The burger is one of food's biggest success stories, eaten in countries all over the world and sparking an infinite number of versions and varieties. From the earliest incarnation of the patty to legendary launches and game-changing cooking techniques, here we reveal the most influential burgers of all time, counting down to the most iconic of all.
Click or scroll through our gallery to discover the burgers that changed the world, from the first sandwiches to modern innovations.
The idea of subverting convention by festooning this classic fast food with luxury ingredients is alive and well in the Netherlands. In 2021, Robbert Jan de Veen, the owner of De Daltons in Voorthuizen, broke the record for the world’s most expensive burger with a Wagyu brisket, white truffle and Beluga caviar creation that invited deep-pocketed diners to taste burger heaven. The bun is infused with Dom Perignon Champagne and coated in gold leaf, while the patty is topped with king crab and vintage Iberico ham for a result that’s a long way from the classic burger’s humble beginnings.
Who gave the humble beef burger its first luxury lobster upgrade? We'll never know – while the modern surf 'n' turf (or 'beef and reef') meal can be traced to 1960s America, its burger origins are elusive. But while some claim that lobster-topped burgers were fairly common in the US by 2005, it was the launch of restaurant Burger & Lobster in London's upmarket Mayfair in 2011 that really brought the combo to wider attention. The Beast Burger – a 10oz (280g) patty of Nebraskan beef, lobster, brie, truffle and tarragon mayo – has helped make the chain popular around the world.
When Impossible Foods launched its own plant-based patty in 2016, it chose soy protein as its route to a tasty vegan patty. Global attention came thanks to a tie-up with Burger King in 2019, with the Impossible Whopper (first launched across 59 locations in St Louis) becoming a global sensation. A plant-based take on the iconic Whopper – also flame-grilled and served with the classic tomatoes, lettuce, pickles and condiments – the burger preceded the McPlant, the rival offering from BK's big competitor.
When Michelin-starred chef Heston Blumenthal set his sights on creating the ultimate burger for his 2007 television series In Search of Perfection he set about the process with absolute attention to detail – and started his research at Louis' Lunch. The result was a 32-ingredient burger that took an incredible 30 hours to make: every element was considered, including the construction of the patty to ensure diners munched down onto the cut ends of vertical meat fibres, rather than biting into stringy strands of muscle. A version of what was dubbed the 'Blumenburger' still pulls punters to Heathrow Airport's Perfectionists' Café.
Featuring beetroot, a fried egg and even a slice of pineapple all stacked up alongside the classic beef patty, The Kiwi Burger is nothing if not a unique flavour bomb. As the name suggests, it first became popular in New Zealand and even appeared on McDonald's menus in NZ in the 1970s. In 2001, the burger achieved global stardom, when New Zealand–born chef Peter Gordon co-founded Gourmet Burger Kitchen in London and added the item to the menu.
A hunger for fusion food and the rise of Instagram has resulted in some surprising foodie mash-ups. One of the most feted in the burger world is the ramen burger. Created in 2013 by chef Keizo Shimamato, this viral success saw a beef patty seasoned with a secret soy-based sauce and sandwiched between locally made ramen noodles fried into crisp 'buns'. The item made its debut at Brooklyn's Smorgasburg street food market, where it quickly became a mainstay. In 2016, Keizo opened Ramen Shack in New York City, with the ramen burger the star of the menu.
So where did the term 'hamburger' originate? In the 1800s, the German port city of Hamburg was famed for its beef, with the ‘rundstück warm' (a bread roll filled with roast meat, sauces, pickles and mustard) a particularly popular choice. Beef offcuts meanwhile were put to good use in Hamburg steak – this burger-like dish was made possible thanks to inventor Karl Drais's meat grinder, which turned beef trimmings into a quick, cheap meal. By 1845, meat grinders had become more commonplace in the US, meaning that America's burgeoning German population could recreate (and sell) the much-loved item.
It was reportedly a kitchen blunder that first caused a cook at Memphis institution Dyer's to deep fry hamburgers in beef fat leftover from a pan of previous patties. That was 1921, and the burger joint has never looked back: today strained burger grease (also known as 'vitamin G') is added to that original batch of oil, ready for the next day's cooking. Mustard, onion and a pickle remain the only toppings served on the Dyer's Single, so discerning diners are guaranteed an authentic taste of burger history.
