Hamburger

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A delicious treat made of one or more meat patties and possible condiments between two bread buns.

"Mmm-mmm, that is a tasty burger!"

 Mmm-Mmm!
 Mmm-Mmm!
  • Perhaps one of the most famous hamburger references in film, Samuel L. Jackson's Pulp Fiction character Jules says this while tasting a soon-to-be murdered drug dealer. It's unclear whether Jules really enjoys the Big Kahuna burger, or is just putting on a show for the people he's about to shoot. He does, however, mention that his girlfriend (who we never meet in the film) is a vegetarian, making him a vegetarian. He washes down the Big Kahuna burger with a tasty Sprite.
  • The Big Kahuna burgers also make an appearance in Reservoir Dogs and in Robert Rodriguez's From Dusk till Dawn. The Big Kahuna burger is also featured in Death Proof as a sponsor for Jungle Julia's billboard in Death Proof, in Robert Rodriguez's Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D, Quentin Tarantino's segment in Four Rooms and in a scene from Romy and Michele's High School Reunion.
  • Another reference to burgers in Pulp Fiction happens when Jules and Vincent are in the car and Vincent describes his recent trip to Europe. While there, he went to a French McDonald's, where he found that the Quarter Pounder with Cheese is called the Royale with Cheese.
 

The 1980s-90s and the Great Burger Craze

Sinbad Loves Him Some McDonalds
Sinbad Loves Him Some McDonalds
The 1990s was a weird time for family film and fast food restaurants. It was the prime time for McDonald's and other fast food chains, and Hollywood cashed in. We'd see Shaquille O'Neal chomping down on a Big Mac, and Sinbad running furiously to order everything on the menu at McDonalds. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. 
 
Even in the dystopian future, McDonalds is King. In the 1997 hit The Fifth Element, we see a future cop pulling into an airborne McDonalds drive through. The chain boasts a staggering "65 Trillion Served." 
 
Perhaps the most blatant showing of McDonalds pride is the 1988 bomb Mac and Me. An E.T. knock-off, Mac and Me was more or less a feature length commercial for such corporations as Sears, Sprite, and McDonalds.   
 
And who can forget Good Burger? While Kel Mitchell's horrifying character Ed still haunts us, this movie turned out to be kind of popular. While the Good Burger is struggling to stay in business, the Mondo Burger behemoth moves into town to turn off the mom and pop's lights. Good Burger sits next to Spice World at mid-to-late 1990s films that, for some reason, were made when they shouldn't have been.
  

The Best Burger in New York

 The Best Burger in New York!
 The Best Burger in New York!
One of the most dedicated conversations on the hamburger was seen on the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother, Season 4, Episode 2 in 2008: The Best Burger in New York. When Marshall first moved to New York City (with Ted) his first walk around the city had him at what he thought was the best burger in New York. Years later, in the middle of a mid-life crisis, he has the need to find the burger joint yet again. With the help of the rest of his group (and Regis Philbin), they set out for the burger joint. Multiple burgers later, they find it, and also realize Marshall is breaking down under the pressure of his corporate job. The burger helps, though.
 
In describing* the Best Burger in New York, Marshall says: 

Just a Burger? Just a burger. Robin, it’s so much more than "just a burger." I mean…that first bite—oh, what heaven that first bite is. The bun, like a sesame freckled breast of an angel, resting gently on the ketchup and mustard below, flavors mingling in a seductive pas de deux. And then…a pickle! The most playful little pickle! Then a slice of tomato, a leaf of lettuce and a…a patty of ground beef so exquisite, swirling in your mouth, breaking apart, and combining again in a fugue of sweets and savor so delightful. This is no mere sandwich of grilled meat and toasted bread, Robin. This is God, speaking to us through food.    

* Marshall channels Antonio Salieri's description of Mozart's work (with the backdrop of the composer's Serenade No. 10 in B-Flat) from the Best Picture Academy Award winner Amadeus.
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