It's time for a "fast food" revolution

[Disciple96]

I was thinking today... with high-value "fast- food" restaurants like Chipotle, Starbucks, Panera Bread, and Smashburger exploding over the last decade, I can't help but think there is a middle ground that hasn't been reached.

I visit McDonald's, Hardee's (Carl'sJr.), and Taco Bell, traditional fast food chains, and the difference is clear.

The high-value chains don't make me feel like dogshit. Oh, and their food tastes much better.

Of course, anyone who has done their research knows most "healthy" food choices are anything but, especially from the likes of fast food places.

There is a growing market for healthier fast food. People are more conscientious of the shit they're putting in their bodies and are willing to pay for quality.

**

Many people can tell you that the reason a McDonald's hamburger is so cheap is because they have an enormous economy of scale. Which is conversely why cleaner food options are more expensive. The supply chains look completely different.

In one industry, livestock are raised in an environment that is deplorable and they're injected with god-knows-what. Industrial agriculture uses tons of pesticides which wash away into our water and kill our bees, while growing crops which are genetically immune to the pesticides. You definitely aren't washing that off in your sink.

In the other industry, livestock are raised on an open pasture, free to breathe the air and think whatever it is livestock think about. Animals are living creatures - I think it's obvious to say that a happy animal produces healthy food. The agricultural sector looks markedly better, too, with plants grown how nature intended: with water, sunlight, and love.

All of this extra attention to detail has it's price.

**

In cities there are "food deserts" - Places where the only food options for miles are 7/11, Pizza Hut, and Dollar General.

McDonald's offers something many places can't beat: Warm food for a low low price.

It is part of the reason so many Americans are unhealthy. This is a frankenfood, it doesn't satisfy enough and it is engineered to be as addicting as possible. But it's dirt cheap.

**

TLDR; What obstacles will we have to face as a community in order to create a solution? Surely there is the possibility of a restaurant chain with the convenience of a McDonald's and the health factor of a Whole Foods, at an affordable balance on price? It's clear this is a need that hasn't been met.

 

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[sparechange]

People can cook healthy food at home for way cheaper. But that point can be invalidated if you look at all the zombies at Starbucks that waste money on overpriced products. Another problem is margins and competing with Tim hortons mcds and all the big boys.

 

[sparechange]

I do believe in the concept though, would need some big pockets!

 

[MidwestLandlord]

The high value chains are usually "fast casual" not fast food.

There is a difference in how they are operated, customer perceptions, price points, quality, and speed of service.

Entirely separate categories for sure (although they do share customers. Fast food customers will trade up, but common thinking is that fast casual customers rarely trade down)

Healthy fast casual is doable for sure. Not sure why no one has done it...big need.

Healthy fast food would be extremely difficult as you'd never get enough margin or speed of service.

 

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[Scot]

There's a thread out there where @MidwestLandlord @G-Man and I had a great discussion about how to execute a healthy fastfood restaraunt.

This is an idea I've wanted to tackle for so long, but I know the capital and energy involved would be massive. So, maybe down the line it's something I'd consider.

But I disagree with you on one point Midwest, I definitely think there's a market a need for it. Local chipotles have huge lines in my city, as do places like Panera. Both these places are perceived as "healthy". This concept may not work in a lot of more rural places, but in cities that are more health conscious, it could definitely work.

The biggest part to tackle is how have a menu that caters to many tastes, is healthy and is handheld drive through food. Everyone knows a salad is healthy, but try eating a salad going 80 on the highway. Not gonna happen.

You can make burger alternatives like turkey burgers on in lettuce wraps, use low carb bread alternatives like cauliflower bread.

I think it's doable, but opening a restaraunt is a daunting task. And as Midwest knows, the margins are everything.

 

[MidwestLandlord]

Both Chipotle and Panera Bread are fast casual, not fast food.

