Fast Food Showdown: Debating Our Favorites!

💵 Start your free budget today. Download the EveryDollar app! When it’s 11:30pm and a snack is calling your name, do you go for McDonald’s French fries or a cheesy gordita crunch? In this episode, Rachel and George debate favorite fast-food and fast casual chains, plus you’ll learn which might be best for your budget. Next Steps: 🍸 Follow Smart Money Happy Hour on TikTok: @smartmoneyhappyhour 📱Submit a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George! Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it. Connect With Our Sponsors: 🥤Raspberry Dream Dirty Soda 🔒 Get 20% off when you join DeleteMe 🌿 Get up to 40% off at Cozy Earth with code Smart Money Today’s Happy Hour Special: Recipe: Favorite Family Recipes Ingredients: 2 cups fresh Raspberries ½ cup sugar 2 cups coconut creamer 2 liters Dr. Pepper Instructions: Puree raspberries and sugar together in a blender until smooth. Store in an airtight container in the fridge if not using immediately. Fill 16oz cup halfway with ice and ¾ full with Dr. Pepper. Add 2 tbsp raspberry mixture and 2 tbsp coconut creamer. Fill to the top with Dr. Pepper and stir well, enjoy! Listen to More From Ramsey Network: 💡 The Rachel Cruze Show 💰 George Kamel 🎙️ The Ramsey Show 💸 The Ramsey Show Highlights 🧠 The Dr. John Delony Show 💼 The Ken Coleman Show 📈 EntreLeadership Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:05Rachel Cruze?

  Hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz.

• 0:06George Kamel?

  I'm George Kamel.

• 0:07Rachel Cruze?

  And this is

• 0:08George Kamel?

  Smart Money Happy Hour.

• 0:11Rachel Cruze?

  Cheers, George.

• 0:11George Kamel?

  Cheers.

• 0:15George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 0:17George Kamel?

  Jinx, you owe me a Coke.

• 0:18Rachel Cruze?

  Or do I owe you a... what is this?

• 0:21George Kamel?

  Raspberry Dream Dirty Soda Mocktail.

• 0:23Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, I mean, that is...

• 0:25George Kamel?

  That's got a ring to it.

• 0:26Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that's something. That is something. Well, this is the show where two friends who happen to be money experts talk about what you're talking about. Everything from pop culture, current events, and money. And today, we are unpacking a very controversial topic: affordable food.

• 0:41George Kamel?

  That's right. We're tackling the hard issues today. And some people have big feelings about little things, like Wendy's and Schlotzsky's and other cheap meal spots on the go. So we're gonna address this debate head-on. We're gonna talk about the financial aspect of it. And can we just say, not an episode about health. So before you say, "Do you know how bad fast food is for you?" You are not the target demo for this episode.

• 1:05Rachel Cruze?

  And I'm reading books and listening to podcasts about how terrible it all is, so we know. We know.

• 1:09George Kamel?

  I'm teaching Rachel that nutrition labels exist, so we're working on it. We're having a good time.

• 1:14Rachel Cruze?

  It is real. What we put in our bodies is very important. And also, what are we sipping on, George?

• 1:18George Kamel?

  Here's what we're putting in our body today. It's a Raspberry Dream Dirty Soda Mocktail.

• 1:22Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 1:23George Kamel?

  And we're gonna give you the rating and reveal the cost per glass at the end of the episode.

• 1:26Rachel Cruze?

  And this is the drink, apparently. I've not seen it yet, which I love reality TV. But apparently, the Mormon controversial...

• 1:34George Kamel?

  Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.

• 1:35Rachel Cruze?

  Yep, apparently, this is what they drink.

• 1:36George Kamel?

  I only know because my wife was watching it and I...

• 1:39Rachel Cruze?

  Did you watch any of it?

• 1:40George Kamel?

  She watched all of it.

• 1:41Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh, I need...

• 1:42George Kamel?

  Season two right now. Like, she was obsessed.

• 1:44Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, I need to get on the train.

• 1:46George Kamel?

  But if you didn't know, Mormons famously are into soda shops because they cannot have alcohol or caffeine.

• 1:52Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 1:53George Kamel?

  From coffee. But soda's okay in energy drinks?

• 1:57Rachel Cruze?

  I'm not sure.

• 1:57George Kamel?

  You guys tell me.

• 1:58Rachel Cruze?

  Let us know.

• 1:59George Kamel?

  I'm still confused by that rule.

• 2:00Rachel Cruze?

  We got this, uh, we got this, uh, pop culture, I'm gonna call it, drink today.

• 2:04George Kamel?

  And this is one of Rachel's all-time requested episodes.

• 2:07Rachel Cruze?

  Is it?

• 2:08George Kamel?

  Because you just wanna talk about your love of fast food.

• 2:11Rachel Cruze?

  No, I just have opinions about fast food. Not the health of it, again, but what I like. Because, listen, y'all all think I'm like this bougie, debt-free, Tesla-driving girl. I'm not.

• 2:24George Kamel?

  She's so much more.

• 2:25Rachel Cruze?

  I am, but I'm...

• 2:26George Kamel?

  She's so much more.

• 2:28Rachel Cruze?

  I love, I do love fast food.

• 2:30George Kamel?

  She loves a Sonic.

• 2:32Rachel Cruze?

  And I, and listen, we're eating a broccoli casserole for dinner tonight. Tomorrow, white bean chicken chili. Like I, like we eat healthy, right?

• 2:39George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 2:39Rachel Cruze?

  On most of it. But when you need fast food, I am here for it and I will never say no.

• 2:45George Kamel?

  And we're gonna break it down for you. We're gonna rank it today. We're gonna do some bracket style challenges. And I'm gonna class it up with my version of fast casual. So you don't wanna miss this.

• 2:55Rachel Cruze?

  It's gonna be good because I do think that the topic of food, it has gone up, right? Inflation, groceries, all of it. And we do talk about that. When you go out to eat, you spend more money versus if you ate at home. And, and again, it may not be true for like a single person running through like a Taco Bell drive-through versus going to the grocery, right? Like I think there's a level of it. But when you have a family, and especially a sit-down restaurant, all of it, like you are end up spending more. But these are places that are cheaper because the quality's not good. But it's a reality that a lot of people face.

• 3:28George Kamel?

  It is a reality.

• 3:29Rachel Cruze?

  And you're busy, you gotta run through a drive-through. And so we're gonna, we're gonna talk about it.

• 3:33George Kamel?

  And we're gonna sprinkle in some stats, prices and fun facts for you along the way. And let us know in the comments who you're siding with, what your favorites are as we talk about them, because we want your hot takes too. We have two rounds. We get the fast food round, which is your traditional cheap drive-through. Then we have fast casual, which is more your in-line, ordering at the counter, but no drive-through situation unless you count the Chipotle.

• 3:54Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, and you pay $15 for a bowl of something.

• 3:57George Kamel?

  Whoa, whoa, whoa. I sense the judgment already.

• 3:59Rachel Cruze?

  Listen, I like Kava, I'm not mad at it.

• 4:00George Kamel?

  Shot's fired. All right, first matchup, you ready?

• 4:03Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah.

• 4:04George Kamel?

  McDonald's versus Taco Bell.

• 4:06Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah, okay.

• 4:08George Kamel?

  Who are you taking in the match?

• 4:10Rachel Cruze?

  I'm going Taco Bell.

• 4:11George Kamel?

  Taco Bell, final answer. There is only one answer.

• 4:14Rachel Cruze?

  Taco Bell.

• 4:14George Kamel?

  These two options are both for, who would you say? People desperate after 11:00 PM. The lines after 11:00 PM at these places are out of control.

• 4:22Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, Taco Bell late night.

• 4:24George Kamel?

  It's like a DMV.

• 4:25Rachel Cruze?

  Like if you went to a wedding, had a fun reception and you're like, you know, we just need like a little. Cherry on top before we get home.

• 4:32George Kamel?

  How often are you going to weddings than need a nightcap at a McDonald's?