What could possibly better the classic combo of juicy beef burger and fluffy white bun? How about adding melted butter to the mix? Wisconsin has been home to butter burgers since the 1930s, when Solly's Grille began spooning butter made in the state (known as 'America's dairyland') over its patties. Add in stewed onions and you have an iconic dish that is now enjoyed all over the Midwest. Every restaurant has its own policy on the distribution of butter, but head to Solly's to sample what many locals feel is the most indulgent.
The evolution of fast food owes much to diaspora communities, and that contribution sings out in the Fat Boy – a lip-smackingly tasty burger that emerged from the Greek food scene in 1950s Winnipeg. Attributed to Gus Scouras, a migrant from Greece who opened several fast food joints, including Juniors, Fat Boy patties are served slathered in a chilli meat sauce, mayo and plenty of toppings. The big, messy sandwich is a maximalist celebration of a burger and very much a two-handed eating experience.
He might not have created the first gourmet burger, but chef Daniel Boulud upped the ante when launching his New York bistro in 2001. The huge patty in his iconic DB was made from ground sirloin, rib-eye and flat iron steak and was seared on the outside but left rare inside. Nestled within, a thick layer of beef short ribs braised in red wine provided extra flavour and succulence. And at the heart of the patty? A nugget of foie gras. The DB Burger was served with tomato confit within a toasted, brioche-like potato bun.
Ever squished a little cheese into the centre of your homemade beef patties? You've made a Juicy Lucy! Or is that a Jucy Lucy? Two Minneapolis restaurants located on the same street have a long-established (albeit friendly) rivalry over who invented this melt-in-the-middle burger. The 5-8 Club and Matt's Bar have both been slinging these iconic, cheese-filled burgers on the griddle (and dividing opinion as to who serves the best) since the mid-1950s.
They say necessity is the mother of invention, and the deprivation of Depression-era Oklahoma saw the creation of a cheaper-to-make beef patty that's still wowing diners today. It was in the small town of El Reno that Hamburger Inn owner Homer Davis started adding a generous helping of wafer-thin sliced onion to his minced beef. The restaurant where Homer invented this moist, flavourful burger has since closed, but the recipe lives on at Hamburger Inn in the town of Ardmore, where Oklahoma Onion Burgers have been steamed on the griddle since 1938.
What went on to become one of the world's most recognisable burgers, the Whopper began life back in the late 1950s, when BK co-founder James McLamore was feeling the heat from a competitor in the chain's home state. Following the 'bigger is better' philosophy, the 4oz (110g) flame-grilled Whopper gave hungry burger fans a hefty meal, inspiring other fast food chains to also offer supersized burgers along the way. Nearly 70 years on, Burger King remains 'the Home of the Whopper'.
There's nothing like a celebrity endorsement to turbocharge a trend and when John Lennon and Yoko Ono began visiting SEED, a macrobiotic restaurant in London in the 1960s, they had a big impact on the fortunes of owner Gregory Sams. But his bigger breakthrough came in the early 1980s, when Gregory decided to transform the seitan, tamari, oat and aduki patty he made for his restaurant into something more commercial. After six months of experimentation, the first dry burger mix was born and the idea of a veggie burger began to enter the public consciousness.
In 2013, amid mounting concerns around the environmental impact of beef, researchers at Maastricht University in the Netherlands were ready to show the world a prototype for the future. The lab-grown patty, unveiled at a London news conference, was made of millions of lab-grown cells cultured from stem cells extracted from a living cow. The burger was declared to be tasty, with a mouth-feel akin to meat, but was said to lack succulence. It cost an estimated €250,000 (around £212,000/$268,000) to produce; today, huge investment in the process has brought costs down to around €9 (just under £8/$10) per burger.
The debate rages on over who created the first gourmet burger, but chef Sang Yoon may just edge it. In 2000, he added a small kitchen to a craft beer bar and put an eye-catching burger on the menu at Father's Office. Inspired by French onion soup and made with 100% dry-aged chuck, the patty was intended to be cooked medium-rare – as you might a steak – and topped with Gruyère, caramelised onions and rocket. It was served in a split baguette toasted with a little garlic butter (but never ketchup) and remains one of America's most iconic modern-day burgers.