I agree 100% there is a need for healthy quick food, and that fast casual makes it possible. Fast food that is healthy is a different beast altogether though.

Fast food customers SAY they want healthier options, but when it comes to actually picking a healthier option (especially if it costs more) it's likely not to happen. But a fast casual customer WILL choose healthier and more expensive, because they already do (even if it's not healthier, they BELIEVE it is)

 

[Iammelissamoore]

This concept is indeed a remarkable one and it's one that is being explored by a good few people, and while there are many items raised as initial obstacles, that we know can eventually be overcome e.g. Cost for start up, as well as the tiresome work which goes into opening a restaurant, one tiny aspect we are missing is the mindset shift which can be overcome by educating people.

As Scot correctly mentioned earlier 'everyone knows a salad is healthy' but, how many people know about the difference between a salad which "looks" healthy, but is made with GMOs vs a salad which is made with organic, electric ingredients that is a lot more nutritious? A lot of us on the forum - as we often discuss, know how to ask our local farmers/servers at restaurants specific questions to help us determine if they are telling us the truth about source ingredients utilised in our meals, but what about those who simply don't? Of course, price points, also mentioned above, can assist in determining quality of ingredients, but not all restaurants/products which sell expensively and/or labelled "organic" is necessarily so, a lot of companies rely on the ignorance of the masses to sell their products/services using particular buzzwords shared within the health food industry.

All of this to simply say:
1. We each know this is absolutely a market worthy of pursuit.
2. Some markets, though seemingly new or 'never done before' can be executed, it requires a mindset shift through a lot of education, which is doable, as this would be incorporated into the process of getting such a business off the ground, and this can be done as -->
3. ...a Movement, as we know, movements are one of many vital ways to introduce new or difficult processes/concepts, which assists in educating and creating that mindset shift necessary.

The wonderful thing about it is that there are many documentaries that exist, which began paving the way for this shift.

Ha, I usually have a saying that when a "slang" is being used in an advertisement, it, imo, marks the death of that slang, as it is now common and therefore killed dead dead dead. Lol, however, healthy food isn't a slang, it requires a lot of educating (at least to your intended target market) and we most certainly want to create this type of widespread message, as it does help in this quest.

The more we learn that we can not only reverse a lot of ailments simply by the foods we eat, but also decrease the costs by eating well, the more people may be willing to accept it, well, at least sensible people who genuinely believe in their own well-being and those are the people you'd want to attract at your restaurant anyway.

(Sorry about the book long response. Lol)

 

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[scott.legendre]

There's a company here that follows the meal prep concept and keeps a stock full of the meals in a display fridge for grab and go, with a drive-thru and everything for $9. from what I have observed their business is doing extremely well. They usually have about 6 variety of plates and change it up twice a week every week. Food creativity and lots of prep work is involved. They started as your standard meal prep with delivery and renting a kitchen, but expanded into their own operation.

 

[ALC]

Indeed, but considering the price a big change in the decision making, not everyone will put X $ in a salad if they can get a complete meal somewhere else for the same price or close.

But as everything has changed a lot lately, more and more people seems to take care of themselves and consuming less FastFood.
It would be cool to get something like McDonalds (business model) with a drive thru and everything but with only healthy meal for an affordable price.

There's a company here that follows the meal prep concept and keeps a stock full of the meals in a display fridge for grab and go, with a drive-thru and everything for $9

That's cool ! Do you get the name of this company.

 

[Disciple96]

Here's a major problem with fast food places: It seems like they mess up my order relatively often.

McD's has just started introuducing a similar concept with Uber, but this would be particularly useful to solve messed up orders and wait times:

Online ordering.

It's simple... Instead of waiting 15 mins at the restaurant during your lunch break, you order through the application at your convenience and then specify a pickup time. This way, it can be made fresh (because quality food will always take time.)

However, you could also sacrifice a bit on the quality... for example, frozen meat. I mean, there wouldn't be a lot of competition on the quality front anyways. All of the big chains taste pretty gross.

