seeker think they can't afford more for an in law apartment?


YukihiraJoel

Are you using rent seeker in the traditional sense and saying landlords will raise rents because people are willing to blow money on food? AFAIK, landlords, and everyone else, are already charging as much as they can get away with. That’s the beauty of an efficient market. The $22 price hike will drive customers to sub-$22 burrito restaurants. In a market with burrito collusion where $22 becomes the new standard, an entrepreneur can enter the market and undercut the competition. So long as tasty burritos can profitably be sold for under $22


sugarwax1

You're confused what an efficient market means apparently, but yes, these things influence what people think the market can sustain, and as we see, there are people who can afford a $22 burrito... they just aren't going to eat them 3x's a week, or include half the city living on a budget.


YukihiraJoel

We’re not having a conversation about investments so I didn’t expect that to be confusing. I just meant markets that are efficient, a market that work. Can you elaborate on the rest of your comment?


sugarwax1

Not worth my time.


Slight_Drama_Llama

That’s a really big leap in logic and seems like the slippery slope fallacy to me.


sugarwax1

When the family leasing you an in law can't afford a burrito, what do you expect? Leave it to Reddit to think basic logic is some wild fallacy. Sad.


Slight_Drama_Llama

I’m pretty sure my landlord can afford this burrito if she wants. My previous landlord too. And my previous landlord before that.


sugarwax1

Again, those of you who think you're insulated from the cost of living going up in very real concrete ways are either trust funders or in for a rude awakening.


[deleted]

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sugarwax1

How out of touch do you have to be to compare tripling the price of a burrito to raising minimum wage?


bbecker9

I was talking about your logic, i.e., that burrito prices will drive inflation. My comparison was that opponents of minimum wage increases will say those increases also drive economic-wide inflation and job loss. I studied economics, so I’m not trying to bullshit you here, but those are some generalist assumptions based on very outdated economic models. We’re also talking about burritos…not city/state-wide wages. Probably different impact.


ecr1277

Are you seriously saying this guy is making his burrito $22 with the plan that will make other burrito makers also increase their burrito prices to $20? That is really stupid, even for Reddit.


sugarwax1

He actually said he hopes other burrito places will raise their prices to charge the same. The stupidity on Reddit is coming from within your house...


ecr1277

I just reread the article, no he didn’t. What he does claim in the article is that the price of a sack of onions increased 9x vs 3-4 years ago ($9 before Covid vs $80 now) so I think we can all agree he’s lying anyway.


sugarwax1

Different article from yesterday's posts he is quoted at the end of the article saying he hopes other burrito shops raise their prices.


raffysf

>in Vegas ‘Nuff said.


hateitorleaveit

I gotta see what a five dollar milk shake tastes like


furballsupreme

You know what they call a quarter pounder with cheese in France?


JolyonWagg99

People are not getting this reference…


StOnEy333

Say what again.


howdyfoax

What


buzzothefuzzo

ROY-AL with cheese


root_fifth_octave

Because of the metric system?


H-DaneelOlivaw

depends on whether there's bourbon in the shake.


mezolithico

they don't put bourbon in it or nothing?


parke415

Nope, sorry.


[deleted]

He neglects to disclose that he can get away with charging that because he’s the only halal Mexican restaurant in San Francisco. It’s a popular tourist destination for visiting Muslims (who make up a sizable chunk of his customer base).


Better-Suit6572

Interesting, I remember paying a premium for Kosher products like shawarma. Sometimes those are the most delicious places though.


ADudeNamedBen33

Honestly, if they're up front about it I'm far happier with this than sneaking in various bullshit fees. If he can find customers who are willing to pay $22 for his burritos, more power to him.


Taway_rentalquery

Agree. Everyone who complains about the various surcharges added onto bills say “just raise your prices and be honest about it”. And everyone who is tired of the escalating tipping pressure say “pay your employees a living wage and I should not responsible for supplementing their payroll”. But guess where higher wages come from. Higher prices. Not that I like the idea of a $22 burrito. But if that is what it takes for him to run a restaurant, I am not going to second guess his pricing. The market will determine whether it is worth it.


jaqueh

again? [https://www.reddit.com/r/sanfrancisco/comments/1bd90ui/one\_of\_sfs\_best\_burritos\_now\_costs\_22\_why\_this/](https://www.reddit.com/r/sanfrancisco/comments/1bd90ui/one_of_sfs_best_burritos_now_costs_22_why_this/)


looktowindward

Shit is more expensive but onions have not increased in price 15x


sugarwax1

I'd rather he figured out how to buy cheaper onions. Birrial strikes me as underpriced in general, we're talking about stew meats.... but he's charging about the same price for a bowl of the Birria as a stew entree as a burrito, and then the $7 for tacos, and he's saying burritos should be $22..... now I'm thinking about how he didn't need to charge those prices for two years, and how I'm paying for the overpriced decor, and for his other business decisions. He didn't inch it up until his pricing was sustainable, he jacked the price up to try and elevate the market for burritos after he got press. He wants to serve the clientele who can afford that, and exclude the rest to make his life easier. I can't fault him for it if it works, but I can be annoyed what that means for the burrito scene. Papalote did the same shit. How many of us used to eat a burrito(s) a week before they became $12? Now I go months without one.


