Burgers Growing in Size

High Fat and Calorie-Loaded Hamburgers Are Getting Bigger

Apr 2, 2009 Rupert Taylor

Despite the strongly worded advice of physicians many people are determined to satisfy their cravings for bigger and bigger burgers.

Burger King has been selling its Whopper, a quarter-pound burger (113 g), since 1957 when it cost 37 cents.

In 2006, the company added a Triple Whopper, which it describes as “a monster of a burger. Three flame-broiled beef patties – that’s three-quarters of a lb. of beef (340 g) – with two slices of cheese, crisp lettuce, creamy mayo, tomatoes, pickles, and onions all on a toasted sesame seed bun.”

It weighs in at 1,230 calories. As dietblog.com points out, adding a large chocolate shake makes for a massive meal. “According to the calorie calculator, after eating the burger, a 135 pound (61 kg) woman would meet her entire day’s calorie needs about one third of the way through the shake.”

Ballpark Burger is Bigger

However, the Triple Whopper is just a snack when matched up against what’s available at a minor-league ballpark in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Associated Press reported on April 2, 2009 that fans of the West Michigan Whitecaps will be able to buy a “1.8-kilogram burger [that] features five beef patties, five slices of cheese, nearly a cup of chili, and liberal doses of salsa, and corn chips."

The bun measures 20 centimetres across and the whole honking hamburger loads 4,800 calories into anyone that consumes it. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, which is based in Washington, D.C., is shocked. Its staff dietician, Susan Levin, has written to the West Michigan Whitecaps asking the club to put a “dietary disaster” label on its “monster burger.” Ms. Levin says the label ought to read, “WARNING – Eating meat is associated with increased risk of heart disease, cancer, and death.”

Heart Attack Grill

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is silent on the menu at the Heart Attack Grill in Tempe, Arizona; it probably hasn’t come to the group’s attention yet. When it does, the owner will surely get a letter.

For customers who are brave, or foolish, enough the restaurant serves a “quadruple bypass burger.” It comes with four half-pound (227 g) beef patties, eight slices of cheese, a whole tomato, and half an onion. It packs 8,000 calories, more than three times what the average human body needs in one day. Customers should not even think about the fat content.

But, they're up-front about what they offer at the Heart Attack Grill, where the motto is “Taste to die for.”

There is no salad bar in this eatery, just the “All-You-Can-Eat Flatliner Fries” bar.

The man who operates the place, (he calls himself Doctor John) told Bill Geist of CBS Sunday Morning News (November 25, 2008), “I run, perhaps, the only honest restaurant in America. Heh, this is bad for you and it’s gonna kill you.”

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Hamburgers Getting Bigger