September 18, 2023 – Cheeseburgers

Happy National Cheeseburger Day! The predecessor of the cheeseburger is, of course, the hamburger. The earliest version of hamburgers were Hamburg steaks, a mix of beef from German Hamburg cows, garlic, onions, and seasonings that were formed into a patty. They became what we know as hamburgers when German immigrants in NYC started serving them between slices of bread from street food carts.
Because of wide anti-German sentiment in the U.S., hamburgers lost popularity during and after World War I. Until, that is, the founders of White Castle created their signature sliders. The founder of White Castle is also credited with inventing hamburger buns.
There are several claims as to who invented the cheeseburger. A 16 year old fry cook named Lionel Sternberger supposedly created the cheeseburger in 1924. He was working at his father’s sandwich shop in Pasadena, California, and on a whim, dropped a piece of American cheese on top of a sizzling hamburger. He and his dad both approved, and they started selling it as the “Cheese Hamburger” for 15 cents.
The first sandwich to be called a “cheeseburger” was sold at Kaelin’s restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky in 1934. A year later, the term was trademarked by the owner of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver.
The largest cheeseburger ever made weighed a whopping 2,014 pounds. The record was set in 2012 by the Black Bear Casino in Minnesota, smashing the previous record of 881 pounds. Learn more here.