I should clarify: I'm talking about nearly direct competition with McDonald's. Having a fancy high-end chain restaurant would be cool, but it's not really what I'm referring to here; A restaurant that would be basically the same, but better. Maybe *marginally* more expensive, but that's to be expected to any degree.

At this point I'm just wondering if you could really have truly natural food that might come close to McD's on price. These days, that's McDonald's biggest benefit (and they have the best fries).

Waiting in line is another problem... I can order pizza for pickup, why not McDonald's? Taco Bell? Maybe our hypothetical competitor could almost get rid of lines altogether with a "Pickup counter".

You would have to order 10 mins before you wanted it. There might be a local map of available franchises. You simply select the most convenient location and order what you want, paid through your phone or with your card number.

Your order is placed in a queue based on when you submitted it, and you would arrive as usual and pickup the order from the counter. There could even be a completed order indicator on the app, similar to Domino's.

Two birds with one stone!

Less waiting in line (if you're picking up, there's usually no wait)

And no more screwed up orders!

I wonder what can be done to implement a drive-thru. Maybe you have to order it online to get it at the drive-thru immediately, otherwise you would have to pull off to the side and wait about 10 minutes. That could be a definite drawback - a lack of a speedy drive-thru.

Then again, who doesn't have a smartphone these days? Definitely not our target demographic - health-conscious individuals with disposable income and the ability to use a damn smartphone!

 

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[Mr.Brandtastic]

I remember in school I did a project on Five Guys, the popular burger chain.

Here's an article we used: Five Guys Burgers: America's Fastest Growing Restaurant Chain

From 2006 to 2012, Five Guys grew at an astonishing 792%. Talk about the Fastlane.

Why have these companies seen such incredible growth? Quality pays. Look I like McDonald's once in a while but it is not even the same level as Five Guys. Price? Forget about price. A few bucks more for a much better experience is always worth it. If it wasn't, then McDonald's would be the only burger joint in town. Newer drink machines with 100 options, free peanuts, and all else. Five Guys uses no timers. And Five Guys uses a real grill, imagine that, if your burger isn't grilled but is instead...made, that's a real bad sign.

How has Five Guys grown so much and not gotten terrible? It's privately owned. Therefore they can always focus intensely on quality over everything else. It started from a nucleus of Five Brothers who had the option, open a restaurant with their money or they could all go to college. I bet everyone called them crazy for doing it. I'm sure they would be MUCH HAPPIER making $40,000 a year in the corporate world (sarcasm).

So what is the market for these types of chains? Gigantic. Seriously, the sky is the limit. No one even knew what a Five Guys was 10 years ago and now I can drive 3 miles South or 5-6 miles North and find one. As for healthier choices? You could do that. But I recommend one thing, keep it simple. Don't make 100 mediocre dishes when you could make 1-2 great dishes. Five Guys isn't going to start selling bananas or wine anytime soon.

 

[luniac]

People can cook healthy food at home for way cheaper. But that point can be invalidated if you look at all the zombies at Starbucks that waste money on overpriced products. Another problem is margins and competing with Tim hortons mcds and all the big boys.

seriously when i worked in the city i wasted so much money buying overly expensive lunches... after years of wasting i finally wised up and ate before work.
Better food, prepared by me, cheaper overall, and washing dishes builds discipline lol

 

[RBefort]

I eat out every single day of work...99% of the time it is Wendy's, KFC, TBell, or Which Wich. Does it get old? Yes...I crave it a lot, eat it, then don't feel fantastic while eating/done eating. I try to limit myself to $4-6 per day. I don't eat healthier because I would more than double my meal cost. Some day I'll actually get back to cooking, but warming up food in a microwave everyday is not my thing :/ We have an Aerojuice in our town, that is only based in Florida besides our place, which serves energy smoothies, Acai, salads, etc. Can't walk out under $10. While healthier, no way could I eat this everyday due to simply the cost. Usually people don't eat out that much, and if they do, they want the unhealthy stuff...or short on time. When I go out to eat with my wife, I crave the unhealthy stuff..I don't intentionally seek out expensive healthy places.

