Wondering what temp are burgers, or chicken sandwiches supposed to come in at?

Wondering why anyone does this extra work for $1.50?
The answers to your questions about the temperatures are in the guidelines.
120 beef
125 chicken
150 fries

I do it - it only takes maybe 1 extra minute. Plus it also often fulfills a morbid curiosity about just how cold, cold fries are....lol

I would do more of these shops, but I have lost a lot of weight by eating healthier, and these just aren't worth it if I don't make a meal out of it.

@SoCalMama wrote:

Wondering why anyone does this extra work for $1.50?
The answers to your questions about the temperatures are in the guidelines.
120 beef
125 chicken
150 fries

Do you live down in Laguna Hills or Aliso Viejo?

@amberng wrote:

@SoCalMama wrote:

Wondering why anyone does this extra work for $1.50?
The answers to your questions about the temperatures are in the guidelines.
120 beef
125 chicken
150 fries

Do you live down in Laguna Hills or Aliso Viejo?

Ah, no. Why do you ask?

@SoCalMama wrote:

Ah, no. Why do you ask?

If I'm allowed to translate:

"We are in the midst of a once-in-a-century pandemic depression. 18.5 million Americans are on some form of unemployment, we have 10 million fewer jobs in the U.S. than we did pre-pandemic, 1/3rd of all small businesses shuttered in 2020, 5-6 millions of Americans are one eviction/rent moratorium away from being homeless, millions have drawn down their savings and increased their debt, and millions and their children go hungry every night.

Every cent and dollar helps right now! Perhaps those living in wealthier areas would not know this, though."

My former colleague from Mercury Insurance used to live in Laguna Hills. OP is asking if you're in a wealthy bubble, I believe.

@shoptastic wrote:

@SoCalMama wrote:

Ah, no. Why do you ask?

If I'm allowed to translate:

"We are in the midst of a once-in-a-century pandemic depression. 18.5 million Americans are on some form of unemployment, we have 10 million fewer jobs in the U.S. than we did pre-pandemic, 1/3rd of all small businesses shuttered in 2020, 5-6 millions of Americans are one eviction/rent moratorium away from being homeless, millions have drawn down their savings and increased their debt, and millions and their children go hungry every night.

Every cent and dollar helps right now! Perhaps those living in wealthier areas would not know this, though."

My former colleague from Mercury Insurance used to live in Laguna Hills. OP is asking if you're in a wealthy bubble, I believe.

No, my city is nicer than those. So random... It’s like asking if I live in Burbank or Encinitas.

Wasting 3-5 minutes to get the temps is not worth $1.50.
Plus it could take 2 minutes more to upload those photos.
I work smarter, not harder.

These take me 10 minutes total, including uploading. I can get $15 net for 10 minutes. I’m not adding 5 minutes to get $16.50 net.
No temps = $1.50/minute
With temps = $1.10/minute
With temps (with slow upload) = $0.97/minute

I can be on to another location instead of messing with temps.

@SoCalMama wrote:

No, my city is nicer than those. So random... It’s like asking if I live in Burbank or Encinitas.

Hmmm....You might be proving my point! Perhaps to the billionaire next door, B, E, LH, and AV are all an amorphous blob of run-of-the-mill real estate and communities, but back when I lived and worked in SoCal, the latter two were higher quality areas than the first two.

@ wrote:

Wasting 3-5 minutes to get the temps is not worth $1.50.

Mmmmm...I am not familiar with this shop, but that would not seem at all a waste of time if I were already doing the shop. I don't think most shoppers have your speed and number of shops lined up, so a comparative analysis probably isn't helpful. You seem like you are in the "Super Shopper" category, whereas most shoppers are not.

Let’s say with driving, I can do 3 in an hour with no temps = $15x3=$45

Witn temps I can do 2 in an hour
$16.50x2=$33

Take your pick. You can either pay attention or continue as is.

Didn’t your mentor Dave Ramsey get into trouble recently with too much truth as well regarding the stimulus checks?

@shoptastic wrote:

@SoCalMama wrote:

No, my city is nicer than those. So random... It’s like asking if I live in Burbank or Encinitas.

Hmmm....You might be proving my point! Perhaps to the billionaire next door, B, E, LH, and AV are all an amorphous blob of run-of-the-mill real estate and communities, but back when I lived and worked in SoCal, the latter two were higher quality areas than the first two.

@ wrote:

Wasting 3-5 minutes to get the temps is not worth $1.50.

Mmmmm...I am not familiar with this shop, but that would not seem at all a waste of time if I were already doing the shop. I don't think most shoppers have your speed and number of shops lined up, so a comparative analysis probably isn't helpful. You seem like you are in the "Super Shopper" category, whereas most shoppers are not.

