I’m genuinely curious. Years ago, I was a chubby young pothead who lived on fast food. Taco Bell, McDonald’s, KFC, you name it—I ate it. Back in college, fast food probably made up at least 50% of my diet. And it wasn’t just because it was quick and cheap—I actually enjoyed it.
But these days, I find myself craving it less and less. Besides being more health-conscious, it just doesn’t hit the spot like it used to. It’s more expensive than ever, mostly bland, and I feel terrible after I eat it. So what’s changed? Is it just part of the enshitification of everything? Have I just gotten old, or has fast food really gone downhill?
It super isn’t. Pizza is still alright in my experience, but everywhere that has fried chicken tastes significantly worse than it used to.
The big chains got worse since there is basically a cheese monopoly in the US and its products have gotten cheaper to produce and worse quality. The expensive pizza places are still great because they typically don’t source their cheese from them. Can’t remember where I read that.
Ex. Pizza Hit in the 80s was incredible pizza. It’s meh now.