# Is the Big Mac actually big in the US? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 7, 2018, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378 "2018-02-07T17:46:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Smid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/838e76/32.png) [@Smid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smid)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/21 "2018-02-07T20:09:59Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > It did seem larger when it was wrapped in paper, surrounded by a cardboard ring and packaged in a cardboard box. It was just a tiny bit less complex than the gift wrap Rowen Atkinson was doing in _Love Actually_. Yes, to me the packing was all that was big about it. When it comes to calories, I know a bunch of places can make a salad 600 calories from its dressings alone. I assume the calorific content is much more sugar to the bun and the sauce/additions nowadays. According to google, 3 oz (which I guess is 2/10th of a lb, but that’s uk, it might be different US) is 282 calories… But yeah, never been big by sounds of it. Interesting. It was the first thing I had in a McD’s in the UK about 1987. I don’t remember it being that small then, but expectations were not todays as said… ---
**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/22 "2018-02-07T20:10:08Z")
Big Macs seem like they measure almost greater along the y axis than the x axis, but still come off as being overall a more anemic burger compared to their competitors’. Dare I pose the question “where’s the beef?” ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/23 "2018-02-07T21:26:00Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > It did seem larger when it was wrapped in paper, surrounded by a cardboard ring and packaged in a cardboard box. It was just a tiny bit less complex than the gift wrap Rowen Atkinson was doing in _Love Actually_. And even larger when it came in a Styrofoam clamshell container, the way nature intended. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/24 "2018-02-07T21:59:28Z")
A bunch of shredded lettuce makes it look bigger as well. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/25 "2018-02-07T22:37:21Z")
Also, it was called the “[Big Boy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Boy_Restaurants#The_Big_Boy_hamburger)” at Big Boy restaurants long before McDonald’s stole it and started calling it the Big Mac. I didn’t go to Big Boy before the Big Mac was invented (not having been born yet) but I did go to a Big Boy later and their Big Boy burger was much more deserving of the “Big” title. I couldn’t tell you what it looked like in the 60s though. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/26 "2018-02-07T22:52:43Z")
Not so much anymore, but it used to be that the scare reports about specific food items being bad for you would compare the food item in question to Big Macs. For instance, movie popcorn is bad because eating a medium bag of it would be like eating five Big Macs. Pasta salad is bad because a single restaurant portion of pasta salad is equal to eight Big Macs. And so on. Of course, this could only lead one to conclude that one Big Mac is the best thing you could eat for your health. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/27 "2018-02-08T00:01:42Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > McDonald’s Big Mac UK: 508 calories > [Big Mac® - 100% Beef Burger](https://www.mcdonalds.com/gb/en-gb/product/big-mac.html) > McDonald’s Big Mac US: 540 calories > [Big Mac®: Calories and Nutrition | McDonald's](https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/product/big-mac.html) > > We’re fatter. We win! USA! USA! yes but those are metric calories. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/28 "2018-02-08T13:17:32Z")
I remember the small burgers from childhood quite well. Mom & Pop hamburger stands were everywhere. The burger patties were paper thin. Asking for a double patty may have gotten you a quarter pound of meat. It was always exciting to find a small town with a McDonald’s. Their burgers seemed so large in comparison. The Big Mac was a feast in 1973. Portion size has changed. Burgers today don’t fill us up anymore. I occasionally buy during McDonald’s 2 for 1 specials. Planning to refrigerate one for later. **confession** Sometimes I eat them both. It’s hard to convince myself that I’m full after 1 McDonald’s burger. The smallest burger today is Sonic. The patties are so much thinner than other chains. I’m always still hungry after lunch at Sonic. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/29 "2018-02-08T14:50:42Z")