• 4:35Rachel Cruze?

  I know, it happens. It's good. Yeah. No, but Taco Bell, two soft tacos, the nachos and cheese. I'm good to go. Get that fire sauce packet.

• 4:45George Kamel?

  Are you slapping it?

• 4:46Rachel Cruze?

  I'm shaking it.

• 4:46George Kamel?

  I don't think it needs shaking. I don't think it's that level of quality where it require. I think it's all congealed to begin with.

• 4:52Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 4:53George Kamel?

  It's very kind of you, though.

• 4:54Rachel Cruze?

  What's yours? What do you? I picked Taco Bell.

• 4:56George Kamel?

  I do Taco Bell. This is one I actually did recently, not by choice, but out of desperation.

• 5:00Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 5:00George Kamel?

  It was 11:30 a night in Columbia, Tennessee.

• 5:03Rachel Cruze?

  All right.

• 5:04George Kamel?

  This is it. This is all we have.

• 5:05Rachel Cruze?

  What an adventure.

• 5:06George Kamel?

  I had just sang in my friend's band to fill in for our friend Zach Ford.

• 5:10Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 5:10George Kamel?

  Who could not make. He was sick.

• 5:12Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 5:12George Kamel?

  I went, I'm gonna fill in. Late night, didn't get to eat dinner.

• 5:15Rachel Cruze?

  Wow.

• 5:15George Kamel?

  I get the Doritos Locos tacos and a crunchy taco.

• 5:18Rachel Cruze?

  How was it?

• 5:19George Kamel?

  It was food. It was good because it was 11:30.

• 5:22Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 5:23George Kamel?

  I think most, most of the time, fast food is only good because of your environment.

• 5:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I agree with that.

• 5:28George Kamel?

  You are starving and you are desperate. What I found surprising, though, was it was over $5 for two very basic tacos.

• 5:35Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah, the inflation, man. It's getting us everywhere.

• 5:37George Kamel?

  In my head, I was like, probably $1.19 for each of these tacos.

• 5:40Rachel Cruze?

  Right, right, right.

• 5:41George Kamel?

  I apparently must have been in the 1950s mentally.

• 5:43Rachel Cruze?

  We got the Doritos one. That was like the, that's like a, that's a big step up.

• 5:46George Kamel?

  How, I mean, what are you doing? Like, why do you think this Doritos taco is worth $7 now?

• 5:51Rachel Cruze?

  Man.

• 5:51George Kamel?

  So I was upset at the price, but I ate it and regret and then left.

• 5:54Rachel Cruze?

  We are filming this right before dinner and I am regretting this.

• 5:57George Kamel?

  We're both starving.

• 5:57Rachel Cruze?

  Because I am so hungry and I soft taco from Taco Bell sounds so good.

• 6:00George Kamel?

  Here's a fun fact. McDonald's, the world's largest restaurant chain by revenue, nearly 42,000 restaurants, a brand value of 38 billion worldwide. In the original price of a taco at Taco Bell, 19 cents.

• 6:13Rachel Cruze?

  Man, I could have eaten everything for a dollar.

• 6:16George Kamel?

  Thanks inflation.

• 6:16Rachel Cruze?

  Thanks inflation. All right, next up, we got some chicken. Ready? Chicken on chicken.

• 6:20George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 6:21Rachel Cruze?

  Chick-fil-A versus Zaxby's.

• 6:24George Kamel?

  This one's easy. Chick-fil-A.

• 6:27Rachel Cruze?

  I agree. Chick-fil-A. But man, a Zaxby's Chicken Chicken Sandwich. It's like Texas toast, chicken tenders. And then you have like a ranch and then like another sauce on top.

• 6:40George Kamel?

  Like a spicy ranch? Where's the chicken part?

• 6:42Rachel Cruze?

  But it is so good. But I'm still going, I'm still going spicy chicken sandwich to Chick-fil-A.

• 6:48George Kamel?

  But if you, if I'm on a road trip and I see a Zaxby's, I'm at least like, you know what? That's a better option.

• 6:53Rachel Cruze?

  Cause they have the salads. They have good, they have good salads at Zaxby's.

• 6:56George Kamel?

  That's usually what I think I have to do. But if I had my choice, I see Chick-fil-A and a Zaxby's, I'm going Chick-fil-A every time.

• 7:02Rachel Cruze?

  What do you get at Chick-fil-A?

• 7:03George Kamel?

  Uh, usually a grilled nugget meal.

• 7:06Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 7:07George Kamel?

  So I can have the fries, the nuggets, you get a drink.

• 7:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, so good. Now, a spicy chicken wrap from Chick-fil-A is actually really great.

• 7:15George Kamel?

  Their salads are actually very good, too.

• 7:17Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 7:17George Kamel?

  All be it pricier.

• 7:18Rachel Cruze?

  This is feeling better.

• 7:19George Kamel?

  But I recently got a kids meal at Chick-fil-A alone, sat in a booth alone like a crazy person waiting on my tire to be done.

• 7:25Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah.

• 7:27George Kamel?

  And I felt strange, I'm gonna be honest. But I got a kids meal, it was over eight dollars for a kids meal.

• 7:32Rachel Cruze?

  It's expensive. Chick-fil-A is expensive.

• 7:34George Kamel?

  So fast food is not what it once was price-wise. Like back in my day, it felt like it was like four or five bucks gets you a kids meal.

• 7:40Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, and why do we feel like when you eat Chick-fil-A, you're eating a healthier version of fast food? Is it true or is it really not?

• 7:46George Kamel?

  I think it's because the, the environment. The people are nicer, the facilities are cleaner.

• 7:52Rachel Cruze?

  And they app?

• 7:52George Kamel?

  It feels like they're putting effort in.

• 7:53Rachel Cruze?

  I have an app. You put in your order, you go and you sit down, you go and place, put your order in as you're getting there. Sit down at the table, put in your table number, the kids go play, they bring you your food. Like it's all done and it is, and they clean, I mean, they're just fantastic.

• 8:08George Kamel?

  It's a higher quality experience, but the ingredients, frightening. I dare you to read the ingredients on a Chick-fil-A sauce. You won't sleep tonight.

• 8:15Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, no.

• 8:16George Kamel?

  You will spend all night Googling. You're like, what the heck am I putting in my body?

• 8:19Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh. All right, you ready for this? Arby's versus Sonic. Oh, man.

• 8:27George Kamel?

  That's a tough one.

• 8:28Rachel Cruze?

  Man, Sonic was like, that's like where we went to in high school.

• 8:31George Kamel?

  It's nostalgic for you.

• 8:32Rachel Cruze?

  You would go to Sonic.

• 8:33George Kamel?

  Is that why you still love it? It's like the drive-in.

• 8:35Rachel Cruze?

  Maybe so.

• 8:35George Kamel?

  My wife worked at a Sonic and she did the roller skates and everything. You get like an extra quarter?

• 8:39Rachel Cruze?

  You get paid more.

• 8:40George Kamel?

  An extra quarter an hour?

• 8:41Rachel Cruze?

  As a car hop. Yes, my friends, my friends worked at Sonic. Man, Sonic is, Sonic is good. Sonic Cheeseburger.

• 8:47George Kamel?

  You don't know anyone that worked at Arby's. We don't, like, who's working there? We don't know.

• 8:51Rachel Cruze?

  George, heartbreaking Americans, stop that.

• 8:53George Kamel?

  I'm saying like, like, your friends in high school worked at Sonic. You know what I mean?

• 8:56Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 8:57George Kamel?

  It was like the place.

• 8:57Rachel Cruze?

  Sonic and Smoothie King. Those were like the places that they worked, yeah.

• 9:01George Kamel?

  What do you know about Arby's? They have the meats. That's all we know, very mysterious.

• 9:04Rachel Cruze?

  I know. Okay, Arby's is one of Winston's favorites.

• 9:07George Kamel?

  Really? Is it the roast beef?

• 9:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. And I roast beef cheddar with horsey sauce.

• 9:12George Kamel?

  The horsey sauce hits.

