Burger King has made the Whopper the cornerstone of its innovation.
The famous burger, which was actually launched about a decade before the McDonald’s Big Mac, offers a sort of blank canvas for innovation.
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At its core it’s a fairly simple burger. The iconic sandwich has a flame-grilled beef patty, sesame-seed bun, mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, pickles, ketchup, and sliced onion.
Any of those toppings can be swapped out to make something entirely new.
The chain has been very innovative in its use of the Whopper, which has really been the core of the chain’s “Reclaim the Flame” effort to redo its restaurants and change its reputation.
“By emphasizing operational excellence and investing in modern, welcoming restaurants, we’re setting the brand up for long-term success. Recent menu initiatives — such as the Addams Family Menu (featuring Wednesday’s Whopper), the Million Dollar Whopper campaign, and the Melts platform — have reinforced that guests crave innovation and high-quality food at a great price,” CEO Josh Kobza shared during the chain’s fourth-quarter earnings call.
Melts are Whoppers that use bread instead of a bun.
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Aside from introducing a Breakfast Whopper (although there have been limited-time-offer Breakfast Melts), Burger King has done nearly everything imaginable with its signature sandwich. Now, it has added a new version of the classic to one of its menus, but not in the United States yet.
Burger King has released numerous Whopper variants over the past few years.
Image source: Shutterstock
Japan adds new “Mexican” Whopper
Restaurant Brands International’s (QSR) Burger King in Japan has often added menu items that would seem out of place in the United States. Sometimes the chain uses ingredients that are popular locally but have not crossed over to the chain’s home market.
In this case, the “Home of the Whopper” has added a new variant of the famour burger in Japan that seems like it would fit in immediately on the American menu.
The chain’s Japanese operations shared a Tweet on the new burger (translated from Japanese).
The “Mexican Avocado Whopper” is now on sale!
The “Avocado Whopper” combines flame-grilled 100% beef and creamy avocado, and is finished with “New Mexican Flakes” made from 12 spices that have been improved with the addition of jalapeno!
Please enjoy this spicy, authentic avocado burger!
#BurgerKing
This is not the first time Burger King has sold a “Mexican” Whopper in Japan. Earlier versions of this burger, in single, double, and cheese versions, were offered in 2023 and 2024.
The chain has not yet brought the offering to its U.S. stores.
Burger King has been strong globally
Burger King faced some franchisee-related struggles in the U.S. in 2024, but its global business has been growing steadily.
“Shifting now to international, which continues to be a strong growth engine, [we are] closing the year with over 15,600 restaurants and over $18 billion in system-wide sales, approximately 60% of which was driven by our top 10 markets. We feel very good about the relative performance of our international business versus our global peers,” Kobza said.
Overall, Burger King’s restaurants have been performing well.
“In 2024, international comparable sales grew 3.3%, including 4.7% growth in the fourth quarter. We saw solid growth in many of our largest markets, including Australia, Spain, the U.K., and Brazil, thanks to well-executed calendar initiatives, compelling core value offerings, and great restaurant-level execution,” he added.
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The chain has also been adding restaurants.
“We achieved net restaurant growth of 6.1%, despite temporary headwinds from geopolitical pressures in certain markets, as well as net closures in BK China. While we don’t have an update on BK China today, we’re optimistic we’ll have a resolution relatively soon,” he added.
