From thick, juicy beef patties and sliders to caramelised smash burgers loaded with American cheese, burgers are loved around the world. But how and when was the hamburger invented? More importantly, was this fast food classic invented in Hamburg, Germany, Ancient Rome – or the USA? From early burger pioneers to world-dominating burger chains and drive-thrus, we look at the surprisingly complex history of one of the world's most beloved foods.
According to the fifth-century cookbook Apicius, a meaty snack not too dissimilar from a modern burger was popular during Ancient Roman times. Called isicia omentata, these minced meat patties (mostly made with pork, but sometimes with fish or mutton) were flavoured with a fermented, umami-rich fish sauce called garum, mixed with wine, pine nuts, breadcrumbs and pepper, wrapped in caul fat, then fried and put into bread as a quick, transportable meal.
Not a burger, as such, but steak tartare has much in common with the patties we eat (typically cooked!) sandwiched in buns and topped with pickles. The name of this classic French restaurant dish can be traced as far back as 13th-century Russia, where Mongol warriors, also known as Tatars, used to place meat under their saddles to tenderise prior to cooking. However, steak tartare as we know it today was created a lot more recently; visionary chef Escoffier developed the recipe in 1921 by tweaking a classic French dish to satisfy American tastes.
In 1758, English cookbook author Hannah Glasse wrote a recipe for a minced beef dish called Hamburgh sausage, which was served on toasted bread. Back in those days, a condiment called catsup was used as a condiment for the sandwich – and by the Victorian era, it had become known as ‘ketchup’. As pickling was a popular method of preserving foods, cucumbers were also added (a precursor to the gherkins commonly found in burgers today).
By the 1800s, the port city of Hamburg had become famed for its quality beef, and even the offcuts were put to good use in Hamburg Steak: a burger-like dish made with beef mince. In the 1840s, German inventor Karl Drais developed the first meat grinder, allowing large quantities of mince to be produced cheaply. By 1845, meat grinders had begun to pop up all over America, which by then had a significant German immigrant population – and it wasn't long before they'd start to reproduce their favourite home-comfort dish to sell.
One of the earliest recorded examples of what resembles a modern-day hamburger came courtesy of Charlie Nagreen, or ‘Hamburger Charlie’, at the Outagamie County Fair in Wisconsin in 1885. Legend has it that he placed the pork meatballs he'd come to sell between slices of bread so people could eat them while walking around the park, reportedly calling them ‘hamburgers’ to appeal to the German immigrant populace.
However, in the same year, brothers Frank and Charles Menches allegedly claimed the hamburger as their invention. The story goes that, having run out of sausage sandwiches at the Erie County Fair in Hamburg, New York, they resorted to serving minced beef versions, naming them ‘hamburgers’ after the fair's location. However, there's some controversy surrounding this story. Some think that the sandwich switch-up actually occurred in 1892, at the Summit County Fair in Akron, Ohio.
Louis’ Lunch, in New Haven, Connecticut, also claims to have invented the burger – or, at least, the hamburger sandwich – and its bragging rights are backed up by the Library of Congress. The restaurant has been owned by the same family since opening in 1895, and its famous patties have barely changed: they're cooked in unique vertical grills, sandwiched between slices of toasted white bread, and served simply with cheese, onion and tomato.
At a 4th of July celebration in Oklahoma in 1891, Oscar Bilby is considered to be the first person to have served a beef patty on an actual bun – a defining feature of today's fast food staple. Patty melts – burgers served on toasted bread with melted cheese and caramelised onions – were already being sold prior to this in Athens, Texas, and this style of burger is still popular today.
Having decided to deep fry patties in collected beef fat as a cost-saving measure, Elmer ‘Doc’ Dyer opened Dyer’s Burgers in 1912. To this day, the fat is strained daily and the patties are cooked in cast-iron skillets, with the cheese being added just before serving. All burgers are topped with mustard, pickles and onions, but there's strictly no lettuce or tomato on offer.
Claiming to be the first fast food hamburger chain in the US, White Castle opened in Witchita, Kansas, in 1921. Now with locations across several states, it's famous for its sliders (or 'slyders'): square patties with holes in, to allow for steam cooking, served topped with rehydrated onions. Historically, the chain's burgers were served on porcelain plates, and staff would 'slide' orders across to hungry customers – hence the name.
Named after the Kewpie brand of dolls, Kewpee was founded in Flint, Michigan, in 1923. Originally a hotel that sold hamburgers for five cents, Kewpee is widely regarded as America’s second-oldest burger chain, with a past slogan being 'your grandpappy ate here!' Just like White Castle, Kewpee also favours a square patty – but its version comes with cheese, lettuce and pickle as well as onion.
In 1924, teenager Lionel Sternberger is thought to have been the first person to have served up a cheeseburger – dubbed the 'Aristocratic Burger' – while working at Rite Spot in Pasadena, California. However, this claim has been heavily challenged, both in 1934 by Kaelin's Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, and again in 1935 by Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado, which won the 'cheeseburger' trademark the same year (though it was never enforced).
In the 1920s, the ‘steamed cheeseburger’ was allegedly invented at Jack’s Lunch, Connecticut. Marketed as a healthy alternative to conventional grilled burgers, Jack's patties were loaded into copper trays and steamed, along with an equal amount of Cheddar cheese. For an additional five cents, you could get the cheese poured over the burger as a topping, similar to Swiss raclette. Steamed cheeseburgers can still be found at Connecticut spot Ted’s Restaurant, which also claims to be the place that created the dish.
