Costco CEO Ron Vachris put fast food bosses like McDonald's Chris Kempczinski to bed with his own video eating a $1.50 hot dog. He consumed the whole dog, earning him favorable comparisons to the CEO who went viral in the worst way for barely nibbling a burger.
It helped that Vachris reiterated his promise never to raise the price of a Costco dog.
Ron Vachris destroys a Costco hot dog
The head of the warehouse retailer beat out both Kempczinski and Burger King CEO Tom Curtis, who took a real bite out of a Whopper as a shot to his rival in early March. Vachris took more than a bite—he devoured a whole hot dog on camera and promised to have another.
"A dollar fifty? For this hot dog?" he asked before taking his first bite.
This was part of a Q & A video in which the first question was obviously going to be about the price. Coming off the tail of high inflation that made it hard to find a $5 burger anywhere, Costco has refused to raise the price of one of its concession staples. It's been $1.50 since 1984.
"The hot dog price will not change as long as I'm around," said Vachris.
Every time the cost of fast food or Costco memberships rise, people worry about the hot dogs. Concerns stirred again after CFO Richard Galanti left in 2024 and said the $1.50 price would "probably safe for a while," which was not as reassuring as customers wanted him to be.
This new video should help calm the public.
"That's a $1.50 well-spent," Vachris concluded before confirming he would have another at his next Costco stop.
"Thank you for keeping my slop affordable"
Costco has long maintained a reputation as being a better example of what a corporation could be among a crowd of horrors. While McDonald's and Burger King pay minimum wage and crush union efforts, Costco positions pay a minimum of $20 per hour as of 2026 and offer almost all workers comprehensive health benefits.
While its prices may rise, the entire point of Costco is to be cheaper.
So while folks reacting on r/Fauxmoi may not be fans of any CEO, many will at least concede that Vachris is better than most.
"It's a bad bunch, but he is the best of them," said r/Winter_Illustrator58.
"I’ve watched a few videos with him on YouTube, and I do really like him," r/plantsnpupsncats agreed. "He seems kind and down to earth, and wants the best for Costco and its customers. We love Costco! And their hot dogs."
"My sister worked there for years. They treat their employees really [expletive] well," said r/justacaucasian. "Enough for her to return for another stretch while looking for her career job. I will glaze Costco and get called a shill idc. Just got 3 FAT ribeyes yesterday for like 50 something bucks."
"If you ever work in corporate America and have to have a CEO, Ron Vachris is the one you want," said r/AvailableDrawer4608. "He’s an actual human who puts his employees and customers ahead of his shareholders. By all accounts, he’s that guy."
"Thank you for keeping my slop affordable sir," joked r/fmal.
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