In April 2017, I did my first burger pop-up as the Burger Beast Burger Cart at my Burger Museum. My smash burger was and continues to be inspired by the burgers first cooked by White Castle co-founder Walt Anderson in 2016.
Who would have known that burger pop-ups would officially be a thing all over the U.S. five years later? It seems like just yesterday that burger food trucks were the rage.
Most burger popups seem to be inspired by the Oklahoma Fried Onion Burger, or OKC Burger, popularized by the Burger Scholar, George Motz. However, in my neck of the woods, folks are beginning to add another regional specialty, the Frita Cubana, to their pop-up menus.
If your favorite kind or style of burger sandwich does not exist in pop-up form yet, give it some time. Before you know it, there will be every kind of burger imaginable. I’m waiting on a Patty Melt pop-up!
There will probably even be some kind of vegan burger pop-up, and that’s when we’ll know this revolutionary trend has jumped the shark 😂
Burger Pop-Ups in the U.S.
Am I missing any important ones? Let me know in the comments.