 

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[luniac]

I eat out every single day of work...99% of the time it is Wendy's, KFC, TBell, or Which Wich. Does it get old? Yes...I crave it a lot, eat it, then don't feel fantastic while eating/done eating. I try to limit myself to $4-6 per day. I don't eat healthier because I would more than double my meal cost. Some day I'll actually get back to cooking, but warming up food in a microwave everyday is not my thing :/ We have an Aerojuice in our town, that is only based in Florida besides our place, which serves energy smoothies, Acai, salads, etc. Can't walk out under $10. While healthier, no way could I eat this everyday due to simply the cost. Usually people don't eat out that much, and if they do, they want the unhealthy stuff...or short on time. When I go out to eat with my wife, I crave the unhealthy stuff..I don't intentionally seek out expensive healthy places.

ill pray for u

 

[Iammelissamoore]

Well, it is quite clear that target audience matters. I hear the argument about cheaper food which may be the reason why Mc Donald's and similar can easily win in the fast food market, it is clear that the target audience would absolutely matter. There are people who absolutely would pay more money for authentic, healthier options, well, I know I would, specifically knowing they don't have to prepare these time-consuming meals.

Take for example Blue Apron or Amazon Fresh and all these other Veggie Box Delivery services, who for a subscription would pack a weekly supply of organic veggies and have it delivered to one's home or office, surely, a lot of people can simply drive to the market themselves and spend time seeking out their own fresh veggies, but not everyone is lucky to have the time to do such on a weekly basis, therefore, in paying attention to the particular target audience, these companies are making bank because of the valuable services they are offering, and while a Veggie Box Delivery Business isn't exactly the same concept of a fast food revolution, it still speaks to the fact that there are people who wouldn't mind paying a couple extra dollars for healthier food, specifically where they lack the time to prepare fresh meals daily, and yes, we do know how time-consuming the preparation of healthy foods can be, matter of fact, I think this is an additional reason why some people find difficulty in staying on track.

This is definitely something worth pursuing, surely it won't be a quick process, but once executed well, it will certainly change the way we consume fast food and I am 1000% sure there is a Fastlane aspect to it. Besides, I wouldn't be shocked in any way, form or manner if Mc D's and a lot of other fast food chains are clients of monsanto and the franken-food industry, so, a fast food revolution is Definitely worth having.

 

[ALC]

I do think the only thing that will have an impact is the price.
Not everyone can spend more than 10$ per meal..

That's why these franchise are successful

 

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[MidwestLandlord]

Here's a major problem with fast food places: It seems like they mess up my order relatively often.

McD's has just started introuducing a similar concept with Uber, but this would be particularly useful to solve messed up orders and wait times:

Online ordering.

It's simple... Instead of waiting 15 mins at the restaurant during your lunch break, you order through the application at your convenience and then specify a pickup time. This way, it can be made fresh (because quality food will always take time.)

However, you could also sacrifice a bit on the quality... for example, frozen meat. I mean, there wouldn't be a lot of competition on the quality front anyways. All of the big chains taste pretty gross.

I should clarify: I'm talking about nearly direct competition with McDonald's. Having a fancy high-end chain restaurant would be cool, but it's not really what I'm referring to here; A restaurant that would be basically the same, but better. Maybe *marginally* more expensive, but that's to be expected to any degree.

At this point I'm just wondering if you could really have truly natural food that might come close to McD's on price. These days, that's McDonald's biggest benefit (and they have the best fries).

Waiting in line is another problem... I can order pizza for pickup, why not McDonald's? Taco Bell? Maybe our hypothetical competitor could almost get rid of lines altogether with a "Pickup counter".

