Ravintolat: The restaurant ripoff
@ 1:02 am 
I saw a bus stop advertisement for a Parmesan-Kanahampurilainen (Parmesan Chicken Burger) from a Finnish burger chain and thought how good it looks in the picture. I was hungry and, for 3.50€, how could I go wrong, right?
Wrong! Unlike how the picture led me to believe, there were only two tiny strips of chicken inside. They were strategically placed around the edges of the bun to make it look full. But nothing was in the middle except some goopy filler.
Naturally, meat is the most expensive ingredient in any such food product. All other ingredients are dirt-cheap in comparison. I don’t think Finnish consumers have figured this out yet…..but then again, restaurants are relatively empty in Finland. So maybe they have.
There were many well-dressed people waiting in line, so I promptly seized the opportunity to educate by confronting the manager standing behind the counter. I asked, “I ordered a Kanahampurilainen and there are only two tiny pieces of chicken in there?! Where’s the rest?!” Then I proclaimed, “This is dishonest advertising!! ”
My point wasn’t to insult the manager, because I knew the poor guy was only doing his job; he can’t influence the standard product. Nevertheless, I felt the need to make a point when he refused to understand what I was complaining about. So, I took the tiny chicken strips off the bun and set them on the gleaming metal counter.
Then I turned-around to those waiting in-line and said, “Look, I just paid 3.50€ for these two tiny strips of chicken.”
I’ve spoken Finnish all my life, but I have a distinct accent and particular word usage pattern that gives me away every time. Knowing that people are always curious about my funky linguistics, I asked those in line, ” Tunnetteko englantilaisen sanan ‘Ripoff’?”
Of course they knew the word.
Then I told the manager that he could keep the burger two tiny strips of chicken. “Saat pitää.” I turned and walked-out, leaving a little mess on the counter. It felt good because I did it without getting angry and hopefully relayed an important message about consumerism to those standing around me. Unfortunately, it didn’t solve my hunger problem.
In hindsight, it was my own responsibility to first go home and check the product’s ingredients and weights online. I take full responsibility for my mistake and don’t blame nor accuse the Finnish burger chain for doing anything wrong.
One might say that take-away food is an American invention. In the US, I’ve always received more-than-enough for my money—to a fault! But that’s never the case in Finland; there’s always a ripoff.
Finns dishonest?
Näh. I prefer to explain the ripoff using this Tax Wedge graph. As the wedge gets bigger, restaurants (suppliers) aim to get higher prices from consumers (demanders). And of course, lower sales volume results.
To avoid lower sales volume, Finnish restaurants can fudge the equation by offering ’seemingly reasonable’ prices but delivering less product—in many cases, deceptively so.
With a big tax-wedge, the restaurants’ high-price position is always secure; high taxes prevent new competitors from entering the marketplace.
From now on, I’ll go to McDonalds when I have the urge for a Kanahampurilainen. But thanks to the big Tax Wedge in Finland, I’ll still need to pay the über-high Finn-price. Nevertheless, at least McD’s seems concerned with offering an honest product. I suppose they have uniform, international standards for these things.
Just don’t anyone tell McD’s management team that Finnish consumers don’t really care about getting value for their money. It’ll ruin everything.
UPDATE: All this talk about food made me hungry for a burger last night. So I went to McD’s in Kamppi. I normally buy an El Maco Jr. with small fries and drink. Cost: 4.95€ Well, I was informed that Jr.-sized burgers aren’t available in the evening, so I was bumped into the next price category. Cost: 6.45€. I guess their strategy is to scam an extra 1:50€ from each customer—most of whom have probably already had a few drinks by that time of night.
At least McD’s is up-front about it and used no deception. They need to make a profit somehow, so they simply narrowed their selection into the higher price range. Unfortunately, businesses in Finland can’t avoid this type of pricing due to the highly-taxed and highly-regulated operating climate.
Finland is full of these little ripoffs—they are usually much worse! And they generally aren’t included in international Purchasing Power surveys. Nevertheless, they cost each Finnish resident thousands-of-Euros each year—thousands more than what people of other countries need to spend.
No wonder Finland remains poor.
What? Hamburgers look bigger in advertisements than they are in reality?!
ALERT THE MEDIA!!!
Comment by no way dude! — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:15 am
It’s too bad the Maccas here don’t serve breakfast like they do in the states. I could of used a sausage and egg mcmuffin and some hash browns when I was in Tampere one time.
