For The Cost Of A Burger

Burgers!!

Usually a sandwich consisting of a sliced bun enclosing a cooked meat or vegetable patty and some assorted ingredients like cheese, lettuce, sliced onions and tomatoes, all held together by sauces and condiments. Popular by all accounts! Really nothing against them and four paragraphs later I will share why my article revolves around them.

For many of us, burgers can be categorized as recreational foods. We associate them with some iconic global brands and extremely successful food chains with the clinically precise taste, uncannily, every time we dig into them. Better off folks can be seeing enjoying them at high end restaurants that fuss over the ordinary burger, transforming it into a gourmet delight. We also associate them with quick outings on the cheap to our neighborhood burger stands and local eateries that offer us their own customized versions with local chutneys and masalas replacing some of the original sauces and condiments. As Indian residents, we are all too familiar with the range of Alloo Tikki Burgers which our local street food vendors and stalls dish out with a generous helping of tamarind and green chutneys and a handful of onions chopped lengthwise on the side. As with most things culinary, we have also customized the accompanying drinks from colas, sodas and frappes to our home grown version of nimbu lemons and kala khattas.

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Burgers can claim their rightful place

as the unacknowledged ambassadors of

international integration

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That burgers do not amount to much in the nutrition department can surely spark off debates and discussions that I fear might end up in riots. So I would steer clear of trying to prove their undisputed position on the junk food hall of fame. Burger loyalists swear by their whole wheat buns, seeded tops, organic lettuce, pasture fed untreated succulent meat patties or the pesticide free vegetable cutlets and air fried onion rings served with preservative free sauces and a long list of scientifically researched methods of preparation. But frankly, can they ever compete with the quality and nutrition of a home cooked meal? The answer is no. They really do not add up on nutritional value of any consequence unless you are seeking out empty calories and taste. Had I been told this a couple of decades ago, I would have been leading the aforementioned pack of rioters! Even now, I enjoy my fair share of junk food and burgers quite frequently figure on the list. That said, with progressing age I am definitely transitioning to eating better quality food, which surprisingly costs a lot less.

I know, I know there are many people who actually live off burgers for a variety of reasons from convenience to lack of cooking skills, lack of time to loving the taste and many other reasons in between. Some of them are just die hard burger addicts. As a child, I would crave eating authentic burgers after seeing them on television in sitcoms like Different Strokes and the various foreign magazines like Good Housekeeping which my mother purchased off the racks from bookshops. What was usually served back home was way healthier and less greasier than what we saw stacked on the plates of people across the seas. So when more and more restaurants started serving burgers as a part of their continental menu, to us, unsuspecting Indians, we as teenagers indulged by hosting burger parties for friends on birthdays and holidays. A decade later, as the actual chains set up shop in India, our children got to eat the authentic stuff at a much younger age than us and the burger brigade just kept growing to include some of our nanis and dadis into their folds . And as they say, the rest is history

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The ever growing Burger Brigade 

is a living proof of the popularity of 

this global favorite

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So now coming to a very important part, namely, the cost of a burger. Most burgers are priced in the affordable range and that is probably one of the reasons that has contributed to their continuously growing popularity and expanding reach. An average no frills burger would cost anywhere between Rs. 100 to Rs. 200. Here is a broad cost by seller category and range:

Small outlets / no frills burgers - Rs. 50 to Rs. 100

Mid sized eateries / standard burgers - Rs. 100 to Rs. 200

Speciality restaurants / gourmet burgers - Rs. 300 to Rs. 750

So like I said at the beginning, I will eventually share why my article revolves around burgers. And the following table will help you in appreciating why :

In a developing nation like ours, with it’s vast population and diverse issues, depending exclusively on government and non-government bodies to scale up to the challenges of effectively managing the population is an extremely challenging task. Let us pitch in with our own share of contribution to the society.

There are too many people who need to be fed, clothed and cared for and even a small gesture goes a long way in providing for them.

For the cost of a burger, let us feed or provide a piece of clothing or a hygiene product to a underprivileged human being who is unable to fend for themselves.

For the cost of a burger, let us provide silent assistance to those on the streets for whatever reason and are not able to lead a dignified existence.

For the cost of a burger, let us restore someone’s faith in humanity.

For the cost of a burger, we can help the underfed, underclothed and neglected humankind in our own small way.

Let us not click pictures and shoot videos and or post anything on social media. Let us just silently exchange our next burger to actually reach out to touch someone’s life in a meaningful way. Let us do it because we must do it.

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For the cost of a Burger 

Let us reinstate someone’s faith in 

humanity

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It will be great if you can spread the message and involve as many people as you can to share a little happiness for the cost of a burger.