• 9:13Rachel Cruze?

  It's not bad.

• 9:14George Kamel?

  I don't care who you are.

• 9:15Rachel Cruze?

  It's not bad. And the curly fries. Their fries are some of my favorites.

• 9:18George Kamel?

  I did love their curly, you're right.

• 9:20Rachel Cruze?

  Man.

• 9:20George Kamel?

  I'm starting to get nostalgic for Arby's now.

• 9:22Rachel Cruze?

  I know, what do you do? Like, it's just, it's tough.

• 9:24George Kamel?

  Growing up, I don't think we had Sonic in the north.

• 9:25Rachel Cruze?

  And I know I eat roast beef ever.

• 9:27George Kamel?

  When's the last time you purchased roast beef?

• 9:30Rachel Cruze?

  Ever. Never. I don't think I've ever bought roast beef, like, at the grocery store. Ever.

• 9:34George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 9:35Rachel Cruze?

  But Arby's, suddenly it's okay. Which is probably disgusting, I know. Okay, so Sonic, my kids like Sonic.

• 9:41George Kamel?

  I like the variety of Sonic. It's kind of like the, the Cheesecake Factory of fast food.

• 9:45Rachel Cruze?

  The mozzarella sticks at Sonic.

• 9:49Rachel Cruze?

  They're so good.

• 9:50George Kamel?

  Wow, that's your go-to?

• 9:52Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. And now I got my kids on and I introduced them to my kids. I selfishly was like, I don't really want them to eat it because they're gonna know how great it is. And then every time I order them, they're gonna want some.

• 10:01George Kamel?

  Well, you're like, I can't gatekeep if I want to be a good mom.

• 10:02Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, what do I do? And now they're all addicted. They're like, oh my gosh, I want the mozzarella sticks.

• 10:07George Kamel?

  Wow, but they still eat all the food at home? They'll still eat broccoli casserole?

• 10:10Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, they're eating broccoli casserole tonight.

• 10:11George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 10:11Rachel Cruze?

  So we're okay. We're okay, people.

• 10:13George Kamel?

  That's my fear as a, as a parent now.

• 10:14Rachel Cruze?

  My mom cannot hear this episode. She will be so disappointed.

• 10:20George Kamel?

  I can totally see her being like, do you know what's in that?

• 10:22Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, man.

• 10:23George Kamel?

  All right, here's a fun fact for you. Arby's, you can get a double roast beef or double beef and cheddar meal for just seven bucks, which is cheaper than the Chick-fil-A kids meal.

• 10:32Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh, that's crazy. Yes.

• 10:33George Kamel?

  That's some bang for the buck. And did you know that saying, "Make it dirty" at Sonic means adding coconut and lime to your drink?

• 10:40Rachel Cruze?

  You know what? I think I did know that. Uh huh.

• 10:41George Kamel?

  I don't know what makes it dirty.

• 10:43Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, coconut and lime.

• 10:44George Kamel?

  That feels very refreshing and clean.

• 10:46Rachel Cruze?

  No, diet cherry limeade is what Rachel in high school got all the time. You go get the Root 44 during happy hour.

• 10:53George Kamel?

  Which just feels like way too much liquid for a human being.

• 10:56Rachel Cruze?

  So true.

• 10:57George Kamel?

  You're not drinking that much water in a day.

• 10:59Rachel Cruze?

  I know, I know. All right, let's go sandwiches. I have our favorite topping. This is a really hard one for me. We got my favorite, Shlattskis.

• 11:07George Kamel?

  I've never darkened the door of a Shlattskis. I don't even know what they sell, to be honest. I would not know based on the name.

• 11:13Rachel Cruze?

  How have you never been to a Shlattskis?

• 11:15George Kamel?

  I've never been that desperate, I guess. I don't know. Like, why would I go to a Shlattskis not knowing what it is?

• 11:20Rachel Cruze?

  It's just, I know.

• 11:21George Kamel?

  My friends have never been like, hey, let's go to Shlattskis. Also, how do you make it nine syllables? Shlattskis. Isn't it just Shlattskis?

• 11:31Rachel Cruze?

  Shlattskis. Shlattskis.

• 11:33George Kamel?

  Shlattskis. Like, it's two syllables. Shlattskis.

• 11:36Rachel Cruze?

  Like, you gotta give it credit where credit's due. Okay, Shlattskis versus Subway. Shoot.

• 11:44George Kamel?

  I have trust issues with Subway.

• 11:46Rachel Cruze?

  I just love Subway, too.

• 11:48George Kamel?

  But you're going Subway over Shlattskis?

• 11:50Rachel Cruze?

  No, no, I can't. Number one, no olives. Shlattskis. Uh, the cracked pepper chips and a diet Coke.

• 11:57George Kamel?

  Wow, that was way too fast.

• 11:58Rachel Cruze?

  And it's expen- okay, Shlattskis is expensive and slow.

• 12:02George Kamel?

  It feels like it's higher quality in my head.

• 12:04Rachel Cruze?

  It is. I think so, yeah. But it takes for- it's a long... Probably because they make it.

• 12:10George Kamel?

  Because they're actually making it.

• 12:12Rachel Cruze?

  It takes them a moment to make the sandwich.

• 12:14George Kamel?

  But they don't have sandwich artists like Subway, do they?

• 12:18Rachel Cruze?

  Do what?

• 12:19George Kamel?

  There's no artistry at Shlattskis. They're just throwing it all together. At Subway, they've sa- that's what they call themselves, sandwich artists.

• 12:25Rachel Cruze?

  Really?

• 12:26George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 12:28Rachel Cruze?

  What do you get? Okay, I get the Italian. I get the Italian BMT.

• 12:32George Kamel?

  Oh, that's a good one.

• 12:33Rachel Cruze?

  With banana peppers and tomato and lettuce.

• 12:36George Kamel?

  Back when I could eat Subway, I was doing like the meatball marinara or the sweet onion chicken teriyaki.

• 12:42Rachel Cruze?

  Wow, you went like real crazy. I'm shocked.

• 12:46George Kamel?

  Is that crazy?

• 12:47Rachel Cruze?

  A meatball at Subway and chicken at Subway feels like a lot.

• 12:51George Kamel?

  What are you getting?

• 12:52Rachel Cruze?

  Italian BMT, salami, ham, like, like, like cold cuts.

• 12:55George Kamel?

  You don't know where that salami's been?

• 12:56Rachel Cruze?

  Cold cuts, like a sub, like a regular meat.

• 12:59George Kamel?

  What animal does that come from?

• 13:01Rachel Cruze?

  But, but yeah, alright.

• 13:05George Kamel?

  She's like, game recognize game.

• 13:07Rachel Cruze?

  I mean.

• 13:07George Kamel?

  What the heck is pastrami? It's pork. It's pork.

• 13:11Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, man.

• 13:12George Kamel?

  That's a good one.

• 13:13Rachel Cruze?

  Well, you gotta pick Subway, because you have the schlockies.

• 13:15George Kamel?

  Yeah, I don't know. Maybe I need to go and.

• 13:17Rachel Cruze?

  And schlockies bread is good, like, it's, it's.

• 13:19George Kamel?

  Do they have, I need to check if they have gluten free bread. That might change my mind. Subway, here's a fun fact, began in 1965 when 17 year old Fred DeLuca asked Dr. Peter Buck, who's a family friend and nuclear physicist, feels like a flex of a detail, but okay, asked him for advice on how to pay his college tuition, which by the way, go Fred, love debt free college tuition, it's awesome. And Fred's idea for a submarine shop and a thousand dollar investment from Dr. Buck, they formed a business partnership and today it is known as Subway.

• 13:48Rachel Cruze?

  No way, that's how.

• 13:49George Kamel?

  37,000 restaurants worldwide.

• 13:50Rachel Cruze?

  That's how it started.

• 13:51George Kamel?

  Feels generous to call it a restaurant, but I appreciate that. I respect the hustle.

• 13:56Rachel Cruze?

  Wow.

