Big King

The Big King is a double hamburger sold by the American fast-food chain Burger King, featuring its own King sauce and pickles. It matters chiefly because it was deliberately modelled on McDonald's Big Mac, which made it one of the best-known episodes in the rivalry between the two chains.

History

The Big King grew out of the Double Supreme, a test product released in January 1996 in the United States. Its design copied the Big Mac: two beef patties, King sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions on a three-part sesame bun. The chain promoted it in direct comparison with its rival, claiming 75% more beef and less bread, a claim a Chicago Tribune review largely supported.

After testing, at the end of summer 1997, the sandwich was renamed the Big King and added to the national menu without the central bun. Its launch price of 99 cents helped drive strong sales. In 2001, as the company struggled, it was reformulated as the King Supreme, and later returned under its original name after the BK Stacker line was dropped. It has been permanently available in the United States since 2013, and in Spain it gained a central bread slice in 2014, bringing it closer to the Big Mac format.

Culture

The Big King is a staple of the chain's menu and one of its most recognisable burgers. Its core build includes flame-grilled beef, lettuce, cheese, fried onion, dill pickles and King sauce. A larger XXL version exists, which in Europe was part of a line of oversized double cheeseburgers.

In various markets the burger has had variants, such as a chicken Big King in the United States and Canada, and limited-time editions released occasionally to keep interest alive. Its public profile has centred on the comparison with the Big Mac and on controversies over advertising of the XXL burgers in Spain.

Trivia