THURSDAY, 10 SEPTEMBER 2026 — THE LATE EVENING EDITION

Food

Page K2

The Menu · what shitty food costs now

Under a Dollar

Meals as arithmetic on the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ average prices (U.S. city average, monthly). The number is the BLS’s; the serving suggestion is ours.

$0.45The Secretary's Plate — one egg ($0.18) + one slice of bread ($0.11, a loaf being sixteen) + one banana ($0.16, at four to the pound). The Agriculture Secretary's $3 meal, minus the chicken, the broccoli, the tortilla and the other thing. Serves one. Simulated over a thousand times. Eggs, grade A large, per dozen, $2.19 (Jul 2026); Bread, white, per pound, $1.82 (Jul 2026); Bananas, per pound, $0.65 (Jul 2026)
$0.44Rice, Two Ways — one cup of dry rice, about 0.4 lb. The second way is also rice. Water is municipal and, for now, included. Rice, white long grain, per pound, $1.10 (Jul 2026)
$0.47Baked Potato, Unaccompanied — one medium potato, about half a pound. Butter is a lifestyle. Sour cream is a mortgage. Potatoes, white, per pound, $0.94 (Jul 2026)
$0.23Toast — two slices of bread. Jam, butter and the morning paper are all extra. So is the toaster. Bread, white, per pound, $1.82 (Jul 2026)
$0.88Chicken, by the Ounce — seven ounces of a whole chicken, raw. The eighth ounce puts you over a dollar. Feathers, bones and the oven are yours to arrange. Chicken, fresh whole, per pound, $2.01 (Jul 2026)
$0.18The Egg — one egg, at twelve to the carton. Down from $0.52 in March 2025, when the advice was to get a chicken. The chicken is $2.01 a pound and does not lay on demand. Eggs, grade A large, per dozen, $2.19 (Jul 2026)
$0.86A Quarter of a Burger — two ounces of ground beef, no bun, no bun money. The other three quarters are $2.58 and the bun is negotiable. Beef is at the record; the herd is at 1951. Ground beef, per pound, $6.89 (2026)

The Chains

Dinner at the places everyone knows, then and now where a source carries both. Costco’s hot dog is the control group.

$5.91McDonald's, Big Mac: $4.39 (2019) → $5.91 (Sep 2026). McDonald's own fact sheet concedes menu prices up 40% since 2019 and calls it a myth that they went up more. (McDonald's Corp.; Menu Price Tracker)
$1.50Costco, Hot dog and a soda: $1.50 (1985) → $1.50 (Sep 2026). The control group. The CEO: "The price will not change as long as I'm around." At inflation it would be about $4.65. (NPR; Fortune)
$25–$30Applebee's, "2 for $20": $20 (the name) → $25–$30 (2026). The deal kept the name and lost the number: "2 for $20" now runs $22 to $25 at many locations, with a "2 for $25" and a "2 for $30" alongside. (menu trackers)
$16.99Chili's, 3 For Me: $10.99 (2026) → $16.99 (2026). Three tiers: $10.99 for the burgers, $14.99 for the Crispers, $16.99 for sirloin and pasta. The "3 for $10" of the ads is the bottom tier, before the drink refill. (USA Food Journal, Aug 2026)
$21.79–$23.99Olive Garden, Tour of Italy: $21.79–$23.99 (Jun–Aug 2026). Three entrées on one plate, 1,550 calories, and the breadsticks are still unlimited, which is the last unlimited thing. (USA Food Journal)
$7.99–$16.50Subway, Footlong: $5 (the jingle) → $7.99–$16.50 (2026). The $5 footlong is a jingle now. Subway's answer, April 2026: a value menu with fifteen entrées under $5, none of them a footlong. (Subway newsroom; MenuPriceToday)
$5.73Buc-ee's, Beaver Nuggets, the bag: $5.73 (2026). Sweet corn puffs. Three bags shipped from Walmart run $37.99, which is the nuggets plus a small tariff on not being in Texas. (Buc-ee's menu tracker; Walmart)

Sweep rule: the BLS rows move monthly; a chain’s price goes stale in a season. Desk verified 6 September 2026.

