The word "Hamburger" comes from Hamburg, Germany; the inhabitants of this city are also known as "Pork Eaters" in German. In Germany, local traditional snacks are often named after the place of origin, like the Frankfurter (also known as a hotdog), the Berliner (a jam doughnut) or Thüringer (Bratwurst). In Hamburg it was common to put a piece of roast pork into a roll, called Rundstück warm, although this is missing the "essence" of the modern hamburger, which is ground meat. However, another theory states that in Hamburg, meatscraps similar to modern ground beef were served on a Brötchen,[2] a round bun-shaped piece of bread. It is said that German immigrants then took the Hamburger to the United States.[2]

* Charlie Nagreen 1885, Seymour, Wisconsin. According to one claim of the first hamburger, Charlie Nagreen served the world's first hamburger at the Seymour Fair of 1885. "Hamburger" Charlie decided to flatten a meatball and place it between slices of bread to increase portability.

* Menches Brothers 1885, Hamburg, New York. Western New York history recorded that Frank and Charles Menches ran out of pork for their sausage patty sandwiches at the 1885 Erie County Fair. Their supplier, reluctant to butcher more hogs in the summer heat, suggested they use beef instead. The brothers fried some up, but found it bland. They added coffee, brown sugar, and other ingredients to create a taste which stands distinct without condiments. They christened their creation the "Hamburg Sandwich" after Hamburg, New York where the fair has been held since 1868; the name was probably later condensed by common use to the shorter contraction "hamburger" (and so explaining why a beef sandwich--which never contained any pork--bears this name). A little known fact is that the Original Hamburger indeed had its own recipe spiced with coffee and brown sugar - much different from what most Americans have tasted over the last one hundred years. The original recipe is featured at Menches Brothers Restaurants in Akron, Ohio.

* Fletcher Davis late 1880s, Athens, Texas. In 1974, The New York Times ran a story about Louis' Lunch being a challenger to the title of inventing the hamburger. According to the McDonald's hamburger chain the inventor was an unknown food vendor at the St. Louis World's Fair in 1904. Newspaper columnist, Texas historian, and restaurateur Frank X. Tolbert said that this food vendor was Fletcher Davis. Davis operated a café at 115 Tyler Street on the north side of the courthouse square in Athens, Texas, in the late 1880s. Local lore holds that Davis was selling an unnamed sandwich of ground beef at his lunch counter at that time. In 1904, Davis and his wife Ciddy, with backing from local business, took their sandwich to the 1904 World's Fair. Fletcher and Ciddy Davis launched their invention from "Old Dave's Hamburger Stand", located on the midway at the fair. A reference to a New York Tribune article written at the time about the fair called a hamburger the innovation of a food vendor on the pike. Tolbert said that Old Dave was Fletcher Davis from Athens. During the 1980s Dairy Queen ran a commercial filmed in Athens, calling the town the birthplace of the hamburger. In November 2006, The Texas State Legislature introduced Bill HCR-15, designating Athens as the "Original Home of the Hamburger".

* Louis Lassen 1895, New Haven, Connecticut. Some believe the first hamburgers were served at Louis' Lunch, a sandwich shop established in 1895 in New Haven. The small lunch counter is credited by some with having invented this quick businessman's meal when Louis' sandwiched a hamburger between two pieces of white toast for a busy office worker in 1900. Louis' Lunch flame broils the hamburgers in the original 1898 Bridge & Beach vertical cast iron gas stoves using locally patented steel wire broilers to hold the hamburgers in place while they cook. In 2000, the United States Library of Congress credited Louis' Lunch with making America's first hamburger [1].

* White Castle, 1921, Wichita, Kansas. Due to widely prevalent anti-German sentiment in the USA during the World War I, an alternative name for hamburgers was salisbury steak. Even after the war, hamburgers' popularity was severely depressed until the White Castle chain of restaurants created a business model featuring sales of large numbers of small hamburgers. White Castle holds a U.S trademark on "slyders".

* Homemade hamburgers. Although restaurants may have had an important role in popularizing hamburgers in the United States, hamburgers have been prepared by hand in the home from fresh ground meat and cooked, either fried on the stove or grilled over charcoal in a barbecue for many years.

Hamburgers today

Hamburger and fries served in an American diner.