Comment by gopha — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:32 am
#1 Yeah, I know. But this one was particularly deceptive in my opinion. You’ll see the ads around town. Go buy one and tell me I’m wrong.
By the way, I’m really curious now… Does anyone know if there’s a difference in weight between—e.g.—a Big Mac in Finland vs. USA ?
Comment by Kristian — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:35 am
Oh most definitely the size of McDonalds food here is extremely different the Big Mac in Finland looks like a double Cheese burger not a big Mac
Comment by Kourtney N. Williams — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:37 am
Kourtney, I thought I was the only one who noticed.
But thinking about it some more, there’s no way Americans would accept such tiny Big Macs as offered in Finland. And for that high Finn-price.
I’d really like to know the real weights…and I’d like to know if these types of differences are considered in international Purchasing Power comparisons.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Mac_index
Comment by Kristian — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:41 am
LOL Kristion you went psycho over a burger just like Michael Douglas in “Falling Down”! You should have pulled a TEC9 out of your gymbag. That would have got their attention.
D-FENS!!!
Comment by Lan Theroux — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:48 am
Yeah, restaurant ripoffs exist only in Finland. Honest.
I and my better half spent $140 on salad that came from a bucket, microwaved crabcakes and a bubble gum steak in New York. We should’ve gone to McD’s.
But thinking about it some more, there’s no way Americans would accept such an (allegedly) tiny Big Mac as is offered in Finland.
Yeah, like they wouldn’t accept a soda in below-gallon sizes. Merely watching Supersize Me was enough to turn my liver into foie gras. That being said, I’d say the quality of fast food was better in the States than in Finland.
Comment by Freeridin' Franklin — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:52 am
Actually for some reason I think Big Macs are pretty much the same size in Finland than what they are here in Kansas (might be my bad memory, last time I had McDonald’s in Finland was 10 months ago), but I do have to admit that fries are way greater in size. Just last night had a Big Mac meal (with an ordinary coke and fries) and the amount of food almost made me feel bad. Guess I’m still way too Finnish
What really makes me sad is the lack of Wendy’s in Europe. If God ate fast food, he/she would probably have Wendy’s Big Bacon Classic or 4-Alarm Spicy Chicken. Fast food companies in Finland are few and they have a lot to learn. I’m not telling you that people should go out more often and buy burgers - it’s not a proper way to eat and get healthy food - but it’s always nice to have some competition that keeps prices low (and more people employed).
My first comment ever on this site
Comment by Janne — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 2:57 am
What really makes me sad is the lack of Wendy’s in Europe.
Definitely. We could use Arby’s as well.
Comment by Freeridin' Franklin — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 3:01 am
Awww don’t even mention Wendy’s I’ve been jonesin for a Chickien Club from Wendy’s for about a year. The size difference in portions is noticable from USA to Finland, and the price is lower. Do you know how often I go to McDonalds here and think where is the .99 cent menu?
There are ripoffs in the states to but big franchises like Wendy’s and Mcdonalds that get suied for less can’t take the chance so for the most part their food looks like advertises.
Service and amount for what you pay is a little out of wack over here. UK is still worse, at least by value standards I ended up paying for the most expensive burger in my life at Burger King in the UK($20 for a Whopper meal w/cheese).
Comment by Kourtney N. Williams — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 3:51 am
Oh, no.
Kristian, you need to get back on the path of conformity.
Conform. Stay in line. Don’t speak out. Complain only to friends. Eat your damn sandwich and smile like you just won the lottery. The WWII generation ate tree bark. They would have killed for that sandwich wonder that you insult with your petty standards.
This reminds me that there is a Wendy’s right around the corner from the office. I have a newfound appreciation for it.
Comment by Fred Fry — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 6:00 am
Finnish food and Finnish customer service in one post! Two I’ve my favorite bones to pick with Finland:)
The following stories are true:
PLACE: Hesburger Oulu, Finland DATE: June 1997 TIME: sometime in the evening before the 9pm closing time.
American friend who speaks fluent Finnish, in fact most Helsinkians think he is from Oulu, orders a donut and coffee. The donut tastes like it was made last week. He brings it back to the HesWomen at the counter and very politely says it is old. She grabs it, TAKES A BITE OUT OF IT, says “It tastes fine” and then GIVES IT BACK TO HIM.
One for the ages.