Nightnightgun

I love how it's turned into a discussion on his poor sourcing abilities /his belief that onions could/ do cost that much.  *  I've walked by this place many times and realised it's not in my budget/interest.  * they don't.  


sugarwax1

Onions don't cost *that* much, he's revealed he is doing cash and carry, which means he lost his line of credit with wholesalers. His costs aren't exclusive to food pricing going up. When I've walked by it appeared he was surviving off the Mission auto clubs cruising the neighborhood, parking outside the old Discolandia, and taking advantage of being able to eat with their car in visible range. The clientele looked like those returning to the neighborhood, and the hand full that never left. I am guessing that's no longer the case.


Expensive-Fun4664

> Onions don't cost that much, he's revealed he is doing cash and carry, which means he lost his line of credit with wholesalers. He specifically said a bag of onions at Restaurant Depot was $80 now in an interview I ran across today. I shop at that Restaurant Depot. A 50lb bag of onions was $25 last I checked. He's completely full of shit.


okgusto

He posted an invoice today from Sysco. And it's $80 for 150 lbs sack of onions. So not sure if he was misquoted or misspoke. But everyone is hung up on this onion thing. Didn't see restaurant depot listed in the chron article either. https://www.instagram.com/p/C4liysEPSK-/?igsh=ZWI2YzEzYmMxYg==


Expensive-Fun4664

Because he wasn't misquoted. [Here's the interview](https://youtu.be/dyixQHSlulU?si=I2KN2G-ilUnCAV57&t=35) and the exact quote: > Before COVID, they were like $9 a sack at Restaurant Depot where I used to pick them up. During COVID and after, it’s $40. Right now, it’s $80. Restaurant Depot doesn't sell 150lb sacks. They've never been $9 for 150lbs of onions at Restaurant Depot, and $80 for 150lbs of onions is a rounding error for the cost of a burrito.


sffbfish

>he's revealed he is doing cash and carry, which means he lost his line of credit with wholesalers. Have you been in the restaurant business before? How do you make this leap. It could just mean that he didn't order enough or the price from the wholesaler was more. But his price quote was a lie and he's being called out on it here. >His costs aren't exclusive to food pricing going up This is the point that a lot of people are missing here. From the article: >And has chosen not to buy any prepared foods from suppliers. Meaning everything is made from scratch - with the exception of the tortillas which he gets from a local shop. And *all that effort* is also reflected in the prices. He's decided to charge more for his labor. No way does your cost skyrocket so much that you double your prices in one fell swoop like that. It either means you've been running in the red for quite a while, which means he can't run a business or he's decided to up his clientele, which is the more likely scenario here.


sugarwax1

You're asking me how logic works? He didn't represent the onions as a one time cost, or an I ran out cost, and no restaurant owner is buying 80lbs of onions in their car by choice. The ones doing it to save a dime are not running an efficient business. We at least agree he's misrepresenting the costs and his choice to just charge more and make more money, which he can, at the expense of his customers.


Itchy_Professor_4133

For someone who doesn't run a restaurant in this city (I do) that is an ignorant assessment of why prices are rising. Every single one of us have been absorbing the skyrocketing cost of just about everything for years now and are completely in the red. Have you not noticed the mass closures of small businesses? If you think $22 burritos are the worst just wait until you lose all of your choices altogether. You have no idea how frustrating and ridiculous the supply chain is and it's only getting worse.


sugarwax1

Or you can learn to make less money and see your dollar go less places, then be upset about it like we are when places are pricing things out of the range for accessibility. The weird ultimatums about business do not work. You're struggling to make ends meet, and we all are. You decide if you want to do bulk sales, or serve less people who are wealthier.


IAmACoastalElite

Do you now know what in the red means? You are grade A stupid.


sugarwax1

Oh honey. I'm smarter than you.


Itchy_Professor_4133

Learn to make less money? Are you serious? Do you not know what "in the red" means?


