The doner, known as Germany’s national dish, is being skewered by the rising prices of ingredients amid cost of living crisis, MPs are told
It has always been a delicious – if slightly greasy – treat for Germans, perhaps even their national dish.
But the mighty döner kebab has now become a symbol of the country’s cost of living crisis, amid warnings from some quarters that the dish will soon cost more than €10 a serving.
Peckish Germans are so concerned about rising prices that the issue was debated this week in the Bundestag, the German parliament.
Hanna Steinmüller, an MP for the Greens, raised the issue after she was approached by anxious members of a frisbee youth club in Gesundbrunnen, part of her Berlin constituency.
Among the frisbee players’ main concerns, she told MPs, was “increased kebab prices” which are estimated to have gone up from around €3.50 (£2.90) in 2022 to at least €6 (£5.10) in recent months.
In November, one major döner producer warned that it was becoming a “luxury” dish that could soon end up costing as much as €10 (£8.50).
Same for burger prices in the US.
Back when I was in college and shortly after, I pretty much lived on $0.99 Whoppers from Burger King.
Looking at the app, the local price now is $10.23, which is €9.48 or £8.09.
Although that is a great drunk food metric for the Midwest. Southwestern border states track burrito inflation, northeastern states track the cost of a slice, and southeastern states drunk food currency is pegged to the Waffle House bill.
The reason I went with burgers is because of the whole notion of the kabob being a national dish for Germany.
Burritos and pizza and wafflehouse are all popular, but nothing is as national as burgers.
I ordered a Burger King last week and it was £11.46 for a double whopper meal, around $14.48 or €13.40. It’s not a cheap meal any more.