Story #2
PLACE: McDonalds Oulu, Finland DATE:June 1997 TIME: approx. 9pm
Same friend orders a cheezeburger no onions (he says onions make his sweat stink). Friend bites into cheeseburger only to dicover that there is onions in the burger. He takes it back and politely says he ordered his burger no onions. McWomen behind the counter takes the burger, removes the bun, swipes all the onions off the burger with her finger, puts the bun back on AND GIVES IT BACK TO HIM. Friend goes and sits down fuming (which is rare for this laid back guy). He gets up and goes and gets a ton of ketsup and puts in the burger. He puts the top back on and pounds it with his fist. Ketsup everywhere, he heads for the door. His Finnish girlfriend (now wife) reads him the riot act and makes him clean everything up with wet napkins (kudos to her).
Another one for the ages!
PLACE:McDonalds Itakeskus Helsinki DATE: June 2002 TIME:Midafternoon, Saturday and the place is packed.
Liverbox orders a meal with fries. Liverbox asks for some mayo for dipping the fries in (don’t ask why, it grosses me out now). Liverbox does not get his mayo from the McGirl working the cash register so he decides to ask McSloth who slowing cleaning tables. McSloth says okay and shuffles back into the resturaunt. McSloth shows up 10 MINUTES later after shuffling to and fro in the back of the resturaunt under the watchful eye of Liverbox. McSloth cannot understand why Liverbox is unhappy because he fetched the mayo RIGHT AWAY!! Liverbox’s fries are freezing cold because he waited so long. Liverbox noticed that his warm Finnish soda had melted the 2 ice cubes that came with it, so making the best out of a bad situation he through in a few of his ice cold fries to cool it down. JK
Yet another one for the ages. I could go on for hours, but I’ll Finnish on a positive note.
PLACE, DATE, TIME: Same as above but 20 minutes later.
After stewing in his juices for 20 minutes, griping to his wife about how he is turning into a Finn because turns the other cheek to horrible customer service (a Finnish trait). And how if he went to complain he would chicken out because he would wonder what all the customers in line would think of them (a very Finnish trait). Liverbox decides “To heck with this, I’m not going to put up with this” and goes to bring back his cold fries. Liverbox’s wife had also strongly “encouraged” him to do it because she said she didn’t want to hear him grousing all afternoon. The manager listens to Liverbox’s tail of woe, APOLOGIZES, takes the fries and RETURNS WITH NEW ONES. It was the first and only time Liverbox ever felt liking kissing a man. It made my weekend.
On the way home Liverbox concludes that the manager must have been born in the US or Mexico, the only two countries Liverbox has visited that have top notch customer service.
If I had time I would tell my Rosso in Tikkurila story. It’s very good.
Comment by maksalaatikko — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 8:03 am
What really makes me sad is the lack of Wendy’s in Europe. If God ate fast food, he/she would probably have Wendy’s Big Bacon Classic or 4-Alarm Spicy Chicken.
Amen to that!! I want Wendy’s. And fuck Burger King btw
Comment by Phil — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 8:07 am
Finnish food and Finnish customer service in one post! Two of my favorite bones to pick with Finland:)
The following stories are true:
PLACE: Hesburger Oulu, Finland DATE: June 1997 TIME: sometime in the evening before the 9pm closing time.
American friend who speaks fluent Finnish, in fact most Helsinkians think he is from Oulu, orders a donut and coffee. The donut tastes like it was made last week. He brings it back to the HesWomen at the counter and very politely says it is old. She grabs it, TAKES A BITE OUT OF IT, says “It tastes fine” and then GIVES IT BACK TO HIM.
One for the ages.
Story #2
PLACE: McDonalds Oulu, Finland DATE:June 1997 TIME: approx. 9pm
Same friend orders a cheezeburger no onions (he says onions make his sweat stink). Friend bites into cheeseburger only to dicover that there is onions in the burger. He takes it back and politely says he ordered his burger no onions. McWomen behind the counter takes the burger, removes the bun, swipes all the onions off the burger with her finger, puts the bun back on AND GIVES IT BACK TO HIM. Friend goes and sits down fuming (which is rare for this laid back guy). He gets up and goes and gets a ton of ketsup and puts in the burger. He puts the top back on and pounds it with his fist. Ketsup everywhere, he heads for the door. His Finnish girlfriend (now wife) reads him the riot act and makes him clean everything up with wet napkins (kudos to her).
Another one for the ages!
PLACE:McDonalds Itakeskus Helsinki DATE: June 2002 TIME:Midafternoon, Saturday and the place is packed.