• 13:57George Kamel?

  I feel like Subway is, it's everywhere. It's in every gas station. There's one in your house probably right now. They're everywhere.

• 14:03Rachel Cruze?

  They're everywhere.

• 14:04George Kamel?

  So at least it's convenient.

• 14:04Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, there may not be, I may be jumping the gun. Oh, I am, okay, I'll wait, I'll wait, I'll wait. Because I have other subs that I love, but we're gonna wait.

• 14:12George Kamel?

  Next up.

• 14:13Rachel Cruze?

  Burgers. Okay, this is the, this is the fight on fight. Texas versus California.

• 14:18George Kamel?

  Oh, yes.

• 14:19Rachel Cruze?

  In-N-Out versus Whataburger.

• 14:21George Kamel?

  This one's contentious. This is like choosing a football team in a sense.

• 14:25Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, I'm like, I know exactly. I've had both and I know. Okay, you do yours. We're gonna count to three. One, two, three.

• 14:34George Kamel?

  In-N-Out.

• 14:34Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 14:36George Kamel?

  She does have class, we found it.

• 14:38Rachel Cruze?

  In-N-Out.

• 14:40George Kamel?

  And here's the best fun fact that has changed, I think changed my family tree. There is an In-N-Out headquarters coming to Franklin, Tennessee, legitimately right down the road from Ramsey.

• 14:50Rachel Cruze?

  We feel it. We feel it's right there.

• 14:52George Kamel?

  If I could throw a football, I could throw a football and hit In-N-Out.

• 14:54Rachel Cruze?

  It's gonna be right there.

• 14:56George Kamel?

  And not only is there a headquarters, there's a restaurant paired with it across the street.

• 15:00Rachel Cruze?

  And is it gonna be like an hour long drive through every day?

• 15:03George Kamel?

  Initially, I think so.

• 15:04Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 15:04George Kamel?

  But eventually, people move on with their life, except for us.

• 15:09Rachel Cruze?

  And we'll be there.

• 15:09George Kamel?

  We are feral for this.

• 15:10Rachel Cruze?

  It's so cheap, easy. It is so good. I will say their fries are not my favorite.

• 15:15George Kamel?

  Oh, see, I love them. I get them well done. If you didn't know, that's... You can get them extra crispy. So they're literally like, they are so crisp.

• 15:23Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, that's probably what I need to do. Cause they are a little... They're... Yeah, the fries are not my favorite.

• 15:27George Kamel?

  They're thin. But they're... I mean, you watch them, hand cut the potatoes. So as far as quality goes, I love that I can actually see the quality right before my eyes.

• 15:36Rachel Cruze?

  So good. Okay.

• 15:36George Kamel?

  And it's very affordable.

• 15:37Rachel Cruze?

  Very much so, yep. So In-N-Out's profit margin is estimated to be 20%, which is on the higher end of most restaurant chain spectrum.

• 15:46George Kamel?

  Good for them.

• 15:47Rachel Cruze?

  So it's good.

• 15:47George Kamel?

  Which is impressive because their burgers are like $3.

• 15:49Rachel Cruze?

  And do you know they have verses at the bottom of their cups?

• 15:52George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 15:52Rachel Cruze?

  Bible verses? Yeah.

• 15:53George Kamel?

  Like in their fries, like all their labels.

• 15:55Rachel Cruze?

  And it's still a family-owned company.

• 15:57George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 15:58Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 15:59George Kamel?

  But here's another fun fact. If we're gonna start, you know, starting some religious beef here, Whataburger employees are encouraged to play Christian music over the restaurant speakers.

• 16:07Rachel Cruze?

  Really? Well, that's interesting.

• 16:09George Kamel?

  I think Chick-fil-A does that with muzak, you know, where it's like, an instrumental version of a song that you know, and you're like, okay, a little subtle.

• 16:17Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. It's like, I hear that third day.

• 16:20George Kamel?

  There you go.

• 16:21Rachel Cruze?

  Guitar.

• 16:22George Kamel?

  I'm glad we agree so far on most of these.

• 16:24Rachel Cruze?

  All right, you ready for the next one? Domino's versus Papa John's.

• 16:27George Kamel?

  Oh, I know you're going Papa John's.

• 16:30Rachel Cruze?

  All day, every day.

• 16:31George Kamel?

  People might think you're sponsored by Papa John's.

• 16:33Rachel Cruze?

  I love Papa John's.

• 16:36George Kamel?

  You talk about Papa John's more than you do your kids. I forget your kids' names. I know your Papa John's order.

• 16:42Rachel Cruze?

  It's so, it is just so good. It's so good. You get the pepperchini.

• 16:48George Kamel?

  Pepperchini and pepperoni?

• 16:49Rachel Cruze?

  And you get the garlic sauce and their crust is thick, which I like. Now, I like jets. Jets is like an elevated pizza order for us. Like, you're gonna be spending more. But I get Papa Dough a lot on my app because we order it so much.

• 17:01George Kamel?

  Can you explain that to people, what Papa Dough is?

• 17:03Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, if you order enough on the app, you get like credit back. So I'll have like 10, 20. I mean, I'll have a lot on the app.

• 17:10George Kamel?

  Because you spend hundreds on Papa John's a month.

• 17:12Rachel Cruze?

  Well, if we have kids like over, like for movie nights, I'm always going Papa John's. I'm not gonna like order jets for the kids.

• 17:18George Kamel?

  So when parents are like, hey, let's get pizza, I got it in my app. I gotta get my Papa Dough.

• 17:22Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, no, not parents, but just like the kids are there. So I'm like, I'll order pizza for the kids, you know?

• 17:26George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 17:26Rachel Cruze?

  I just, I, y'all, the crust is so goo- it's just so good. It is so good.

• 17:31George Kamel?

  And you get delivery?

• 17:33Rachel Cruze?

  I do. And sadly, it's been DoorDash recently. I don't think they have enough employees.

• 17:38George Kamel?

  I, I didn't grow up with Papa John's, so it's not a part of my zeitgeist like it is for you. I did grow up with Domino's. My friend worked there, so he'd give us free pizza after a shift.

• 17:46Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, that's fun.

• 17:47George Kamel?

  And he would do a custom pizza. It was a barbecue sauce base with chicken and bacon?

• 17:53Rachel Cruze?

  Ooh.

• 17:54George Kamel?

  Or maybe sausage and bacon? It was, it was amazing.

• 17:57Rachel Cruze?

  So good.

• 17:57George Kamel?

  Delicious.

• 17:58Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, would you pick, would you pick Papa John's or Domino's?

• 18:01George Kamel?

  I've had Domino's gluten free and it's actually decent. I need to try Papa John's to see if it's up to snuff.

• 18:06Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 18:06George Kamel?

  But if I had to order today, you know I'm a Marco's guy. If I'm gonna go with a chain.

• 18:10Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, true. Marco's is good.

• 18:12George Kamel?

  I feel like Domino's, there's like a trust there I have built, probably similar to what you built with Papa John's. What you guys have is special.

• 18:18Rachel Cruze?

  It is. It's, it's pretty great.

• 18:20George Kamel?

  Here's a fact for you. 2023, Domino's brought in $9 billion in sales. Papa John's only had 2.1.

• 18:27Rachel Cruze?

  Ouch. Wow.

• 18:29George Kamel?

  Only a measly 2.1. But here's the deal. Diehard fans have discovered Papa John's uses less sauce in their pizzas than Domino's. So you can order extra sauce on your order. I'm an extra sauce guy.

• 18:40Rachel Cruze?

  I am too.

• 18:41George Kamel?

  If it's just like cheese and bread, I'm like, I should have just ordered cheesy bread.

• 18:44Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, I did notice that it's less sauce. So that's like a known fact.

• 18:47George Kamel?

  Try doing extra sauce. It should be free. There's your life hack.

• 18:50Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you. I will.

• 18:51George Kamel?

  All right.

• 18:52Rachel Cruze?

  Let's go burgers again, George. Wendy's versus Burger King.