While burger chefs all over America might have been smashing their patties into the hot plate in search of extra flavour for years, it was the Dairy Cheer hamburger shop in Ashland, Kentucky that made a selling point of the technique in the 1960s (the story goes that proprietor Bill Culvertson clocked an employee's trick of pressing patties against the cooking surface with a bean can). The Ashland outlet has closed, but a Dairy Cheer in Pikeville, some 100 miles south, still claims to be the 'Home of the Smashburger'.
A burger backed by Snoop Dogg, Bill Gates and Leonardo DiCaprio? Say hello to The Beyond Burger, a patty made with meatless protein technology that burst onto the burger scene in 2015. Carefully designed to mimic real meat, the Beyond Burger is a mix of plant-based isolates: pea and rice protein, sunflower lecithin, coconut oil and potato starch included. The 'bleeding' beetroot centre caused controversy on launch, but The Beyond Burger kickstarted a huge category for plant-based patties and is on the burger menu in many a restaurant worldwide.
Few burger joints have roots that can be traced back to 1895, but then fourth-generation family business Louis’ Lunch has always been a bit unique. Its famous hamburger sandwich – a blend of five cuts of beef ground together daily, cooked between cast-iron grills, and served between slices of white toast – has been recognised by the Library of Congress as the birthplace of the hamburger sandwich. Today, the dish is still enjoyed by burger fans keen for an authentic taste of 19th century America.
It took a special burger to really capture consumer attention in the golden age of the fast food chains but in 1986, Five Guys managed to gain cult status for its offering. The key to success for the Murrell family, who launched the franchise, was a back-to-basics approach: a no-freezer policy meant that the two patties in a regular serve were always made with fresh meat. Today, a rich bread bun made with a little more egg and a sweeter flavour profile acts as delicious contrast to the rustic patties and diners can choose up to 15 toppings to add to their burger.
If you’re a fan of the bacon cheeseburger, you owe a word of thanks to Dale Mulder. It was in 1963 that this A&W franchisee (now serving as chairman of the whole chain) reacted to a customer trend of asking for a rasher of bacon to be placed within burger buns. The Bacon Cheeseburger went up on the menu board and the burger world was never the same again.
It's more than 75 years since In-N-Out was founded on a philosophy of speedy service, with the first drive-thru speaker rig-up allowing motorists to order in person without leaving their car. But it was 1966 that the chain's most famous offering – the Double-Double – would be born. Reputedly created after diners began asking for double the meat and cheese, this hefty, stacked burger quickly achieved legendary status and remains the go-to order for many today.
When the first White Castle joint opened in Wichita, Kansas in 1921, locals may not have realised that they were watching burger history unfold. The restaurant's original 'slider' was a small, square patty featuring holes stamped into the beef to allow steam to escape whilst it cooked. The burger's iconic status comes in part from its reach: White Castle has a strong claim to being the US's first burger chain, with multiple stores opening up across the state from the early 1920's onwards. By 1927, it was selling those now legendary sliders in takeaway bags.
It might not look like the iconic dish we know today, but a recipe published in The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy by Hannah Glasse is one of the earliest known mentions of what we might call a hamburger. It dates back to 1747, when the English cook served her minced beef dish on toasted bread alongside a condiment called 'catsup' (later known as 'ketchup'). Hannah did well to get an early claim on the invention of the burger – the decades that followed are full of rival origin stories...
Arguably the world's most famous burger, this recipe (first trialled in Pittsburgh) overshadowed the rest thanks to the might and reach of McDonald's. The franchise, begun by the McDonald brothers in California in 1940, is now the world's largest fast food chain. The popularity of the signature burger, which is double stacked around an extra layer of bun with cheese, pickles, minced onions, lettuce and 'special sauce', means an estimated 2.4 million are sold each day.
This is the burger that inspired them all. Food historians date the invention of the cheeseburger to 1924, when 16-year-old Lionel Sternberger decided to melt cheese onto a hamburger at his father's sandwich shop, The Rite Spot, in Pasadena, California. The exact details are sketchy, but an old menu from the long-since closed joint on display at the Pasadena Museum of History names it the ‘Aristocratic Hamburger’, on sale for 15 cents and described as ‘the original hamburger with cheese'. This simple dish has gone on to inspire legions of others, across the USA and beyond.
Now learn all about the US restaurants bringing back old-school burger recipes