Liverbox orders a meal with fries. Liverbox asks for some mayo for dipping the fries in (don’t ask why, it grosses me out now). Liverbox does not get his mayo from the McGirl working the cash register so he decides to ask McSloth who slowing cleaning tables. McSloth says okay and shuffles back into the resturaunt. McSloth shows up 10 MINUTES later after shuffling to and fro in the back of the resturaunt under the watchful eye of Liverbox. McSloth cannot understand why Liverbox is unhappy because he fetched the mayo RIGHT AWAY!! Liverbox’s fries are freezing cold because he waited so long. Liverbox noticed that his warm Finnish soda had melted the 2 ice cubes that came with it, so making the best out of a bad situation he through in a few of his ice cold fries to cool it down. JK
Yet another one for the ages. I could go on for hours, but I’ll Finnish on a positive note.
PLACE, DATE, TIME: Same as above but 20 minutes later.
After stewing in his juices for 20 minutes, griping to his wife about how he is turning into a Finn because turns the other cheek to horrible customer service (a Finnish trait). And how if he went to complain he would chicken out because he would wonder what all the customers in line would think of them (a very Finnish trait). Liverbox decides “To heck with this, I’m not going to put up with this” and goes to bring back his cold fries. Liverbox’s wife had also strongly “encouraged” him to do it because she said she didn’t want to hear him grousing all afternoon. The manager listens to Liverbox’s tail of woe, APOLOGIZES, takes the fries and RETURNS WITH NEW ONES. It was the first and only time Liverbox ever felt liking kissing a man. It made my weekend.
On the way home Liverbox concludes that the manager must have been born in the US or Mexico, the only two countries Liverbox has visited that have top notch customer service.
If I had time I would tell my Rosso in Tikkurila story. It’s very
Comment by maksalaatikko — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 8:07 am
Actually what I really miss are deli’s. I used to always order a liverwurst and pastrami on rye with swiss, russian dressing, and extra onions. YUMMY!
Comment by Phil — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 8:10 am
Only once I have had a hamburger that delivered what was promised with a reasonable price. It was in this place called “Mexas” in Tampere. Sadly it no longer exists. It was huge. Lots of meat and bacon and what not. It was the size of a normal plate and the fries came with their onw plate wich was also filled.
I normally eat about 1-3 hamburgers a year and when I choose to embark to this adventure I choose Hesburger or Rolls.
That McDonalds clown is unbelievably anoying.
Comment by BlizBob — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 9:32 am
Someone should do a Finnish version of Ads vs. Reality: http://www.thewvsr.com/adsvsreality.htm
Comment by a — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 9:44 am
I saw his ad yesterday and thought “I really wanna try that…” I don’t think I’ll bother now…
Comment by Haider — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 10:48 am
Conform, conform , conform. Just doft your cap and accept what you’ve been given. Finns don’t complaihn, except when a foreigner has the nerve to criticise Finland; then they go ape
Comment by Anonymous — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 11:24 am
No idea if it’s really true, but I heard that McD has been making a loss in Finland forever and that the only reason for staying here is to keep up the global image.
Comment by Topias — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 11:27 am
# 6, I thought the same thing! D-Fens ruled.
Complaining that hamburger restaurants use false advertising is like being shocked about the fact that fashion magazines use Photoshop. Yes, darlings, Heidi Klum has pimples and probably even some cellulite. Just like those hamburgers in ads are laced with nail laquer and hairspray to make them look shiny and juicy.
Call the police.
Sweetheart, it’s a fucking hamburger from a chain of fucking hamburger restaurants. Not a gourmet meal. It’s fast food, designed to be eaten once in a while when there’s nothing better available. Have some perspective.
Comment by Anzi — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 11:45 am
You took the words right out of my mouth, Anzi.
Kristian’s prick-o-meter just exploded, as if it wasn’t high enough already. You could’ve handled things in a civil way, but instead decided to give a five minute “show and tell” presentation about not having enough meat between your buns? Sheesh.
Comment by disposable — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 12:08 pm
Wendy’s, Arby’s.. etc. bla blah. And then also remember to shop smart, shop S-Mart.
Comment by Ato — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 12:10 pm
My question is whether you asked for your money back when you refused to take shipment of said burger. Or did they just take your money and throw the burger in the bin?
