Alright, let me tell you about trying to feed the family with fast food for under twenty bucks. It’s tougher than it sounds sometimes, but totally doable if you look around a bit. Last week was just chaos, you know how it gets, work ran late, kids were starving, and cooking was the last thing on my mind.
So, I grabbed my phone. My mission: find a fast-food meal, enough for the four of us, without breaking that $20 barrier. I started flicking through the usual suspects, checking their deals sections. A lot of places advertise “family bundles,” but when you look closer, they’re often $25, $30, sometimes even more. It gets frustrating.
I specifically started looking at places known for slightly lower prices overall. Pizza places often have carry-out deals, but we’d had pizza recently. I was thinking more burgers or chicken. I checked one big burger chain, their family box was like $28. Nope. Checked another, same deal, their bundles were too pricey.
Then I remembered the chicken place. Not the super famous one, but the other big one. They sometimes have simpler, cheaper bucket deals or meal combos. I pulled up their info. Bingo. They had a deal, I think it was like 8 pieces of chicken, a couple of large sides, and some biscuits. The price listed? $19.99. Perfect, right on the money.
I decided to just drive over instead of messing with their app, sometimes it’s quicker. Pulled into the drive-thru. It wasn’t too busy, thankfully. When I got to the speaker, I asked specifically for that “$19.99 deal” I’d seen. Sometimes you have to be specific, or they’ll try to upsell you or give you a different, more expensive combo.
The person confirmed the order. Here’s what was included:
- 8 pieces of mixed chicken (I asked for mostly dark meat, usually works)
- Two large sides (I picked mashed potatoes with gravy and coleslaw)
- Four biscuits
Total came out to $21 something with tax. Still pretty close, I could live with that. Paid at the window, got the big bag and the bucket. The smell filled the car immediately, which is always dangerous when you’re hungry.
Got home, unpacked everything on the kitchen table. The kids swarmed immediately. We divvied it up. Everyone got two pieces of chicken, a good scoop of mashed potatoes, some coleslaw, and a biscuit. Was it a five-star meal? Of course not, it’s fast food. But was everyone full? Yes. Did it cost under (well, just over with tax) $20? Yes. Did it save my sanity on a crazy Tuesday night? Absolutely.
So, yeah, it’s possible. You just have to hunt a bit for those specific deals and maybe avoid the absolute top-tier chains sometimes. It worked for us this time, and I’ll definitely keep that specific deal in mind for the next chaotic evening.
