The History of the Burger

The first McDonald’s restaurant is opened by brothers of the same name in San Bernardino, California with a drive-through ordering option selling only burgers, French fries and milkshakes. It is hugely successful..

Harry and Ester Snyder open the first In-and-Out Burger stand in Baldwin Park, California. Harry installs a two-way microphone and speaker system creating the first drive-through restaurant as we know it today.

Robert Peterson opens the first Jack in the Box restaurant in San Diego, California. Drive-through restaurants are on their way to becoming a main-stream in American culture.

Milkshake machine salesman Ray Kroc joins up with the McDonald brothers to begin franchising McDonald’s restaurants. The first hamburger restaurant franchise is born..

James MacLamore and David Edgerton team up to inaugurate the first Burger King restaurant in Miami, Florida. Burger King distinguishes itself from other burger stands by flame-broiling their burgers rather than frying them on a griddle.

Carl Karcher had operated successful hot dog stands and a barbeque restaurant in the Los Angeles area since 1941 at the time he opened the first Carl’s Jr restaurants in Anaheim and Brea, California, emphasizing the sale of hamburgers.

Burger King introduces the first “specialty” burger that’s bigger and better than the customary (and less expensive) burger. They call it the “Whopper”.

Hamburger franchisees are looking for creating ways to market their burgers. McDonald’s creates the fictional clown, Ronald McDonald, as their company mascot.

One of the McDonald’s franchisees, Pittsburgh’s Jim Delligatti, creates the double-decker “Big Mac”, and the entire McDonald’s franchise soon makes the “Big Mac” it’s featured burger.

Wealthy Ohio businessman, Dave Thomas, believes he has was it takes to compete with McDonald’s. He opens his first restaurant in Ohio featuring square meat patties and names the restaurant after his daughter. It’s called “Wendy’s”.