Encinitas, average home price 1.3 million
Aliso Viejo, average home price 695,000
Burbank, average home price 943,000
Laguna Hills, Average home price 829,000

If you want to get ritzy, Rancho Palos Verdes 1.5 million
Del Mar 2.6 million

@SoCalMama wrote:

Encinitas, average home price 1.3 million
Aliso Viejo, average home price 695,000
Burbank, average home price 943,000
Laguna Hills, Average home price 829,000

If you want to get ritzy, Rancho Palos Verdes 1.5 million
Del Mar 2.6 million

But, I thought the prices =/= quality.

Some homes in more commercially-centralized areas are by nature higher in price, but not necessarily higher in quality (think NYC dumpy apartments that cost a fortune to live in). . . I won't say my understanding is accurate, as it's been so many years since living in SoCal, but I recall those two being nicer communities. *end off-topic chat*

@SoCalMama wrote:

Let’s say with driving, I can do 3 in an hour with no temps = $15x3=$45

Witn temps I can do 2 in an hour
$16.50x2=$33

Take your pick. You can either pay attention or continue as is.

Didn’t your mentor Dave Ramsey get into trouble recently with too much truth as well regarding the stimulus checks?

Yes, that might work out better for you. But, as I said, your situation might be different from others. For example, you may be an overall faster shopper and have more shops lined up. What if someone only has that one shop and has to run home afterwards to take care of their kids, cook a meal, etc.?

I'm not sure what you meant by the last comment.

@shoptastic wrote:

@SoCalMama wrote:

Let’s say with driving, I can do 3 in an hour with no temps = $15x3=$45

Witn temps I can do 2 in an hour
$16.50x2=$33

Take your pick. You can either pay attention or continue as is.

Didn’t your mentor Dave Ramsey get into trouble recently with too much truth as well regarding the stimulus checks?

Yes, that might work out better for you. But, as I said, your situation might be different from others. For example, you may be an overall faster shopper and have more shops lined up. What if someone only has that one shop and has to run home afterwards to take care of their kids, cook a meal, etc.?

I'm not sure what you meant by the last comment.

Here you go:

Dave Ramsey is against stimulus checks because ‘if $600 or $1,400 changes your life, you were pretty much screwed already’

@shoptastic wrote:

What if someone only has that one shop and has to run home afterwards to take care of their kids, cook a meal, etc.?

To expand on that, it could be "one" shop total (as in a single shop taken on the way home from work) or "one" shop of its kind (maybe OP couldn't get a route of them).

Basically, I was thinking there could be a variety of circumstances where taking that time to do that temp thing could be worth it. With the tremendous amount of economic suffering across the globe right now, every dollar and cent can help.

Btw, I did not mean to suggest you were a heartless wealthy person if it sounded that way at all. I am sorry if it came across that way! Rather, I was trying to interpret what OP may have been trying to say in light of the current economic conditions in America and a seemingly normal/rational choice to perform a quick and easy temperature check for extra money.

@SoCalMama wrote:

Dave Ramsey is against stimulus checks because ‘if $600 or $1,400 changes your life, you were pretty much screwed already’

Yeah, I saw that recently (he's made similar comments before on his show even in discussing non-stimulus related matters). I think he's out-of-touch there and I find it regrettable and harmful that he's made such remarks.

Off-topic: I don't view Ramsey as a "mentor." I listen to his program every now and then, because I think he has some good thoughts on a variety of financial topics. But, I strongly disagree with him on quite a lot.

Back to thread: ...my comment/question was I wasn't sure what you intended with that comment...like if it was a poke/jab to irritate me or if it related to how I was perceiving this thread topic, etc.

@shoptastic wrote:

@SoCalMama wrote:

Dave Ramsey is against stimulus checks because ‘if $600 or $1,400 changes your life, you were pretty much screwed already’

Yeah, I saw that recently (he's made similar comments before on his show even in discussing non-stimulus related matters). I think he's out-of-touch there and I find it regrettable and harmful that he's made such remarks.

Off-topic: I don't view Ramsey as a "mentor." I listen to his program every now and then, because I think he has some good thoughts on a variety of financial topics. But, I strongly disagree with him on quite a lot.

Back to thread: ...my comment/question was I wasn't sure what you intended with that comment...like if it was a poke/jab to irritate me or if it related to how I was perceiving this thread topic, etc.

My point is that you can't see the forest for the trees.
You're tripping over a dollar to save a dime, mostly. You're sliding backwards chasing that $1.50. I'm trying to explain why.

I don't disagree with what Dave Ramsey said at all. Here's the full quote:
Ramsey went on to say, “If $600 or $1,400 changes your life, you’re pretty much screwed already. You’ve got other issues going on.” He then suggested that these other issues could include excessive debt, relationship troubles or mental illness.