I get the feeling that for most of the 20th Century, an average hamburger from a hamburger stand was somewhere between the size of a White Castle slider and a regular McDonald’s hamburger today. Possibly a little thicker, but not much bigger around. It’s surprisingly hard to find old pictures of regular day to day food. There’s plenty of food advertising, and pictures of restaurants, but not many pictures of what people actually ate. [Here’s an old blog post I found](http://aht.seriouseats.com/2006/05/photo-gallery-hamburgers-a-pictorial-history.html) with some pictures of hamburgers and hamburger stands from the 30s and 40s. No Whoppers or Quarter Pounders there. Most of them make a Big Mac look big. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/30 "2018-02-08T15:09:27Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I remember the small burgers from childhood quite well. > > Mom & Pop hamburger stands were everywhere. The burger patties were paper thin. Asking for a double patty may have gotten you a quarter pound of meat. > > It was always exciting to find a small town with a McDonald’s. Their burgers seemed so large in comparison. The Big Mac was a feast in 1973. > > Portion size has changed. Burgers today don’t fill us up anymore. I occasionally buy during McDonald’s 2 for 1 specials. Planning to refrigerate one for later. **confession** Sometimes I eat them both. It’s hard to convince myself that I’m full after 1 McDonald’s burger. > > The smallest burger today is Sonic. The patties are so much thinner than other chains. I’m always still hungry after lunch at Sonic. you’re supposed to eat until you’re not hungry anymore, not until you’re stuffed. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/31 "2018-02-08T15:40:14Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Portion size has changed. Burgers today don’t fill us up anymore. I’m not sure if you mean the restaurant sizes have gotten smaller, or our appetites have gotten bigger, but I would surmise it’s much more the latter. While I was researching the size of the original McDonald’s patty (which is the same as today), I also found that back when the Big Mac was introduced, the average US adult male was 165 pounds. Now the average male is 195 pounds. ---
**Author:** ![Grumbacher\_Red](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85e7bf/32.png) [@Grumbacher\_Red](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumbacher_Red)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/32 "2018-02-08T16:07:47Z")
Oh, yes, we have definitely acquired bigger appetites. Gluttony has been encouraged, whereas it used to be considered more socially unacceptable. It is hard to say which came first, the bigger portions or the bigger appetites for them. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/33 "2018-02-08T17:26:39Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > you’re supposed to eat until you’re not hungry anymore, not until you’re stuffed. “The meal’s not over when I’m _full_. The meal is over when I hate myself.” - Louis CK ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/34 "2018-02-08T17:53:49Z")
It’s funny that everyone is saying burgers have gotten bigger. Decades ago [they seemed larger than Big Macs are today](https://www.reddit.com/r/TheWayWeWere/comments/3myjcp/radio_dj_texas_tiny_eats_buffalo_burger_buffalo/) [I asked about that guy](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=836053) last September. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/35 "2018-02-08T18:11:12Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > It’s funny that everyone is saying burgers have gotten bigger. > > Decades ago [they seemed larger than Big Macs are today](https://www.reddit.com/r/TheWayWeWere/comments/3myjcp/radio_dj_texas_tiny_eats_buffalo_burger_buffalo/) Nah, that’s a regular sized McDonald’s burger. It just looks big because those guys are so tiny. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/36 "2018-02-08T18:30:39Z")
Growing up in the '60s, I remember California burgers coming before the Big Mac or Whopper. They were popularized in shows like _ **Gidget** _ and were part of the surfing scene. A California burger had ketchup, mayo, onion, lettuce, and tomato and was pretty big (at least they seemed so then). My mother always remarked on how big hamburgers were when she was growing up during the Depression, and how they never cost more than a nickel. You can get an idea of what she was talking about if you watch _ **I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang** _ with Paul Muni (and, I think, _ **Bonnie and Clyde** _). ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/37 "2018-02-08T18:45:46Z")
Of course nowadays, a California burger is a burger with slices of avocado on it. When I worked at Edwards AFB in the '80s, one day I ordered a cheeseburger with avocado. The woman at the counter said, ‘You must be from California.’ (A strange thing to say, since we were _in_ California.) I said I was, and asked her how she knew. ‘Because only Californians put avocados on their sandwiches.’ (Again, this was in the '80s – when one woman at the O-Club looked at the big bowl of guacamole and had to ask how it’s supposed to be eaten, and a coworker from Iowa pronounced ‘tortilla’ as ‘tor-tilly-a’.) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/38 "2018-02-08T18:52:44Z")
I think California burgers were sometimes referred to as “triple deckers” too, but I don’t recall them having a slice of bun in the middle like Big Macs do. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/39 "2018-02-08T21:36:51Z")
As far as I can tell, my idea that Big Macs used to be bigger is based on two things: 1. I used to be smaller. 2. They always make it look big on TV. Perhaps this is the same for others. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2018, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378/40 "2018-02-09T00:25:49Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > The smallest burger today is Sonic. Smaller than White Castle? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-big-mac-actually-big-in-the-us/808378.md?page=3)