• 18:56George Kamel?

  See, I feel like Wendy's is so much more than just burgers.

• 18:59Rachel Cruze?

  It's true.

• 19:00George Kamel?

  My childhood is like, you get a dollar for the five-piece nugget, a dollar for a chili, a dollar for a burger, and so a dollar for fries, so I could get out of there, four or five bucks.

• 19:09Rachel Cruze?

  With a lot. Now, their spicy chicken sandwiches, so good.

• 19:13George Kamel?

  That hits.

• 19:14Rachel Cruze?

  So good.

• 19:14George Kamel?

  So I'm gonna choose, but Burger King had us a lot of nostalgia. The rodeo burger had an onion ring on there with barbecue sauce. I love Burger King's chicken sandwich, those long ones.

• 19:23Rachel Cruze?

  Still good. That's why I get in the national airport.

• 19:25George Kamel?

  There was something special about that.

• 19:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I agree. It's still around, still around.

• 19:29George Kamel?

  So that's a hard one to debate. If I had to go into a place, I think Wendy's I'd go into today over Burger King.

• 19:36Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, well Wendy's actually beats Burger King in sales by just .8 billion dollars.

• 19:41George Kamel?

  That's 800...

• 19:42Rachel Cruze?

  Sounds like a lot.

• 19:43George Kamel?

  Is that 800 million? That feels like not an insignificant amount.

• 19:47Rachel Cruze?

  Sounds like a lot.

• 19:48George Kamel?

  0.8 billion. It's not that much.

• 19:51Rachel Cruze?

  All right, before we head into our fast casual rounds, when we talk about other restaurants and maybe some apps that we have that are great. All right, George, let's go a little fast casual. Let's go a little classier, okay?

• 20:02George Kamel?

  To be fair...

• 20:03Rachel Cruze?

  Get out of the car, go into the restaurant.

• 20:04George Kamel?

  In the meeting, I said, Rachel, we can't just do fast food. The people deserve better, and so these are my, I don't know, pretentious casual...

• 20:11Rachel Cruze?

  The elevated.

• 20:12George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 20:12Rachel Cruze?

  But probably healthier, let's be honest, option.

• 20:15George Kamel?

  Let's start off with an easy one. Chipotle versus Mo's. Everyone say Chipotle.

• 20:20George Kamel?

  If you like Mo's, you don't like Mexican food, you don't like tacos, you like queso.

• 20:25Rachel Cruze?

  So true. Let's be honest. Chipotle is actually great. I get a bowl.

• 20:30George Kamel?

  Yes, and I make it a...

• 20:31Rachel Cruze?

  Rice, beans, chicken.

• 20:32George Kamel?

  I do the hack where I can get two bowls out of one.

• 20:35Rachel Cruze?

  What?

• 20:36George Kamel?

  Because you stack the ingredients, and you can get extra of a lot of the things without paying more. So you can't get extra meat without paying more, but you can get extra fajita veggies, extra rice, extra salad. And so when I get the bowl, I mean, they barely get the lid on there.

• 20:49Rachel Cruze?

  So funny.

• 20:49George Kamel?

  And so either Whitney and I will split it as a meal, or I'll eat half and then save half for the next day.

• 20:54Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's good, though.

• 20:56George Kamel?

  You pay 11 or 12 bucks, but you get two meals out of it, which makes it cheaper than most fast food.

• 21:00Rachel Cruze?

  I love it.

• 21:00George Kamel?

  And it's higher quality.

• 21:01Rachel Cruze?

  All right, next up, Panera versus Jason's Deli.

• 21:04George Kamel?

  Ooh.

• 21:06Rachel Cruze?

  I'm kinda mad at Panera.

• 21:08George Kamel?

  What'd they do to you?

• 21:09Rachel Cruze?

  Well.

• 21:10George Kamel?

  Is it glorified hospital food now?

• 21:11Rachel Cruze?

  It was on, well, we called the Strip at UT in college. So it's called the Strip. It was where all the restaurants were. And Panera was like on there and it was one that we would always go to. You just grab bagels or coffee, like it's kinda off campus a little bit, but it was so affordable, so easy. And then I went in, probably like two years ago, y'all, and I got like a sandwich, a side, a drink, and it was like $18 or something.

• 21:35George Kamel?

  Whoa.

• 21:36Rachel Cruze?

  It was very expensive and they've upped their prices so much that I'm like, it's not worth, I can't justify it. Panera's overpriced for me right now.

• 21:43George Kamel?

  I agree, and I do think the quality has gone down. I mean, I don't know how they get, like, they must GMO their apples to be tiny. Have you ever gotten an apple from Panera? Or even worse, the bread. I'm like, I, are you paying for my dentist visit after I have to shoot through this bread?

• 21:57Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's so hard.

• 21:58George Kamel?

  How do you make bread that hard?

• 21:59Rachel Cruze?

  It's so true, I know. It makes me so sad.

• 22:01George Kamel?

  And then the chips, it's one ounce of chips. That bag is just air and there's like seven chips in there.

• 22:05Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 22:06George Kamel?

  But I used to love that you pick two.

• 22:09Rachel Cruze?

  I used to love it. All y'all, that's like, I mean, I went all the time in college and I just can't anymore. And I'll be honest, I haven't been to a Jason's Deli in a while, but they have lots of options. They had a turkey bravo sandwich back in the day that was delicious.

• 22:20George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 22:21Rachel Cruze?

  No, no, it was a turkey o' boy or something.

• 22:23George Kamel?

  I think turkey bravo was at Panera.

• 22:25Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, so this was the turkey o' boy. And do you remember, I'm sure they still have it, so it's just when I was a kid, the bread that you'd put on sandwiches and it had onions like in it? Amios. Amios, is it? I can't get that. That's it, Kelly.

• 22:40George Kamel?

  Onion bread?

• 22:40Rachel Cruze?

  It's the Amios at Jason's Deli. So good. That's my favorite thing to get there. Me too.

• 22:44George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 22:45Rachel Cruze?

  With the avocado. Oh, my gosh.

• 22:47George Kamel?

  But if you're on a road, here's my test. If you're on the road trip and you see both, which one are you going to? I'm probably still going to Panera, even though I know.

• 22:54Rachel Cruze?

  It just feels safe.

• 22:55George Kamel?

  It's like the devil you know. I know they're gonna have decent coffee. I know they're gonna have like the energy drink that I like, you know? It's in every hospital, so if you've ever been in a hospital, you've seen a Panera.

• 23:06Rachel Cruze?

  Is it really?

• 23:07George Kamel?

  It's in a lot of the hos- I've been in several.

• 23:09Rachel Cruze?

  You okay, George?

• 23:11George Kamel?

  I'm doing all right.

• 23:12Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna go Jason's Deli on the road trip.

• 23:14George Kamel?

  Wow, so brave.

• 23:16Rachel Cruze?

  All right, uh, we're gonna go Shake Shack versus Five Guys. Shake Shack all day.

• 23:21George Kamel?

  Shake Shack wins.

• 23:22Rachel Cruze?

  Shake Shack's good.

• 23:23George Kamel?

  I think back in the day, Five Guys, their like Cajun fries were life-changing.

• 23:28Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, see, I don't like their fries either. Everything's too like greasy.

• 23:31George Kamel?

  Everything's greasy. You're gonna get it all over.

• 23:33Rachel Cruze?

  But Shake Shack.

• 23:34George Kamel?

  It's soaked through the bag.

• 23:34Rachel Cruze?

  Shake Shack is good, though.

• 23:35George Kamel?

  Shake Shack is good, but I'm like, I might as well go eat out if I'm gonna get Shake Shack. Because the burger is like eight or nine dollars. Then we gotta get the gluten-free bun. Extra seventeen dollars for a gluten-free bun. Then you gotta get the fries separate. Then you gotta get a drink separate.

• 23:48Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 23:48George Kamel?

  They don't do meals.

• 23:49Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that's true, that's true.

• 23:50George Kamel?

  But I do feel like it's a trendier, you know, you see it in big cities.

