patrick.net

Much better to have breakfast at home - how can you drink 2 shots of vodka or a bloody mary at dennys with your omlette?

I try to explain the south Florida take on a good old fashioned NY Jewish deli to my kids, but it really gets lost in Einstein Bagels. The only thing left in South Florida that merely resembles one.

As for the native joints still left, I think "Tropical Acres(Steakhouse)" and "Tarks(Clam stand though down to one location)" are the only two original establishments left, from when I came here in 1984.

There's Rustic Inn(Crab joint) but it's no where near the same. And a few others that aren't worth noting for the same reasons.

rooemoore says

Their competitors will ALSO have to provide health insurance so the playing field remains level.

Their competitors will also cut hours to below 30/week. That's how competition really works.

I call bullshit. Since when does Denny's or any other business charge customers as little as possible? All businesses price their goods at whatever results in the maximum profits. If they price the goods lower than that, then total profits go down even if sales go up. If they price the goods higher than that, then total profits go down as sales go down.

Every business knows exactly what that price level is. Running a business is 80% about finding exactly what that price is and zeroing in on it.

The thing is, this price level has only to do with supply and demand. It has absolutely nothing to do with cost. The price level at which profits are maximum is completely independent of cost.

Whenever a business says they are adjusting prices because of cost, including Obamacare, they are bullshitting you.

That pair of Prada sunglasses doesn't cost $250 dollars to make. It costs $1.25 to make. It is priced at $250 because enough people are willing to pay that much to make that price the point of maximum profit.

That "grand slam" breakfast doesn't cost $10 to make. It's priced at $10 because enough people are willing to pay that much to make that price the point of maximum profit.

FortWayne says

If I don't like the price I won't go to Denny's.

They might want to improve their quality too, they are dated, just an expensive fast food chain.

There's an old saying. No one sets out to go do Denny's. You just end up there at 2 a.m. because everyplace else is closed.

How might Denny's prices change if we stopped subsidizing corn? The combination of subsidizing unhealthy food and medical intervention seems to be enriching corporate executives at both ends of the feedlot.

Dan8267 says

There's an old saying. No one sets out to go do Denny's. You just end up there at 2 a.m. because everyplace else is closed.

Screw that, food is at home. Omelette is easy to make and cheap. If I'm on the road and starving I hit Waffle House, might as well get a case of the trots or a fresh cold from some fellow night stalkers. The things that eat in Dennys at 2AM are NOT HUMAN!

SFace says

Ellie, that is inaccurate. There is no way a restaurant achieve 90% gross margin overall.

A friend is a manager of a dennys - the food cost is 10%. Of course, there are other costs including labor, physical plant, etc on top of that. Almost all of the food that Denny's serves is made in some central area and sent frozen. Their steaks (which taste like shit, btw) don't even look like food when they arrive at the restaurant.

Come to think of it, they don't look much like food when they're served to you either.

Vicente says

The things that eat in Dennys at 2AM are NOT HUMAN!

Are they vampires or werewolves? What would these creatures do during cannibal anarchy?

Vicente says

Screw that, food is at home. Omelette is easy to make and cheap. If I'm on the road and starving I hit Waffle House, might as well get a case of the trots or a fresh cold from some fellow night stalkers. The things that eat in Dennys at 2AM are NOT HUMAN!

Waffle House, man those are Scary. I'd rather eat the grease out of the trap at Taco Bell, than take my life in my hands. I've actually never seen a clean Waffle House.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/11/15/the-corporate-blackmailing-of-america-is-now-all-the-rage/

"For the past week, I have watched with amazement as one restaurant chain after another—the very people who peddle the high caloric foods laden with the fat and sugar that have contribute so mightily to the nation’s health problems and the resulting costs—announced their plans to cut back on employee work hours."

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kentm says

the very people who peddle the high caloric foods laden with the fat and sugar that have contribute so mightily to the nation’s health problems and the resulting costs

It's not like any food chain is forcing people to eat food laden with fat and sugar, it's what the consumers are choosing.

Yeah but the premiums they will forcibly steal from the middle class will pay for the deficit. I will go from paying 4000 a year to 13000. I still don't use it. I never use. Their s a large fraud occurring once again. I should be able to not pay based on my own damn choice!

So let me see if I understand this. He's increasing prices 5% across the board due to Obamacare, and reducing workers hours so he don't have to give them health care. If he's not giving them healthcare, why the hell does he need the 5% surcharge? Sounds like someone is using Obamacare as an excuse to get richer.

thunderlips11 says

Waffle House, man those are Scary

I saw a CNN article the other day, that had "Waffle House CEO" in the title.
I commented "Wait a minute, you mean there's a CEO, has he eaten there?"
and got a few hundred likes.

TechGromit says

So let me see if I understand this. He's increasing prices 5% across the board due to Obamacare, and reducing workers hours so he don't have to give them health care. If he's not giving them healthcare, why the hell does he need the 5% surcharge?

Likely it's a convenient excuse to raise prices and make a political statement; although with a high enough ratio of wait staff to kitchen employees he could theoretically get there from Federal unemployment taxes, state unemployment taxes, compliance, and recruiting costs

The Federal Unemployment Tax Act wage base is $7000 and rate 6% against which you get a credit for state unemployment taxes, so for each employee earning at least $7000 a year you're out $420.