In 1927, a very ambitious Harry F. Duncan moved from St. Louis, Missouri to Louisville, Kentucky and opened up five burger joints under the name ‘Little Tavern' (he went on to open around 50 more Little Taverns across Washington and Baltimore). The company’s slogan was 'buy ‘em by the bag', owing to the small, slider-like style of its burgers, as well as the low price. Duncan also claims to have invented the cheeseburger, despite numerous counter-claims.
It’s around the late 1920s that the ominously named Depression Burger was invented – a dish that's more commonly known today as the smash burger. Created by Ross Davis of the Hamburger Inn in El Reno, Oklahoma as a way of (quite literally) stretching ingredients, this type of burger is made by taking paper-thin slices of white onion, piling them onto a patty, then smashing them together with the back of a spatula. They’re thin and heavily caramelised, and are usually served as a double.
Also known for its small, square sliders (which are topped with onions as standard), Krystal opened in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 1932. The chain marketed itself as being more hygienic than other burger restaurants, originally spelling its name with a ‘c’ – as in, 'clean as a crystal'. This, combined with its unbeatable value, helped Krystal survive the Great Depression.
In 1934, Wimpy – or Wimpy Grills, as it was then known – opened in Bloomington, Indiana. However, the chain didn't last long in the US. Having closed all its domestic sites, Wimpy is now headquartered in South Africa. The menu still offers the classic burgers, but it now also serves popular national dishes like peri-peri chicken, boerewors (a spiral-shaped sausage) and schnitzel.
In 1936, Bob Wian opened Bob’s Pantry in Glendale, California, and created the Big Boy burger a year later; he'd eventually rename the chain in its honour. What made this burger unique was the added middle bun, which would go on to inspire the ‘double-decker’ style of McDonald's signature Big Mac, created in 1967.
Undoubtedly the most famous fast food chain of all time, McDonald's was first opened in 1940 by Richard and Maurice McDonald. However, its mascot wasn’t originally Ronald McDonald. Meet ‘Speedee, a man with a hamburger-shaped head, wearing a chef's hat. The friendly fellow was named after the Speedee System – a factory production line method used to assemble burgers at speed. An estimated 900 million Big Macs are now sold annually worldwide.
Now a California institution, In-N-Out Burger was launched in the state's Baldwin Park in 1948 by husband-and-wife team Harry and Esther Snyder. Although In-N-Out is renowned for its Not So Secret Menu items these days, along with its freshly cut skin-on fries, the regional chain pioneered the modern drive-thru model, being the first restaurant of its kind to use a two-way speaker system. 'Animal Style' is a common order, where the patty is cooked with mustard and served with extra sauce, grilled onion, tomato and lettuce.
In 1951, Robert Oscar Peterson opened Jack in the Box in San Diego, California, and it became the first chain to implement the two-way speaker system and really champion the drive-thru. The chain's signature Sourdough Jack burger was created in 1991: a patty served between two slices of toasted sourdough bread with added bacon, Swiss-style cheese, mayonnaise and tomato.
In the mid-1950s, a cheese-stuffed patty entered the heaving burger market – but not without a little controversy, of course. Two Minneapolis restaurants, Matt’s and the 5-8 Club, both claim to have created this outside-in cheeseburger. Matt's is the home of the Jucy Lucy, while the 5-8 Club is the birthplace of the Juicy Lucy, with an 'i'. Both establishments continue a friendly rivalry to this day; staff at the 5-8 Club wear T-shirts with the slogan 'If it's spelled right, it's done right'.
Canada has its own burger institution: Harvey’s, which launched in 1959, and has since become the nation's largest burger chain. Opened by George B. Sukornyk and Rick Mauran, the business was modelled on the Henry’s Hamburgers franchise, started in Illinois in 1954 – of which only one restaurant remains today, in Michigan.
In the 1960s, Gregory Sams and his brother Craig opened a macrobiotic restaurant called Seed in Paddington, London – and it was here that the veggie burger was born. Initially named the VegeBurger, the meat-free snack was so popular that even the likes of John Lennon and Yoko Ono became Seed regulars.
In 1969, Wendy's took the old-school square patty and super-sized it. Fast-forward just over half a century and the chain, founded in Columbus, Ohio, has become the third-largest burger joint in the world, after McDonald’s and Burger King. Although most fast food joints now offer saver menus, Wendy’s was the first to add one to the mix, back in 1988. The chain now has locations in 36 countries outside of North America.
The first Five Guys store opened in Arlington, Virginia in 1986. Known for its Ross Davis–influenced smashed patties, the chain offers 15 free toppings in addition to its huge portions of fries, which often require their own separate bag. Five Guys used to offer peanuts to distract its hungry customers whilst they waited for their orders – but in 2020 they were removed from the shop floor due to allergy concerns. They're still available, though, if you ask for them.
Today, nearly every chain offers a meat alternative – though Burger King is leading the way with its extensive plant-based menu, filled with burgers based on their meaty counterparts (for example, the Impossible Whopper, which can come with ‘Cheeeze’ and ‘BaKon’). Meanwhile, McDonald’s offering includes the McPlant and the Vegetable Deluxe. Wendy’s has its Curry Bean Burger, and even KFC is getting in on the plant-based action with its Original Recipe Vegan Burger.
Your favourite chain's menu is likely to look a little different overseas – depending on where you go, you'll find a whole host of new burger-shaped items to try. Pictured is The Nasi Lemak Chicken Burger, designed by McDonald’s specifically for Malaysian consumers. Meanwhile, in Japan, McDonald's burger buns are sometimes replaced with rice patties and, in South Korea, customers can get their hands on a bulgogi burger.
Always on the hunt for a new burger to try? There are plenty of home-grown fast food institutions to try around the world. France has Flunch; while the German burger market is also booming. The country has more than 25 established vendors, the most popular of which is Burgermeister.