• 23:54Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm.

• 23:55George Kamel?

  I'm going Shake Shack if I see. And I had a bad experience at Five Guys in New York. Whitney needs to use the bathroom. I went, hey, Five Guys has a bathroom. And I know in New York, they're gonna be like, hey, you gotta be a customer.

• 24:04Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, you do.

• 24:05George Kamel?

  But they gave me, they gave me some heck. And I was like, I'm gonna buy a water. Like, they gave me a big attitude about it. I slammed the water on there. I was like, I'm buying a water. She's using the bathroom.

• 24:16Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 24:16George Kamel?

  And I was like, go. You just go? I'm gonna pay for this?

• 24:19Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna take care of it.

• 24:20George Kamel?

  I don't like the attitude in a Five Guys.

• 24:22Rachel Cruze?

  Well, it was one store, George.

• 24:25George Kamel?

  At Shake Shack, while they don't care, at least they're a little bit more friendly.

• 24:29Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, that's fair.

• 24:30George Kamel?

  Maybe it was a New York.

• 24:31Rachel Cruze?

  A little rough and tumble.

• 24:31George Kamel?

  A rough and tumble Five Guys situation. They were ready to fight.

• 24:34Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, I'm ready for this one. This is a really hard one for me. Jersey Mike's versus Firehouse. I know where I'm going, but man.

• 24:43George Kamel?

  I know you're doing Firehouse.

• 24:44Rachel Cruze?

  I'm doing Firehouse. The Italian, fully involved, on wheat. So good.

• 24:50George Kamel?

  Is that a way to order?

• 24:53Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, fully involved at Firehouse? Yeah, it's like your onion. It's just everything.

• 24:56George Kamel?

  I just don't think you've ever used the word "fully involved" until now.

• 25:00Rachel Cruze?

  I know, but man, Jersey Mike's is so good, though. It is so good.

• 25:06George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 25:06Rachel Cruze?

  But I'm going warm sub. Warm sub every day.

• 25:08George Kamel?

  I'm a warm sub guy. There's very few subs that I think are better. I'm going Firehouse, and it's partially because they gave you a free sub on your birthday. So it's like, it's a part of my.

• 25:17Rachel Cruze?

  They do.

• 25:17George Kamel?

  The fabric of my life on my birthday.

• 25:19Rachel Cruze?

  They do.

• 25:20George Kamel?

  Get a Firehouse sub.

• 25:21Rachel Cruze?

  Really?

• 25:21George Kamel?

  And it used to be you could just show an ID.

• 25:23Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, what do you do now?

• 25:24George Kamel?

  Now I think you have to like sign up for the rewards program and whatever to get.

• 25:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. All right, all right. I don't have that.

• 25:29George Kamel?

  But I'm going Firehouse. It feels higher quality.

• 25:31Rachel Cruze?

  All right.

• 25:32George Kamel?

  And I like the branding.

• 25:33Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, it's so fun.

• 25:34George Kamel?

  Makes me feel like a fireman.

• 25:35Rachel Cruze?

  Ladders, firemen.

• 25:36George Kamel?

  Jersey Mike's feels a little bit like there's a guy with some chest hair and a gold chain. I know there isn't, but it gives off that vibe.

• 25:44Rachel Cruze?

  Gives off that vibe.

• 25:44George Kamel?

  And, no offense to Jersey, but we can do better.

• 25:50George Kamel?

  I prefer New Jersey Michaels. I think it's a classier name. They needed a rebrand.

• 25:55Rachel Cruze?

  Just go full, full-on name.

• 25:56George Kamel?

  Comes from a good family.

• 25:57Rachel Cruze?

  All right, let's jump on the plane, George. We're leaving, we're leaving America. We're going international here. You ready?

• 26:02George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 26:03Rachel Cruze?

  Panda Express versus Payway.

• 26:06George Kamel?

  One of, a cultural icon. And if you went to a PF Chang's, you were like, I'm so like, wow, we are really branching out. Like, this is a real different.

• 26:19Rachel Cruze?

  This is Payway, though. This is the fast food version of PF Chang's.

• 26:22George Kamel?

  That's right, same company.

• 26:24Rachel Cruze?

  Same company.

• 26:24George Kamel?

  I'm going Payway because I can actually eat things at Payway. Panda Express is too in the fast food realm for me.

• 26:30Rachel Cruze?

  Panda Express is so good.

• 26:31George Kamel?

  Like, Payway, no, there's no drive-through.

• 26:33Rachel Cruze?

  I agree. It feels more like, I hear you.

• 26:36George Kamel?

  Panda Express feels like going to Sarko Japan in the mall, which I loved growing up.

• 26:41Rachel Cruze?

  Hey, the free samples, you eat it, and you're like, that's actually really good. Like, should we go home?

• 26:45George Kamel?

  You're like, they're handing me free chicken teriyaki. I'm like, pull my leg, my guy. I'm gonna get Sarko Japan at the mall. And as a teenager, you felt like you were like, oh, not gonna tell mom I got a free sample.

• 26:55Rachel Cruze?

  Well, that's right, that's right.

• 26:57George Kamel?

  It felt really cool. But yeah, Panda Express over Payway, I'm going Payway. I feel like it's higher quality at Payway. I can actually see the guy, like, sauteing it back there.

• 27:05Rachel Cruze?

  I know, it's better food. I'm going Panda, I'm going Panda Express.

• 27:10George Kamel?

  We don't know what's happening back there.

• 27:11Rachel Cruze?

  We're not sure, but it's fine.

• 27:14George Kamel?

  There's one right down the street by Ramsey, and I've never been, but I have friends that love it. Okay, this one is near and dear to my heart.

• 27:22Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, go.

• 27:22George Kamel?

  Kava versus Zoe's.

• 27:25Rachel Cruze?

  Ooh.

• 27:26George Kamel?

  Zoe's, R.I.P., used to be a staple. It was then replaced by Kava.

• 27:30Rachel Cruze?

  It was, okay, Zoe's, like, gone forever? Is it, like, out of business? Do we know?

• 27:33George Kamel?

  I don't know. There may be still one in Green Hills. We don't know.

• 27:36Rachel Cruze?

  I'm for sure going Kava. Kava, the pickle, the amount of pickled items they have makes me so happy.

• 27:42George Kamel?

  And as a person of Middle Eastern descent, it's, it's closer to the food of my people than any fast food I've ever had.

• 27:48Rachel Cruze?

  It's true.

• 27:49George Kamel?

  You know what I mean? It's like, I can't get my mom's cooking, but I can get Kava.

• 27:52Rachel Cruze?

  And it's really good. Oh, my gosh, I'd love to hear it.

• 27:55George Kamel?

  It's fully involved. So I do a grains bowl.

• 27:59Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 27:59George Kamel?

  Half saffron basmati rice, half brown rice, red pepper hummus, crazy feta, grilled chicken, fire-roasted corn, pickled onions, salt-briined pickles, tomato and onion, tomato and cucumber, cabbage slaw, Persian cucumber, kalamata olives, shredded romaine, garlic dressing drizzle on top, the skug drizzle on top, roasted eggplant dip.

• 28:19George Kamel?

  And I skipped the pita.

• 28:20Rachel Cruze?

  Wow, George. Holy mackerel!

• 28:24George Kamel?

  It's no joke. But you see what I mean? That bowl is very filling.

• 28:28Rachel Cruze?

  That's so good. And probably two meals, honestly.

• 28:30George Kamel?

  Definitely two meals.

• 28:31Rachel Cruze?

  What's the spicy?

• 28:32George Kamel?

  Eleven or twelve bucks.

• 28:33Rachel Cruze?

  There's a spicy.

• 28:34George Kamel?

  Harissa.

• 28:35Rachel Cruze?

  The Harissa.

• 28:36George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 28:36Rachel Cruze?

  So good, but I gotta get on the side.

• 28:37George Kamel?

  If I'm splitting with Whitney, I try to tame down the spice. Just so I don't, you know, blow her away. But I think Kava's still up there for me at top fast casual.

