Frederic Melton
The cheeseburger is a beloved staple of fast-food restaurants and diners worldwide. But who first had the idea to put cheese on a hamburger? While the exact origin of the cheeseburger is disputed, several chefs and restaurants claim to have invented it. The Rite Spot in Pasadena, California, is often credited with creating the cheeseburger in the 1920s, with Lionel Sternberger, the 16-year-old son of the owner, said to have experimentally dropped a slice of American cheese on a hamburger. Other claimants include Kaelin's Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, which says it invented the cheeseburger in 1934, and the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado, whose owner Louis Ballast trademarked the name cheeseburger in 1935.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date invented | Between 1924 and 1926, or 1934 |
| Inventor | Lionel Sternberger, or Charles Kaelin |
| Location | Pasadena, California, or Louisville, Kentucky |
| Reason for invention | Masking a burnt patty, or adding flavour |
| Type of cheese | American |
| Type of hamburger | "Aristocratic Burger: the Original Hamburger with Cheese", or "cheese hamburger" |
| Price | $0.15 |
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What You'll Learn
- The first cheeseburger was served at Rite Spot in Pasadena, California, in 1924
- Lionel Sternberger, the alleged inventor, was 16 at the time
- Sternberger claims he invented the cheeseburger out of boredom
- The cheeseburger was first called the Aristocratic Burger: the Original Hamburger with Cheese
- Other restaurants also claim to have invented the cheeseburger
The first cheeseburger was served at Rite Spot in Pasadena, California, in 1924
The cheeseburger is an iconic food in the United States, and its history dates back to the early 20th century. The first cheeseburger was served at Rite Spot in Pasadena, California, in 1924, and it has since become a beloved dish worldwide.
Rite Spot, a roadside burger stand in Pasadena, was the setting for this culinary innovation. According to local lore, a teenage cook named Lionel Sternberger first experimented with adding cheese to a hamburger. The story goes that on a fateful day in 1924, Lionel, working as a fry cook at his father's restaurant, dropped a slab of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger. Whether it was an intentional invention or a creative cover-up for a burned patty, as some claim, the result was a delicious success.
The cheeseburger, also known as "The Aristocratic Burger: The Original Hamburger With Cheese," quickly gained popularity in Pasadena. Rite Spot's cheeseburgers became all the rage, and Sternberger's innovation brought him significant financial success. The cheeseburger later appeared on menus in other restaurants, with O'Dell's in Los Angeles offering a cheeseburger smothered with chili in 1928.
Over the years, the cheeseburger has evolved, with variations like the steamed cheeseburger and the bacon cheeseburger emerging. Different types of cheese, such as cheddar, Swiss, and mozzarella, are now commonly used alongside the traditional American cheese. The dish has become a staple in fast-food restaurants and diners, with virtually all hamburger-serving establishments offering cheeseburger options.
The impact of that first cheeseburger served in Pasadena in 1924 has been lasting and significant. Pasadena celebrates its role in the history of the cheeseburger with an annual Cheeseburger Week, honoring the ingenuity of Lionel Sternberger. The city also installed a plaque at the original location of Rite Spot, commemorating it as the "original home of the cheeseburger."
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Lionel Sternberger, the alleged inventor, was 16 at the time
The cheeseburger is a beloved staple of the modern diet, but its origins are somewhat disputed. While several chefs claim to have been the first to add a slice of cheese to a hamburger, Lionel Sternberger, the alleged inventor, was just 16 at the time. Working as a fry cook at his father's Pasadena, California sandwich shop, "The Rite Spot", Lionel is said to have experimentally dropped a slab of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger.
Lionel's story is a charming one. In 1924, the 16-year-old was working in his dad's restaurant, flipping burgers. According to one version of events, he accidentally burnt a patty on the grill. To hide his mistake, he slapped a slice of cheese on top to conceal the scorch marks. A clever customer then asked for the cheese to be placed inside their burger, and the cheeseburger was born. Another version of the story suggests that Lionel added the cheese out of boredom, perhaps indicating that the truth is a combination of the two—a bored teenager, experimenting with his burger patties, covered up a scorched patty with cheese, only to discover that it tasted delicious.
Lionel's father approved of the creation, and the cheeseburger was added to the menu at "The Rite Spot". An early example of the cheeseburger appearing on a menu is a 1928 listing from the Los Angeles restaurant O'Dell's, which offered a cheeseburger smothered with chilli for 25 cents. The Pasadena Museum of History also found a menu for "The Rite Spot" that included the "Aristocratic Burger: the Original Hamburger with Cheese", although this menu was produced before 1939.
Despite the evidence for Lionel's invention, other restaurants also claim to have invented the cheeseburger. For example, Kaelin's Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, said it invented the cheeseburger in 1934, and in 1935, a trademark for the name "cheeseburger" was awarded to Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado. Steak 'n Shake archives also suggest that the restaurant's founder, Gus Belt, applied for a trademark on the word in the 1930s.