The Climb the menu’s prices and the chains’ share prices · January 2019 = 100 on every panel, each on its own range · dividends reinvested

The plate

The egg

The shareholders

The numbers

Month	Eating out	Ground beef, a pound	Whole chicken, a pound	Bread, a loaf	Everything	Eggs, a dozen	McDonald's	Costco	Olive Garden	Chili's	Applebee's
2019-01	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100
2019-02	100	99	101	101	100	100	104	102	107	113	130
2019-03	100	98	100	99	101	99	107	113	116	110	121
2019-04	101	99	99	101	101	94	111	115	113	106	117
2019-05	101	101	100	101	101	88	112	112	112	94	125
2019-06	101	100	108	100	101	77	118	124	117	99	127
2019-07	102	100	106	100	101	80	119	129	117	100	109
2019-08	102	100	103	100	101	78	124	138	117	96	94
2019-09	102	101	101	102	102	89	122	135	114	108	102
2019-10	102	101	104	104	102	82	112	140	109	113	98
2019-11	102	100	97	107	102	90	111	141	115	114	111
2019-12	103	102	98	107	102	99	113	138	106	108	113
2020-01	103	102	96	106	103	94	123	144	114	109	116
2020-02	103	102	92	108	103	93	112	133	96	88	111
2020-03	104	102	95	108	102	98	95	134	53	31	41
2020-04	104	107	107	110	101	130	108	143	72	60	63
2020-05	104	117	·	111	101	106	108	146	75	68	64
2020-06	105	125	119	116	102	100	107	143	74	62	60
2020-07	105	112	116	117	102	90	113	154	74	70	64
2020-08	105	110	109	117	103	86	125	165	85	117	84
2020-09	106	107	105	117	103	87	128	168	99	111	77
2020-10	106	105	107	118	103	91	124	170	90	113	73
2020-11	106	106	111	119	103	93	128	186	106	130	89
2020-12	107	104	110	121	104	95	126	184	117	146	82
2021-01	107	104	108	121	104	94	122	172	115	152	98
2021-02	107	105	108	121	104	103	122	162	136	178	112
2021-03	107	106	105	120	105	105	132	172	140	184	128
2021-04	108	108	103	118	106	104	140	182	146	174	137
2021-05	108	108	101	119	106	105	139	185	142	159	135
2021-06	109	115	100	118	107	106	137	194	145	160	127
2021-07	110	115	97	117	108	106	144	210	146	141	110
2021-08	110	118	100	115	108	110	142	223	151	138	117
2021-09	111	118	102	124	108	118	144	220	152	127	115
2021-10	112	124	103	120	110	117	147	241	145	109	120
2021-11	112	124	108	121	110	111	147	265	139	90	102
2021-12	113	121	109	120	111	115	161	278	152	95	108
2022-01	114	120	110	122	112	124	156	248	142	86	97
2022-02	114	122	111	124	113	129	148	255	147	110	120
2022-03	115	125	117	126	114	132	149	283	135	99	112
2022-04	115	129	122	126	114	162	150	262	135	94	103
2022-05	116	126	124	126	115	184	152	230	128	79	106
2022-06	117	129	124	133	117	174	150	236	116	57	94
2022-07	118	129	128	135	117	189	160	267	129	72	103
2022-08	119	130	128	138	117	200	154	257	128	63	96
2022-09	120	128	128	137	117	187	141	233	131	65	92
2022-10	122	127	126	142	118	220	166	248	149	86	105
2022-11	122	128	125	145	118	231	168	266	153	87	109
2022-12	122	126	124	147	118	274	162	226	144	83	95
2023-01	123	126	126	148	119	310	164	252	156	102	113
2023-02	124	126	129	149	119	271	163	240	150	98	112
2023-03	125	127	127	152	120	222	173	246	163	98	100
2023-04	125	126	127	156	120	210	183	249	161	103	96
2023-05	126	130	130	153	120	172	176	254	168	95	88
2023-06	126	132	133	152	120	143	185	267	177	95	86
2023-07	127	134	128	155	121	135	182	278	181	102	90
2023-08	127	134	133	155	121	132	176	273	166	85	82
2023-09	128	134	129	155	122	133	164	281	153	82	74
2023-10	128	138	131	157	122	133	164	274	157	88	74
2023-11	128	141	134	155	122	138	177	295	169	93	65
2023-12	129	137	133	159	122	161	186	336	177	112	76
2024-01	130	132	135	160	123	162	184	354	177	111	71
2024-02	130	135	132	158	123	193	185	379	186	120	74
2024-03	130	135	135	157	124	192	178	373	182	129	72
2024-04	130	138	133	157	124	184	172	369	168	139	68
2024-05	131	135	137	155	124	174	164	414	165	183	61
2024-06	132	144	136	155	124	175	162	434	166	187	56
2024-07	132	145	135	155	124	198	169	420	162	173	56
2024-08	132	147	135	153	124	206	184	456	175	185	49
2024-09	132	149	134	155	125	246	195	453	182	198	50
2024-10	133	147	135	152	125	217	187	447	179	266	48
2024-11	133	148	141	150	125	235	189	498	197	342	57
2024-12	134	148	140	150	126	267	186	469	209	342	48
2025-01	134	146	140	151	126	319	186	502	220	471	49
2025-02	134	148	139	151	127	380	198	537	226	427	40
2025-03	135	152	140	148	127	401	202	485	234	386	38
2025-04	136	153	140	150	127	330	207	510	228	348	33
2025-05	136	157	140	147	127	293	203	534	243	447	40
2025-06	136	161	142	146	127	243	190	508	247	467	41
2025-07	137	164	141	145	128	232	195	482	230	408	38
2025-08	137	166	141	144	128	231	204	485	236	404	40
2025-09	138	166	140	146	128	224	199	476	218	328	42
2025-10	·	·	·	·	·	·	195	469	208	281	42
2025-11	138	172	139	140	129	184	204	470	207	398	54
2025-12	139	176	137	144	129	174	201	444	212	372	55
2026-01	139	178	139	145	129	166	207	484	231	408	59
2026-02	140	177	139	145	130	161	224	521	248	384	53
2026-03	140	176	138	142	131	151	206	514	228	370	46
2026-04	140	182	138	147	132	145	194	523	235	394	48
2026-05	141	178	138	144	132	141	185	494	238	368	54
2026-06	141	180	139	142	132	138	180	483	241	435	63
2026-07	142	181	136	143	132	141	180	492	240	553	63
2026-08	·	·	·	·	·	·	176	488	253	592	58
2026-09	·	·	·	·	·	·	172	473	256	596	55