• 28:45Rachel Cruze?

  Well, it's probably the night. It's probably the best quality food.

• 28:47George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 28:47Rachel Cruze?

  That, that and Chipotle. I'm gonna end with that. Wow, so good, George.

• 28:51George Kamel?

  There's a lot of good stuff there. And again, these are all in a similar price range. I mean, no matter where you go now, fast food is expensive.

• 28:57Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm.

• 28:58George Kamel?

  It's gonna go, you cannot leave a fast food joint for one person without spending at least six, seven, eight bucks.

• 29:04Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 29:04George Kamel?

  And then fast casual, you're looking at more like eleven, twelve, thirteen. You get the guac, that's an extra two bucks.

• 29:10Rachel Cruze?

  Right.

• 29:10George Kamel?

  It can add up, especially if you're getting a drink. So I try to avoid getting a drink. I try to avoid any extras. I try to go with the base and make the most of that. If that makes sense.

• 29:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, and to know what the extras are. Because if you want more protein or anything else, just know. And hey, and the sub stuff, like there are things that you're like, oh, we'll just get some sandwiches to go, but have the chips at home and have the drinks at home, right? Like, there's ways to.

• 29:31George Kamel?

  And I've seen the hack where you get the big Chipotle bowl and get tortillas on the side, and you can make, you know, two full burritos with one bowl, or.

• 29:38Rachel Cruze?

  So smart, yes, yeah.

• 29:40George Kamel?

  There's some hacks out there that are legitimate. You can get some decent bang for the buck. It's still cheaper to eat at home. Don't hear me say you're gonna hack your way to just eating out all the time, but.

• 29:49Rachel Cruze?

  But if you're gonna do it, yep.

• 29:50George Kamel?

  But going to Chick-fil-A with a family now, I mean, it could cost you sixty bucks.

• 29:53Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah. I could probably look to see what, yeah, what we spend. We were just there. Charles, it was his birthday. Told him he can go to any restaurant. J. Alexander, like J. Alexander's, we can go, we can go.

• 30:03George Kamel?

  Yeah, that's swanky.

• 30:04Rachel Cruze?

  Guess where he picked? Chick-fil-A.

• 30:07George Kamel?

  Chick-fil-A. What did he get?

• 30:09Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, just the kid's meal, just chicken nuggets and fries. I don't know.

• 30:12George Kamel?

  My man.

• 30:12Rachel Cruze?

  And a chocolate milk.

• 30:14George Kamel?

  Stay humble, King.

• 30:17Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, there are some great local fast casual spots here in Nashville.

• 30:20George Kamel?

  People always ask us, "Hey, I'm coming to Nashville. Where should I eat?"

• 30:23Rachel Cruze?

  So some fast casuals, again, this isn't like the big restaurants. One of my favorites, Maniacs.

• 30:29George Kamel?

  Oh, that's a good one.

• 30:30Rachel Cruze?

  It used to be behind our old office.

• 30:31George Kamel?

  Great chicken fingers.

• 30:32Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 30:33George Kamel?

  And then if you're gonna be more in the Nashville area, closer to downtown, there's a spot called Baja Burrito.

• 30:38Rachel Cruze?

  Delicious.

• 30:39George Kamel?

  That is a local favorite.

• 30:40Rachel Cruze?

  Sushi, all the way back from when Rachel was in high school. It's still around and it's still one of the best. It's Peter's Sushi in Berwind. So good.

• 30:48George Kamel?

  And now a new location right by the Ramsey headquarters is Edley's Barbecue.

• 30:52Rachel Cruze?

  Delicious.

• 30:53George Kamel?

  Which Edley's Barbecue, if you want good barbecue in Nashville area, Martin's Barbecue and Edley's Barbecue are probably your top tier.

• 30:58Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 30:59George Kamel?

  Spots.

• 30:59Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. Mojo Tacos is another great spot, too, for some Mexican tacos. There's some local Nashville, Nashville places.

• 31:06George Kamel?

  That's a good one.

• 31:07Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, what's a spot that you love?

• 31:08George Kamel?

  Honorable mention, Culvers. We didn't mention Culvers, but I think it deserves a mention.

• 31:14Rachel Cruze?

  I think we should start out there with little cheese curds. So good.

• 31:17George Kamel?

  I went there recently. This was the weirdest thing. For some reason, Whitney and I decided to go to Culvers. We sat like on their little patio.

• 31:24Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's great.

• 31:25George Kamel?

  And for some reason, I was like, I felt weird. I was like, what am I doing on a Culvers patio? But we had a great meal out there.

• 31:31Rachel Cruze?

  So good. I love that little nod to Culvers. I appreciate that.

• 31:35George Kamel?

  It's a good spot. Is that Wisconsin-based with the curds?

• 31:37Rachel Cruze?

  Or Minneapolis. Was it Wisconsin? It's Wisconsin. Okay. Because my friends in Minneapolis, when we go visit them, like 10 years ago, they always had it just there. They didn't have one in Nashville for a long time. Then when it opened here, I thought, oh, we've made it.

• 31:47George Kamel?

  I hear cheese curds and I just feel like the people of Wisconsin must own the rights to cheese curds.

• 31:51Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you, Wisconsin. Thank you.

• 31:53George Kamel?

  So my takeaways, go-to for me, I'm gonna do a $12 Kava Bowl because there's a strong potential for leftovers and it's nutritious and filling.

• 32:03Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna go large firehouse sub and split it with Winston.

• 32:07George Kamel?

  How generous.

• 32:08Rachel Cruze?

  So I'm gonna save my, save my money.

• 32:09George Kamel?

  That is giving like no one else.

• 32:10Rachel Cruze?

  Uh huh, because we both like the same award there.

• 32:11George Kamel?

  Outrageous generosity.

• 32:12Rachel Cruze?

  It's so great.

• 32:13George Kamel?

  And if you find yourself leaning on the option of it's fast, cheap, easy, challenge yourself to pivot by number one, using an every-dollar budget to find margin to buy affordable meals to make at home.

• 32:23Rachel Cruze?

  That's right. Yeah, because honestly, eating at home, even though we've just talked about fast food and restaurants and all of it, long, you know, especially with a family, like long-term, it's gonna save you more money. And then I will bookend because I just listened to a two-hour podcast about how terrible the food is here in America. We know it's not good for you.

• 32:41George Kamel?

  They're like, in Europe, that ingredients banned all.

• 32:43Rachel Cruze?

  I know, I know. Okay, and can I just say this for just a hot second? There is a part of me on this health kick, because I am reading ingredients now and I'm like, oh, yeah, here we go.

• 32:51George Kamel?

  How do you?

• 32:52Rachel Cruze?

  But there is a thing of like, okay, we need healthy. And then they're like, oh, well, if you eat healthy, like fruit, it can't be in plastic at the grocery store. Then you're like, okay. And then like, and then if it's even not in plastic, does it have, you know? It starts to feel like a, like a black hole. Like, I'm not Amish. Like, I don't live on a farm.

• 33:08George Kamel?

  That is fair.

• 33:09Rachel Cruze?

  You know what I mean? Like, there's where I live, I live in the suburbs. So like, I just need a little help. And I may not be perfect on this new journey that I'm on.

• 33:17George Kamel?

  Lovely humility.

• 33:17Rachel Cruze?

  But thanks for your patience.

• 33:19George Kamel?

  That's very kind. Well, I did find this fact out.

• 33:20Rachel Cruze?

  Well, I eat my firehouse.

• 33:21George Kamel?

  Here, here's a fact that changed my mind about eating out so often. Restaurants have to mark up their ingredients by 300%. In order to cover overhead, labor, profit, all of that stuff.

• 33:32Rachel Cruze?

  You're in the business, y'all.

• 33:34George Kamel?

  So when you say, no, it's cheaper to eat out, I'm going, nope. Scientifically and business-wise, absolutely not.

• 33:40Rachel Cruze?

  Not at all.

• 33:40George Kamel?

