Checkers & Rally’s CEO Chris Tebben says Americans are hunting harder than ever for a cheap meal, and his company plans to keep feeding that hunger.
Quick Take
- Checkers & Rally’s CEO Chris Tebben says demand for fast-food value has “intensified” over the past two years
- Tebben ties the trend to consumers feeling squeezed by everyday cost pressures
- Industry data shows restaurant deal-seeking is at its highest rate in 50 years
- Major chains including McDonald’s and Taco Bell have rolled out competing value platforms in 2025
What The Checkers & Rally’s CEO Actually Said
Chris Tebben, who took over as Checkers & Rally’s president and CEO in September 2024, told Fox Business that customers are watching every dollar.
“We’ve seen over the last couple of years the need for value continues to intensify,” Tebben said, adding that consumers “are continuing to feel the pressures of a lot of everyday necessities”. He said that pressure is now a main reason people choose where to eat when they leave home.
Americans fed up with fast-food prices are sending chains a clear message, CEO says https://t.co/iR1MdfYZtC pic.twitter.com/MUePAdzvH3
— New York Post (@nypost) September 5, 2026
Tebben’s comments come as the drive-thru chain doubles down on cheap meal deals rather than backing away from them. The company has already leaned into the $5 value meal category and later added a $4 Unbeatable Meal Deal, betting that low, fixed prices will keep customers coming back even as food costs climb across the industry.
The Numbers Behind The Value Rush
Tebben’s read on customers lines up with what researchers are finding nationwide. Restaurant deal-seeking has reached its highest level in 50 years, with nearly 30 percent of all visits now tied to a discount or promotion, according to market research firm Circana. That share has jumped since 2022, at a pace not seen since the Great Recession years of 2008 to 2010.
The squeeze helps explain why. Fast-food meal prices climbed roughly 8 percent in 2025 compared with the year before, according to Bloomberg data, even as grocery inflation ran cooler at around 5 percent.
When eating out costs more than buying food at home, budget-minded families start treating every restaurant trip like a decision that needs to pay off.
Checkers & Rally’s Is Not Alone In This Fight
Every major chain is chasing the same customer right now. McDonald’s launched its McValue platform in January 2025, extending its $5 Meal Deal through the summer, while Taco Bell rolled out $5, $7, and $9 value boxes the same month.
It was reported that Chili’s and other brands followed with their own value pushes later in the year, as chains raced to prove they still offer an affordable option.
Consumer search habits back up the shift in mindset. Yelp data comparing early 2025 to the same period in 2024 found that searches for “cheap eats” jumped 21 percent, while interest in “value meal” listings also climbed. People are not just quietly accepting price hikes. They are actively typing their frustration into a search bar and shopping around before they order.
Why This Matters For Families Watching Their Budgets
For a middle-class family trying to stretch a paycheck, this fight among fast-food chains is good news. Competition over who can offer the cheapest, most filling meal puts real pressure on companies to hold the line on prices instead of quietly raising them every quarter. That is exactly how a free market is supposed to work when customers push back with their wallets.
Tebben’s turnaround strategy at Checkers & Rally’s reflects a broader lesson that has held up since inflation first hit household budgets hard: companies that listen to squeezed customers and compete on price tend to win loyalty, while those that ignore the pressure risk losing customers to a competitor down the street. Value, it turns out, is not a trend. It is a demand consumers are refusing to let go of.
Whether this value era lasts depends on where grocery and menu inflation head next. But for now, chains large and small are betting that Americans will keep choosing the cheapest combo meal on the board, and Checkers & Rally’s plans to be the one serving it.
Sources:
foxbusiness.com, nrn.com, pos.toasttab.com