Food: Bureau of Labor Statistics average prices and CPI, via FRED. Shares: monthly adjusted closes, dividends reinvested. Subway and Buc-ee’s are private companies and have no line. As of 6 September 2026.

Let Them Eat Beef

the cake line, updated · beef at the record, the herd at 1951, and the official advice is more beef · as of 25 August 2026

The bill

Ground beef, national average$6.89 a pound this year, the record — up 72 percent since January 2020, climbing at the fastest annual rate since 2018 (2026)
The herd86.2 million head, the smallest since 1951 — drought, costs, and the screwworm did the culling (USDA, 2026)
The forecastnormal prices projected no sooner than 2028, per the trade's own reading (2026)

The service

The room

The National Cattlemen's Beef Association, on the record"The National Cattlemen's Beef Association and its members cannot stand behind the President while he undercuts the future of family farmers and ranchers by importing Argentinian beef in an attempt to influence prices."
Meriwether Farms of Wyoming, addressing the president directly"We love you and support you — but your suggestion to buy beef from Argentina to stabilize beef prices would be an absolute betrayal to the American cattle rancher."
The wellness wingThe MAHA program promotes more animal protein onto the American plate while the record prints.

The herd takes a decade to rebuild; the post took a minute to write. Prices are projected normal in 2028 at the earliest. Dinner is scheduled nightly.

The Food Section

The TACO Timeline

TACO — Trump Always Chickens Out, the name the trading desks gave the pattern. Every documented threat that folded, oldest first: the bold vow to seize the news cycle, then the quiet retreat. A history of chaos — 47 and counting, from the country’s forty-seventh president.

