The Part of the Order Fast-Food Restaurants Get Wrong So Often

Is it pointless to request a specific number of ketchup packets?

First things first.

I do understand that fast food, as it is commonly called, is not the best choice when it comes to a healthy diet. No argument there.

Having said that, it’s also important to acknowledge that the fast-food experience can fill a need when we’re pressed for time or simply not in the mood to cook. At least for some of us. I know people who would rather miss a meal, maybe even two, than find themselves staring at a menu board serving up a dozen variations on the sandwich, fries, and soda theme.

In fact, I am trending that way myself. Steamed vegetables hold more appeal for me now, at least in terms of being part of my regular diet, than cheeseburgers or chicken sandwiches.

But that doesn’t mean the fast-food temptation doesn’t win out from time to time.

A fast-food experiment

Since Nov. 1, 2021, I’ve ordered fast food 10 times. That may sound like a lot — an average of once every 11 days or so, but given my dietary habits prior to 2020, it is no stretch to say that I’ve made amazing progress.

Why am I so certain of the number of times I’ve eaten fast food since November of last year? Because I decided to do an experiment over 10 visits, regardless of how long those 10 visits would take.

The experiment consisted of asking for a specific number of ketchup packets, either when prompted by an employee or when adding it to my order, and seeing how many times the number of packets received matched the number I requested.

The results were disappointing, to say the least.

Because I am not writing this to cast aspersions on any particular fast-food chain, the list below will not contain restaurant names that got it wrong, just the relevant stats and then a shout-out to the establishment that got it right twice.

In every visit recorded below, I asked for four (4) ketchup packets to go with my combo meal of a burger, fries, and drink.

November 2021 Visit 1: 6 ketchup packets Visit 2: Zero (0) ketchup packets Visit 3: 8 ketchup packets Visit 4: 11 ketchup packets

December 2021 Visit 5: 5 ketchup packets Visit 6: 13 ketchup packets (This was just a few days before Christmas, so maybe staffers were in the giving spirit.) Visit 7: 4 ketchup packets (We have a winner!!!)

January 2022 Visit 8: 6 ketchup packets

February 2022 Visit 9: 7 ketchup packets Visit 10: 4 ketchup packets (A repeat winner — this was the same place that got it right in late December!)

Based on this very limited experiment at a total of seven fast-food chains, I have to conclude that only one of them emphasizes the importance of listening to customers.

It’s a very small sample, to be sure, but congratulations are still in order to In’N’Out Burger for going 2-for-2 in giving me what I asked for, both in the number of ketchup packets and, more importantly, tasty food.

And to those who suspect this may be a sneaky means of advertising, I have no financial interest in In’N’Out Burger, nor have I communicated with any employee or representative of that organization at any time other than to order food, pay for it, and receive my order. All I’m doing is reporting the facts of this admittedly unscientific fast-food experiment.

There are, of course, more important subjects for non-scientific experiments — not to mention better ways to amuse oneself.

But to be fair to this old fast-food veteran, a guy who worked his share of grills and fryers in the early to mid-1980s, every manager, assistant manager, or shift supervisor I ever answered to would have gone off the rails had they seen me make this error in counting. In fact, if they’d seen me hand a customer 11 or 13 ketchup packets — especially when that person specifically requested just four — they may well have been outraged. Their outrage would have had something to do with not be wasteful.

Is there a big lesson in all this? Yes — avoid fast-food if possible (unless you just gotta have that In’N’Out Burger), and be prepared to share any extra ketchup packets you may receive with friends, family members, or food banks in need.

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