Federal minimum wage is $7.55 an hour; although employers only need to pay tipped employees $2.13 provided they earn enough in tips for their net pay to equal or exceed the minimum wage.

Tips are included in the wages against which employers are charged unemployment taxes, FICA, and Medicare.

Before Obamacare for 2000 man hours of wait staff work assuming 40 hours a week and 10 national holidays he may have been paying $420 + 2000 * $2.13 (minimum wage for tipped employees provided that tips take them over the $7.55 minimum) + 2000 * $7.55 minimum wage * (6.2% FICA + 1.45% Medicare which employers are required to pay on tips) = $5415 a year or $2.71 / hour

After for 28 hours a week over 50 weeks totaling 1400 hours he's paying $4210 or $3.01 / hour which is 10% more.

OTOH, 2000 hours of non-tipped work cost $16675 before or $8.34/hour
1400 hours of non-tipped work cost $11799 after or $8.43/hour or 1% more.

zzyzzx says

It's not like any food chain is forcing people to eat food laden with fat and sugar, it's what the consumers are choosing.

To a large extent true, but it's not like consumers have much of a choice. When 70% of the consumer base wants to eat shit, the other 30% aren't worth pursuing except for niche businesses which are typically only opened during peak hours.

When was the last time you saw a 24-hour Salad Creations? Meanwhile 24-hour fast food restaurants and low-quality chains are common.

KILLERJANE says

Yeah but the premiums they will forcibly steal from the middle class will pay for the deficit. I will go from paying 4000 a year to 13000. I still don't use it. I never use. Their s a large fraud occurring once again. I should be able to not pay based on my own damn choice!

So let's say you got what you want - you don't have to buy health insurance because you don't "need" it. And by the same token, the government doesn't have to guarantee health insurance to you, so you can be denied insurance if you get sick. What if you got a treatable but very expensive disease that is beyond your means to pay for in cash? Would you agree to let yourself die? See, I don't believe that you would. I think that once you got sick, you would change your tune and you would want to live.

But where else can you get a Lumberjack Grand Slam, that contains almost an entire day's recommended allowance of fat, and almost 2 days worth of cholesterol and sodium?

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Denny's shut down 88 stores last year and plans to shut down 70 to 90 this year.

The CFO for Denny's says the average age of the stores to be shut down are 30 years.

The Denny's website lists 115 Denny's locations in 78 Florida cities, the websites shows for California (354) and Texas (195).

There are 1,323 Denny's locations in the United States.

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There are a lot more Waffle Houses in Florida than Denny's.

Seems like it has taken a lot of business from Denny's.

Is Denny's a dying brand ? When does it file for bankruptcy ?

Seems like it has as good of a chance of getting bought out as a JC Penney.
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Homeboy says

But where else can you get a Lumberjack Grand Slam, that contains almost an entire day's recommended allowance of fat, and almost 2 days worth of cholesterol and sodium?

When I order the "All Star Special" at Waffle House I make sure I maximize my calorie intake for free by selecting sausage (not bacon), hash browns (not grits), and grilled biscuit (instead of toast). This adds 470 calories to my meal without increasing any cost for it.

https://order.wafflehouse.com/menu/waffle-house-1491/products/67134659

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AD says

Denny's shut down 88 stores last year and plans to shut down 70 to 90 this year.

Not really a surprise. Local breakfast joints make more money. I think chains are slowly going away in that realm. If you can get a liquor license, breakfast is a high margin food service industry. You can charge $13-15 per omelette and walk with 20-30% after wages which is high in food service.

A steak dinner not so much. 10-20% at a good place. A skillet or omelette with a mimosa or two and you're making good money if you got a decent lease and cook.

My son pole vaults every Sunday. I go get breakfast the first hour before he jumps. Breakfast place is packed. They don't do dinner. So hours aren't shit for staff. I'd never open a restaurant, but breakfast is the way to go.

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Denny's market cap is $261 million for 1,323 stores, or roughly $197,000 per store.

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WookieMan says

Not really a surprise. Local breakfast joints make more money. I think chains are slowly going away in that realm. If you can get a liquor license, breakfast is a high margin food service industry. You can charge $13-15 per omelette and walk with 20-30% after wages which is high in food service.

Yep, either they re-invent or innovate, or they go the way of Kmart and Sears :-/

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Everywhere I see a Denny's building they are closed up. End of franchises around here just going into one would be embarrassing.

Denny's have all closed around here as well. Maybe they should not have changed their name from Sambo's.

drew_eckhardt says

Federal minimum wage is $7.55 an hour; although employers only need to pay tipped employees $2.13 provided they earn enough in tips for their net pay to equal or exceed the minimum wage.

Drew's post was in 2012, now its $10.98 for tipped workers (with a $3.02 per hour tip credit) in Florida. They used to pay around $9 an hour in 2014 for fast food in Panama City Beach, but now pay around $15, so about a 5% annual increase in hourly wages from 2014 to 2024.

The costs get passed on to the customers and that's why places like Dennys have not fared well, in addition to competition from Waffle House.

Though Denny's has better prices than Waffle House

https://www.dennys.com/location/dennys-8886/menu/2468-value-menu

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