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Wendy's

Dave’s Single

  • Signature

The burger named after the founder, and the best measure of what Wendy’s does differently. The square patty is fresh beef rather than frozen, with cheese, crisp lettuce, tomato, pickles, raw onion, ketchup and mayo on a soft bun. The fresh toppings are the point: it tastes more like a burger from a diner than a drive-thru. Order it before the Baconator and you will understand the chain.

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The story

Dave Thomas opened Wendy’s in Columbus in 1969 selling a burger he called the Old Fashioned Hamburger: a square patty of fresh, never-frozen beef, big enough that the corners stuck out past the round bun so customers could see what they were getting. Thomas died in 2002, and the chain renamed the burger in his honour — briefly as Dave’s Hot ’N Juicy in 2011, then simply Dave’s Single from 2013. The square patty and the fresh beef are the two things Wendy’s has never been willing to change.

What’s inside

Make it at home

There is no copycat of the Dave’s Single yet. Until there is, these recipes on the site come closest to it, judged by what goes into the bun.

Similar burgers at other chains

Built around the same things as the Dave’s Single.

More from Wendy's

About Wendy's

  • United States
  • Since 1969
  • $

Dave Thomas opened the first Wendy’s in Columbus, Ohio, in November 1969 and named it after his daughter Melinda, whose childhood nickname was Wendy. His big idea was that fast food did not have to mean frozen and flavourless, and his most visible idea was the square patty: the corners stick out past the round bun so you can see the beef, and the company still repeats his line that Wendy’s does not cut corners.

Around 7,000 restaurants, most of them in the United States, and a growing presence in the UK.

The full Wendy's burger menu and story →

Not affiliated with Wendy's. Trademarks belong to their owners.