You would have to order 10 mins before you wanted it. There might be a local map of available franchises. You simply select the most convenient location and order what you want, paid through your phone or with your card number.

Your order is placed in a queue based on when you submitted it, and you would arrive as usual and pickup the order from the counter. There could even be a completed order indicator on the app, similar to Domino's.

Two birds with one stone!

Less waiting in line (if you're picking up, there's usually no wait)

And no more screwed up orders!

I wonder what can be done to implement a drive-thru. Maybe you have to order it online to get it at the drive-thru immediately, otherwise you would have to pull off to the side and wait about 10 minutes. That could be a definite drawback - a lack of a speedy drive-thru.

Then again, who doesn't have a smartphone these days? Definitely not our target demographic - health-conscious individuals with disposable income and the ability to use a damn smartphone!

McDonald's online ordering app.

Mobile Ordering

I remember in school I did a project on Five Guys, the popular burger chain.

Here's an article we used: Five Guys Burgers: America's Fastest Growing Restaurant Chain

From 2006 to 2012, Five Guys grew at an astonishing 792%. Talk about the Fastlane.

Why have these companies seen such incredible growth? Quality pays. Look I like McDonald's once in a while but it is not even the same level as Five Guys. Price? Forget about price. A few bucks more for a much better experience is always worth it. If it wasn't, then McDonald's would be the only burger joint in town. Newer drink machines with 100 options, free peanuts, and all else. Five Guys uses no timers. And Five Guys uses a real grill, imagine that, if your burger isn't grilled but is instead...made, that's a real bad sign.

How has Five Guys grown so much and not gotten terrible? It's privately owned. Therefore they can always focus intensely on quality over everything else. It started from a nucleus of Five Brothers who had the option, open a restaurant with their money or they could all go to college. I bet everyone called them crazy for doing it. I'm sure they would be MUCH HAPPIER making $40,000 a year in the corporate world (sarcasm).

So what is the market for these types of chains? Gigantic. Seriously, the sky is the limit. No one even knew what a Five Guys was 10 years ago and now I can drive 3 miles South or 5-6 miles North and find one. As for healthier choices? You could do that. But I recommend one thing, keep it simple. Don't make 100 mediocre dishes when you could make 1-2 great dishes. Five Guys isn't going to start selling bananas or wine anytime soon.

Five Guys is fast casual, not fast food, hence the higher price, better quality, better experience. See how as a fast casual customer you rarely trade down to actual fast food? The comment after yours shows the typical fast food customer mentality:

I eat out every single day of work...99% of the time it is Wendy's, KFC, TBell, or Which Wich. Does it get old? Yes...I crave it a lot, eat it, then don't feel fantastic while eating/done eating. I try to limit myself to $4-6 per day. I don't eat healthier because I would more than double my meal cost. Some day I'll actually get back to cooking, but warming up food in a microwave everyday is not my thing :/ We have an Aerojuice in our town, that is only based in Florida besides our place, which serves energy smoothies, Acai, salads, etc. Can't walk out under $10. While healthier, no way could I eat this everyday due to simply the cost. Usually people don't eat out that much, and if they do, they want the unhealthy stuff...or short on time. When I go out to eat with my wife, I crave the unhealthy stuff..I don't intentionally seek out expensive healthy places.

Fast food fills the needs of saving time, saving money, and tasting unhealthy.

Which is why I think healthy in fast food would be very hard to do.

 

[MidwestLandlord]

Five Guys is fast casual, not fast food, hence the higher price, better quality, better experience.

The reason I'm harping on the differences between fast casual and fast food is so that y'all can see your own buying habits and how they relate to each category.

Knowing your own buying habits is very enlightening and useful, I think.

After-all, your buying habits are also their selling processes.

THEY know why you buy from them, do you?

I also think this is why the vast majority of non-franchised restaurants don't make it. They don't know who they are selling to and why.

