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Don't Waste Your Money: McDonald's shrinks dollar menu

The rumors have been flying for months, but now they are finally true: McDonald's has changed its value menu, offering fewer items for a buck.

(Toledo News Now) - The rumors have been flying for months, but now they are finally true: McDonald's has changed its value menu, offering fewer items for a buck. You can bet other restaurants won't be far behind in following.

If you haven't been to McDonald's in the past few days, you may be in for a bit of a shock when you pull up to the drive-thru. The new name is "Dollar Menu and More," with the emphasis now on "more."

Fewer Items For A Dollar

Some of the changes you may notice include:

-A McDouble, formerly $1, is now $1.19.

-Small Fries were a dollar, but are now $1.19.

-The Double Cheeseburger was a dollar, but now is $1.49.

You can still get several items for a dollar, such as a McChicken, a new bacon burger, an ice cream cone, and large sweet tea. The basic cheeseburger remains 89 cents at many restaurants (though it is not listed on the Dollar Menu).

But Burger Business magazine says while exact prices vary by market, you now have to look harder to find the dollar items. The $1 items are sandwiched between $1.19 and $1.49 items, so if you're rushed, you may order something more expensive than you were planning to buy.

The magazine also says some prices are surprisingly high for a value menu.

Among the surprises:

-A Bacon McDouble is $2.

-A 20-piece McNugget is $5.

The Bottom Line

CNN/Money says McDonald's badly needs to boost revenues, and says too many people buy only the dollar items, which doesn't bring in any profit.  

The good news is you can still get few things for a dollar.
    
But with overhead, employee pay, and health care costs going up all the time, fast food restaurants have to pass along the costs at some point. So don't be surprised to find other restaurants following McDonald's, so you don't waste your money.

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