Regardless of its true origins, the cheeseburger has become an iconic dish, celebrated annually during Pasadena Cheeseburger Week.
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Sternberger claims he invented the cheeseburger out of boredom
While the origins of the cheeseburger are disputed, Lionel Sternberger is often credited with inventing the dish. According to one story, Sternberger, out of boredom, "experimentally dropped a slab of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger" while working as a fry cook at his father's Pasadena, California, sandwich shop, "The Rite Spot." This event is said to have taken place in 1924, when Sternberger was 16 years old, or in 1927, when he was a teenager.
There are several variations of the Rite Spot story. In one version, Sternberger adds cheese to a burger for a drifter who strolls into the restaurant and orders a burger "with everything on it." The cheeseburger is then added to the menu as the "Aristocratic Burger," named after the hobo who inspired it. Another story claims that Sternberger invented the cheeseburger to drum up business for the Rite Spot, which he had recently purchased.
Despite these claims, other restaurants also assert that they invented the cheeseburger. For example, Kaelin's Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, claims to have invented the cheeseburger in 1934, and the trademark for the name "cheeseburger" was awarded to Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado, in 1935. Additionally, the steamed cheeseburger, a variation served primarily in central Connecticut, is believed to have been invented at Jack's Lunch in Middletown, Connecticut, in the 1930s.
Regardless of its exact origins, the cheeseburger has become a beloved dish around the world, with numerous variations in structure, ingredients, and composition. It is a testament to human creativity and culinary innovation that a simple act of boredom or experimentation by Sternberger may have led to the creation of this iconic dish.
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The cheeseburger was first called the Aristocratic Burger: the Original Hamburger with Cheese
The origins of the cheeseburger are disputed, with several chefs claiming to have been the first to put a slice of cheese on a hamburger. However, one popular story traces the dish back to Pasadena, California, in the early 1920s. According to this version of events, the cheeseburger was first called the "Aristocratic Burger: the Original Hamburger with Cheese".
In 1924, 16-year-old Lionel Sternberger was working as a fry cook at his father's Pasadena sandwich shop, "The Rite Spot". One day, Lionel accidentally burnt a hamburger patty on the grill. To hide the mistake, he placed a slice of cheese on top. A customer witnessed this and asked for a burger with cheese, thus creating the cheeseburger.
The Rite Spot eventually moved from its roadside location to a brick-and-mortar steakhouse, where it continued to serve the Aristocratic Burger. A menu for the restaurant produced before 1939 includes the Aristocratic Burger, and Lionel was recognised as the inventor of the cheeseburger in a 1964 issue of Time Magazine.
Other chefs who have claimed to have invented the cheeseburger include Charles Kaelin of Louisville, Kentucky, who said he created it in 1934; Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado, who trademarked the name "cheeseburger" in 1935; and Fletcher Davis of Athens, Texas, who claimed to have invented the hamburger by putting ground beef between two pieces of Texas toast in the late 1880s.
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Other restaurants also claim to have invented the cheeseburger
Several chefs claim to have been the first to add a slice of cheese to a hamburger. While Lionel Sternberger of Rite Spot in Pasadena, California, is often credited with the invention, other restaurants also claim to have invented the cheeseburger.
One such restaurant is Kaelin's Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, which says it invented the cheeseburger in 1934. The following year, in 1935, a trademark for the name "cheeseburger" was awarded to Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado. According to Steak 'n Shake archives, the restaurant's founder, Gus Belt, also applied for a trademark on the word in the 1930s.
The steamed cheeseburger, a variation almost exclusively served in central Connecticut, is believed to have been invented at a restaurant called Jack's Lunch in Middletown, Connecticut, in the 1930s.
Dale Mulder, the owner of an A&W Restaurants franchise in Lansing, Michigan, has also been credited with inventing the bacon cheeseburger in 1963, putting it on the menu after repeated requests from the same customer.
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Frequently asked questions
There are several claims to the invention of the cheeseburger. One story credits Lionel Sternberger, a cook at his father's Pasadena, California, sandwich shop, "The Rite Spot". It is said that in 1924, Sternberger "experimentally dropped a slab of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger". Another source claims that Sternberger was bored when he slapped cheese on a hamburger in 1926.
Yes. Kaelin's Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, claimed to have invented the cheeseburger in 1934. However, a trademark for the name "cheeseburger" was awarded to Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado, in 1935.
A 1928 menu for the Los Angeles restaurant O'Dell's listed a cheeseburger smothered with chilli for 25 cents.
The steamed cheeseburger is a variation that is almost exclusively served in central Connecticut. It is believed to have been invented at a restaurant called Jack's Lunch in Middletown, Connecticut, in the 1930s.