People say they want healthy choices. There are serious ethical and health related issues in how our food is grown and processed, and I think the majority of people know this.

But education and actually creating or changing buying habits are very different things.

 

[MidwestLandlord]

Take for example Blue Apron or Amazon Fresh and all these other Veggie Box Delivery services, who for a subscription would pack a weekly supply of organic veggies and have it delivered to one's home or office, surely, a lot of people can simply drive to the market themselves and spend time seeking out their own fresh veggies, but not everyone is lucky to have the time to do such on a weekly basis, therefore, in paying attention to the particular target audience, these companies are making bank because of the valuable services they are offering, and while a Veggie Box Delivery Business isn't exactly the same concept of a fast food revolution, it still speaks to the fact that there are people who wouldn't mind paying a couple extra dollars for healthier food, specifically where they lack the time to prepare fresh meals daily, and yes, we do know how time-consuming the preparation of healthy foods can be, matter of fact, I think this is an additional reason why some people find difficulty in staying on track.

This raises the question...

Do people actually lack time?

Or have marketers, especially in the restaurant industry, just framed it that way?

Do you actually save time going to XYZ fast food franchise or have they just told you that you will?

"Time is a finite resource and you will save tons of it when you buy with me!"

Something to think about.

(I've always been fascinated with restaurant marketing if you couldn't tell lol)

 

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[ZF Lee]

This raises the question...

Do people actually lack time?

Or have marketers, especially in the restaurant industry, just framed it that way?

Do you actually save time going to XYZ fast food franchise or have they just told you that you will?

"Time is a finite resource and you will save tons of it when you buy with me!"

Something to think about.

(I've always been fascinated with restaurant marketing if you couldn't tell lol)

I think customers in general have always been suffering from a chronic lack of time, though lol. That's why convenience is a mainstay part of our value skews. Hard to miss, even when I'm taking a closer look at my products these days.

To relate better, most people are Slowlaners, so they would be more busy working 9-5 or studying.

As for marketers, they know this lack of time on the customers' side exists. After all, you and I can identify it too.
So not only they jump in for the kill, but they also HYPE it. Make a mountain out of a molehill, they say.
After all, you want the sheep to keep coming in, don't you?

The mainstream population have a different way of thinking about saving time, or time management in general.
They think about time spent on certain events such as work or study, achievement orientated stuff. Things that they think would be important. No doubt that not a few of them would say, "I have to do this and do that, so I'll just send off the kids to the daycare or just satisfy my wife's birthday with a mercedes instead of a one-to-one dinner"

They aren't really going to think about the significance of minor events such as eating or cleanliness, which are more powerful than we assume.
"It's all about the bucks, the security, the toys." they would say.

So, in their vocab, 'saving time' would be to slash off as much time as possible from eating, as in waiting time for food prep and the actual consuming, so that they have extra mins to do those stuff.

But however, the error in this, is that the QUANTITY of time shouldn't be the only item to be considered when it comes to execution.
The QUALITY, or what in the heck I did during that time, might also count.

It's as bad as fighting the battle in business on the QUANTITY measurement of price alone. Even quite similar in context.

There's lots of things you can do in a non-fast food dinner, which can up the quality of time spent although of course, you might seemingly have lesser time available for your other stuff. Meet people, read some educational materials, have some calls. Spend time with family. Of course it takes some effort to arrange meal times around doing Fastlane stuff or family gatherings, for our case.

But well, the mainstream population aren't willing to work around the clock literally to get things done, and thus they are more vulnerable to the convenience marketing.

 

[JAJT]

Do people actually lack time?

I'd argue people lack effort more than time these days.

Everyone I interact with who says they don't have the time to do something really means it's too much work and they just "don't wanna".

