The Whopper sandwich, Burger King's signature product. When the predecessor of Burger King first opened in Jacksonville in 1953, its menu consisted predominantly of basic hamburgers, French fries, soft drinks, milkshakes and desserts. After being acquired by its Miami, Florida, franchisees and renamed to its current moniker in 1954, BK began expanding the breadth of its menu by adding the Whopper sandwich in 1957. This quarter-pound (Template:Convert) hamburger was created by Burger King's new owners James McLamoreand David Edgerton as a way to differentiate BK from other burger outlets at the time. Since its inception, the Whopper has become synonymous with Burger King, and has become the focus of much of its advertising.[84] The company even named its new kiosk-style restaurants Whopper Bars.
As the company expanded both inside and outside the US, it introduced localized versions of its products that conform to regional tastes and cultural or religious beliefs. International variations add ingredients such asteriyaki or beetroot and fried egg to the Whopper; beer in Germany, Italy and Spain; and halal or kosherproducts in the Middle East and Israel. To generate additional sales, BK will occasionally introduce limited time offers (LTOs) that are versions of its core products, or new products intended for either long or short term sales. Items such as the Texas Double Whopper and various sandwiches made with mushroomsand Swiss cheese have been rotated in and out of its menu for several years, while products such as its 1993 Meatloaf Specialty Sandwich offering and accompanying limited table service, along with special dinner platters, failed to generate interest and were discontinued.