Comment by Dave the Slave — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 12:23 pm
Well, I guess I rather would have supersize hamburgers than universal health insurance… It is one of the biggest injustices in the world that the Finnish hamburger chains use creative photography when presenting their fare (this is of course the fault of the welfare state: it is a subject in public schools, and doesn’t occur outside Scandinavia). There was actually a nice Hesari story about the subject: it seems that small kiosks are more honest than the big chains. But yes, I will cry myself to sleep over this grievance tonight.
Comment by mjr — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 12:28 pm
Don’t moan about poor cutomer service and a lack of choice in Finland
You are responsible for it. You will accept any old rubbish without question, particularly if its supplied by one of your cartels. Start complaining. Start being critical, only then will things in Finland get better.
Do you really think that take-away and restaurant food in Finland is any good?
Stop conforming and start complaining. Finns get out of your denial culture
Comment by Anonymous — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 12:51 pm
Kristian FTW!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eREiQhBDIk
Comment by Anonymous — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 12:58 pm
“Finns don’t complain…”
Ahh, pick any day as a driver in Helsinki public transport. You won’t ever guess what kind of complaints those crybabies came up with.
Comment by Antti rn — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:29 pm
hamburgers pffff, kebab is the food of gods
Comment by Anonymous — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 1:48 pm
Dave the Slave: “My question is whether you asked for your money back…”
No, I figured it wasn’t possible after I disassembled it. But, I had enough of an audience to make it worthwhile. Also, I was dressed rather well yesterday, so that probably gave me some credibility.
I realize fast food products always look better in pictures—even McD’s are mostly flat in real life. That’s the age-old joke. But despite being squashed, at least McD’s burgers have some meat in them.
Products from Finnish chain restaurants are also flatter than pictured, but that’s because THEY HAVE NO MEAT! In my opinion, this is blatantly false advertising that is meant to screw the always-gullible Finnish consumer.
Comment by Kristian — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 2:30 pm
#15: Already done.
“Am I Loving It?”
http://www.kaenkky.com/?p=artl&id=88
“Hesesize me!”
http://www.kaenkky.com/?p=artl&id=54
Unfortunately these are only in Finnish, plenty of pictures though.
Comment by Grin Lohen — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 3:00 pm
The best place to get a hamburger in Helsinki is (in my opinion) Hampuris –> http://www.hampuris.fi/menu.htm
It’s a bit more expensive than McD or Hesburger, but the meals are waaay bigger and better.
Comment by The Dude — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 3:45 pm
According to Wikipedia, the serving size of the Big Mac in the US is 214 g. Now, if you go to the Finnish website of the McDonald’s, you notice that the serving size of the Big Mac(TM) is 219 g in Finland. I’d say that the Big Macs always seem bigger on the other side of the pond. On a closer analysis, the US burger has more fat and carbs in it, and the Finnish version more protein.
Comment by Bartheus — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 3:53 pm
On a closer analysis, the US burger has more fat and carbs in it, and the Finnish version more protein.
No wonder it tasted better, then.
Comment by Freeridin' Franklin — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 4:17 pm
Don’t most European countries regulate how much saturated fat can be in fast food? I’ve read that fries are healthier in Europe, so I guess burgers are too.
Anyway, I’ve always seen McDonalds as the best fast food value in Finland. In my opinion, the Finnish chains are dishonest and only rip you off.
Kebaps in Finland are way overpriced—about double the European market price. Kebap meat is probably the cheapest meat on the planet.
Pizza is by far the best deal when considering food from a non-burger chain. About 6.5€ gets you a pizza with bolognese and jalapeños. My favorite.
And you can get a beer with that pizza for an extra 5€ :-/
Comment by Kristian — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 4:43 pm
My appetite must be smaller than I thought, because I have never been able to finish a whole kebab without feeling like my stomach is about to explode.
Isn’t “kebap” the redneck way of spelling “kebab”?
My pet peeves are half-filled cups of coffee and tea. If I pay a ripoff price, I want my money’s worth. Fill the damn cup and make it hot! This applies at home, too. My boyfriend can tell you some stories.
Comment by Anzi — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 5:21 pm
The market for kebabs in Finland is monopolistically competitive. The market for burgers in Finland is a oligopoly, where the players rig the market cartel style
Comment by Anonymous — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 7:28 pm
That’s why kebabs are better value for money than burgers in cartel land
Comment by Anonymous — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 7:29 pm
I think that you just might have different standard for service than what Finns are used to. For them, they are happy even if there was just one strip of chicken inside…
Comment by StupidBanana — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 7:46 pm
Pizza is by far the best deal when considering food from a non-burger chain. About 6.5€ gets you a pizza with bolognese and jalapeños. My favorite.