Examples:
- "I don't have time to cook, I get home too late" (watches 5 hours of tv before bed)
- "I Uber instead of walking/biking/bussing because otherwise I'd be late to work" (goes to bed at 1am, sleeps until 8am, works at 9am)
- "I don't have time to look up how to do this stuff myself" (spends every spare moment watching celebrity nonsense on youtube)

It also doesn't help that we've also shifted almost globally to an ADHD lifestyle. Switching back and forth between a million things and placing no value or focused attention for long periods of time. At every job I've ever held I've seen the same thing --> starting something, checking a distraction, nibbling away at the task, checking a distraction, put another few minutes into the work, do something else. When was the last time you saw someone start something and just F*cking "do it" until it was done? It's getting rare.

Our society has an effort and focus deficiency.
Not a time deficiency.

 

[100k]

How about healthy, high-quality, warm soups and you focus on catering to the the food deserts that only have unhealthy crap.

Some nice fresh bread + fresh soup with fresh & healthy GMO free vegetables & meat, and Bob's your uncle.

Keep it simple like classic McDonalds (only 5-10 different items).

 

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[ZF Lee]

When was the last time you saw someone start something and just F*cking "do it" until it was done? It's getting rare.

Our society has an effort and focus deficiency.
Not a time deficiency.

I can personally vouch for this.

It's been bred from the beginning in college.
I mean, where else can you find people busting their asses off in the library the night before exams, only to have the place in crickets in 'peace time'?
Where else do you find sloppy dormmates who just leave dirty dishes in the sink for the roaches to come in, or the clothes to dry outside until the dust dirties them lol?
Where else do you find people who defer to junk food instead of taking time to make something healthy, for the sake of their bodies!

When I think college, I think about instant noodles, dirty dishes in the sink, midnight oil...F*cking SCRIPT.
This shit gives college life a bad name.

 

[becks22]

When I think college, I think about instant noodles, dirty dishes in the sink, midnight oil...F*cking SCRIPT.
This shit gives college life a bad name.

I drink coffee a ton. It's in my genetics. Long line of crazy coffee drinkers. Anyway, in college I wasn't allowed to have a coffee maker in my dorm. I am an early bird so would want to get to the library early. There was no place on the weekends at my college who opened before 11am. They were open until 2am the night before for late night junk food but couldn't open before 11am. I felt like I couldn't study to the best of my ability because I had to work around their schedule. I needed subsistence to study and I couldn't find it anywhere on campus. College isn't made for productivity, it's made to produce sheep that follow blindly.

A bit on topic- health food is becoming more common. My local juice bar that I love has lines 35 minutes long sometimes. I usually do call-ahead ordering now so I can just pop in, pay, and leave. There is a need for it but like someone said, logistically it's hard. Who can eat a salad and drive?

 

[JAJT]

Anyway, in college I wasn't allowed to have a coffee maker in my dorm.

French press: it's a thing

 

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[TheRegalMachine]

There are fast food restaurants like the one you want but they aren't very well known and are regional.
A burger place in Florida called EVOS comes to mind.
They offer non-hormone/antibiotic beef, organic shakes, and other healthy options.
Only problem is they only have 3 locations.
A few years back they did a huge promotional push and got a lot of attention and sales but met the fate most healthy food options restaurants face.
They become a short lived trend then fizzle out. Why? The masses are told they should eat better but they don't do so regularly.
Remember the market must want what you're offering if they don't it won't last long.
Health food is a niche so healthy fast food would be an even smaller niche unless you do something really special to convince those outside of the niche to come eat and continue to eat on regular basis.
@MidwestLandlord points out the big issue with healthy food options. Most people know they need to eat healthy but they choose not to even when an alternative is readily available. Is it a lack of incentive to eat healthy? Remember everyone who smokes knows it's either going to kill the or cause them health issues, but they don't care. So how does someone help a population that doesn't care about themselves enough to eat better?
I mean these questions are vital to what you're thinking of.

 

[Iammelissamoore]

This raises the question...

Do people actually lack time?

