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mcdonald's hamburger, fries, and drink on a tray
McDonald's hamburgers are famous, but you might not know these interesting facts about them.Patcharaporn Puttipon2465/Shutterstock

The first McDonald's restaurant was not a burger restaurant.

ray kroc
Founder and chairman of McDonald's Corporation, Ray Kroc, stands outside one of his franchises, holding a hamburger and a drink.Bettman/Getty Images

The McDonald brothers ran a small restaurant in San Bernardino, California, in the year 1954.

Hot dogs were the most famous item on the first McDonald's Bar-B-Q menu. In 1948, the McDonald brothers changed the concept to become a burger restaurant and reduced the offerings to just nine items: hamburgers, cheeseburgers, soft drinks, milk, coffee, potato chips, and a slice of pie.

Potato chips were replaced with french fries in 1949.

The restaurant had a self-service counter so there was no need for people to work at it. Customers received their food in record time because the burgers were cooked ahead of time, wrapped in paper, and kept warm under a heat lamp.

The efficiency of the restaurant made him want in. He was the first McDonald's franchisee agent.

You could get a burger for 15 cents in 1948.

mcdonalds old
On the sign is "Speedee" McDonald's original chef logo.David McNew/Getty Images

A burger at the original McDonald's cost just 15 cents, before Ray Kroc changed the company and founded McDonald's in 1955.

McDonald's has sold hundreds of billions of burgers.

mcdonald's employee burgers
A McDonald's employee preparing burgers.Nir Elias / Reuters

McDonald's has promoted its burger sales in its advertising. Seven years after the McDonald brothers reopened their barbecue stand as a burger joint, McDonald's claimed that it had sold over 15 million burgers.

According to the Wall Street Journal, McDonald's sold its 300 billionth burger around 2013.

McDonald's reported that it made $112 billion in 2021, with sales up 13.8% in the United States. A lot of burgers.

The Big Mac sold for 45 cents.

big mac 1977
Product shot of a McDonald's Big Mac hamburger in 1977.Henry Groskinsky/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images

The first Big Mac-esque sandwich was created by Jim Delligatti of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1967, but it wouldn't be released nationwide until 1968. There were two beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, and onions on a sesame-seed bun.

Esther Glickstein Rose, a 21-year-old secretary for the company, came up with the name Big Mac.

big mac
McDonald's Big Mac.AP Photo/Diether Endlicher

Executives and other employees laughed at the name. It became one of the best-known product names of all time.

Rose came up with the name, but McDonald's Corp. finally recognized him in 1985.

McDonald's sells 75 hamburgers every second.

McDonalds coronavirus employee mask
A McDonald's employee handing a customer their bag of food.Liam McBurney/PA Images via Getty Images

According to USA Today, the company sold roughly 75 burgers every second in the year.

A hamburger from Mcdonalds can be a good source of calories.

McDonald's hamburger
McDonald's hamburger.Andrew LaSane

25% of your daily value of protein can be found in a Mcdonald's hamburger. There are some McDonald's menu items that are healthier than others.

The plain burger is only 250 calories, and it's not high in salt, according to Bonnie Taub-Dix.

The first Happy Meal included a hamburger, small fries, and a small sundae.

happy meal
This October 13, 2010 photo shows a McDonald's Happy Meal complete with a "Star Wars" toy.KAREN BLEIER/AFP/Getty Images

The original idea for the Happy Meal is said to have come from a McDonald's employee. The meal deal was developed to cater to kids.

McDonald's first Happy Meal was nationwide in 1979. The first one had a circus theme. Bob Bernstein introduced the idea of replacing the small sundae with a plastic toy.

In an effort to be more eco-friendly, McDonald's plans to eliminate plastic toys from its Happy Meal in 2021.

The company said in a statement that it will reduce fossil fuel-based plastic in Happy Meal toys by about 90 percent.

The original article can be found on Insider.

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