In 1906, Upton Sinclair published his book: "The Jungle" which exposed the lack of sanitation in the meat packing industry. As a result, many Americans developed a fear of eating processed beef. In the 1920s, Billy Ingram, (one of the founders of White Castle), began a public relations campaign to remake the image of the hamburgers sold in restaurants and to help make the burger a favorite food. In his book: "Selling them by the Sack: White Castle and the Creation of the American Food", David Gerald Hogan credits Billy Ingram and White Castle for making the hamburger the very popular food it is today, and leading the way for McDonald's and other franchises to follow.

The "cheese hamburger," now simply the cheeseburger, is said to have first appeared in 1924, and credited to grill chef Lionel Sternberger of The Rite Spot restaurant in Pasadena, California. This kind of burger is basically the same as a regular hamburger but with a slice of cheese (cheddar, American, Swiss, et cetera) inside.

The term "burger" has now become generic, and may refer to sandwiches that have ground meat, chicken, fish (or even vegetarian) fillings other than a beef patty, but share the characteristic round bun. By the mid 20th century both terms were commonly shortened to "hamburger" or simply "burger." However, these "burgers" are usually referred to as "chicken burgers", "fish burgers", etc. A "hamburger" today can also be made with finely chopped beef as well as ground beef.

Hamburgers are usually a feature of fast food restaurants. However, the hamburgers prepared in fast food establishments are mass-produced in factories and frozen for delivery to the site. These hamburgers are thin and of uniform thickness, differing dramatically from the traditional American hamburger prepared in homes and conventional restaurants, which is thicker and prepared by hand from fresh ground beef. Traditional American hamburgers are round, but some fast-food chains, such as Wendy's sell square-cut hamburgers. A traditional American hamburger is conventionally served in a non-fast food restaurant with iceburg lettuce and a slice of tomato, unless requested otherwise. Hamburgers in fast food restaurants are usually fried, but some firms, such as Burger King use a grilling process. At conventional American restaurants, hamburgers may be ordered "rare", but normally are served well-done for food safety reasons (see below). Fast food restaurants do not offer this option.

The McDonald's fast-food chain sells a sandwich called the Big Mac that is one of the world's top selling hamburgers. Other major fast-food chains – including Burger King (known as Hungry Jacks in Australia), A&W, Whataburger, Carl's Jr./Hardee's chain, Wendy's (known for their square patties), Jack in the Box, Cook Out, Harvey's, In-N-Out Burger, Five Guys, Fatburger, Burgerville, Back Yard Burgers, and Sonic – also rely heavily on hamburger sales. Fuddruckers and Red Robin are popular hamburger chains that specialize in mid-tier "restaurant-style" variety of hamburgers. The "slider" style of mini hamburger is still popular regionally in the White Castle and Krystal chains.

Some American establishments offer a unique take on the hamburger beyond what is offered in the fast food restaurants. Notable is Father's Office in Santa Monica, California. The patty is composed of dry-aged sirloin mixed with New York Strip ends topped with applewood-smoked bacon compote. It is topped with maytag blue and Gruyère cheeses, caramelized onions, and arugula on a French roll. In lieu of ketchup, Father's Office serves a blue cheese aioli in a ramekin. Dyer's Burgers in Memphis Tennessee is famous for a deep-fried burger. The proprietors claim that they recycle and re-use the same grease used when the restaurant opened in 1912. The casual dining chain Ruby Tuesday claims to have many different varieties of hamburgers on its menu of various shapes, meat compositions, or grades of beef.

Often, hamburgers are served as a common picnic and party food, cooked outdoors on barbecue grills. Hamburgers are also very good for backyard grilling and for home use. Hamburger patties are raw when first bought and may contain harmful bacteria that can produce food-borne illness such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, so caution is needed when handling them. Hamburgers patties can be cooked rare, medium rare, medium, medium well, or well done. These terms refer to how thoroughly the meat is cooked, ranging from having a little bit of pink coloring to being dark brown, cooked almost to a crisp. However because of the potential for food-borne illness, it is recommended that hamburgers should be cooked to an internal tempature of 170°F. If cooked to this temperature, they will be well done.


