Fast-food chains are playing up the value of their burgers, pizzas and tacos as inflation squeezes budgets — but expect higher prices, skimpier portions and more deals enticing people to sign up for rewards programs as companies rethink their value strategies.
Citing rising costs, Domino’s Pizza earlier this year raised the price of its Mix & Match delivery deal from $5.99 to $6.99, and made its $7.99 national carry-out offer available only for digital orders. Burger King removed the Whopper from its value menu and trimmed its 10-piece nuggets to eight pieces. For the first time, Yelp said customers are mentioning “shrinkflation” in their restaurant reviews, most commonly at places serving affordable offerings like hot dogs, hamburgers and pizzas.
“We’ve seen companies tweaking their value menus across the board,” said Michael Schaefer, the global lead for food and beverage at market…
