On the evening of 28 November, surrounded by his loved ones, at the age of 98 years died Michael James "Jim" Delligatti - the man who created not just the most popular Burger on the planet- the Big Mac, you can tell he came up with one of the symbols of the era (positive or negative - that's another story).
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After returning from the fields of the World War II, where he rose to the rank of sergeant, James decided to start the restaurant business. He was one of the first entrepreneurs who started to work under the franchise of McDonald's, and developed a chain of restaurants in Pittsburgh.
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Other eateries under franchise always strictly abide by the main menu of the brand, not trying to change something, but Delligatti sought to diversify the list of offered dishes and to invent something new. So, in 1967 he created the Big Mac, as a main competitor to a similar hamburger at “Big Boy” restaurants… in the end the Big Mac left his competitor far behind.
A year later, in 1968, the Big Mac sold almost in the all states, eventually becoming an icon of America, in our day is synonymous with McDonald's, which has conquered the world. It is the most famous Burger in the world, which recipe included in the cookbook along with the national dishes of other countries.
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Originally, Jim suggested to call burger "Blue Ribbon Burger" or "Aristocrat", but the first name in the nineteenth century staked out beer brand Pabst, and the second seemed to the visitors too complicated and awkward to pronounce. The name "big Mac" offered the 21-year-old Secretary from the marketing Department in the headquarters of McDonald's Corporation in oak brook, although in the beginning it was not so Big as it is now.
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The main feature of the big Mac, which has gained such popularity, was its construction: Jim added a third bun in the middle, which prevented the Burger to fall apart. And the main secret of taste, in addition to the best products, was the so-called "secret sauce". The first big Macs were prepared with buns of standard size from the hamburgers and cheeseburgers, but Jim decided on risk and ordered buns with biggest size, that made the Big Mac taste even better and more popular. Also added a topping of sesame seeds, which became a brand (the average number of seeds on one loaf – 178).
Obviously, that today the Big Mac is hardly enjoys the same popularity like before and is considered junk food, after all the ingredients used for its production are not as natural as 50 years ago. However, it is undeniable that this is one of the most famous products of McDonald's and is known all over the world, not one generation to tasted it and seriously addicted.
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"Funny" index
But perhaps the most interesting achievement of the Big Mac is the eponymous index. Since 1986 the "Economist" magazine began to use it to measure purchasing power in different countries. At first it was used as a joke, but today it is quite common and convenient method. The index allows to estimate the real value of a currency with the exception of market speculation and external factors and understand how undervalued the currency of a country relative to others.
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Why did journalists use the big Mac? It's very simple, it consists of a sufficient number of food products of first necessity: bread, meat, vegetables and dairy products (cheese), and its price in each country depends on the cost of raw materials, labor, rental of production. Therefore, it is a single universal product, the price of which greatly simplifies the calculation and understanding of the purchasing power of the population.
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The exchange rate is calculated very simple, For example, if a set of the same products in Germany costs 10 Euro and in great Britain - 5 pounds, then their ratio should be 2:1 i.e. a fair exchange rate of 2 euros for 1 pound.
In this index the set of products is a Big Mac, so if in the UK a Big Mac costs 2.50 and in Germany 4 euros, we get a ratio of 1:2,25- for one pound you have to pay 2.25 euros.
You can watch the official rate of this pair on the exchange and to understand overvalued or undervalued the currency. If the exchange for 1 pound you get 3 euros, so the Euro is undervalued according to the Big Mac index.
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The index has become an international standard and has been included in several economic textbooks, also on the basis of it were held at least 20 studies that have confirmed the reliability of the assessment. Thanks to Big Mac no need to collect extensive statistical data on the cost of products and their manufacture, to calculate the average cost of the food basket for the entire country.
secret sauce
And lastly, the original recipe of the Big Mac, where the secret sauce is already not a secret, because McDonald's was forced to disclose it. The phrase "special sauce" was first used in 1974 when the United States aired a commercial for McDonald's, which lists the products included in the "Big Mac".
R.I.P. Jim Delligatti
I have no idea but I am genuinely curious if he had thoughts on that release of the Grand Mac or Mac Jr as well as the news that they are going to change up or add something to the special sauce. Or did he watch Super Size Me and had hated himself since lol. Really sad news though of any passing, he definitely changed the game and I have amazing memories of being a kid and it being the first "adult" burger I was onto after Happy Meals.
I think, he was very happy with its original recipe, no wonder that it unchanged for so long.
Interesting post. I wonder if McDonalds would let a franchisee get away with creating a different menu item today. Seems they should though. Good to be reminded of the Big Mac Index.
I think they will allow to add new things in different countries, but with maintaining main dishes, and will not let to change recipes of tested burgers, like the Big Mac.