North America

In North America burgers can be divided into two main types: fast food hamburgers and individually-prepared ones made in homes and sit down restaurants. The latter are traditionally prepared "with everything" (or "all the way," "deluxe," "the works," "through the garden," or in some regions "dressed"), which includes lettuce, tomato, onion, and often sliced pickles (or pickle relish). Cheese (usually processed cheese slices but often cheddar, Swiss, or blue, either melted on the meat patty or crumbled on top), is generally an option. Condiments are usually added to the hamburger, but they may be offered separately ("on the side"), with the two most common condiments being mustard and tomato ketchup. However, mayonnaise, other salad dressings, and barbecue sauce are also popular. Traditional "Texas" hamburgers and cheeseburgers usually eschew other liquid condiments besides mustard. Other popular toppings include bacon, avocado or guacamole, sliced mushrooms or mushroom sauce, chili (with or without beans), salsa and other kinds of chile peppers. Heinz 57 sauce is popular among burger enthusiasts. Less popular ingredients include fried egg, scrambled egg, feta cheese, anchovies, slices of ham, tartar sauce, peanut butter and potato chips.

Standard toppings on hamburgers can vary by geographical region, particularly at restaurants that are not national or regional franchises. In the Upper Midwest, particularly Wisconsin, burgers are often made with a buttered bun, butter as one of the ingredients of the patty or with a pat of butter on top of the burger patty. This is called a "Butter Burger." In portions of the Carolinas, for instance, a Carolina-style hamburger "with everything" may be served with cheese, chili, onions, mustard, and cole slaw (usually a vinegar-heavy slaw with little or no mayonnaise), and national chain Wendy's sells a "Carolina Classic" burger with these toppings in these areas.

In Hawaii hamburgers are often topped with teriyaki sauce, derived from the Japanese-American culture, and locally grown pineapple. Waffle House claims on its menus and website to offer 70,778,880 different ways of serving a hamburger. In portions of the Midwest and east coast, a hamburger served with lettuce, tomato, and onion is referred to as a "California burger." This usage is sufficiently widespread to appear on the menus of fast-food restaurants, most notably in locations of the Dairy Queen franchise.

A hamburger with two patties is a "double decker" or simply a "double," of which the Big Boy claims to be the first commercially sold, while a hamburger with three patties is a "triple," with the Wendy's restaurant chain being among the first to offer this as a regular product. Doubles and triples are often combined with cheese and occasionally with bacon as well, yielding a "double cheeseburger" or a "triple bacon cheeseburger," or alternatively, a "bacon double/triple cheeseburger." A hamburger with one patty, bacon, and cheese is a "bacon cheeseburger" or a "Banquet Burger"; hamburgers with bacon but no cheese are often called "bacon-burger"s. The Hardee's restaurant chain gained extensive publicity within the United States following its introduction of the Monster Thickburger, with two meat patties, three slices of cheese, six strips of bacon, 1,420 calories and 107 grams of fat. Other restaurants, such as In-N-Out, offer multiple patties and cheese on a burger (for example, 4 X 4 which is 4 meat patties and 4 slices of cheese). One could order as many meat patties as desired. The largest ordered was a 100X100 at the cost of about $400 for a special occasion.

A patty melt is a sandwich consisting of a hamburger patty, sautéed onions and cheese between two slices of rye bread. The sandwich is then grilled so that the cheese melts thoroughly.

To decrease cooking and serving time, fast food hamburgers have thinner patties than their fancier counterparts. The Carl's Jr. restaurant chain acknowledged this with the introduction of the "Six Dollar Burger," featuring a patty the same size as those served by sit-down restaurants for a lower price. Hamburgers also tend to be described by their combined uncooked weight, with a single uncooked burger a nominal four ounces (a "quarter pounder" [113.5 grams]); so, instead of a "double hamburger" one might encounter a "half pounder" (i.e. eight ounces [227 grams]; burger weights are always specified in pounds).

Fast-food hamburgers are usually dressed with a variety of condiments, and in order to get a fast-food hamburger without one of these standard condiments a special order may be required.

White Castle also serves small hamburgers known as "sliders."

Krystal, like White Castle, serves small hamburgers.

In Alberta, a kubie burger is a hamburger made with a pressed Ukrainian sausage (kubasa).[4]

United Kingdom

Hamburgers in the UK are very similar to their U.S. cousins, and the high-street is dominated by the same big two chains as in the U.S.—McDonald's and Burger King. The menus offered to both countries are virtually identical, although portion sizes tend to be smaller in the UK.