I'm not Donald Trump. I wasn't born rich. I paid for my own college. I got a job, usually worked two jobs. I work every day, either at my real job or shopping. Today, I commuted 2 hours, worked 9 hours and then did 2 hours worth of shops. Tomorrow, I am working only 8 hours, plus shopping before work (before 7 am) and after work (after 4 pm). My only day off in February was 2/19/21. I'm an essential worker, and I am exhausted.
Do I need to shop? Probably not, but my safety net is not $1000.

@SoCalMama wrote:

@shoptastic wrote:

Here you go:

Dave Ramsey is against stimulus checks because ‘if $600 or $1,400 changes your life, you were pretty much screwed already’

Then the majority of Americans and their children are screwed: 39% do not have cash to cover a car repair.

[www.cnbc.com]

Change one's life? The pandemic has already done that. It knocked us down. The stimulus check is to help keep as many if us as possible from falling off a cliff.

@Susan L. wrote:

@SoCalMama wrote:

@shoptastic wrote:

Here you go:

Dave Ramsey is against stimulus checks because ‘if $600 or $1,400 changes your life, you were pretty much screwed already’

Then the majority of Americans and their children are screwed: 39% do not have cash to cover a car repair.

[www.cnbc.com]

Change one's life? The pandemic has already done that. It knocked us down. The stimulus check is to help keep as many if us as possible from falling off a cliff.

Right. I saw that statistic when it came out. Pretty sad.

@SoCalMama wrote:

My point is that you can't see the forest for the trees.
You're tripping over a dollar to save a dime, mostly. You're sliding backwards chasing that $1.50. I'm trying to explain why.

SCM, I think we're talking past each other. I get what you're saying to OP.

You're saying there is an opportunity cost to taking 5 extra minutes to earn that extra $1.50 when you could earn more potentially doing other things (be it another of the same shop or some other type of work). That is a fine point for OP to consider. Nothing wrong with that. That does not negate what I was saying, though. They are just different points.

Sometimes people have their day set up where that shop is all they can conveniently squeeze in. It's not crazy to think spending a few minutes to take a temp, while you're already eating a burger (or whatever the food is), to get $1.50 is a bad deal. We just can't know without knowing a person's full circumstances (i.e., it's possible that $1.50/5-minutes IS the best earning opportunity for someone at a particular time). I know you can understand that, so essentially we're talking about different things/points. We can both have valid points at the same time without negating each other's.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/05/2021 07:48PM by shoptastic.

@SoCalMama wrote:

@Susan L. wrote:

[www.cnbc.com]
Change one's life? The pandemic has already done that. It knocked us down. The stimulus check is to help keep as many if us as possible from falling off a cliff.

Right. I saw that statistic when it came out. Pretty sad.

[www.mysteryshopforum.com]
If I may suggest, stimulus & economy talk can be done here, where there is frequent violation of forum etiquette on non-politics talk, as we couch the discussion in terms of "economics" instead (evading moderator sanction).

Actually, I don't want to derail OP's thread too much re: Ramsey. I'll just say that I think he's being incoherent and I am not sure I understand him anymore. I get he has a "caveman" style of communication: straight-forward/blunt/often loud/often aggressive/simple...or even oversimplified language. This can be effective at times in admonishing people and dispensing kernels of wisdom. However, he is not doing himself any favors when oversimplifying his views like with the above. Or, he's being a hypocrite. I don't know anymore.

What I know is that one of Ramsey's most often told stories on his program is being so broke after his first business failed that church members took pity on him and supplied his family with groceries so they could eat. What would he call that if not "stimulus" of some sort? On the topic of poverty, he's had a special program on it before where's he's said that being poor is often not the fault of the person in poverty. He listed, among other things, discrimination and disability, as some things that affect us and are beyond our control. Often when Dave makes these famous admonishing statements/rants about people's bad habits (which I do think is helpful in reminding us to be smart and responsible with our finances/time/talents, etc.), he can do so with overly simplified language and narrative. He can make sweeping statements about how/why someone is failing in life without allowing room for forces beyond their control. I know (or, at least, I think I do/did...as I believe he's being genuine) that he doesn't believe that poverty and struggle are all someone's personal fault. But, his caveman language makes it seem that way. I think I've heard him say something like: "When I go off on y'all, I'm assuming you're an able-bodied adult, who has the mental and physical capacity to apply your talents to earn a living for yourself in America. I'm not talking about those who have genuine issues beyond their control, where it's understandable they may not be able to produce the same kinds of results." *very loose paraphrase*

I always took it in the past that he was being the "tough love" dad type and speaking in overly simplified ways (with certain assumptions built in - noted above) to be able to more effectively drive his points home to those who are able, but simply lazy or lacking in knowledge. I.e., He's angrily yelling at you to shape up and teaching you how to improve your finances, so that you don't have to suffer what he did and can instead lead a happy and prosperous life. But, when he makes statements like the above re: stimulus, I wonder if I've misread him this entire time? I hope not. But, either way, I find his remarks hypocritical and harmful at a time of global economic crisis, where millions of people have lost their livelihood through no fault of their own.

