Ezra Klein just posted an interesting observation about the new proposal by Burger King to serve up the world’s most expensive burger that will cost a whopping £85.

This burger will contain top-quality Kobe beef from Japan. And instead of ketchup and cheddar, it will be garnished with foie gras and rare blue cheese.

What Ezra suggests is that while it is clear that almost no one will buy the burger, the very fact that Burger King has it on the menu could make people think more highly of the quality of the burgers at Burger King—even the 99 cent burgers.

One other effect of this expensive burger could be that it will shift people’s willingness to spend money at Burger King. If the standard for spending before this new up-scale product was £5, perhaps after this introduction, spending £7.5 will seem much more reasonable (at least relative to the £85 burger).

I would love to see the effect of this new offer.

Irrationally yours,

Dan