🍔 Beefed-up burger costs | Morning Newsletter

At long last, it’s Memorial Day Weekend, and a mostly sunny one. After some brief showers this morning, we’ll see temps in the mid-80s through Sunday.

Before you fire up the grill for that holiday cookout, read today’s lead story on the rising cost of ground beef — and how restaurant owners and consumers are coping amid inflation, a cattle shortage, and the high cost of doing business.

And SEPTA’s bus service overhaul is finally approved after years of debate. Start your weekend off right with these stories and many more, below.

— Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

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You’re not imagining things: That burger did cost less a year ago.

🐄 The cost of ground beef has risen faster than other food since the pandemic. It’s up 7% since last April alone.

🍔 Philly-area restaurant owners are debating between raising prices or adjusting their menus, such as by introducing smaller versions of their burgers.

🐟 One thrifty family has even shifted the focus of their home-cooked meals from beef to the fish they catch themselves to save money. “A cheeseburger at this point is a luxury,” the Downingtown mom said.

Consumer reporter Erin McCarthy grinds out the details.

P.S. If all this burger talk put you in the mood for meat, dollars be darned, check out The Inquirer’s guide to the 20 best burgers in Philly to eat right now.

Your commute may change in summer 2025, when the Bus Revolution is finally implemented.

Catch up quick: The efficiency-minded bus route overhaul has been in the works for three years, including a public engagement period. SEPTA paused the project in February after some City Councilmembers voiced concerns that their constituents hadn’t had enough time to weigh in.

The latest: SEPTA’s board on Thursday approved the plan, which aims to simplify some routes and increase reliability while maintaining equity for riders across the city.

What’s new: Transportation and biz reporters Tom Fitzgerald and Ariana Perez-Castells have the details on which routes will be combined, extended, or otherwise realigned.

Welcome back to Curious Philly Friday. We’ll feature both new and timeless stories from our forum for readers to ask about the city’s quirks.

This week, reporter Michelle Myers answers a question sent in by Montco baseball lovers Sara Corsey, a Phillies fan, and Alen Beljin, a Yankees fan: Why are the seats at Citizens Bank Park sapphire blue? Why not red, the team’s primary color?

It turns out the answer is a single in terms of complexity. Here’s the full explanation.

Have your own burning question about Philadelphia, its local oddities, or how the region works? Submit it here and you might find the answer featured in this space.

Philly collects 2,000 tons of downed trees a year. What is the city now selling them as?

A) Lumber

B) Handmade tables

C) Mulch

D) Paper

Think you know? Check your answer.

🐦 Cheering: The Penn researchers who developed an avian flu vaccine.

🚙 Driving: On every open lane of I-95, now that post-collapse rebuilding is complete.

🥕 Sharing: Where to find free meals and food this summer.

The name of Mechanicsburg-born comedian Shane Gillis’ Netflix show, which premiered yesterday and is set in the Philly ‘burbs.

Hint: 🚗

RITES

Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Steve Dziedziak, who solved Thursday’s anagram: Mahoning. The drive-in theater serves up cult classics in Carbon County.

⚾ I was at Tuesday night’s game and, whew, sure is a fun time to be a Phils fan.

Have an excellent Memorial Day Weekend! Paola will be in your inbox on Sunday, then you’ll hear from me again starting Wednesday. See you then.

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