You have to watch the classic SNL skit “Olympia Restaurant” in order to get into the right mood for National Cheeseburger Day, which is September 18th! And in honor of National Cheeseburger Day here are a few fun facts about everyone’s go-to grilling favorite.
National Cheeseburger Day Fun Facts
The World’s Most Expensive Cheeseburger
The most expensive burger in America is not actually in a restaurant, but rather on the New York City food truck. The 666 Burger is a $666 Kobe beef patty that is wrapped in gold leaf and topped with lobster, caviar, truffles, foie gras, and aged Gruyère cheese melted with steam from champagne poured on the hot griddle. In case that wasn’t enough, the cheeseburger comes wrapped in three $100 bills. The food truck admits they have only sold one of their 666 Burgers so far, but it has certainly helped drive more foot traffic to order their regular old $6.66 cheeseburger.
We Eat How Many Burgers?!
Americans eat nearly 50 billion burgers a year, which averages out to three burgers a week for every single person in the United States.
Meanwhile, burgers account for 40 percent of all sandwiches sold.
According to McDonald’s, they sell 75 burgers every single second of every minute of every hour of every single day across all their franchises.
The Origins of the Cheeseburger
Like most superheroes, there are several origin stories surrounding the creation of the cheeseburger. The most story is that sometime between 1924 and 1926, chef Lionel Sternberger in Pasadena, California added a slice of cheese to a hamburger because of a homeless man he was feeding asked for it. The item went on his menu and the heroic cheeseburger was born!
White Castle is the oldest burger chain in America. Back in 1921, they sold burgers for a mere 5 cents!
Healthy or Mega Unhealthy?
Plenty of restaurants have tried to make their cheeseburgers healthier by swapping the ground beef for ground turkey. Or, nix the bun and use lettuce instead. Other restaurants have gone 180 degrees in the opposite direction to make cheeseburgers as unhealthy as possible. For instance, the Luther Burger (supposedly named after R&B singer Luther Vandross is served) between two glazed donuts instead of the usual bun. One restaurant even named their burger “Heart Attack on a Plate”. The patty is stuffed with cheddar cheese before being dipped in ale batter and dropped in the fryer.
Grill the Perfect Burger
Check out our “How to Grill the Perfect Burger” blog so you can celebrate National Cheeseburger Day at home! Will you stick with the classic toppings or do you like to go for crazy toppings?
© Featured photo by rez-art from Getty Images