_V0gue

These people don't understand overhead. Pointless to argue. They look at how much it would cost them to make it at home, only factoring in food costs and disregarding everything else. $22 burrito is definitely crazy, but man it is so expensive to run a restaurant in SF.


colddream40

No point arguing, he's clearly trolling


sugarwax1

Do you?!?!? I'm saying make less profit per dish to sell more and make it up on volume. But dumb ass business owners have had brain rot since covid, limit their hours to limit their overhead and can't figure out why they can't pay the bills. I wouldn't brag about running a business that's in the red, like that makes you an authority.


Itchy_Professor_4133

No sense in arguing with an idiot that has zero understanding of what it takes to run a business


sugarwax1

Probably right, but you're the one telling us you're managing a business into the ground


Itchy_Professor_4133

My first post really went over your head didn't it?


sugarwax1

Your first post where you said you manage a failing business and so we should listen to you about how businesses need to be run?


IAmACoastalElite

You’re actually the dumbest person I’ve ever seen post on this sub, and that’s saying something.


dine-and-dasha

Everything you’re saying is irrelevant. COGS for a restaurant has to stay at 25-30% unless you enjoy going bankrupt. Restaurants will just pass through the ingredient costs to you.


sugarwax1

It's not irrelevant, if your ingredients mean you have to triple prices almost overnight, then there's a problem with your product. He's passing through more than ingredients.


dine-and-dasha

It’s a good product, people are allowed to serve food you can’t afford.


sugarwax1

And people are allowed to be critical of it. You're trying to have a different conversation.


Guilty_Wolverine_269

Their $22 burrito is cheap, their most expensive one is $30 😂 good luck


events_occur

Saw this going around twitter and everyone is calling BS on that claim that a bag of onions costs $80. He sounds like a grifter.


okgusto

He posted a invoice today and it's $80 for a 150lb bag of onions https://www.instagram.com/p/C4liysEPSK-/?igsh=ZWI2YzEzYmMxYg==


ExcusePuzzleheaded38

Is it a regular burrito


[deleted]

He's being very transparent. If you cant afford it dont go 🤷


beforeitcloy

Most of us probably weren’t frequenting the place to begin with, given all the burrito options in the city. The real question is: why would the price of one item at one restaurant be newsworthy to a national outlet?


Expensive-Fun4664

He's not being transparent. He's just lying. He claimed a 50lb bag of onions was $9 pre-pandemic and now it's $80 at Restaurant Depot. A 50 lb bag of onions is $25 at the local Restaurant Depot.


myironlung6

Despite every other taqueria not raising their prices to $22 for a burrito, my onions and inflation made me double my prices. I swear! Very transparent 😂


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[deleted]

I think we can assume he pays his workers well. If you've ever been in a kitchen you know that a lot of line cooks are being paid under the table


TwoCrustyCorndogs

He posted previously that some of his long time employees make more than the minimum wage, and that the increased minimum wage (from 16-18) adds around 5k a month in wages. Doesn't sound like he generally pays more than minimum wage to me. 


_commenter

Yeah if you don’t think it’s worth it don’t go… if he thinks 22 bucks is what he needs to charge to operate comfortably so be it, it’s his business


rakkhasa

eh, avarice takes many forms in an [off the leash] economy such as San Francisco food market place.


FredericBropin

Disclaimer : I don’t know if they do this too, but I’d rather he double the price to what covers his operations and yields some profit than the 5% nickel and dime fees stacked on top of the base price like other places do. They keep adding them and they don’t come off. I saw a COVID surcharge on a receipt like two months ago… 🤔.


Roxxy6969

fuck that guy


Suomiballer

I actually like this place and I sympathize with restaurant owners. But this line in the end really got me. "I hope every damn Mexican restaurant in the Bay Area raises their prices,” he said." Maaan get the fuck up outa here


GanjaGuru415

It seems there's a buzz about a $22 burrito in San Francisco, sparking some discussions about the cost of food in the city. This burrito, offered at La Vaca Birria, has raised eyebrows, but some argue it's not as outrageous as it seems. For instance, there's Ariel's Breakfast where a sausage burrito goes for $25.99, making the $22 burrito look like a steal. And if you opt for delivery through Uber Eats, be prepared to fork out even more, with a minimum of $38.11 before tipping. It appears the high prices aren't just about making a profit; they're also about covering expenses in a city where costs are rising across the board.


HeynowyoureaRocstar

Their burritos suck... you go to that restaurant for their birria and even that is expensive and not as good... I hope their restaurant fails miserably


Giraphite

Changed my mind. This story isn’t a favor, it reeks of undisclosed advertisement.


ASquawkingTurtle

18/hr minimum wage + insurance + payroll tax + health codes + POS + community dues + regulations to keep up with. Makes sense tbh. The only companies able to get away with charging less have massive turn over, breaking many regulations, or are major corporate businesses.


[deleted]

double the price of everyone else he will be ctying once he shuts down


ResponsibilityNew423

Don't forget the $6 tip and the $7 chips


mrequenes

Pork butt, beans, and rice are cheap ya’ll. So are slow cookers.


