With inflation costs in the United States affecting a variety of goods and services, with food included, a number of folks have flocked to social media sharing some of their biggest money saving tips to feed themselves and their families.
That can be getting the most bang for their buck at budget retailers like Dollar Tree, or it can be showing off their “hacks” for cutting costs on meals from popular chains like Texas Roadhouse.
The chain restaurant has been lauded for its value among some customers who’ve purchased its family meals as a way of prepping food for the week due to the large portions of grub they receive for a relatively low cost.
Although Texas Roadhouse guests can choose for a variety of different steak and barbecue style meat dishes at the restaurant, there is one item the establishment offers that folks seem to universally adore: its rolls.
So much so that TikToker Camryn Gellenbek (@camryngellenbeck) says she will purchase a dozen of them with her friend and sit in a car and share them with her, even when they’re both nearly broke.
She uploaded a viral TikTok that’s accrued over 612,000 likes on the popular social media platform, sharing her fondness for the rolls.
@camryngellenbeck we love the rolls #fyp @Cay ♬ Mouse eating sound – حيدر🇮🇶
In the video, Gellenbeck records herself and another passenger sitting in a parked car with a tray of Texas Roadhouse rolls propped up on the armrest between the two of them. A loud chewing sound can be heard in the video accompanied by somber piano music as they munch on the bread. A text overlay in the clip reads: “How we eat a dozen texas roadhouse rolls in a middle of a parking lot knowing we have $18.00 in our bank accounts”
A caption for the clip states, “we love the rolls” and according to Allrecipes, a dozen Texas Roadhouse rolls costs $4.99, and the order also comes with a pint of the brand’s cinnamon butter.
One viewer appeared to warn Gellebeck about the caloric density of the rolls, writing: “used to work there 1 roll is equal to 1 big mac.”
That didn’t dissuade the TikToker, who responded with, “well i like big macs so i don’t care”
It also didn’t add up: According to Spark People, a single Texas Roadhouse roll contains 158 calories, while a Big Mac packs 590.
There were several other commenters who tagged other users on the platform with remarks that they either do the same thing or would like to participate in a similar eating-bread-while-sitting-in-a-parked-car bonding time.
Other folks expressed being low on funds yet still manage to put together enough cash for a food outing with a friend, like this one TikToker who wrote: “when we go to starbies before we do ANYTHING even though we were both crying about how broke we were the other day..”
Retro Recipe Box gives some insight into why folks seem to love Texas Roadhouse’s rolls so much: it’s because the dough that’s used to make them satisfies multiple flavor profiles. There’s a savory, buttery goodness slathered all over a dough that’s sweeter than the average offerings of most other dinner rolls:
“The flour mix is a little sweeter than a typical dinner roll. Once baked, melted butter is brushed over the tops of the buns. The resulting soft dinner roll is sweet, a little doughy, and buttery, something fans of the restaurant have loved,” the outlet writes.
For many humans, sugar triggers an immediate dopamine reaction to the brain, causing nearly instant pleasure, according to The Conversation: “So to maximize our survival as a species, we have an innate brain system that makes us like sweet foods since they’re a great source of energy to fuel our bodies. When we eat sweet foods the brain’s reward system — called the mesolimbic dopamine system — gets activated.”
Which could be why despite only having $18 in her bank account, Gellenbeck doesn’t mind spending a significant percentage of that to enjoy the sweet Texas Roadhouse roll life.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Texas Roadhouse via email and Gellenbeck via TikTok comment for further information.