  Because you're paying for all of that with every order.

• 33:43Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 33:43George Kamel?

  Even the materials, the fork, the takeout box, all of that is being paid for by you. So know what you're getting into, try to limit eating out. Even if you're out of debt, on a budget, it's still wise to limit it, both health-wise and financially. And Kelly was just talking about her crock pot meals tonight, and I was jealous. I was like, I wish I was on Kelly's level.

• 34:01Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, just getting some, getting some meals made.

• 34:05George Kamel?

  And it just takes some extra thought and prep.

• 34:06Rachel Cruze?

  The meal, the meal plans.

• 34:07George Kamel?

  Just make a routine. She, she gets up Saturday mornings, like the great mom she is, gets her coffee and just starts planning out. Hey, what's going on this week?

• 34:15Rachel Cruze?

  And it works, and it's great. Well done, Kelly.

• 34:18George Kamel?

  You're an inspiration to us all.

• 34:19Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you for being, thank you for being you. Thank you for you.

• 34:23George Kamel?

  All right.

• 34:29Rachel Cruze?

  All right, George, it's almost the end of the episode. And we close out every episode with guilty as charged. And this is where our producer Kelly gives us a new guilty as charged question every week. And if we're guilty, we take a sip. So, Kelly.

• 34:41Speaker 02

  All right. Have you ever complained or sent food back because you didn't like it?

• 34:47Rachel Cruze?

  It's like George's hobby.

• 34:48George Kamel?

  Yeah, I think I did it while we sat here. I tried to return the drink. I was like, no, no, no.

• 34:55Rachel Cruze?

  I have twice.

• 34:56George Kamel?

  I almost did this in our own cafeteria at Ramsey's, but I was like, I'm not gonna do that. Not gonna do it. The most recent time I can remember doing this was a date night. It was a nicer steakhouse in Franklin. You know it well.

• 35:09Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 35:10George Kamel?

  And the steak was, let's just say, I think the cow may have still been alive.

• 35:15Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh, George.

• 35:16George Kamel?

  It was that, like, I ordered it medium. I did not order.

• 35:19Rachel Cruze?

  Medium rare.

• 35:20George Kamel?

  Rare. No, I ordered medium and it came out.

• 35:22Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, steak is, I feel like that's a, that's a socially acceptable take back.

• 35:30George Kamel?

  To return.

• 35:30Rachel Cruze?

  Steak. To return to be cooked more. That's not terrible.

• 35:33George Kamel?

  But in my mind, I was like, they're just gonna cook it more and bring it back.

• 35:35Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 35:36George Kamel?

  No, no, no. They surprised and delighted and said, you know what? We're gonna make you a brand new steak.

• 35:42Rachel Cruze?

  Wow.

• 35:42George Kamel?

  And then they comped the meal.

• 35:44Rachel Cruze?

  What? The whole meal?

• 35:46George Kamel?

  The whole meal.

• 35:47Rachel Cruze?

  Stop it, George.

• 35:48George Kamel?

  I was shocked. I was shook. I was aghast. So, didn't do it for that purpose at all. It was very nice of them. And we were pretty, you know, I'm always like, hey, if you're going to do that, be kind. Don't be a jerk about it. Don't like make a big scene. Just say, hey, like, we ordered medium and this one came out this, or hey, this actually is not what we ordered. Or it's, if it's a wrong order, I have no problem.

• 36:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yep. Mine was a cocktail. And it was a pep, like some kind of peppered cocktail or something. It was like a little bit of pepper. And I drank it, y'all. And I, I mean, I like almost spit it out. Like, I couldn't handle it.

• 36:21George Kamel?

  Was it too spicy?

• 36:22Rachel Cruze?

  Just, like, think about, think about black pepper just being a whole thing dumped and stirred in that drink.

• 36:28George Kamel?

  I love black pepper.

• 36:29Rachel Cruze?

  And I made Winston try it and he was like, that's not drinkable. So I did. I told him. And then the bartender took a sip or like took the straws they have and they did it. And he, and he was like, oh, bad ratios. So I felt better about it.

• 36:40George Kamel?

  That's good. I'm impressed that they tried it. I always want them to be like, hey, this is not me being like, I just didn't like it.

• 36:46Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 36:47George Kamel?

  You try and you tell me.

• 36:48Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 36:49George Kamel?

  I respect that.

• 36:50Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, he wasn't having it either. So I made him feel better.

• 36:52George Kamel?

  So they comped the drink. That happened to us once and we're like, they were like, hey, if you don't like it, just let us know. I'm like, wow, that's, okay. So we tried it. We're like, yeah, this was not for us. So they brought a new one and they charged us for all the drinks. And I was like, that was kinda lame.

• 37:04Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that's not fun. That's not fun.

• 37:06George Kamel?

  Yeah, guilty as charged.

• 37:08Rachel Cruze?

  Guilty as charged.

• 37:11Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, who finished first, George?

• 37:13George Kamel?

  I think I'm closer.

• 37:14Rachel Cruze?

  I think you are too.

• 37:15George Kamel?

  Can I be honest? This Raspberry Dream Dirty Soda kind of tastes like a raspberry chocolate milk.

• 37:22Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I mean, it's, it's pretty good.

• 37:25George Kamel?

  And this is apparently a swig dupe, I am told. Swig is a soda shop chain that's very popular in Utah with the Mormon community. Because sodas, they're

• 37:35Rachel Cruze?

  Some of the influencers I follow, they always have a swig cup in their stories.

• 37:38George Kamel?

  And it's gained popularity because of these influencers, so I'm, what's your rating on this?

• 37:44Rachel Cruze?

  It's a little sweet. I'm gonna go seven out of 10.

• 37:46George Kamel?

  Okay, I'll go seven out of 10 as well.

• 37:48Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 37:49George Kamel?

  I was pleasantly surprised.

• 37:50Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's not, it's better than not, but

• 37:54George Kamel?

  You'll soon know why it's a solid drink. So the cost breakdown is just a dollar 63, which I imagine they charge like seven times that at one of these soda shops.

• 38:02Rachel Cruze?

  Sure.

• 38:03George Kamel?

  It's got raspberry puree, which is fresh raspberries and sugar, coconut creamer. Apparently this is a non, a non-dairy one.

• 38:09Rachel Cruze?

  Great.

• 38:10George Kamel?

  And Dr. Pepper, which is a great base.

• 38:12Rachel Cruze?

  That's actually a great base.

• 38:13George Kamel?

  It's hard to screw it up when your base is Dr. Pepper.

• 38:15Rachel Cruze?

  Dr. Pepper is really, really holding it down.

• 38:17George Kamel?

  Is that one of your go-to sodas? Like, what is your go-to soda when you're ordering fast food?

• 38:21Rachel Cruze?

  Diet Coke or Diet Dr. Pepper.

• 38:24George Kamel?

  That's a good American.

• 38:25Rachel Cruze?

  How about you?

• 38:25George Kamel?

  You're a true patriot. Diet Dr. Pepper if I'm feeling like, wow, gonna live on the edge.

• 38:30Rachel Cruze?

  Diet Dr. Pepper is pretty good.

• 38:31George Kamel?

  But Chick-fil-A, sometimes if I want to be better, I'll get like an unsweet tea lemonade kind of situation.

• 38:35Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I'll get a sweet tea at Chick-fil-A.

• 38:36George Kamel?

  They call it a Sunjoy now. They gave it a fancy name.

• 38:38Rachel Cruze?

  Where they, where they do half and half? It's so good.

• 38:41George Kamel?

  So get the recipe in the show notes if you want to make this. It's fun for the whole family, kids included, because it's a mocktail.

• 38:46Rachel Cruze?

  So great. Well, it's closing time, and if you guys enjoyed this episode, make sure to leave us a review, subscribe. We want to, we want to hear from you guys. And if you love a little treat, make sure to check out our episode on harmless purchases that drain your bank accounts. So we'll see you guys, though, next Thursday on an all-new episode of

• 39:07George Kamel?

  Smart Money Happy Hour.