Or have marketers, especially in the restaurant industry, just framed it that way?

Do you actually save time going to XYZ fast food franchise or have they just told you that you will?

"Time is a finite resource and you will save tons of it when you buy with me!"

Something to think about.

(I've always been fascinated with restaurant marketing if you couldn't tell lol)

Lol, you are actually correct, and the way they 'position' this concept of marketing, it really does work well. Let's think of that indeed though, even in that true case that we do actually have the time to get things done, the fact that someone else can do it for us at a cost, seems to work well for a lot of people - especially in this internet phase where everything comes to us. Does it go back to the Unscripted concept that, as long as genuine value is offered in exchange for money, then the product or service can actually grow into something worthwhile?

Great point raised @MidwestLandlord

 

[MidwestLandlord]

There are fast food restaurants like the one you want but they aren't very well known and are regional.
A burger place in Florida called EVOS comes to mind.
They offer non-hormone/antibiotic beef, organic shakes, and other healthy options.
Only problem is they only have 3 locations.
A few years back they did a huge promotional push and got a lot of attention and sales but met the fate most healthy food options restaurants face.
They become a short lived trend then fizzle out. Why? The masses are told they should eat better but they don't do so regularly.
Remember the market must want what you're offering if they don't it won't last long.
Health food is a niche so healthy fast food would be an even smaller niche unless you do something really special to convince those outside of the niche to come eat and continue to eat on regular basis.
@MidwestLandlord points out the big issue with healthy food options. Most people know they need to eat healthy but they choose not to even when an alternative is readily available. Is it a lack of incentive to eat healthy? Remember everyone who smokes knows it's either going to kill the or cause them health issues, but they don't care. So how does someone help a population that doesn't care about themselves enough to eat better?
I mean these questions are vital to what you're thinking of.

I used to own restaurants. Franchised locations with a chain that blurred the lines between fast casual and fast food. So I've given this a lot of thought. Healthy quick food and all that.

I came to the conclusion that there isn't really a need.

There isn't a need NOW. The need to eat healthy doesn't come into play until LATER.

Just like smoking. There is no pain now, only when you get lung cancer or something.

Eating healthy doesn't become a need until your health starts to suffer or a doctor puts you on a restricted diet.

No pain NOW = no need NOW.

Combine the lack of need with some serious logistical issues (like @Scot said, how the heck do you eat a salad on the road?), it doesn't taste as good, it's more expensive, and you would be competing with behemoths like McDonald's...and yeah, it doesn't work.

I hope someone smarter than me breaks the code and gets this done, but boy, I just don't see it.

What I DO see happening is the already established chains slowly but surely improving the healthiness of their offerings, which we've already started to see.

Edit: I mean no need in fast food. Fast casual though, oh yeah, that would work I think.

 

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[TheRegalMachine]

There isn't a need NOW. The need to eat healthy doesn't come into play until LATER.

No pain NOW = no need NOW.

Good ol' CENTS proves it's point again.
There needs to be a need. I know a lot of health nuts -- I mean -- health conscience citizens think there is a NEED for healthy food and in a way they are right but the market doesn't see a need.
People still want their greasy cheezy burgers and other heart clogging treats.
I think any restaurant that would offer healthy option fast food would need to focus on dominating the niche crowd of healthy eaters. Focus on that demographic is hope folks outside of it will become converts.

What I DO see happening is the already established chains slowly but surely improving the healthiness of their offerings, which we've already started to see.

After having their arm twisted yeah many restaurants and food producers are at least trying. My only hope is the ones doing the twisting can keep it up and prevent them from going back to their old ways.

 

[Azure]

We have something like this in Toronto called Flock. Its a fast rotiseree(spelling?) Chicken and salad place. They use a lot of stuff like rye kernels, wakame, goji berries, etc. Its taken off rather well, expanding to 3 locations in the past 2 years and I believe are looking to franchise. The food is really good, and very health conscious.