And you can get a beer with that pizza for an extra 5€ :-/
10€ buys you a giant pizza and a litre of beer at Sivuraide. Not the best pizzas in the world, but the cheapest rarely is the best.
Comment by Freeridin' Franklin — Tue, May 15th, 2007 @ 8:43 pm
Anzi comment # 20: I couldn’t agree more. Kristian, I know it makes you feel big to shout at people who are trying to do you a favour, so really, just pull a Michael Douglas. I doubt I need to explain the Freudian implications of all this…
“Also, I was dressed rather well yesterday, so that probably gave me some credibility.” Pathetic! Not to mention arrogant and vain… What a sorry sight!
Comment by DavidH — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 12:12 pm
Hesburger is importing its shitty products and service to the east:
“Finnish fast-food restaurant chain Hesburger said in a statement Friday it had signed a franchising deal covering eight Arab countries with Kuwait-based United Foodstuff Industries Group (UFIG). In the first stage, the agreement covers Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.”
I hope the staff in Iraq will have their AK74s ready before serving chicken burgers.
Kotipizza’s ripoffs are expanding in China:
“Kotipizza has opened its first outlet in China, it said in a statement last Tuesday. The Suzhou shop should serve as a bridgehead for a wider Chinese expansion plan”
There the government will put the staff in a re-education camp in order to teach them to price the products correctly.
Finnish customer morons, by the way, are paying a whopping euro for a Cheeseburger at McDonalds while more clever Germans pay only one euro.
Comment by Anonymous — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 12:40 pm
LESS TAX - Lower price - More hamburgers sold - Same population - Finns getting fat . You fat Americans don’t need a diet, it’s higher tax what you need.
Comment by strudel — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 12:57 pm
Yes, this is Hesburger’s pricing strategy: try to sell shit for the price of decent food. No wonder Hesburger can’t compete with McDonalds’ standardized, American products! Come to think of it, only McDonald’s and Pizza Hut know what they are doing; all Finnish chains are run by idiots. Soon we’ll have only American fast-food chains left in this country - which is good, because then the prices will be right and food tasty. Or who would dare to suggest that €9 is not just perfect for a small, Pizza Hut pizza?
Comment by Anonymous — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 1:14 pm
So how come you have to pay 80 cents for water at Pizza Hut?
Comment by disposable — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 4:38 pm
“Finnish customer morons, by the way, are paying a whopping euro for a Cheeseburger at McDonalds while more clever Germans pay only one euro.” - Anonymous in comment 41.
Does anybody else see something wrong with this clever, “revealing” observation?
Comment by Dave the Slave — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 4:53 pm
#45 I think it was a type-o. I think he meant that Finland McD’s doesn’t have a 1€ menu like in Germany.
Many items like fries, small burgers, etc., only cost 1€. It’s heavily advertised in Germany.
Instead, Finland probably has a 4€ minimum purchase or some such ripoff.
Comment by Kristian — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 5:03 pm
“Also, I was dressed rather well yesterday, so that probably gave me some credibility.†Pathetic! Not to mention arrogant and vain… What a sorry sight!
Nothing pathetic, arrogant or vain about it. It’s a fact of life. I use this to my advantage all the time. I’ve got a nice suit in my office that I change into before certain meetings, and jeans and a plaid shirt for other meetings. This FACT especially makes a CREDIBILITY difference when meeting someone for the first time. The first impression is a lasting impression. Dave was smart to dress well and I’m sure it added considerably to his credibility.
Comment by maksalaatikko — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 5:07 pm
Many items like fries, small burgers, etc., only cost 1€. It’s heavily advertised in Germany.
Instead, Finland probably has a 4€ minimum purchase or some such ripoff.
Maybe on your planet, Kristian. Take it easy with the weed, man.
http://www.mcdonalds.fi/ruokaopas/europower.php
Comment by Freeridin' Franklin — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 6:08 pm
#48 Wait, let me guess, it’s only available between the hours of 2:00 and 17:00 or something like that.
Headquarters might decide the menus and pricing, but each individual store can decide what it actually offers for sale—and during what time.
Comment by Kristian — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 6:11 pm
Oh, and Franklin, maybe you should smoke some weed. It might expand your mind a bit.
Comment by Kristian — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 6:18 pm
Oh, and Franklin, maybe you should smoke some weed. It might expand your mind a bit.
