The whole CEO food bite thing started with a strange nibble from McDonald’s boss Chris Kempczinski. He tried to promote their new Big Arch burger, but his video came off stiff. Then, Burger King jumped in. Wendy’s got in on it. The roster kept growing: A&W Canada, P. Terry’s, Jack in the Box, everyone wanted a piece. Just when it seemed like the joke was dying out, Washington-based Costco’s CEO Ron Vachris stepped up.
Ron strolled into a food court, grabbed their classic $1.50 hot dog and soda, sat down, and kind of laughed: “$1.50? For this hot dog?”
In the video, Ron took a huge bite of the quarter-pound all-beef hot dog before anyone even finished asking if the price was going up. “The hot dog price will not change as long as I’m around,” he said, no hesitation at all. When someone asked him to describe it, he just said, “Amazing. Amazing quality. Amazing value. That’s $1.50 well spent.”
There’s a real story behind that promise. That $1.50 combo has been the same price since 1984. Even now, when inflation means the combo should cost about $4.40, Costco has kept the price steady and eaten the difference for over forty years instead of passing it along to customers.
Internet Reacts to Washington’s Costco CEO Entering the Food CEO War
The moment quickly sparked a wave of reactions online, with many users poking fun while also praising the image being presented. “Finally, a guy who looks like he actually eats his company’s food,” one person wrote, setting the tone for the conversation.
Others leaned into humor, joking about how that kind of reputation doesn’t come easily. “You don’t achieve that build unless you’ve done a lifelong worth of hot dog smashing,” a user commented. Another added that it felt like the most authentic kind of branding.
Some comments zoomed out to highlight why the company continues to resonate with customers. “The main rule of good business: don’t break what already works and makes money,” one person wrote, while another exaggerated, “Costco is the only thing standing between us and total economic collapse.”
Others contrasted this with struggles seen at competing chains. “The McDonald’s CEO watching stock drop like a rock as every other food service has exploding stock numbers,” a comment read. Another concluded, “The average American household’s recession plans are going to be eating Costco hotdogs and carpooling,” while one more added, “Eat your own dog food is the ice bucket challenge equivalent viral thing for CEOs.”
Washington’s Costco came late to the CEO food fight. Didn’t say much. Ended up winning big. They stuck with their $1.50 hot dog, took a bold stand, and kept that price steady for forty years, through two CEOs, even after someone seriously threatened one of them over it. That’s how you really finish a burger war.