An original and indigenous rival to the big two U.S. giants was the quintessentially British fast-food chain Wimpy, originally known as Wimpy Bar, which served its burgers or cheeseburgers with British-style chips, served on a plate accompanied by flatware and delivered to the customer's table. Wimpy began to die out in the late 1980s, disappearing from the UK high-street. However, it persists in some motorway service stations, resembling much more the U.S. style system of counter-service.

Hamburgers are also available from mobile kiosks, particularly at outdoor events such as football matches. Burgers from this type of outlet are usually served without any form of salad - only fried onions and a choice of sauce (mayo, ketchup, brown sauce, et cetera)

Chip shops, particularly in the North-East, West Midlands and Scotland, serve battered hamburgers (along with battered sausages). This is where the burger patty, by itself, is deep-fat-fried in batter and served with chips, but no bun.

Hamburgers and veggie burgers, usually of a better quality, served with chips and salad, are now standard pub grub menu items. Indeed, many pubs specialize in "gourmet" burgers. These are usually high quality minced steak patties, topped with items such as blue cheese, brie, avocado et cetera. Another variant is the curry burger, which seasons the meat with curry to provide a spicier alternative.

Many British pubs are also notable for their extreme fondness for burger patties made from more exotic meats - common examples include venison burgers (sometimes nicknamed Bambi Burgers), Bison burgers and in some Australian themed pubs even Kangaroo burgers can be purchased. All of these hamburgers are served in a similar way to the traditional hamburger but may come with a different condiment - ie: Redcurrant sauce, mint sauce, plum sauce et cetera.

In the early 21st century "premium" hamburger chain and independent restaurants have arisen, selling burgers produced from meat stated to be of high quality and often organic, usually served to eat on the premises rather than to take away. [2] Chains include Gourmet Burger Kitchen, Ultimate Burger, and Hamburger Union.

In recent years Rustlers has sold pre-cooked hamburgers reheatable in a microwave oven in the United Kingdom.

Australia & New Zealand

Fast food franchises sell American style fast food hamburgers in both Australia and New Zealand. The traditional Australasian hamburger almost always includes tomato, lettuce, cheese, grilled onion, beetroot (canned slices), and meat as minimum, and can optionally include a fried egg (usually with a hard yolk), bacon, and a grilled pineapple ring. The only condiments regularly used are tomato sauce, which is similar to ketchup but has less vinegar and more sugar, or BBQ sauce. Hamburgers in Australia and New Zealand tend to be less oily and fatty than their US counterparts, and are more likely to include a full salad if available. The McDonalds "McOz" Burger is partway between American and Australian style burgers, having beetroot and tomato in an otherwise typical American burger. Likewise McDonalds in New Zealand created a Kiwiburger which is similar to a Quarter Pounder, but features salad, beetroot and a fried egg.

 The Hungry Jacks "Aussie Burger" has tomato, lettuce, onion, cheese, bacon, beetroot, egg, ketchup and a meat patty. As with many issues between the two countries there is much debate over whether this burger (with beetroot being the defining factor) is, in fact, an Australian or a New Zealand creation, but the answer remains unclear.

Hamburger meat is almost always ground beef. Outside of fast food restaurants, "home made" style burgers, generally known in Australia as a 'Hamburger with the Lot' (if they have "the lot" on them) are usually bought from fish and chip shops.

China

In China, restaurants such as McDonald's and KFC have been proliferating all across the country. In many parts of China, small hamburger chains have opened up to capitalize on the popularity of hamburgers with children. Restaurants such as Peter Burger attempt to copy McDonald's.In supermarkets and corner stores, customers can buy "hamburgers" (hanbao) off the bread shelf. These unrefrigerated so-called "hamburgers" are nothing more than ultra-sweet buns cut open with a thin slice of pork or ham placed inside without any condiments or vegetables. These hanbao are a half-westernised form of the traditional Cantonese "hamburgers" called "Char Siu Bao" (BBQ Pork Bun), see Chinese cuisine. The Chinese word for hamburger (hanbao) often refers to all sandwiches containing cooked meat, regardless of the meat's origin. This includes chicken burgers, as KFC is very popular in China.


Japan
Hamburg steak

In Japan, hamburgers can be served in a bun, called hanb®°g®° (ÉnÉìÉoÅ[ÉKÅ[), or just the patties served without a bun, known as hanb®°gu (ÉnÉìÉoÅ[ÉO) or "hamburg", short for "hamburg steak".