I’d say that Dude, Where’s My Car? is a fairly accurate depiction of the mind-expanding properties of the sacred herb.
Comment by Freeridin' Franklin — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 6:39 pm
Demi Moore still looks good, but how long can that last? I mean, considering the age difference?
Comment by Kristian — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 6:54 pm
Demi Moore still looks good, but how long can that last? I mean, considering the age difference?
If Ashton stays shibby, he won’t notice. It’s cheaper than plastic surgery.
Comment by Freeridin' Franklin — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 7:24 pm
Besides, who says it should be a problem? For instance, Naveen Andrews of e.g. Lost and The English Patient, is known to have a thing for older ladies.
In general, the contemporary youth cult is silly. As if life ends at 35.
Comment by Freeridin' Franklin — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 7:39 pm
Advertisements for fast food here in Singapore can be similarly deceiving when it comes to sizes too. The quality of their products is also getting worse as time goes by.
Comment by Nicholas — Wed, May 16th, 2007 @ 8:18 pm
Firstly, I think you’ll (Kristian) find that, at least in English, your favourite word ‘rip-off’ is in fact hyphenated.
And as you seem so incensed at the apparent wealth of misleading advertising in Finland, I assume I need not draw your attention to the slogans “Työväen presidentti” and “Suomen toivo”, perhaps the most specious and misleading in modern times…
Comment by DavidH — Thu, May 17th, 2007 @ 3:28 am
Kristian:
First off.
Haven’t noticed much difference in service quality or prices in the European McDonalds restaurants I’ve visited. Isn’t the whole idea that there is no difference? Concerning Hesburger, the difference to McD is reltively minimal as well.
Secondly.
Concerning tax wedges, after seeing your illustrative graph (copied from wikipedia) I didn’t bother reading much further. The same old lame accusations based on scarce sources where you’ve found some material somehow - at least in your mind - supportive of your views. You have read the wikipedia page Kristian. Fine. Wikipedia is a fine source of information, but when a certain page says, that the article is a STUB, what does that mean Kristian?
The graph you demonstrate is an example of a HARBERGER TRIANGLE (I’m reluctant to hand you this piece of information, because knowing you, you will end up searching the web, and once you find some badly informed source of information, you’ll keep bothering this blog with your misconceptions of the economy even more), illustrating the concept of a “deadweight loss due to tax” (or sometimes due to monopoly in a “market”). The idea here is that if you make certain very dubious assumptions (which are never true in reality) imposing a sales tax on ONE “market”, or a limited number of “markets”, the triangle illustrated in the picture represent the “loss” to society due to lost sales activity, and therefore due to loss of production. Neo-classicans even “prove” that even if the tax revenue is handed back as transfers to the public 100%, “productivity” is lost (the “excess burden of taxation” - which ultimately is what the Harberger triangle “illustrates”, in a totally fake way), which is simple and plain BS. Unfortunatly, this is what economics students are taught around the globe, using neo-classical quasi-scientific “graphical” arguments to prove the non-provable. SAD. Even some economics PhD’s (and famous professors writing text-books in world-wide use) “seem” (I don’t think that an intelligent person really can believe it) to believe this crap.
What the TAX WEDGE is about - typically, but it seems to be a rather vague concept, frequently used by demagogues, such as you Kristian, to support just about any kind of argumentation possible - is the “prortional difference”, between the amount paid by the employer, as compared to the net salary recived by the employee (i.e. employer social fees + employee social fees + income taxes). In Finland (”verokiila”) the discussion has (as far as I can tell) focussed on the difference between the amount of gross revenue a household needs to be able to earn in order to employ somebody else receiving a certain net level of income. So in Finland this has mostly been used in discussion about the imaginary “double taxation problem” (which is present everywhere around the globe, one way or another) once again.
Comment by Thomas — Thu, May 17th, 2007 @ 10:24 am
Kristian:
“Finland is full of these little ripoffsâ€â€they are usually much worse! And they generally aren’t included in international Purchasing Power surveys. Nevertheless, they cost each Finnish resident thousands-of-Euros each yearâ€â€thousands more than what people of other countries need to spend.”
Sum them up, and provide the proof that none other similar exist in other countries. Oh, but it’s so easy to provide sweeping accusations without any proof. Please don’t start with beer and wine. Because the majority of finnish people don’t use THOUSANDS of euros a year on beer and wine.
