Burger King Announces $200 burger, 200 More Reasons To Regret Eating British Food

I know I’m late to the party on this one, but Burger King in the UK has announced a nearly $200 burger.  “The Burger” is only available once a week at Burger King’s West London location.  If you can get past the idea of spending $200 to eat in a Burger King, “The Burger” is flame grilled Wagyu beef, topped with Pata Negra ham and white truffles, served on a white truffle flour bun dusted with Iranian saffron.  Condiments include Cristal onion straws, balsamic vinegar from Modena, lambs lettuce, pink Himalayan rock salt, and organic white wine and shallot infused mayonnaise.   The only question I have is which kind of magic marker they use to add the grill marks.

“The Burger” represents one unfortunate dining trend, the gratuitous upscaling of common foods.  I’ll pay extra for good quality, local beef in a burger.  I can realize the benefits of a good bun.  Bacon is always a welcome addition, even if I pay a few bucks for it.  All those things make a difference, but at some point, the value of the difference diminishes when talking about individual components - can you taste the difference between good bacon and really good bacon when it’s covered in ketchup and mayonnaise?  But more to the point, is Wagyu beef prepared by Burger King’s grill jockey going to taste that much better?