We compared Burger King restaurants in the UK and the US. We noticed a few key differences but still see why it's an international hit.

Erin McDowell,Mikhaila FrielFeb 16, 2024, 21:36 IST

Business Insider reporters located in the UK and the US compared popular Burger King menu items, restaurant designs, and the overall experience.Erin McDowell/Business Insider; Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

We visited two Burger King locations: one in Glasgow, UK, and another in New York City.
Our US-based reporter was impressed by Burger King's large portion sizes and spicy chicken sandwich.

Burger King famously claimed in one of its slogans that at the chain, you can "have it your way" — but does "your way" differ depending on which country you're in?

We decided to visit two Burger King restaurants — one in the United States and one in the United Kingdom — to compare the taste and value of the same menu items, and to see which items are exclusive to each country. We also compared the interiors of the restaurants and the overall dining experience.

Here's how our Burger King experiences compared in the US and the UK.

The first Burger King restaurant opened in 1953 in Jacksonville, Florida.

A Burger King fast-food restaurant.Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images

During a weekday lunchtime in New York City, Burger King was busy. However, Erin was able to quickly place an order at one of the mobile kiosks.

The mobile ordering kiosks at the New York City Burger King.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Meanwhile, Mikhaila visited Burger King in a Glasgow shopping mall during the weekday lunchtime rush.

Burger King in Buchanan Galleries in Glasgow, Scotland.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

The New York City location had two levels. The stools by the windows downstairs were taken, so Erin went to the upstairs dining room, which was decorated with balloons.

The dining room inside the New York City Burger King.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

There weren't any decorations in the Glasgow location, which was on a single floor.

The Burger King interior in Glasgow, Scotland.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

Erin ordered a medium Whopper with cheese meal, an original chicken sandwich, a four-piece chicken nugget, and a spicy crispy chicken sandwich at the New York location.

The spread of food from the New York City Burger King.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

In Glasgow, Mikhaila ordered a Whopper with cheese meal, a six-piece chicken nugget, a chicken sandwich, and a veggie bean burger.

Mikhaila's food order at Burger King in the UK.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

We compared the chicken nuggets at both locations.

The Burger King chicken nugget in the US.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Mikhaila thought the nuggets were tender and full of flavor.

A chicken nugget from Burger King UK.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

We also both ordered a classic Whopper with cheese meal with fries.

The Whopper with cheese at the US location.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Mikhaila's Whopper with cheese was less expensive.

The Whopper with cheese in the UK.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

In the US, the Whopper came with one flame-grilled beef patty, cheese, lettuce, tomato, sliced onions, pickles, and mayonnaise on a sesame-seed bun.

The Whopper with cheese at the US location.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

The same burger in the UK had a generous amount of toppings, including four pickles, two slices of tomato, onion slices, and a slathering of cheese, lettuce, and ketchup.

The Whopper Burger at Burger King in the UK.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

The same burger in the UK had a generous amount of toppings, including four pickles, two slices of tomato, onion slices, and a slathering of cheese, lettuce, and ketchup.

We also compared the chain's original chicken sandwich in the US and the UK.

The original chicken sandwich at the US location.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

The same sandwich is called the Chicken Royale in the UK.

The chicken sandwich at Burger King in the UK.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

Both sandwiches came with the same basic ingredients, though we thought they looked surprisingly different.

The original chicken sandwich at the US location.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

The UK version of the sandwich was served on a seeded bun with chicken, lettuce, and a generous amount of mayo.

The chicken sandwich at Burger King in the UK.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

We also both decided to try menu items that were available in our own countries, but not the other.

The spicy chicken sandwich in the US.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

The spicy chicken sandwich — which was on the US menu — comes with a chicken breast coated in triple-pepper spicy glaze, savory sauce, lettuce, and tomatoes on a toasted potato bun.

The spicy chicken sandwich in the US.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

The spicy chicken sandwich — which was on the US menu — comes with a chicken breast coated in triple-pepper spicy glaze, savory sauce, lettuce, and tomatoes on a toasted potato bun.

Mikhaila ordered the spicy bean burger, which is available on Burger King's vegetarian menu in the UK, which doesn't exist in the US.

Burger King UK's spicy bean burger.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

The burger consisted of a plain seedless bun, a bean patty, cheese, two slices of tomato, ketchup, a handful of crispy onions, lettuce, and mayo.

Burger King UK's spicy bean burger.Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

We wish both menu items would be available in our countries.

The spicy chicken sandwich in the US and spicy bean burger in the UK.Erin McDowell/Business Insider; Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

We also both tried McDonald's medium-sized fries.

Burger King fries in the US and in the UK.Erin McDowell/Business Insider; Mikhaila Friel/Business Insider

We were surprised by how similar our experiences were but noticed a few key differences.

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We compared Burger King restaurants in the UK and the US. We noticed a few key differences but still see why it's an international hit.

The first Burger King restaurant opened in 1953 in Jacksonville, Florida.

During a weekday lunchtime in New York City, Burger King was busy. However, Erin was able to quickly place an order at one of the mobile kiosks.

Meanwhile, Mikhaila visited Burger King in a Glasgow shopping mall during the weekday lunchtime rush.

The New York City location had two levels. The stools by the windows downstairs were taken, so Erin went to the upstairs dining room, which was decorated with balloons.

There weren't any decorations in the Glasgow location, which was on a single floor.

Erin ordered a medium Whopper with cheese meal, an original chicken sandwich, a four-piece chicken nugget, and a spicy crispy chicken sandwich at the New York location.

In Glasgow, Mikhaila ordered a Whopper with cheese meal, a six-piece chicken nugget, a chicken sandwich, and a veggie bean burger.

We compared the chicken nuggets at both locations.

Mikhaila thought the nuggets were tender and full of flavor.

We also both ordered a classic Whopper with cheese meal with fries.

Mikhaila's Whopper with cheese was less expensive.

In the US, the Whopper came with one flame-grilled beef patty, cheese, lettuce, tomato, sliced onions, pickles, and mayonnaise on a sesame-seed bun.

The same burger in the UK had a generous amount of toppings, including four pickles, two slices of tomato, onion slices, and a slathering of cheese, lettuce, and ketchup.

We also compared the chain's original chicken sandwich in the US and the UK.

The same sandwich is called the Chicken Royale in the UK.

Both sandwiches came with the same basic ingredients, though we thought they looked surprisingly different.

The UK version of the sandwich was served on a seeded bun with chicken, lettuce, and a generous amount of mayo.

We also both decided to try menu items that were available in our own countries, but not the other.

The spicy chicken sandwich — which was on the US menu — comes with a chicken breast coated in triple-pepper spicy glaze, savory sauce, lettuce, and tomatoes on a toasted potato bun.

Mikhaila ordered the spicy bean burger, which is available on Burger King's vegetarian menu in the UK, which doesn't exist in the US.

The burger consisted of a plain seedless bun, a bean patty, cheese, two slices of tomato, ketchup, a handful of crispy onions, lettuce, and mayo.

We wish both menu items would be available in our countries.

We also both tried McDonald's medium-sized fries.

We were surprised by how similar our experiences were but noticed a few key differences.