Sure, price-levels might be higher in general. But that doesn’t necessarily imply that there is a “rip-off”. As has been pointed out to you from right to left, there are several fundamental reasons for why the “markets” in Finland might require a higher price level simply to exist.
Comment by Thomas — Thu, May 17th, 2007 @ 10:34 am
When Kristian goes to a Hesburger, turns around and sees a line behind him (to whom complain), that should make him wonder. Why on earth are these people queuing for something that is below all standards? Why don’t they go to McDonalds instead, with its high-standard, globally standardized American products? Why does Hesburger have a bigger market share than McDonalds?
No, it’s not because customers might feel that they get something more for their money at Hesburger. Instead, Finns (and Estoninans and Latvians) are idiots who let themselves be ripped off by similar Finnish idiots running Hesburger and all other Finnish services.
We all know that Kristian is a very wise man. Soon he’ll tell us what makes the peculiar market system work. Perhaps it’s something in the drinking water?
Meanwhile, here’s something to be happy about: Apparently Hesburger constantly fails with its pricing strategy (i.e. asking too much for too low-quality products). That must mean that even the Finnish idiots will soon start taking their money to McDonalds. The joyful day when Hesburger goes bankrupt can’t be far!
Comment by Anonymous — Thu, May 17th, 2007 @ 12:34 pm
“We all know that Kristian is a very wise man. Soon he’ll tell us what makes the peculiar market system work.”
Already did.
Comment by Kristian — Thu, May 17th, 2007 @ 4:00 pm
Hmmm, dumb or not, customers are always right (except my customers). If they want Hese’s hamburgers so be it. McDonalds has then failed to produce a hamburger with an image pleasing them, that’s all. Why tell people in some parts of China to stop being idiots and quit eating dogs and snakes, if they happen to like them.
Not that the survival of Kotipizza with their horrible känkkys wouldn’t defy all reason. Perhaps it is due to the possibility to order them by SMS or something.
Comment by Antti rn — Thu, May 17th, 2007 @ 6:06 pm
This is the second time you complain about private corporations, use the regular Finnish common noun, but Capitalized, and then explain that the government is at fault. The first time was the pharmacies (you called them Apteekki, the common noun for “pharmacy”), which also private corporations. This time you complain about Hesburger.
Comment by sepisp — Sun, May 20th, 2007 @ 2:39 am
Don’t know, but the small “Sothern Fried Chicken” (some global chain, but is it how big?) just moved to where Hesburger used to be in Forum, on the Mannerheimintie. I like to see a new burger joint in a prominent place like that. However there is a gnawing fear that when I go there they’ve changed into something horrid from the time they were slightly obscure on the lower floor of the Forum “under the escalator”. Best burgers at that time atleast, but I need to go check out. Also the Kamppi has a “new to Helsinki” chain - “Scanburger”. Nothing to twirl the socks for, but again, more variety. Unless you want to watch sports and grab a pint of guinness theres http://www.elmobaari.fi Elmo Sports & Grill just across the Kamppi Metro “old” station.
Comment by Hank W. — Sun, May 20th, 2007 @ 1:28 pm
I didn’t know someone takes advertisments this seriously. I’ve been taught since being a kid ads are just ads, and they don’t necessarily describe products ohjectively.
Maybe there should be more media and consumer lessons in school for youth?
Comment by Tero Lehto — Sun, May 20th, 2007 @ 2:41 pm
Great rant!
I don’t usually eat red meat myself and when I saw the ad for chicken parm, I was more than eager to try it out. But while waiting in the line, I happened to actually see one of these things they call “chicken parm”.
It was truly something else. Mayo between the buns.
It’s really hard to find a decent burger in Finland.
We discussed about this at Huone (www.huone.at) also, mentioning that above (or should I say, below) them all is Chico’s. Cold meat, rip-off prices and slow service. All the things you need to pop a vein. The search over at Huone still continues. But it seems, that Ilves would be a good choice for a burger.
P.S. First time I noticed that there are other people writing entries here besides Phil. Great stuff, nevertheless.
Comment by Mikko Grönroos — Sun, May 20th, 2007 @ 7:04 pm
LOL! go back to Bushia you pseudosciencentific psycho clown!
Comment by Ragnar Granit — Mon, Aug 27th, 2007 @ 9:16 pm
i think ur crazy n itz soooo good
=’] i luv it i dnt care itz jus $$
Comment by mark avalos — Mon, May 12th, 2008 @ 8:31 pm