Apr 2017
"NATO is obsolete," a 2016 line carried into office→ Standing beside NATO's chief: "I said it was obsolete. It's no longer obsolete."NPR
Apr 2017
Prepared to "terminate" NAFTA within days→ After calls from Mexico and Canada, agreed to renegotiate instead — it became USMCANPR
Dec 2018
Ordered a "full" and "rapid" withdrawal of all ~2,000 US troops from Syria, declaring ISIS defeated→ Reversed within days after backlash and Mattis's resignation; troops stayed, drawn down only to ~900BBC
2018–19
Forced the longest government shutdown in US history demanding $5.7B for the border wall, vowing not to reopen without it→ Signed a bill reopening the government with no wall money — the same deal he had already rejectedNBC News
2017–19
Warned North Korea that continued threats would be met "with fire and fury," mocking Kim as "Little Rocket Man"→ Pivoted to summitry — Singapore 2018, Hanoi 2019 — and walked out of Hanoi with no deal and no follow-onWikipedia
Apr 2019
Threatened to close the southern border "next week"→ Backed off, downgraded to a "one-year warning" for MexicoNPR
May 2019
Threatened 25% Section 232 "national security" tariffs on EU and Japanese autos→ Delayed the decision 180 days; the deadline passed with no action and the tariffs were never imposedCongressional Research Service
Jun 2019
Said the US was "cocked and loaded" to strike three Iranian sites after Iran downed a US drone→ Called off the strike about ten minutes before launch, citing projected casualtiesCNN
Jun 2019
Threatened 5% tariffs on all Mexican imports, rising to 25%, unless Mexico curbed migration→ "Indefinitely suspended" the tariffs after Mexico agreed to steps largely already under wayCNBC
2018–20
Launched a trade war with escalating tariffs on ~$550B of Chinese goods to force structural change→ Settled for a limited "Phase One" truce; China's purchase pledges went largely unmetBritannica
Jan 2021
25% tariffs on $1.3B of French luxury goods over the digital tax, set for Jan 6 2021→ The US suspended the tariffs indefinitely one day before they were to take effectWashington Post
2020–21
Ordered ~9,500 US troops pulled from Germany over defense-spending complaints→ The withdrawal was never carried out before he left office; formally halted in 2021CBS News
Nov 2024
Named Matt Gaetz his Attorney General nominee→ Gaetz withdrew under Senate pressure eight days later; Trump accepted it and picked BondiNPR
Jan 2025
Announced emergency 25% tariffs on all Colombian goods, threatening to double them to 50% in a week, after Colombia blocked deportation flights→ Put the tariffs "on hold" within hours after Colombia agreed to take the flightsCBS News
2020–25
Issued a 2020 order to ban TikTok or force its sale over national-security fears→ Flipped to "saving" it, signing repeated 2025 orders to keep it running and delay the banNPR
Feb 2025
"The US will take over and own" Gaza and turn it into a "Riviera"→ Within 24 hours his own officials walked it back: no US troops, no US funding, relocation "temporary"Euronews
Feb 2025
Ordered 25% tariffs on Canadian imports over fentanyl and the border, set to take effect Feb 4→ Paused them for 30 days after Canada announced border-enforcement stepsCNBC
Feb 2025
Ordered 25% tariffs on all Mexican imports over fentanyl and the border→ Paused them for 30 days after Mexico agreed to send 10,000 troops to the borderPBS NewsHour
Mar 2025
"We're taking back" the Panama Canal, refusing to rule out military force→ Settled for a BlackRock-led consortium buying the canal's ports; no US takeover, the canal stays PanamanianCBS News
Mar 2025
Nominated Rep. Elise Stefanik as UN ambassador→ Withdrew the nomination to protect the thin House GOP majorityCNBC
Apr 2025
Posted that Fed Chair Jerome Powell's "termination cannot come fast enough"→ Said days later he had "no intention" of firing Powell — "none whatsoever"CNBC
Apr 2025
Declared "Liberation Day," imposing sweeping "reciprocal" tariffs on nearly every trading partner→ Paused the country-specific tariffs for 90 days hours after they hit and markets plunged, keeping a 10% baselinePolitiFact
Apr 2025
Escalated tariffs on Chinese goods to 145%→ Slashed them to 30% under a 90-day Geneva truce weeks laterPBS NewsHour
Apr 2025
Insisted there would be "no exemptions" from the reciprocal tariffs→ Exempted smartphones, computers and chips days after imposing themCNBC
May 2025
Threatened a "straight 50%" tariff on the EU starting June 1, calling the bloc impossible to deal with→ Delayed it to July 9 two days later after a call with von der Leyen; settled on a 15% dealCNBC
May 2025
Ordered a 100% tariff on "any and all" foreign-made movies→ The White House walked it back within a day: "no final decisions," focus shifted to tax incentivesNPR
Jun 2025
Ordered ICE to pause worksite raids on farms, hotels and restaurants, bowing to the farm lobby→ Reversed the pause four days laterNBC News
Jul 2025
Threatened Vietnam with a 46% tariff→ Cut it to 20% in a trade dealCNBC
Jul 2025
Threatened pharmaceutical tariffs "up to 200%," later "250%," coming "very soon"→ Gave a grace period "of about a year, year and a half"; pharma stayed exempt into 2026CNBC
Jul 2025
Threatened Japan with 25% tariffs by the Aug 1 deadline→ Cut to 15% in a trade dealNBC News
Jul 2025
Threatened South Korea with a 25% tariff by the Aug 1 deadline→ Cut to 15% in a trade deal days before the deadlineCNN
Jul 2025
The Pentagon paused weapons shipments to Ukraine→ Trump reversed it within a week: "we're going to send some more weapons"NPR
Jul 2025
Gave Putin a 50-day ultimatum, later shortened to 10–12 days, to reach a ceasefire or face 100% tariffs and sanctions→ The deadline passed with no new sanctions; he hosted Putin at an Alaska summit insteadCNBC
Aug 2025
Announced a blanket 50% tariff on copper imports; COMEX copper spiked to records→ The fine print exempted refined copper, cathodes and ore — only semi-finished goods hit; futures then plungedWhite & Case
Aug 2025
Announced a 100% tariff on imported semiconductors→ Carved out, in the same breath, every company "building in the US" — Apple, TSMC and the rest — hollowing the threatCNBC
Oct 2025
Threatened an additional 100% tariff on China over rare-earth curbs, effective Nov 1→ Dropped the 100% threat at the Xi summit, agreed a one-year truce and actually cut China tariffsCNBC
Nov 2025
Slapped a 50% tariff on Brazil over Bolsonaro's prosecution→ Carved out coffee, beef, orange juice and other top exports; coffee later cut to zeroSupply Chain Dive
Nov 2025
Hit Switzerland with a 39% tariff, one of the highest on any country→ Cut it to 15% in a trade dealCNN
Mar 2026
48-hour ultimatum: reopen the Strait of Hormuz or the US will "hit and obliterate" Iran's power plants→ Postponed the strikes five days, citing "very good and productive" talks Iran said never happenedCNBC
Mar 2026
The five-day pause expired with a renewed threat to destroy Iran's power grid→ Extended the pause another ten days, saying talks were "going very well"Al Jazeera
Apr 2026
Deadline-day threat: "a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again" if no deal→ About ten hours later called off the strike and announced a two-week ceasefire brokered by PakistanNBC News
Apr 2026
With the two-week ceasefire expiring, teed up an attack if Iran didn't submit a proposal→ Extended the ceasefire indefinitely, "until such time as their proposal is submitted"Al Jazeera
May 2026
"Scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow"→ Told the military "we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack": "I put it off for a little while, hopefully maybe forever"CNBC
Jul 2026
"I am considering a massive attack. Bigger than ever before. We are all set for it"→ Pulled back to negotiations days later, saying he'd give diplomacy another chanceAxios
Aug 2026
"Locked and loaded and ready to go," threatening "large new attacks" on Iran's energy infrastructure→ Canceled the planned strikes; his claim that a deal was pending was denied by IranNPR
Aug 2026
Threatened 50% tariffs on Canada, effective midnight→ Paused with two hours to spare — "we have a deal," pending paperwork. The deal collapsed in three days and the tariffs took effect August 22; the fold stands, and so does the sequel.CNN
Aug 2026
Ordered the joint drills with South Korea "substantially reduced" to please Pyongyang→ The ally ran the exercises anyway; Seoul said they proceed as scheduledLatin Times

