Luther Burger — United States

The Luther Burger, also called a donut burger, replaces the usual bread bun with a glazed donut cut or split in half, so a savory beef patty ends up sandwiched between two rings of sweet, sugared dough instead of bread. It circulates in the United States mainly as a novelty item, showing up at fairs, food trucks and the occasional diner or sports bar menu rather than as a fixture of everyday cooking, and it is frequently discussed for how far it pushes calories, fat, sugar and salt into a single sandwich. A beef patty is seasoned and grilled or griddled like an ordinary burger, bacon is cooked until crisp, and cheese is melted over the patty near the end of cooking. The donuts are lightly warmed on their cut sides on the same griddle, then the patty, cheese and bacon are stacked between the two donut halves in place of a bun. The main point of variation is what goes inside the donut — some versions keep it to just patty and cheese, others add bacon or a fried egg — while swapping bread for a glazed donut as the bun is the constant that defines the dish across the ways it is put together.