Oh, bless your little hearts. I have done the temping shops then they changed the probe that you could do them with.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/06/2021 04:52PM by 2stepps.

@2stepps wrote:

Oh, bless your little hearts. I have done the temping shops then they changed the probe that you could do them with.

Hmmm...
Putting aside how long it takes and the $1.50, I can't help but ask what this involves?

Is it just sticking a temperature probe into your chicken sandwich/burger meat for a few seconds to record its temperature? *doesn't sound so hard if so* Only thing that might be weird to me would be how you all do it w/o attracting attention from other guests/staff? Or, are these takeout/drive-thru shops?

Temperature Checks: You stick a food thermometer into the fries and sandwich and take a picture of it such that both the item being tested and the thermometer reading are clearly visible.

I've done it a few times. My thermometer had issues getting a clear reading as it needed to be stuck in just right lest it read the lettuce, tomato, etc. temperature. I found it easiest to do this while holding the thermometer in one hand and the food in the other - making wish I had a third hand for the camera. I attempted setting the food on the car seat, but had a couple of spills and decided that I liked my car seats sans burger grease. Taking the time to go to a table or better surface to take a reading isn't really an option as the delay would discredit the temperature readings and cause the duration of the shop to take too long.

For me, dealing with the readings was simply not worth the $1.50. Perhaps somebody with better manual dexterity would find them more worthwhile?

@MFJohnston wrote:

Temperature Checks: You stick a food thermometer into the fries and sandwich and take a picture of it such that both the item being tested and the thermometer reading are clearly visible.

I've done it a few times. My thermometer had issues getting a clear reading as it needed to be stuck in just right lest it read the lettuce, tomato, etc. temperature. I found it easiest to do this while holding the thermometer in one hand and the food in the other - making wish I had a third hand for the camera. I attempted setting the food on the car seat, but had a couple of spills and decided that I liked my car seats sans burger grease. Taking the time to go to a table or better surface to take a reading isn't really an option as the delay would discredit the temperature readings and cause the duration of the shop to take too long.

For me, dealing with the readings was simply not worth the $1.50. Perhaps somebody with better manual dexterity would find them more worthwhile?

I have no problem with taking temp. I bought a cheap tray with sides to put the food on. I remove the top bun and produce which makes it easy to insert the thermometer into the burger only.

I thought about that... I didn't want a cheap tray.

I bought some food/cafeteria trays off of Amazon just to do drive-thru ff shops. They helped with stabilizing meals for both eating and getting pictures. My food trays would show up in the picture backgrounds...wondered if employees noticed this (if they saw pics)...so when doing shops again, I'd hide the trays out of sight while ordering and bring them out to use only after parking the car and out of sight.

Sounds like I'd need disposable plastic gloves for this messy probe thing. I hope those aren't shoe string fries you're probing.

They only allow certain types now it doesn't matter if you have an instant-read one or not. If it isn't on the list it will not count.

@shoptastic wrote:

@2stepps wrote:

Oh, bless your little hearts. I have done the temping shops then they changed the probe that you could do them with.

Hmmm...
Putting aside how long it takes and the $1.50, I can't help but ask what this involves?

Is it just sticking a temperature probe into your chicken sandwich/burger meat for a few seconds to record its temperature? *doesn't sound so hard if so* Only thing that might be weird to me would be how you all do it w/o attracting attention from other guests/staff? Or, are these takeout/drive-thru shops?

Had to take the front passenger seat out of my truck. I cut up some plywood and got a placemat from the Dollar tree so as not to be putting the food on raw wood.

@pegleg2000 wrote:

@MFJohnston wrote:

Temperature Checks: You stick a food thermometer into the fries and sandwich and take a picture of it such that both the item being tested and the thermometer reading are clearly visible.

I've done it a few times. My thermometer had issues getting a clear reading as it needed to be stuck in just right lest it read the lettuce, tomato, etc. temperature. I found it easiest to do this while holding the thermometer in one hand and the food in the other - making wish I had a third hand for the camera. I attempted setting the food on the car seat, but had a couple of spills and decided that I liked my car seats sans burger grease. Taking the time to go to a table or better surface to take a reading isn't really an option as the delay would discredit the temperature readings and cause the duration of the shop to take too long.

For me, dealing with the readings was simply not worth the $1.50. Perhaps somebody with better manual dexterity would find them more worthwhile?

I have no problem with taking temp. I bought a cheap tray with sides to put the food on. I remove the top bun and produce which makes it easy to insert the thermometer into the burger only.

Do they reimburse you for the thermometer? I see that the better one is $30.
Calibrating it at 32F is a joke. That's not the operating temperature. Anyone who knows anything about science knows this. Complete waste of time to do that.