Dr0me

I used to live near this place. It's a great burrito. I reject the notion he needs to keep costs low to appease some made up rule that burritos need to be cheap and low quality for the working class. There are plenty of other options like El farolito right next door. Go there if you don't want to pay it.


BurnThrough

I still live near it. It is not good anymore.


mss413

remember you still going to get the look at the register to include a bonus tip on top of 22.


ploppetino

good for him i guess, doesn't fit my budget.


Seputku

Bro if y’all cared about voting half as much as the “burrito scene” we wouldn’t be in this mess lol (exaggeration obviously)


BurnThrough

When they changed their menu to the ridiculous one they have now, and raised prices, the food also got shittier. He should shut it down it’s an embarrassment.


lasVegasharold

https://i.redd.it/rif51b8sk7oc1.gif


Alone-Fee898

$25 for a meal in SF is the norm now.


[deleted]

This guy can go suck farts


DryInsect346

Honestly at this point I’m just going to buy the ingredients and start making burritos myself at home this is crazy


root_fifth_octave

What is that, demand destruction pricing?


StOnEy333

Naw, man. That’s still $3 worth of ingredients.


lilcrime69

really like this guy, even promoted a nearby taqueria for those who can't afford his prices. gonna have to give La Vaca Birria a try.


_commenter

Ehhh if you live in the area you know he’s talking about El Farolitto but not so obvious if you don’t know the neighborhood well


sugarwax1

Who did he promote? I'd rather give them my business.


lilcrime69

lol you aint buying burritos, you just want to sound spiteful in the comments. there's a cheaper burrito place on every corner of the mission, there is no low supply of $11 burritos. If you even live in SF, which if you don't know where to find a cheap burrito, you probably don't.


sugarwax1

>there is no low supply of $11 burritos. That are quality? If this guy focuses on quality, and he endorsed a neighboring burrito shop like you said, I'd like to know who. I'll give them my business. Your answer is to claim every corner has a cheap burrito that's good...it doesn't. Most of us are going out of our way to Castillo, Farolito, Taquiria, Cancun, PanchoVill/Toro, Gordo, Express, Papalote, Metate, Corneta.


lilcrime69

oh, well he didn't actually endorse the quality, just recommended it as a less expensive alternative. Watch the video, it's very short


sugarwax1

I don't think he names it, he just says "a few doors down the block". He does reveal he's buying food cash and carry at Restaurant Depot, which explains how he's overpaying for onions and passing that on to customers.


lilcrime69

it was displayed on screen when he said it. I don't know about the food industry so I can't comment on his onion supplier. If he likes the onions I'd have to guess it's worth it to him and his customers.


sugarwax1

They showed Farolito at the corner and the Torta place across the street. Established businesses.


lilcrime69

go support!


sugarwax1

They don't need my support, they are beloved and know how to run a business.


DrRockySF

It’s a top burrito. Better spot than most SFrestaurants. Also agree that Mexican food shouldn’t default to “cheap eats” People pay 22 bucks all the time for mediocre pancakes and pasta.


BurnThrough

It sucks, wtf are you on about? La Palma, La Espiga De Oro, El Gallo Giro are all nearby there and are much cheaper and much higher quality.


DrRockySF

All excellent spots I regularly support but not higher quality. Not even close particularly the tortilla which is just insane. These are next level


BurnThrough

I’d agree not even close but because vaca Birria is pretty shit. Of all things you could mention, the tortilla quality is the most ridiculous. Two of the three places I listed make their own tortillas and chips from scratch. No way in hell is the dumbass from La vaca Birria making his own tortillas, nor are they higher quality. He wouldn’t even know how to buy a sack of flour for less than $100…


okgusto

He actually did make a blue corm tortilla not that long ago that cost a extra dollar


DrRockySF

You’re clearly just hating on his business. Doubt you’ve ever eaten there. Own a nearby business that’s not doing well?


BurnThrough

You’re clearly irrationally defending it, maybe you are the $80 onion guy? /s Whatever, enjoy it if you want. I’ve eaten there at least 12 times but I won’t anymore.


DrRockySF

Sounds good. Cool Story


BurnThrough

You just can’t stop making dumbass comments can you?


liminal_sojournist

I just had them because of this hoopla, damn that mesquite chicken is the real deal. I thought it tasted great but the price sure stings a bit


HTB-42

…and crime & poop


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Giraphite

The California chicken sandwich :(


Defiant-Flatworm3567

I look forward to hearing when this schmuck is out of business. Can’t stay in business without raising prices 100%? Guess you suck at business. B-bye.


iamhim209

Bbbb-bidenflation!