Thursday, September 07, 2006

Stigma Associated with Fast Food

A co-worker called me just now to ask me if I wanted to do lunch. I told her I'd just grabbed something from McDonald's. And then she started musing out loud about what she wanted to eat. I guess she was in an indecisive mood. And then she said something that startled me. "Sometimes I'm just embarrassed to bring a hamburger from McDonald's into the office, you know what I mean?" Umm, yes. But then I just tell myself to get over it.

I guess there's a stigma associated with McD's. It's okay to buy your lunch from a healthy, chi chi place like Spa Cafe. Not so cool to buy something from McD's. As if it's a reflection of my socio-economic status. I guess it's the same thing as bringing a frozen entree to work and heating it up in the communal microwave. When I worked in the law firm, only the support staff brought their lunches to work. I always bought my lunch because it was a good excuse actually get out of the office during the middle of the day. But practically speaking, it would've saved me a lot of time and money if I had just packed a lunch. The lunchtime crowds can make even the fastest of fast food places seem slow.

6 comments:

Madame X said...

I'm glad none of my coworkers seem to be snobs about this stuff. There were just 3 of us in line for the microwave to reheat leftovers. But it's publishing, everyone knows no one else is making much money either!
Health concerns aside, I love a little McD's now and then!

IRA said...

Hello Madame X,

Thanks for stopping by. Yeah, people can be snobby about the funniest things. And sometimes it's not even correlated to cost. I prefer the taste of Dunkin' Donuts drip coffee to Starbucks' any day. And they both cost about the same for a 12 oz. cup. But there's that subtle pressure. You'd rather be seen carrying around a Starbucks cup vs. a styrofoam cup from a donut shop.

Peachy said...

I hear the asian chicken salad is quite good for you. You can find all the nutrition info online. I also went to a health open house and they said that the plain burger really isn't that bad for you...just don't add the cheese and up.

Dunkin Donuts definately beats Starbucks!

IRA said...

Hello Gigi,

When the asian chicken salad first came out, I used to eat it all the time, without the dressing. But I was finding that it didn't fill me up. So, I switched over to the snack wrap. It's smaller than the salad, but the carbs from pita wrap seem to make a difference. I tried to look up the nutritional info. on the snack wrap a few weeks ago, but it wasn't posted yet. Too new, I guess.

Adventures In Money Making said...

well MCD does make pretty bad burgers. I personally prefer Carls Jr's $6 burgers for only $3.95!

mapgirl said...

I indulge in food snobbery, but sometimes, convenient food is the way to go. There is a time and place for everything.

If your co-workers are so worried about your palate, let them buy you lunch! ;-)