Hamburg steaks (served without buns) are similar to what is known as Salisbury steaks in the USA. They are made from minced beef, pork or a blend of the two, mixed with minced onions, egg, breadcrumbs and spices. They are served with brown sauce (or demi-glace in restaurants) with vegetable or salad sides, or occasionally in Japanese curries. It is a popular item at home, and in casual, western style suburban restaurant chains known in Japan as "family restaurants". It became popular in the 1960s.

Hamburgers in buns, on the other hand, are predominantly the domain of fast food chains. As well as American chains such as McDonald's (nicknamed Makku) and Wendy's, Japan has a few home grown hamburger chain restaurants such as MOS Burger which serve what many consider to be excellent hamburgers.

Local varieties of burgers served in Japan include teriyaki burgers, katsu burgers (containing tonkatsu) and burgers containing shrimp korokke. Some of the more unusual examples include the "Rice Burger", where the bun is made of rice, and the luxury 1000-yen (US $10) "Takumi Burger" (meaning "artisan taste"), featuring avocados, freshly-grated wasabi, and other rare seasonal ingredients. McDonald's Japan also recently launched a McPork burger, made on U.S. pork. McDonald's has been gradually losing market share in Japan to these local hamburger chains, due in part to the preference of Japanese diners for fresh ingredients and more refined, "upscale" hamburger offerings. Burger King once retreated from Japan, but re-entered the market in Summer 2007 in a cooperation with the Japanese/Korean fast-food chain Lotteria.

Other countries

Rice burgers, mentioned above, are also available in several East Asian countries such as Taiwan and South Korea. Lotteria is a big hamburger franchise in Japan owned by the South Korean Lotte group, with outlets also in China, South Korea, Vietnam, and Taiwan. In addition to selling beef hamburgers, they also have hamburgers made from squid, pork, tofu, and shrimp. Variations available in Korea include bulgogi burgers and kimchi burgers.

Not surprisingly, the Philippines, with American influences going back to US domination of the islands at the beginning of the 20th Century, retains a strong bond with American trends. A wide range of major US fast-food franchises are well represented, together with local imitators, often amended to the local palate. The famous chain McDonalds (locally nicknamed "McDo"), which is immensely popular with Filipinos, have a range of burger and chicken dishes often accompanied by plain steamed rice and/or french fries. Most popular of all with locals, the Philippines boasts its own burger-chain called Jollibee - which offers credible burger meals and chicken, including a signature burger called "The Big Champ". It is perhaps ironic, but very encouraging, that Jollibee now has a number of outlets in the United States. Jollibee, as well as other rewith ground chicken and/or pork patties, and are served with coleslaw and generous amounts of a sauce made by mixing ketchup, mayonnaise and sour cream. In addition to tasting nothing like most Western burgers, the large amount of sauce makes it a very messy food to eat, and these hamburgers are generally served in special paper or plastic pouches to avoid spilling the sauce on oneself.

In India, burgers are usually made using a chicken or a vegetable patty, due to cultural taboos against eating beef and pork. These taboos stem from the religious practices of Hindus and Muslims, respectively. Because of this, the majority of fast food chains and restaurants in India do not serve beef or pork. Likewise, McDonald's restaurants in India do not serve beef or pork, therefore the 'Big Mac' is replaced with the 'Maharaja Mac' which substitutes the beef patties with chicken.

Another version of the Indian vegetarian burger is the "Wada Pav" consisting deep-fried potato patty dipped in gramflour batter. It is usually served with mint chutney and fried green chili.

In Pakistan there are no Pork Burgers. Apart from American Fast food chains, burgers can be found on stalls near shopping areas. The most famous and inexpensive being 'Shami Burger' made from 'Shami Kebab'. It is a Kebab made by mixing lentil and Minced lamb meat. Onions, scrambled egg and ketchup are the most common toppings.

In Malaysia, an predominantly Muslim country, pork burgers are not sold. Even so, the country has 300 McDonalds and 800 KFC restaurants. The menu in Malaysia also includes eggs and fried chicken on top of the regular burgers. Burgers are also easily found at nearby mobile kiosks especially Ramly Burger.

In South Africa a mixture of hot mustard and mayonnaise is standard fare for a burger. Usually the mixture will be out, already mixed for partakers.