How Did Burger King Get Its Name? And What Was It Originally Called?

Lauren Novak May 12, 9:40 pm

In this photo illustration, a Whopper meal is seen at a Burger King restaurant on October 25, 2024 in New York City. The Burger King restaurant chain along with Yum Brands, which owns Taco Bell, have pulled onions from select restaurants following an E. coli outbreak that is tied to McDonald’s. Burger King is removing onions from 5% of its U.S. restaurants after discovering that the onions originated at the Taylor Farms Colorado facility at the center of the recall — Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Burger King, which celebrates its 71st anniversary this year, is one of the best-known restaurant chains on Earth. But have you ever wondered how it got its name? And did you know that, while the first official BK opened in Miami in 1954, a predecessor restaurant opened in 1953, in Jacksonville, Florida — with a different name, one that eventually evolved into Burger King?

That restaurant, opened by Keith G. Cramer and Matthew Burns, used a new invention called an Insta-Broiler, which cooked up hamburger patties extra fast. They played up that fact by calling the restaurant … Insta-Burger King. A pair of franchise owners, James McLamore and David Edgerton, opened what is now considered the original Burger King in 1954; in 1957, McLamore introduced the Whopper, priced at an affordable 37 cents, which soon became the chain’s signature item and remains synonymous with the fast food restaurant today. In 1959, the pair took ownership of the chain.

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Over the decades, Burger King has continually evolved its menu and ads. The 1970s introduced the “Have it Your Way” slogan, emphasizing customization, contrasting competitors’ more standardized menus. During this time, the brand also expanded beyond burgers, adding fish and chicken sandwiches. Its fish sandwich was first called The Whaler when it was introduced nationally in the ’70s. The late ’70s also marked significant diversification under Donald N. Smith’s “Operation Phoenix.” This included items like the Original Chicken Sandwich in 1978, which targeted adults willing to spend more on higher-quality fast food.

Fast food also known as the junk food phenomenon arrived in France, the country of gastronomy in the late seventies early eighties. Hamburgers, cheeseburgers, french fries, Coca Cola or Pepsi and milk shakes with the interior decoration and design of the premises in the same atmosphere as in the USA. The beginning of fast food in France started with such companies such as Whataburger, Love Burger, Manhattan Burger, Big Boy, Popeye Burger, Freetime, Burger King and Mcdonald's

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In the 1980s and 1990s, Burger King further expanded its offerings. Chicken Tenders debuted in 1985 as a response to McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets, followed by Burger Bundles and the BK Broiler in 1990. The latter, a broiled chicken sandwich on an oat-bran roll, reflected a growing demand for healthier options. These years also saw some brand-new limited-time offerings, such as the short-lived Fish Tenders and Baguette Sandwiches. The 2000s brought some bold experiments to shake things up, including value menus and indulgent creations like the BK Stacker. In 2019, the chain introduced plant-based options, such as the Impossible Whopper, which aimed to grab the attention of the growing popularity of veganism.

How Did Burger King Get Its Name? And What Was It Originally Called?

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