The Betters’ Cookbook

Money-saving meals, brought to you by the people who raised the bill. Their advice, their words — each served with the receipt.

“It can cost around $3 a meal for a piece of chicken, a piece of broccoli, a corn tortilla and one other thing. There is a way to do this that actually will save the average American consumer money. (They ran "over 1,000 simulations.")”

— Brooke Rollins, Agriculture Secretary, Jan 2026

The receipt: Groceries cost the average family about $310 more in 2025. §

“People are sort of looking around thinking, "Wow, well maybe I can get a chicken in my backyard," and it's awesome.”

— Brooke Rollins, Agriculture Secretary, March 2025

The receipt: Eggs hit a record near $6.23 a dozen that month, up roughly 350% on the year. §

“Fast food is not less expensive. That meal costs $12 to $14. People can eat a lot cheaper at home and a lot better food. (Launching a cooking show pitching meals "under $5 a serving.")”

— RFK Jr., Health & Human Services Secretary, July 2026

The receipt: A CNN reporter cooked his $19.64 salmon-cakes meal on air. The checkout rang up $70.54. §

“I don't have anything against fast food; I'm against food that has seed oils. (He wants the fries fried in beef tallow instead.)”

— RFK Jr., Health & Human Services Secretary, 2025

The receipt: The beef his tallow gospel runs on hit an all-time record, past $6 a pound. §

“He drinks only raw, unpasteurized milk, and campaigns to loosen the restrictions on selling it.”

— RFK Jr., Health & Human Services Secretary, 2024

The receipt: Raw milk sells well above pasteurized — and the FDA warns it can carry bird flu and listeria. §

As advised by your betters

What the comfortable think you can do without — their words, sourced.

“My mother-in-law, who's 94, she wouldn't call and complain if a Social Security check didn't come. A fraudster always makes the loudest noise.”

— Howard Lutnick, Commerce Secretary, March 2025

“When I was trying to buy my first home, I wasn't buying smashed avocado for nineteen bucks and four coffees at four dollars each.”

— Tim Gurner, property developer, 2017