Via iStockphoto / @julieannsurratt TikTok
A woman says McDonald's is now following in the footsteps of Chick-fil-A and Wendy's by charging more for craft lemonade.
Why does lemonade cost more at fast-food places? A McDonald’s customer says the chain is now following in the footsteps of Chick-fil-A and Wendy’s by hand-crafting its own lemonade in-store and subsequently charging more for it.
Julie Ann Douglas (@julieannsurratt) says she recently went to McDonald’s to pick up food for herself and her husband. Recently, Douglas has noticed inconsistency with Coke fountain drinks and is “switching over to lemonade these days.”
“Since this is a Coke establishment, I thought they must have Minute Maid lemonade right?” she shares.
Douglas says she asked for a Minute Maid lemonade, and she found out they no longer carry it. Douglas says she discovered that the new lemonade McDonald’s is offering is on par with the quality of the one Chick-fil-A or Wendy’s offers.
“This is homemade lemonade, and it tastes great. It honestly does. … They are going in the direction of Wendy’s and Chick-fil-A. Like if you want lemonade, you’re gonna have to pay extra for it since they make it with cane sugar or something else,” she says.
‘People May Not Realize They Are Ordering A Craft Drink’
In a conversation with BroBible, Douglas says she has noticed that soda prices have been increasing.
Douglas told BroBible, “Honestly the soda market is changing a ton. H-E-B no longer offers Coca Cola fountain drink options at their BBQ restaurants, Its all H-E-B soda options. A ton of local places use the main root, and now a lot of restaurants are making the switch to Pepsi co items.”
While she warns customers they will have to pay more if they want the lemonade, she doesn’t know if she was charged more.
“I actually don’t know for sure if I was charged extra. According to my research, lemonade is supposed to be a 30 to 60 cents upcharge at McDonald’s,” she said.
She does understand why there’s an upcharge for lemonade when it’s crafted by the fast-food place.
“I do like the craft lemonades the places are making though and I do understand the reason for the upcharge at most of these places, but a lot of people may not realize they are ordering a craft drink. So I was just saying they should be transparent about it. But like I said I’m not positive if I was in fact charged extra, I just know according to their website its supposed to cost more,” she said.
Why Does Lemonade Cost Extra At Fast-Food Places?
Getting a lemonade at a fast-food place simply takes the meal to the next level. One downside is that you will likely have to pay more for it.
The price of lemonade is usually determined by the cost to get the supplies, labor, and supply chain. Prices for cane sugar, lemons, and the water used will directly impact the cost. According to St. Louis Fed, a glass of lemonade cost 36 cents to produce in 2023.
Lemonade prices were first measured in the 1980s, and the price has tripled since then.
If the fast-food place uses freshly squeezed lemons, the price will be higher as more work is required to produce the lemonade.
Sporked reports that one gallon of Chick-fil-A lemonade costs over $12.
One Chick-fil-A employee shared on Reddit that staff is limited to one or two cups per shift due to its production cost. Chick-fil-A now uses a pre-mixed lemon juice, but workers and customers remembered the days the lemons were freshly-squeezed.
“It’s a premium product that has a premium price. There’s additional labor required to make it vs the rest,” one wrote.
“They used to juice the lemons in store,”another added.
“I just found out they no longer juice lemons in store,” a third wrote.
BroBible has contacted McDonald’s via email. The story will be updated if they respond.